In print

Food, Inc.: Mendel to Monsanto - the promises and perils of the biotech harvest

By Peter Pringle
Published by Simon & Schuster
Website: www.simonsays.com
2003, 237pp, ISBN 0 7432 2611 9(Hb), US$24.00

To be or not to be...GM? That is arguably the most important question facing policy makers and practitioners concerned with agriculture. The answer will surely influence how science proceeds. And the consequences? Well, that's the problem, since no one knows with certainty and the debate is clouded with rhetoric and hidden agendas. Food, Inc. is a very welcome attempt to present the arguments for and against genetic modification rationally and, equally important, in a comprehensible form that is a pleasure to read. The author sums up his purpose with the first sentence of his introduction: "This book is for those who still have an open mind about genetically modified foods. Those who have already decided what to think should stop right here." The same applies to this review.

For those still reading, we unreservedly recommend Peter Pringle's lucid and attractive prose, with which he reviews the context in which GM technology must be considered, the arguments for and against GM, and the way GM and non-GM crop breeding may develop. The author also points out that, despite the rhetoric, we have seen neither the potential risks of GM varieties nor their promised potential realised. The business context is illustrated by the US$30 billion spent by Monsanto, Novartis and Dupont on acquiring agricultural biotech countries between 1995-98, and the attempts by these agchem giants to claim broad-based patents on a range of living material. This is best illustrated by the legal wrangle over a US company's attempts to patent basmati rice. It is no wonder that such moves have generated suspicion and hostility in many countries, where activists have campaigned against what they have termed "biopiracy".

The author maintains his balance throughout this concise book. On the one hand he criticises the protagonists of GM: "In many ways the biotech industry and the US government had only themselves to blame. Since the beginning, while the industry claimed their products would save the world from malnutrition, seed companies created only crops that made money for themselves and the wealthier farmers who could afford the premiums." But he also exposes the contradictions in the arguments of those who refer to "biopiracy" and "Frankenfoods" when he asks whether everyone who grows maize outside Mexico or cassava outside Latin America is not equally benefiting from plants that originated elsewhere. And he suggests that, "GM groceries are no more Frankenfoods than a person with a transplanted heart is today's Frankenstein."

Food, Inc. also looks at a largely unheralded plant breeding revolution that is taking place in parallel to GM as, with new knowledge of plant genomes, plant breeders are getting improvements in plant productivity by conventional breeding. Some of these improvements in yield, disease resistance and other characteristics surpass GM varieties, and at much less cost. Overall, Food, Inc. is a 'must read' for anyone concerned with and about food production...and who still has an open mind on GM.

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Cultivating biodiversity: understanding and using agricultural diversity

Edited by Harold Brookfield et al.
Published by ITDG
Email: marketing@itpubs.org.uk
Website: www.itdgpublishing.org.uk
2002, 304pp, ISBN 1 85339 493 9(Pb), £12.95

The importance of protecting agricultural biodiversity is widely recognised, if not yet a mainstream part of agricultural development programmes. In the context of global warming, for example, preserving plant genetic diversity is key, if plant breeding is to be able to respond to new challenges. But how is this protection of crop diversity to be achieved? Much of the diversity exists in marginal areas, which have not been turned over to monocropping and high yielding varieties, but clearly farmers in these areas cannot be expected to preserve that diversity on behalf of the global community. Unless of course, such preservation could itself offer a path to improved productivity and development. One of the central arguments of this book is that it can.

Since the early 1990's the United Nations University's People, Land Management and Environmental Change (PLEC) project has been studying what is termed 'agrodiversity' in farming systems across the world. (See Taking a closer look at agrobiodiversity).This goes beyond just diversity in crop species, also considering the diversity of farm management practices, the natural diversity of the physical environment, and the organisational diversity in farmers' allocation of resources and labour. The research has taken place at different scales, from individual farmers, to communities and wider regions, in each case analysing the link between agrodiversity and sustainable productivity. This important book presents findings from the project. It includes technical discussion of how agrodiversity can be assessed, how the project studied farmer expertise and indigenous knowledge, and case studies from around the world. It sets out to prove not only that the goals of environmental protection and human development can overlap, but also that preserving agro-biodiversity must be seen in the wider context of whole agro-ecosystems, and the lives of the people who manage them.

