Introduction
The world has been experiencing food shortage challenge since time immemorial and a lot of efforts have been put forward to ensure more food yields which can meet the need of the ever expanding population. One of the measures considered to solve this perennial food problem was Green Revolution technology; this is a technological breakthrough mechanism that is aimed at increasing crop yields by expanding the land under cultivation due to the fact that fertile land is diminishing hence decreased food production. Green Revolution technology was initially meant to increase rice and wheat yields, but it has now expanded to include other food crops (International Food Policy Research Institute, n.d.).
Green Revolution was driven by technology; it encompasses several packages of modern inputs in agriculture like irrigation, improved seed varieties, pesticides and fertilizers. The packages have the effect of increasing crop production. Green Revolution had a lot of positive impacts which included: food production, increased food yields, eradication of poverty, increased income and employment. It also had negative impacts like micronutrient deficiencies and exhaustion of natural fertility in the soil (Otsuka, 2003). Green Revolution was a technological response to combat food shortage that threatened the world after World War II. It helped transform agriculture in various parts of the world and was only centered on three principal food crops: rice, wheat and maize (Moore & Parai, n.d.).
Background Information
The fundamental significance of the Green Revolution was to enhance agricultural productivity; this was to be achieved through employing modern agricultural skills like use of high yielding hybrid seed variety, increased use of fertilizers, pesticides and water. Though Green Revolution was credited for making Asian countries self sufficient in terms of food, after twenty years, its negative effects have began to manifest (Anon., n.d.). This persistent and widespread change in the global agriculture through Green Revolution brought massive impact on human health, livelihood and environment. The increased consumption of cereals especially rice and wheat, as a result of Green Revolution led to increase in the consumption of milk and meat to balance the diet (Delgado, Rosegrant, Steinfed, Ehui & Courbois, 1999).
To increase food production thus combat starvation and malnutrition was the main aim of Green Revolution technology. More food production could be achieved through improving crop yields by chemical fertilizers application together with other agronomic practices (International Rice Research Institute, n.d.). The net effect of this agricultural practice was the reduction of micronutrient content in the edible parts of the crop to a lower level than that found in traditional crops. This is the reason why many food substances in Asian countries could not provide sufficient micronutrient contents to meet the demands of the people particularly the poor ones. Dietary substance such as phytate, affects the bioavailability of nutrients and the nutritional status of an individual. Micro nutritional deficiencies are common in infants and women in the Asian region (Lichtfouse, Hamelin, Navarrete & Debaeke, 2011).
Negative Effects of Green Revolution
It is indisputable that Green Revolution led to the revolutionizing of agriculture in Asia but it has had its share of criticism due to its negative results. Green Revolution had a lot impact on nutrition; it increased food supply and reduced food prices which largely benefited the general population. Research indicated that the advent of Green Revolution led to greater food calorie and protein intake among the rural forks. An analysis on the rising income and nutritional intake has led to shifting concerns from calorie and protein deficiencies to micro nutrients and well being of the population. With the advent of Green Revolution, food intake patterns have changed, the share of cereals in food expenditure has been on the decline whereas that of milk, meat and vegetables has increased. This situation has led to deficiencies in iron and vitamins among the poor population due to this reduction in cereal consumption (Hazell, 2009).
Numerous cases of micronutrient deficiency are a major cause of poor health of the Asian population. This can be alleviated by integrating micronutrient rich foods like vegetables and fruits; vegetables are considered the efficient solution to micronutrient deficiency but unfortunately their consumption in most Asian countries is below the recommended level needed to meet the micronutrient requirements (Thompson & Amoroso, 2011). This prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies is worsened by the fact that Asian countries witness seasonal fluctuations in production of vegetables. This problem can only be mitigated by employing low-cost technology in the production and processing of vegetables, an indication of how significant Green Revolution is and eliminates the notion that it is not the cause of micronutrient deficiency (Ali & Tsou, 1998).
With the unfolding of Green Revolution technology, various strategies have been initiated to enhance nutritional quality of the diet. These involved improvements of productivity of fruits, vegetables and fish; there was also promotion of food-crop bio-diversity, especially traditional crops that are rich in nutrients and lastly the bio-fortification of major food staples (Hazell, 2009).
