Rich Helping Poor To Help All Farmers

Business Asia, March, 2001 by Tim Fischer

WHAT IS THE connection between the Vavilov Institute of Russia, plant laboratories of Ethiopia and lupin crops of Western Australia? It is, of course, the anthracnose resistant albus lupin, which is totally resistant to ugly black spot.

Activities by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research and The Crawford Fund, which I chair, has led to a very successful triangular connection. Through good research and development, the destructive black spot on lupins has been eliminated, and it is hoped that field peas might also benefit.

Worldwide agricultural research and development cooperation is not a sinister secret plot, it is not even an element of so called one-world government. Rather, it is to drive forward the advantage and knowledge flowing from good agricultural research in an efficient and effective way.

The Crawford Fund has supplied modest grants to the Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture in Perth, which in turn has helped liaison with Russia and Ethiopia and beyond. The Vavilov Institute of Russia holds the world's largest collection of field peas and has received training assistance with regard to germplasm processing through Crawford Fund activity.

However, the effort on black spot is completely dwarfed by two other huge developments over the last couple of decades involving international cooperation of an unprecedented degree to help boost wheat and rice.

One of the leading centres for international agricultural research is Cimmyt, based in Mexico. Nobel Peace Prize winner, Dr Norman Borlaug, became the father of green revolution to the Mexican dwarf varieties of wheat, greatly boosting efficient wheat production in such places as Australia and India.

A few million dollars of Australian funding over the decades has returned billions of dollars to Australian wheat farmers and to the Australian economy. At the same time, this greatly helped ease poverty in South Asia.

Now before you argue that this research has produced over-production and harmed the environment and is not in the narrowly defined interests of wheat growers in Australia, Canada or the USA, who are leading the world anyhow, I would contend that the huge leap forward in wheat has in fact been a win-win situation.

Not only has it boosted efficiency of production involving less acreage, but the improvements in South Asia have led to new markets for a range of Australian agricultural products, including skim milk powder and even pasta.

Now what is coming around the corner is even more exciting, even though it involves what some regard as a dubious process. Biotechnology research involving the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), located in the Philippines, is rapidly proving up a new generation of rice varieties enriched with pro Vitamin A. This is known generally as the advent of "golden rice". Instead of GMO efforts being used for the curious production of extra tobacco, here we have a powerful purpose being served, the elimination of Vitamin A deficiency responsible for some 500,000 cases of irreversible blindness across Asia and over one million deaths each year, most of them women and children.

This exciting new breakthrough with "golden rice" could see a huge improvement in eyesight for people living in developing countries. It would also parallel the good work of the Fred Hollows Foundation with its interocular lens factories in Kathmandu, Nepal, and Assmara in Eritrea.

So whilst people power and Cardinal Sin cause huge traffic jams in Manila recently, and ultimately a change of President just two hours drive to the south, IRRI continues with its purposeful work to help with rice production generally and the introduction of "golden rice" specifically.

Different OECD countries have different approaches for building linkages and momentum with international agricultural research. In Australia, as part of the foreign aid budget, governments have established and maintained the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), headquartered in Canberra.

ACIAR is undeniably an outstandingly successful quiet achiever, driving forward many key breakthroughs with direct and indirect benefits for Australian farmers. I declare an interest as a farmer, and with a wheat research scientist brother also involved, but ACIAR has been independently benchmarked and found to be delivering one investment over several years in projects in Oceania involving some $28 million directly benefited Australian agriculture by $183 million.

By carefully crafting cooperative research projects involving developing country partners and which are specific to the cultural, social and economic farming needs of the developing country, ACIAR delivers positive outcomes on how to farm better.

The bonus is not often realised in Australia, where there is an ongoing debate about foreign aid, both humanitarian and commercial.

As the world does battle with outbreaks of horrific animal diseases and plant diseases, more, not less agricultural research and development and international cooperation is required.