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Dangerous liaisons? When cultivated plants mate with their wild relatives

By Norman C. Ellstrand
Published by Johns Hopkins University Press
Website: www.press.jhu.edu
2003, 244pp, ISBN 0 8018 7405 X(Hb), £48

'A warm, golden afternoon in the south of France is a perfect time and place for romance - especially for a wild beet.' An unlikely start, perhaps, for a serious study of what can happen when crops breed with wild plants, a subject of huge current importance for decisions being made about GM crop releases. It reveals a writer who is not only fascinated by his subject, but is determined to pass that fascination on to his readers. Ellstrand sets the GM issues in the context of what is already known about the consequences of gene transfer between traditionally bred crops and their wild relatives. 'The case of the bolting beets', when northern European sugar beet became infested with beet plants that went to seed instead of producing useful roots, is an example of how disasters can occur even without the involvement of GM varieties.

On the question of superweeds, the author is in no doubt that such a risk is real, citing the experience of canola (oilseed rape) farmers in Alberta, Canada, who have already had to modify their weed management to cope with herbicide resistance. Controlling weeds has, in their case, become more complex, and more dependent on information, record-keeping and knowledge of herbicide groups. Large scale growers have managed to implement changes, but those farming smaller areas are, it appears, less able to keep up. In general, Ellstrand suggests that gene flow between transgenic plants and wild ones is not without risks, and that these could demand financially significant changes in management. Dangerous liaisons is a highly topical and well written contribution to the GM debate, providing the non-expert reader with a much clearer picture of what is known, and what is not known, about the risks of gene transfer to wild plants.

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Beyond drought: people, policy and perspectives

Edited by Linda Courtenay Botterill and Melanie Fisher
Published by CSIRO Publishing
Email: publishing.sales@csiro.au
Website: www.publish.csiro.au
Available in Europe from: orders@eurospan.co.uk
2003, 244pp, ISBN 0643069542(Pb), Aus$39.95

'To a large extent, the history of agriculture in Australia', writes Linda Courtenay Botterill, 'has been characterised by our efforts to turn this dry country with its poor, ancient soils into another Europe.' In the European mind, droughts are rare and random events, disasters that can only be reacted to, usually with relief programmes. In Australia, however, drought is increasingly being recognised as a normal part of the climate, and since 1989 this has been reflected in the development of a new drought policy, one that seeks to achieve a shift from crisis management, typically by government, to risk management, particularly by rural communities. Much of Beyond drought is focussed on the Australian experience, but its intention of stimulating reasoned discussion about how the country's farmers can live with an unpredictable climate, has a much wider relevance. With drought increasingly common in many areas, a change in focus from reaction and relief to mitigation and preparedness is clearly essential.

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Genes for Africa: Genetically modified crops in the developing world

By Jennifer A Thomson
Published by University of Cape Town Press
Website: www.juta.co.za
2002, 192pp, ISBN 1 919 713573(Pb), Rand 120

Jennifer Thomson's contribution to the GM debate, whether as a conference speaker or writer, is extremely welcome, not least for its down-to-earth informality, clarity and enthusiasm. She is a firm believer that genetic technologies can make a vital contribution to Africa's future food security and prosperity, and is clearly frustrated by the 'trial by media' that she perceives is holding back their development. Not surprising therefore that in Genes for Africa she has pitched her response towards the lay-people, targets of 'the media', whose attitudes towards GM foods are so critical in determining the future of the technology. She begins by explaining the basics of plant breeding and genetic modification, and then considers the advantages and reservations expressed about the first generation of GM crops. This includes an interesting update on the impact of Bt maize on Monarch butterflies, one of the best known GM 'horror stories'. In another section she gives her perspective on some of the common fears about biotechnology, such as the danger of poor farmers becoming dependent on commercial biotech companies, and the concern that GM crops may accelerate the trend towards fewer crop varieties. Her answers will not convince everyone, but for those wanting an unpretentious case for GM crops, particularly in the context of developing countries, Genes for Africa is recommended.

