New seeds and poor people / by Michael Lipton and Richard Longhurst

'Modern varieties' (MVS) of cereals, developed through plant genetics, currently add at least 50 million tons each year to Third World grain output. India, desperate for imports during 1965-67, now exports wheat in normal years. Yet most of Africa grobs few or no MVs. In Africa and South Asia, proverty continues to increase. How have MVs achieved so much yet so little? This book uses evidence from plant breeding, economics, and nutrition science to pinpoint what has been achieved, what has gone wrong, and what to do next.

The technical features of the MVS mean more employment, cheaper food and less risk for small farmers. Yet the gains bring new prob lems. By reducing crop diversity, successful but similar MVs increase the danger from pests. In areas unsuited to MVs, farmers often cannot compete. Workers are displaced as MV incomes help farmers to obtain weedi cides or threshers. MVS may enlarge cereal stocks, yet the hungry are too poor to buy. Meanwhile, some researchers fine-tune grain quality, rather than increase the yield, robust ness, or regional spread of MVs. Through it all, rural population-and labour supply continue to grow.

The authors conclude that technical break throughs alone social problems. Only new policies and new wont's solve deep-rooted research priorities-agrotechnical and socio economic will increase the choices, assets, and power of the rural poor.