Forced to rely on agroecology, as sanctions ease will Cuba embrace agricultural technology?

The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion and analysis.

Cuba was once one of the largest importers of agricultural chemicals in Latin America. But when the Iron Curtain fell, the supply lines were cut, and tractors rusted in the fields.

Cuba country faced extreme weather events and limited land and water for agriculture. The rest of the world will soon face similar problems: In the coming decade, according to the OECD, we’ll see higher fuel and fertilizer costs, more variable climate patterns, and limits to arable land.

So Cuba’s agronomists, plant breeders, soil scientists, and hydrologists found themselves being put to use by farmers. Their task: figure out how to farm without the fossil-fuel products upon which the country’s agricultural systems had become dependent.

With no fertilizer, pesticide, or herbicide, and no means to import them, the scientific community landed on “agro-ecology.” So has it worked? That’s up for debate. In 2007, 84 percent of the country’s food was imported—not terribly encouraging. But a recent paper suggests that while the country still imports almost all its wheat (a crop that doesn’t do well in the Caribbean), it now produces the majority of its fresh fruit and vegetables—even much of its meat. In 2007, Cubans produced more food while using one-quarter of the chemicals as they did in 1988.

Choosing agro-ecology was a practical decision. Cuba is ready for an industrial-agricultural relapse if the occasion arises. At odds aren’t just two different farming systems, but two different social approaches. Climate change has already reduced global wheat harvests by 5 percent, and food prices are predicted to double by 2030. Cuba’s example is both instructive and frustrating.

Read full, original post: What Cuba Can Teach Us About Food and Climate Change

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