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Integrated livestock-fish farming systems

By DC Little and P Edwards
Published by FAO
Website: www.fao.org/icatalog/inter-e.htm
2003, 177pp, ISBN 92 5 105055 4(Pb), $32

The integration of livestock and fish production is booming in parts of East and South East Asia, with livestock wastes continuing to be used as a source of feed even in intensive aquaculture systems. This overview of fish-livestock systems aims to draw on the evolution and current status of such systems in Asia, to provide a technical basis for considering their relevance in other parts of the world, particularly Africa and Latin America. Thus it describes the main types of integrated system in Asia, including integration with agro-industry, and analyses four of their key aspects: environmental aspects, such as nutrient recycling; design criteria for livestock-manured ponds; public health considerations; and social and economic considerations. This is followed by an analysis of the transferability of the Asian experience to other parts of the world. Intended primarily for policy makers, planners, NGOs and senior research and extension staff, the book benefits from excellent presentation and clearly written text.

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Community integrated pest management in Indonesia: institutionalising participation and people centred approaches

By Mansour Farik, Toto Rahardjo and Michel Pimbert
Published by IIED and IDS
Email: iied@earthprint.com
Website: www.earthprint.com
2003, 162pp, ISBN 1 84369 485 9(Pb), $36

Since its introduction in 1986, the adoption of integrated pest management through farmer field schools has spread to over 1 million rice farmers in Indonesia. It might be expected that such 'scaling up' of a successful practice would require a high level policy. One of the key lessons in this account however, is that participatory approaches to development can be institutionalised by the participants themselves, given a supportive environment. In this case, national policies that placed a new emphasis on civil society and decentralisation allowed farmer groups and associations to develop their own organisational and advocacy functions, and thereby bring about pro-farmer policy changes at local government level. As well as examining both positive and negative impacts of national and local policy on community IPM, the study also looks at the social and environmental impacts of community IPM in a variety of settings, and how the farmer-centred approach has led to organisational changes in government bureaucracies, and other support agencies.

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Cotton facts

By M. Rafiq Chaudhry and Andrei Guitchounts
Published by Common Fund for Commodities and International Cotton Advisory Committee
Email: publications@icac.org
Website: www.icac.org
2003, 158pp, ISBN 0 9704918 3 2(Hb), $20

This compilation of facts about cotton is intended as a reference guide to the plant, its production and marketing. Thus it is not a practical manual on either how to grow cotton, or how to process or sell it. Nor does it attempt to collate the latest findings from cotton research. The authors remark that deciding which facts to leave in and which to omit was a difficult task. Perhaps some of the most useful material included are the many definitions of terms used within the industry, in effect, a number of detailed jargon-busting glossaries. These will allow, for example, those involved in the production stages, to understand something about the shipping or trading of cotton. Those who only deal in weaving and spinning can find out essential facts about the structure of the plant, or the pests that afflict it. Other sections deal with fibre quality, pricing and price risk management, and the functions of various international cotton organisations. The following link provides more information and example pages: www.icac.org/icac/cotton_info/publications/cotton_facts/english.html

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Weed management for developing countries Addendum 1

Edited by R Labrada
Published by FAO
Website: www.fao.org/icatalog/inter-e.htm
2003, 277pp, ISBN 92 5 105019 8(Pb), $60

This update to FAO's original 'Weed management for developing countries' reflects recent progress in weed control on a number of fronts. Two opening papers emphasise the importance of weed ecology in understanding how to tackle weed problems. They discuss protocols for assessing weed seed banks, and tools for analysing weed-crop competition. A third paper describes new work on weed risk-assessment, and the use of quarantine procedures to restrict spread of alien species. This is followed by a collection of studies covering recent progress in the control of some particular problem weed species. Each study gives basic information about the biological characteristics and economic importance of the weed, followed by a review of management options. An integrated approach to control, combining cultural, mechanical, chemical and sometimes biological methods, is often advised. Weed species covered include itchgrass, speargrass, the parasitic weeds orobanche and striga, water hyacinth, and wild rice. A final section of papers focus on particular management methods, including use of cover crops, and strategies to deal with herbicide resistance in weeds. Overall the papers provide a useful overview of current research. (For more information on weed control, see Focus on...Weeds).

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