Bill Gates’ plan to remake food systems by increasing crop yields will do more harm than good
03/03/2021 / By Ramon Tomey
An investigative research group has pointed out that Microsoft founder Bill Gates’ plan of a “Green Revolution†in Africa will do more harm than good. Public health group U.S. Right To Know (USRTK) said Gates is pushing to model Africa’s food systems after that of India’s in order to address rampant hunger in the continent. But the promotion of a Green Revolution through industrial agriculture in India has harmed both the ecosystem and worsened the predicament of smallholder farmers.
In a Feb. 25 piece, USRTK Co-Founder and Managing Editor Stacy Malkan cited Gates’ plans to model African farming after that of India. The Microsoft founder wrote in his book How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: “If we can help poor farmers raise their crop yields, they’ll earn more money and have more to eat. [Millions] of people in some of the world’s poorest countries will be able to get more food and the nutrients they need.†He asserted that the only thing preventing a similar Green Revolution in Africa is the fact that most farmers cannot buy fertilizers.
Malkan remarked that Gates failed to mention that hunger is largely caused by poverty and inequality. She also pointed out the Microsoft founder’s apparent ignorance of the Green Revolution’s detrimental legacy in India. Aside from the damage it caused to the ecosystem, it worsened the predicament of small farmers – who have taken to the streets to air their grievances.
https://www.climate.news/2021-03-03-bill-gates-remake-food-systems-more-harm.html#