Micronutrient Deficiencies
Cases of micronutrient deficiencies are prevalent in Asian countries and it affects majority of the population. Majority of these cases arise from iron and iodine deficiencies, there are also few cases of vitamin A, zinc, calcium and vitamin D deficiencies. The consequences of these deficiencies are devastating; the iodine deficiency is associated with several cases of mental retardation whereas vitamin A deficiency can result in blindness. Most of these cases are linked to the emergence of Green Revolution which only emphasized cereals and cereal content in food as opposed to foods with different nutritional contents (Mason, Mannar & Mock, 1999).
Green Revolution was initially aimed at enhancing the production of both wheat and rice which are cereals. Among these cereals, rice biologically has the highest cereal protein due to its easy digestibility and better protein utilization, despite this, rice is nutritionally lame due to two main reasons: its low-protein content and high milling loss hence it is largely associated with the micronutrient deficiency in the Asian countries. The breeding for nutritional enhancement measures was recommended and launched by the International Rice commission which stressed on the need to combat malnutrition. The four solutions applied to intervene on micronutrient nutrition are: “supplementation, fortification, dietary diversification and genetic enhancement” (Swaminathan, 2010, p. 459).
Agricultural policies have been initiated with the sole purpose of increasing yields, productivity and availability, to promote profitability of farmers and industries but not to aim at promoting human health. The Green Revolution emphasized much on increasing productivity of rice and wheat which nutritionally contain only carbohydrates and some small quantities of proteins which can only meet minimum nutritional requirements. Before the Green Revolution farmers in Asia had a diversified system of agricultural production which included the growing of legumes and pulses, the concentration on few staple crops as a result of the Green Revolution led to a widespread under nutrition in Asia (Sanchez, 2005). In India, for example, Green Revolution led to enhanced food and nutrition security but it still experiences a high prevalence of malnutrition due to little emphasis on health, child care, diverse and quality food for the household that can gather for nutritional security in the country (Burchi, Fanzo & Frison, 2011).
The Green Revolution made food available but paid little consideration on supplies of water and poor sanitation which can make food quality hazardous and furthermore exposes children to diseases and infections since it prevents the absorption of nutrients (ESCAP, n.d.).
The problem of micronutrient deficiency can not be solved through genetic engineering or Green Revolution per se; the nutritionally viable food crops are receiving attention as the solutions to the genetic engineering oriented methods of food production at the expense of humanitarian help. This however serves to worsen the problem which is largely as a result of the diminishing diversity in food that is produced and consumed. Despite the benefits of Green Revolution, malnutrition and hunger are still considered as problems that afflict the human society. Much of this forms of malnutrition results form deficiencies in calcium and particular minerals. It is however ironical that most of the cases of malnutrition are prevalent in Asia where there is high diversity in micronutrient sources such as fruits and vegetables (Andersen & Cheng, n.d.).
Green Revolution has benefited the poor segment of the population by increasing food supply and decreasing the prices. These high food quantities have enhanced calorie and protein consumption by the rural population in Asian continent. Despite this, the prices of nutritionally rich foods skyrocketed and that of the cereals fell. The end result was that the population got more of cereals and less of micronutrient-rich foods hence micronutrient deficiencies are more common today as compared to protein deficiencies which can minimally be found in cereals (Hazell, n.d.).
Micronutrient deficiency has a lot of consequences on human life and health; among its effects are: impaired immune function, high mortality and morbidity rate and decreased intellectual performance. Micronutrient deficiency on the positive side increases individual’s susceptibility to diseases and infections (Hazell, 2009).
The price of rice which was product of Green Revolution is linked to the cause of malnutrition. The low price of rice was altered by the demand for non-grain food items. The prices of non-grain items were high as compared to the price of rice. Rice therefore became a staple food and was monotonously consumed due to its cheap price hence people lacked any other food to balance their diet since other food items were expensive (Pettifor & Zlotkin, 2004).
Attempted Solutions
Several governments, after recognizing that the Green Revolution can not provide foods that are rich in micronutrients have encouraged people to grow their own foods that are rich in micronutrient primarily for their own consumption and the surplus for market. This government measure has succeeded in combating micronutrient deficiencies which if not taken care of will lead to some diseases like night blindness which is caused by deficiency of vitamin A (Spielman & Pandya-Lorch, 2010).
