We’re wrapping up our time here in Des Moines. Today we heard from some of the world’s leading experts and policy makers on solutions to addressing world hunger. Some of the major themes that were echoed throughout the symposium included the need for greater investments in agriculture both on the R & D side and in educating the next generation of agriculture experts; more investments in small-holder farms and infrastructure; better trade policies and regulations; improved access to markets; enhanced knowledge transfer within and between countries and increased public-private partnerships. Below are some quotes and summaries from some of the panelists.

Bill Gates (Founder, Microsoft and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation): “The global effort to help small farmers is endangered by an ideological wedge that threatens to split the movement in two. On one side is a technological approach that increases productivity. On the other side is an environmental approach that promotes sustainability. Productivity or sustainability – they say you have to choose. It’s a false choice, and it’s dangerous for the field. It blocks important advances. It breeds hostility among people who need to work together. And it makes it hard to launch a comprehensive program to help poor farmers. …we need both productivity and sustainability – and there is no reason we can’t have both…”

“The environment also benefits from higher productivity. When productivity is too low, people start farming on grazing land, cutting down forests, using any new acreage they can to grow food. When productivity is high, people can farm on less land…But some people insist on an ideal vision of the environment – divorced from people and their circumstances…Some voices are instantly hostile to any emphasis on productivity. They act as if there is no emergency – even though in the poorest, hungriest places on earth, population is growing faster than productivity, and the climate is changing…Declining yields, at a time of rising population, in a region with millions of poor people, means starvation…”

“We need to take full advantage of these emerging technologies to develop healthy new crop varieties – and we need to make the seeds available to the small farmers who need them.”

Jeffrey Sachs (Director, Earth Institute, Columbia University): Highlighted the case for prioritizing health and nutrition as part of an overall strategy for addressing world hunger. He offered a 10-point plan that included better access to healthy foods worldwide, including in our own country where it’s difficult finding healthy fast foods. His recommendations also included improving nutrition for early childhood development, better and more efficient water use and identifying a permanent venue to discuss the challenges and solutions facing the global population today vis-à-vis hunger and poverty. He suggested that the World Food Prize Foundation serve as that venue. He also added that the planet cannot feed itself with local foods and organic foods.

Hon. Tom Vilsack (Sec. Of Agriculture, USA): Shared Bill Gates sentiment that we need to find out how both productivity and sustainability can be accomplished. There are many technologies that we need to keep an open mind about and we will need to collaborate in order to understand the full suite of solutions that are before us.

H. E. Gerry Ritz (Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, Canada): We need to work together as part of a global trade community and we need to make sure access to the markets is improved. We also need to put more money in science and innovation and the public sector should support this so we can share our knowledge. Biotechnology is one of the solutions for feeding the world. We can produce enough food and fuel for the world.

H.E. Amin Abaza (Minister of Agriculture, Egypt): Egypt has serious environment and natural resource challenges and these will become greater with climate change. Egypt faces large problems and we will need to invest and use science and technology to meet these challenges. We need worldwide agreement on biotechnology.

Carlos Vazquez Ochoa (Minister-Counselor for Agriculture, Mexico Embassy, Washington, DC): If agriculture is to be an engine of growth, we must recognize that investment in small-scale farms is needed. Agriculture has been vastly under-utilized in development. How do we move into action in the face of climate change, global financial crisis and recession? Work together and intensify efforts to collaborate. Improve better transfer of knowledge. We will need nothing less than another technology revolution, including but not limited to biotechnology.

Kanayo Nwanze (Pres., International Fund for Agricultural Development): Agricultural production is essential for development. Farming is a business. We need to improve market access. We do not need new institutions. We need reformed institutions. Also, women make up 70% of the farmers. We need to be sensitive to the way we develop and implement policies & technologies that take into account the important role of women in development and in agriculture/farming. Africa also needs to see African leaders make a commitment to making changes to helping lift people out of poverty. It’s not just a matter of money; it’s what countries DO with the money and it must be driven by results-based programs. It’s about accountability. It’s not good enough to build hope. We must also have accountability.

This is our final day at the symposium. We’d love to hear your comments about some of the discussions. Please post your comments below.

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In his first speech on agriculture to the 2009 World Food Prize Symposium, Bill Gates emphasized the important role technology such as biotechnology is playing in combating world hunger. Gates also pointed out that the current fight over GM crops is hurting the cause against world hunger.

“Some people insist on an ideal vision of the environment,” Gates said. “They have tried to restrict the spread of biotechnology into sub-Saharan Africa without regard to how much hunger and poverty might be reduced by it, or what the farmers themselves might want.”

What are your thoughts? Should activists be able to limit farmer’s access to crop varieties?

To read more about Bill Gate’s speech, click here.

The 2009 Borlaug Dialogue has officially begun. Today’s agenda is packed with some great presentations and discussions on today’s theme: Food, Agriculture and National Security in a Globalized World. Ambassador Quinn will be speaking at 1:00pm followed by opening presentations by Ellen Kullman – CEO, Dupont, Patricia Woertz - Chairman, CEO and President, ADM and Her Excellency Gerda Verburg - Minister of Agriculture, Nature, and Food Quality, The Netherlands.

We will be posting updates throughout the day so be sure to check in regularly!

For more information on today’s agenda, click here.

The World Food Prize Foundation  is sponsoring the Iowa Hunger Summit on October 13thin recognition of World Food Day. For one day, they have asked Iowans to eat a meal of only 400 calories (the equivalent of 2-16oz bottles of Coca-Cola).  On that day more than 400 Iowans will gather to focus attention on efforts to combat hunger in Iowa and around the world. Participants will explore the plight of millions of people around the world who subsist on 400 calories a day.

“The idea behind those meals is to give normal Iowans sort of a feel for what it might be like to be dependent on various forms of food aid,” foundation spokesman Justin Cremer said. “We hope it gets them thinking about what their life would be like if this was what they were dependent on for their daily meals.”

Do you think you could survive on 2 - 16oz cokes day?
The entire article can be read here.

mem from sommerville on Daily Kos did a great job of illustrating the importance of biotechnology in 2009 World Food Prize Laureate Dr. Gebisa Ejeta’s work in developing drought- and weed-resistant sorghum to enhance the food supply in sub-Saharan Africa.

mem writes:

Some people will argue whether or not this means it is technically a “genetically modified organism” or GMO, or Genetic Engineering (GE). However, scientists in this field believe that it is genetic modification. But for this discussion, it doesn’t matter. The point is that the techniques of biotechnology are clearly used to solve these problems.

The post also gives me another opportunity to highlight the remarks of Dr. Daniel Mataruka on the adoption of agricultural biotechnology in Africa.