Beyond Yield: Why Agricultural Output is Only Part of the Global Hunger Solution

by Drew Love

On October 31^st, 2011 the 7^th billion baby was born.  By century’s end, there are reports that there will be 10 billion people on earth.

One question comes to mind.

Can we feed all of those people?

Industrial agriculture presents one solution. Innovations in genetic engineering have produced crops that can tolerate new weather conditions created by climate change. Synthetic fertilizers and pesticides are heralded as miracles of productivity. A source no less prestigious than the Economist issued a report infavor of industrial agriculture as a means of solving global hunger.  

Yet strong counter arguments exist. Vandana Shiva, widely regarded as the most vocal and powerful critic of the green revolution*, notes that the long-term effect of switching to an industrial agriculture model has been crushing debt and the corollary rise in rural suicide rates amongst Indian farmers.

At the heart of the debate amongst industrial ag vs. alternative ag is the question of yield. If we are going to feed 7 billion plus people, we need to produce as much food as possible.

Yet, yield, is only part of the solution to global hunger.

Focusing exclusively on yield ignores many of the other factors that are critical to a sustainable agricultural system, such as nutrient density in the soil, and the ability of the agricultural system to retain top soil, if not actually add to that top soil. 

Moreover, yield alone doesn’t address the issue of food sovereignty, which is the issue of how much control a country, and it’s people, have over food production and food self-sufficiency.

And for a final review of putting the question of yield in its place, yield does not directly relate to hunger relief. 

Noted food author Raj Patel has joined the ranks of other hunger advocates, noting that even though there are 925 million hungry people in the world, the world currently produces enoughfood to feed everyone. It’s more a question of affordability and distribution, than it is yield.

So yes, yield is important. Yes, I will go into the different approaches to increasing agricultural yield. But before we have that discussion, it’s imperative to realize that the question of yield, and the question of how to feed the world, are related, but the latter is far more intricate than the former.

*The Green Revolution refers to technological and agricultural innovations that began in earnest during the 1960’s to increase global agricultural production.

Think Fast, Imagine 1.85 Billion Hands

Think Fast, Imagine 1.85 Billion Hands

by: Drew Love

Can you imagine my two hands? Of course you can. They look, by all accounts, similar to your two hands. Although I don’t trim my nails as often as I should, and I’m terrible at moisturizing. But for the most part, you can imagine what a pair of hands looks like.

What about your hands and my hands? The mental arithmetic becomes slightly more difficult, but not terribly so. Yet at some point, if we continue to add pairs of hands to this mental image, there comes a time when you reach the limit of your imagination. We can only imagine so many hands at a time, and it’s usually a very small number.

So if I ask you to imagine 1.85 billion hands, is it even worth the question?

And if I tell you that those 1.85 billion hands are a part of the 925 million people who went hungry last year, can we really understand the scope of that hunger? 

The challenging part is that even if we could understand the depth of that problem by reading a statistic, we would reach that understanding alone, most likely in front of our computers and in silence.

Now that’s depressing.

But there are better ways to understand the challenges we face. The most visceral form of learning is to go through an experience, not just read a statistic. The most empowering way to resolve a challenge is to do it with a sense of community, not in isolation.

So would you like to learn about hunger in the only way we can, by experiencing it? And would you like to learn about it in the only context that will ever create a solution, with a community?

We ask you to become part of that experience, part of that community, and part of the solution of reaching out to those 1.85 billion hands, so that 925 million people no longer have to go hungry.

Learn more about this experience: host your own Hunger Banquet and attend Boston's Action Corps Hunger Banquet this weekend. 

Boston Oxfam Action Corps World Food Day Training- October 16, 2011

The food movement, and other progressive movements, speak eloquently about the importance of “community.” But no matter how much ink is spilled over the issue, community is something that can only happen by people showing up.

So on Sunday, October 16^th, I decided to show up to the Boston Oxfam Action Corps training along with dozens of other people from the Massachusetts area.

What brought me there was a journey I started about two years ago while reading, volunteering, and interning for food justice projects.

There seemed to be plenty of bad things happening in the food system, and I wanted to do something about it. To name just a few:

·      Agriculture is a major contributor to climate change

·      About 33% of US Adults are obese, a problem strongly correlated to the food we eat

·      From seed sales to organic food production, power and ownership in the food system has become increasingly monopolized

And of course I could go on about all the bad stuff, but I showed up that Sunday to learn more about the good stuff.

Fortunately, I was far from the only one.

The round table introductions revealed a group of people who were born in all parts of the country and in some cases from other parts of the world. There were people in their early 20’s, and people in their 50’s and 60’s. There were different genders, races, ages, accents and viewpoints.

Yet we had all come there with a shared value. We knew it was important to create a just and sustainable food system.

We wanted to learn how that could be done.

Just one of the impressive projects we learned about was the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), an innovative approach to rice production that could increase yields by 50% while reducing water usage by half.

So you’d have to wonder what kind of fertilizer, pesticide, and/or multi million dollar machine could lead to these miraculous results.

And you’d have to keep on wondering because SRI is simply a method. The method is taught from one farmer to another, forming a global patchwork of farmer communities. These communities are bound by their shared livelihood, the shared educational experience of learning about SRI, and the shared benefits of living better, with a smaller footprint, on their own farms.

A similar sense of community came out of the Boston Oxfam Action Corp meeting that Sunday. Even though we began with introductions that revealed just how different we might be, we ended that workshop as a community of people brought together by shared values, and bonded through a shared experience.

