Story
Kenya
Environment-Friendly Farming by the Biovision Foundation
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he Green Revolution came with the increased use of fertilizers and insecticides and doubled global wheat production. But it had a huge environmental price tag. The 700 percent increase in fertilizer use resulted in soil acidification, depletion of essential humus content, and eventual loss of its economic viability. The intensification produced further damage through the loss of soil fertility, unsustainable water usage, greenhouse gas emissions, and chemical runoff poisoning rivers. The International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science, and Technology for Development (IAASTD), published in 2008, came to the conclusion that industrial style agriculture was not sustainable and would never be able to feed the over 9 billion people expected to inhabit our planet by 2050. The report, written over six years by over 400 scientists from all over the world, recommended localized smallholder structures for our agriculture and food systems. The Cochair of the IAASTD was Hans R. Herren, World Food Prize Laureate 1995, and founder of Biovision Foundation. Guided by the principle that nature can be a powerful ally to science and technology in poverty alleviation, this Swiss-based NGO has been supporting ecological sustainable development in East Africa for 15 years to combat hunger, poverty, and disease. Its special focus is on information dissemination for smallholders. Through the magazine The Organic Farmer, radio shows, a special Internet platform called Infonet-Biovision.org, an SMS advisory service and practical courses on the ground, millions of smallholders have
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improved their productivity with sustainable and affordable methods and are braced for the challenges of climate change. A classic example of Biovision’s approach is a method known as Push-Pull. It is an integrated, sustainable farming method that improves maize yields and soil fertility: the stemborer pest is repelled by the smell of desmodium planted as an intercrop between the maize (push). Napier grass is planted as a border crop and it attracts the stemborers away from the maize field (pull) and kills the stemborer’s larvae with its sticky plant material. Desmodium can also fix nitrogen and so improves maize yields without the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides and protects the soil from drying out too fast. The napier grass is also a welcome source of healthy animal fodder. This method has increased yields among smallholders by 200 to 300 percent. It also protects the environment in a truly sustainable manner and is affordable for those who lack the capital to invest in fertilizers and pesticides. While industrial agriculture is still viewed by many as the answer to improving yields, drought and pest infestations still cause crop failures. With climate change, the rainfall has become more irregular, so more resilient methods are required. The ability to control pests ecologically can transform the food sector significantly, given that plant pests alone are responsible for up to 80 percent of crop losses. In addition, the negative effect of pesticides on bees, and therefore the pollination process, is now globally recognized.
