Who will feed the Poor?
Himalayan Farmers Practicing Regenerative Agriculture at Kalimpong District of West Bengal India

Who will feed the Poor?

Attila Kokeny Still my question is unanswered; How can we call it regen ag by using chemical #pesticides and #fertilizer? I am reframing my question; Do we need a regenerative organic system in alternative to Industrial agriculture?

I understand your concern for farmers and the poor. Even Industrial agriculturists ask the same question around the world “who will feed the Poor?”

Broken Global Food System is the root cause of all problems. Between 691 and 783 million people faced hunger in 2022, with a mid-range of 735 million (FAO, 2023). While hunger and food security continue, an estimated 13 percent of the world’s food is lost in the supply chain from post-harvest prior to retail (FAO, 2022); a further 17 percent of food is wasted in households, food services and in retail (UNEP, 2021). Then there are various malpractices like food hoarding in cold storage. We must be concerned about war between nations, these wars will lead to food shortage. Food security to the nation is a leader's responsibility. Current geopolitical situation doesn’t look like our leaders are concerned about food security, rather they are focusing on fossil fuel.

All the leaders around the world are supporting the car industry at the moment. Policy makers are diverting the focus of farmers towards producing more fuel through agriculture instead of producing food. Poor will face a shortage of food because of wrong policies. Industrial farming will continue to prevail until a big movement will not grow to change these policies. Agriculture industry will be divided into two; Industrial agriculture systems and Regenerative organic systems. Industrial agriculture farmers will prefer to grow crops to serve the fuel industry and food security will come on the shoulders of regenerative agriculture farmers. 


Buckwheat Cultivated along with Black Cardomom at Kalimpong District of West Bengal India

In above photograph you can see, weeds are there along with Cardomom. Weed is controlled through weed management technologies. Here comes our role, we have to come at a conclusion where we need to define all the practices of regenerative organic farming. Use of Glyphosate can be part of agri-smart practices, it cannot be part of regenerative agriculture practices. Absence of proper guidelines, farmers may get confused and reforms to repair the food system will get set back. It is not good for farmer, consumer or planet health.

There may be fewer people in the world who are undernourished, there are many more people who are now malnourished. Regenerative agriculture, Vedic agriculture, Carbon farming, Organic farming or Natural farming are alternatives to Industrial farming to restore the degraded land and food security. Sorry to state that Industrial agriculture is a gift by the west to the rest of the world. Marginal farmers in Himalayan region of India are still practicing Vedic agriculture as they weren't able to afford to buy chemical pesticides and fertilizer. Now, they have the most fertile land in India. Many of them got organic certification and now they are reaping the good profit in the farming business. 

The  west has adopted industrial agriculture heavily, you may suggest farmers use Glyphosate to control weeds during the transition period when farmers switch from Industrial farming system to Regenerative organic farming system. There are many farmers who are not using Glyphosate in their farms, still get affected as their neighboring farmer might be using Glyphosate. Water from one farm to another passes by and leaves residue of herbicides or pesticides into the soil of neighboring farmland. Organic certification bodies cannot certify such farms organic. Organic certification provides farmers a better price to sell their products in the market. 

When we are concerned about farmers then we need to be concerned about consumers too. Today, consumers are demanding nutritious food irrespective of whether the food is vegetarian or non-vegetarian. Rather than consuming medicine, consumers prefer nourishment through food. 

Poor people may consume cheap food produced through industrial farming, they will eventually spend more by visiting doctors for various diseases. Not to mention, medical costs are making the poor poorer day by day. It's a vicious cycle of capitalism.

Weed Management Technologies in Organic Agriculture

The long-term use of herbicides has resulted in the development of herbicide resistance in the weeds. Large scale resistance to herbicides in Phalaris minor in Punjab and Haryana (state of India) has been troubling farmers and researchers. Synthetic herbicides, defoliants and desiccants are not permitted in organic systems. Unlike herbicide use in conventional farming, weed management in organic agriculture mainly relies on management techniques, both cultural and mechanical, developed to prevent infestation of weeds along with growing a vigorous crop which is able to compete with the weeds. While approaching effective weed management in an organic system, it is vital to reduce soil weed seedbank and crop-weed competition below threshold level. 

Multi-level Income for Marginal Farmers

Industrial agriculture depends mainly on annual cropping. Switching to Perennial Cropping & Agroforestry provides multi level income to farmers. It requires fewer inputs, less expensive, requires less labor, and provides multiple products and services on the farm.

Mix cropping of Mango Tree, Bamboo Plants & Rice at Pune District of Maharashtra India

A case study from India

Giving rural women the opportunity to participate in managed bamboo farming can empower them and the environment. Shomaa Designs has been working with rural women in India to plant and care for bamboo for over five years. Shomaa Designs has helped women to form bamboo collectives, which provide them with access to training, markets, and other resources. It has been working with rural women to promote the use of Bamboo in handicrafts and other products. It has helped women to develop new skills and to access markets for their products. As a result of these efforts, women have seen their incomes increase by an average of 50%. By supporting these efforts, we can ensure that rural women benefit from the many opportunities bamboo offers. 

Training Programme Organised by Shomaa Designs for Rural Women at Kalimpong District of West Bengal India

We need to shift our thinking from linear to a broader area of opportunity that shifts agriculture from monoculture to ecological and economical development to create an equitable world. Marcus Link might be working from scratch for his start-up, here in India we are running successful multi-level income projects through mix cropping of annual crops and perennial crops for many decades. 

Rather than creating contradictions within the regenerative organic system, we must come together to exchange each other's knowledge and experience based on the different climatic conditions of every region. It will motivate farmers to switch from the Industrial agriculture system to the Regenerative agriculture system. I conclude this article in the hope that we together can help to mitigate climate change and food security for coming generation.

Attila Kokeny

Regenerative Agriculture Advisor - Founder of TMGE - Regenerative Farmers Association Hungary - Designer of RAD, the small farm no-till seeder ☀️+🎈+💦+💩=🌱

1y

Regenerative agriculture is an outcome-based framework, not some religion-based regulatory system. This means that any technology that helps to achieve the regenerative goals is acceptable. And the goals are to achieve more fertile, healthy soil, better infiltration, better soil life, higher biodiversity while producing the right quantity and quality of food that is accessible to all. This cannot be achieved without the necessary crop protection, but its use is always kept to a minimum to help achieve the objectives. Plant protection products include biologicals as well, like compost or compost tea. But we do not want to play Sri Lanka. Btw, my question was not about who feeds the world. Each farmer must first and foremost feed himself and his family. Once this is achieved, then the surplus produced is sold to the local community, if more is produced, then to the country or exported to where there is a shortage from food. But food production must primarily meet local needs and based on local resources. If one cannot produce enough for oneself and the local community, then either learn to produce efficiently or reduce the birth rate. I am responsible for feeding my family and my country. And the world should feed itself too.

To view or add a comment, sign in

More articles by Soma Saha

Insights from the community

Others also viewed

Explore topics