That Sunday gave us the opportunity to create community, and as that community starts to flourish there is no doubt that it will make significant contributions to the food justice movement that Oxfam and so many others are dedicated to.

                                                                             -Drew Love

                                              Oxfam Action Corps Volunteer

GROW with Oxfam on World Food Day, October 16

The Boston Oxfam Action Corps is a group of people from diverse backgrounds who come together as volunteers to help Oxfam campaign and win policies that will help tackle hunger and poverty on a global scale.

Join us for a special gathering this World Food Day, October 16. Together with Oxfam's senior organizing staff, we will provide an afternoon training on Oxfam's new campaign on global hunger – GROW – dedicated to taking action for food, fairness and the future of our planet. This is a great opportunity for anyone who wants to learn more, meet other Oxfam supporters and get involved.

The training includes an optional dinner to celebrate World Food Day. We hope you can join us.

What: Free training for Oxfam supporters in the Boston area.

Topics: We will learn about the GROW campaign, share ideas and make plans to address global hunger through action with Oxfam Action Corps in Boston.

Who: You! Open to Oxfam supporters, members and leaders of allied organizations. Also feel free to bring friends who are equally committed to fighting hunger and poverty.

When: Sunday, October 16. The training is from 1:30-5:30pm. This will be followed by an optional dinner with tasty food and a chance to chat informally.

Where: Oxfam America's office – 226 Causeway St., 5th Floor, Boston, MA 02114.

Cost: Free. The training and dinner are free of charge. Bring yourself and come ready to participate!

RSVP: Please click here to RSVP online (or email me at boston@oxfamactioncorps.org). Specify whether you will attend the optional dinner and if you have any dietary restrictions. Please be sure any interested friends do the same.

For more information: If you have questions about the training, please contact Oxfam's Brittany Collins at bcollins@oxfamamerica.org and 617-517-9439.

This is a great opportunity to join a community of action with Oxfam in Boston. We hope to see you there!

Emily Hubbard and Christine Ellersick, Oxfam Lead Volunteer Organizers

What we've been up to...

We recently met with staffers at Congressman Markey and Capuano's offices (and sent a letter to Congressman Neal's office) to ask:

"Will your boss support ending tax credits to corn ethanol and cosponsor the Ethanol Subsidy Repeal Act (H.R. 2307) by Reps. Herger (R-CA) and Crowley (D-NY)?"

The response was positive, with staffers believing a reform would take place in the upcoming tax reform deal.

At Representative Markey's office, we were joined by local allies and constituents that represented Sustainable Arlington, Green Medford, Mass Climate Action Network and Environment Massachusetts.

Want to have your voice heard? Sign the online petition:
Corn should be food, not fuel.

NEW FACES & GROW CAMPAIGN

It's been a while since you last heard from us! We've been making transitions and working on new projects.

First, I'd like to introduce your new Oxfam Boston Action Corps Leaders : Emily Hubbard and Christine Ellersick. We're both thrilled to be a part of this fight for global justice!

We began this journey back in May where we joined other Action Corps leaders from across the country for Oxfam's annual Action Corps leader training in Washington, DC. The time that was spent engaging one another and learning about Oxfam's mission cannot be overlooked. However, most would agree that the most pivotal moment during the training was lobby day. On lobby day we visited Congressman Markey, Congressman Capuano, Senator Brown, and Senator Kerry's offices to express our hope that they will fully support President Obama's 2012 budget that provides essential funding for international programs like Feed the Future and the Global Agricultural Trust Fund. They were receptive and supportive. We hope this enthusiasm will reverberate in Congress!

Now we're back "on the ground." Oxfam has launched a global GROW campaign. The message is simple: The food system is broken. And as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton eloquently states, the issue is not whether we can end global hunger but whether we will. With this fire, we took to the Cambridgeport farmer's market on June 4th to spread awareness about the GROW campaign, where we had five volunteers and were approached by many who were interested in GROW's message.

Nearly one billion people are chronically hungry. Ironically, many of these hungry individuals are small farmers, farmers who don't have the means to cope with climate change and who don't have the bargaining power to demand fair prices for their goods. GROW draws our attention to these staggering facts and asks that we become part of the solution. With these efforts, and others, underway we hope that the answer to Secretary Clinton's query is a resounding "We will."

Want to get involved? E-mail us at boston@oxfamactioncorps.org

Oxfam Action Corps 2011 Recruitment

Hey Everyone,
Oxfam America is currently in the process of recruiting new volunteers for 2011-2012. If you are interested in joining the Oxfam Action Corps or if you know someone that might be interested, please spread the word and sign up by February 14th at http://www.oxfamactioncorps.org .
You will meet great people and work together to change laws that can save lives, defend the rights of women and farmers, and protect communities from climate change. You will gain leadership skills, have fun, and change the world!
Anybody can join the local effort! All levels of experience are welcome. You can also apply for Oxfam’s free four-day leadership training in Washington D.C.
This year, we will mobilize a political response to the urgent problem of global hunger. The women and men in poor countries who struggle to grow enough food to feed their families are facing competition for land and water, rising prices, and climate change. We will call for laws that support women and farmers, sustainable practices, and resilience to climate change, and ensure a better future for people in the poorest regions of the world.
This is a year-round volunteer opportunity, with a deadline of February 14 to apply for the spring training. Find out more and sign up at http://www.oxfamactioncorps.org .
Check out this video to see what we are all about: