05 June 2008

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Says New Technology Boosts Crop Yields

Also helps crops adapt to climate change, Schafer says

A Mexican farmer stands among crops grown using new methods of irrigation.

By Kathryn McConnell
Staff Writer

Washington -- New technologies can help the development of crops that produce significantly higher yields and crops more adaptable to climate change, the top U.S. agriculture official said.

Speaking June 3 at a United Nations meeting of world leaders called to discuss the global food crisis, Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer urged more investment in support of scientists and research institutions, reversing a several-year trend of reduced agricultural research funding. He also called for more access to rural credit so farmers can benefit from new technologies.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) plans to invest $150 million in new agricultural development programs with the goal of doubling food production and food trade by 2013 in countries "with the potential to become major producers in their regions," Schafer said in Rome.

By promoting new technologies, including biotechnology, and improving market information systems, distribution networks and storage facilities, countries also can improve rural economies, he said.

At a separate June 3 discussion on the benefits of biotechnology, USAID Administrator Henrietta Fore said biotechnology-based crops currently are being grown in more than 20 countries, including India, China and South Africa.

Discussion panelists from Bangladesh, Burkina Faso and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization said biotechnology also can be used in fisheries farming. The Philippines, for instance, has used biotechnology to develop a disease-resistant type of shrimp, they said.

BIOTECHNOLOGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Biotechnology can help countries adapt to climate change, according to Schafer. The United States is leading an international effort to build an enhanced agricultural monitoring and famine early warning system, Schafer said. (See "Famine Early Warning System Can Predict Food Shortages.")

Since the late 1990s, Schafer said, use of new technologies in the United States has resulted in historic increases in maize yields. Modern technology use in the United States also has resulted in a 29 percent reduction in herbicide usage and an 81 percent reduction in insecticide usage.

Schafer said all countries should abide by global trading rules agreed to through the World Trade Organization and support science-based evaluation and regulations to ensure that safe and effective technologies are available to researchers and farmers around the world.

He said the effort to solve the world food crisis must be a global one. The United States, the world's largest food-aid donor, will continue to coordinate aid efforts with United Nations agencies, other major donor countries and international institutions, he said.

See also “World Leaders Begin Debate on Crop Use for Biofuels, Food.”

The text of Schafer's prepared remarks is available on USDA's Web site.