The Green Revolution is credited for enriching people’s diet. As a biotechnological research tool, it has led to the enrichment of staple foods with micronutrients like vitamin A, iron and Zinc. Deficiency of these micronutrients in the diet of human beings can cause serious health problems since nutritional balance is imperative for disease resistance (De Macedo, Chino & OECD, 2002). Cases of micronutrient deficiencies and malnutrition are steadily on the rise affecting millions of the Asian population. It is becoming a threat to the nutritional security of the developing world. The green revolution which was established in India registered the greatest level of success and made India a self-sufficient country in grains (Singh, n.d.).
With rising income levels, farming like any other economic activity has to undergo some changes; farmers have therefore embraced diversification from primarily cereal to employing Green Revolution technology in the production of vegetables and fruits which are essential in balancing consumer diet and demand (Nagarajan, 2004).
The Green Revolution has a direct impact on the nutritional status of the population. The relative decline of pulse crops and other cereals which amounted for the staple food of the poor population is what led to micronutrient deficiency. Other aspects associated with Green Revolution are called White Milk and Oil Seeds Revolution which was considered a shift in progressive agriculture. Despite the boom in Green Revolution agriculture, the limited income of majority of the population made the food substances unaffordable hence people could not balance their diet appropriately (Anon., n.d.).
Conclusion
It is evident that the green revolution has brought four main impacts: increased food production, diminishing grain prices, reduction of poverty and increased food efficiency in areas with unfavorable weather condition for farming. The green revolution can be said to be a curse as well as a blessing. It contributed a lot in the alleviation of poverty and hunger, but it is also blamed for the micronutrient deficiency that befell the people of Asian region. This was because, the Green Revolution was one sided since it only emphasized on cereals which were not sufficient to meet the nutritional demands of the population.
References
Ali, M. & Tsou, S. (1999). Combating micronutrient deficiencies through vegetables- A neglected food frontier in Asia.Science Direct. Web.
Andersen, P. & Cheng, F. (n.d.). Case Studies in Food Policy for Developing Countries: Policies for health, nutrition, food consumption, and poverty. New York, NY: Cengage Learning.
Anon. (n.d.). Understanding sustainable agriculture. Web.
Burchi, F., Fanzo, J. & Frison, E. (2011). The Role of food and nutrition system approaches in tackling hidden hunger. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, vol. 8, pp.358-373. Web.
De Macedo, J., Chino, T. & OECD. (2002). Technology and poverty reduction in Asia and the Pacific, Volume 255. New York, NY: OECD Publishing.
Delgado, C., Rosegrant, M., Steinfed, H., Ehui, S. & Courbois, C. (1999). Coming livestock revolution.United Nations. Web.
ESCAP. (n.d.). Sustainable agriculture and food security in Asia and the Pacific. UNESCAP. Web.
Hazell, P. (2009). The Asian Green Revolution.International Food Policy Research Institute. Web.
Hazell, P. (n.d.). Transforming agriculture: the green revolution in Asia. International Food Policy Research Institute. Web.
International Food Policy Research Institute. (n.d.). Green Revolution: Curse or Blessing? International Food Policy Research Institute. Web.
International Rice Research Institute. (n.d.). Rice Today. New York, NY: Cengage Learning.
Lichtfouse, E., Hamelin, M., Navarrete, M. & Debaeke, P. (2011). Sustainable Agriculture, Volume 2. New York, NY: Springer.
Mason, J., Mannar, V. & Mock, N. (1999). Controlling micronutrient deficiencies in Asia, Asian development review, vol. 17(1), pp. 66-99. Web.
Moore, F. P. & Parai, P.J. (n.d.). The Green Revolution. Web.
Nagarajan, S. (2004). Sustaining the Green Revolution in India. Web.
Otsuka, K. (2003). Food and agriculture problems in East Asia. Web.
Pettifor, J.M. & Zlotkin, S. (2004). Micronutrient deficiencies during the weaning period and the first years of life. New York, NY: Karger Publishers.
Sanchez, P.A. (2005). Halving hunger: it can be done. New York, NY: Earthscan.
Singh, M.V. (n.d.). Emerging malnutricient deficiencies in soils and crops in India and the strategies for meeting these challenges. Web.
Spielman, D.J. & Pandya-Lorch, R. (2010). Proven Successes in Agricultural Development: A Technical Compendium to Millions Fed 2010. New York, NY: Intl Food Policy Res Inst.
Swaminathan, M.S. (2010). Achieving food security in times of crisis.New biotechnology, vol. 27(5), pp. 453-460. Web.
Thompson, B. & Amoroso, L. (2011).Combating micronutrient deficiencies: food-based approaches. New York, NY: CABI.