Ask Slashdot: How To Feed Africa? 592
gbrumfiel writes "Africa has some of the poorest soil of anywhere on the earth, and over farming is only making matters worse. As the population grows, governments and NGOs must decide whether to subsidize chemical fertilizers like those used in the west or promote more sustainable agricultural practices. In Malawi, the government has decided to subsidize fertilizers, with impressive results. Corn yields have tripled since the subsidies were introduced. More sustainable practices, such as fertilizer trees can't deliver those kind of results in just a few years. The question is simple: does Africa follow the same, unsustainable road as the rest of the world? Or do they become a testing ground for potentially game-changing new techniques? OR is there a third path? Discuss."
Re:I KNOW!! (Score:5, Funny)
you're crazy. they have oil. it's obvious intervention is required.
Re:Stopped reading at... (Score:5, Funny)
Imagine setting up a factory in a place without a stable power or water supply, decent roads, large enough ports, with a corrupt dictatorship, tribal warlords, gigantic wildlife and weird tropical diseases - Florida?
Re:Stopped reading at... (Score:4, Funny)
Eat the rich!
Re:Stopped reading at... (Score:3, Funny)
An honest question...how does buying fair trade products hurt the situation?
An honest question...why respond to a comment without even fucking reading it?
Re:Stopped reading at... (Score:5, Funny)
Vast farming fields - don't need 'em. Let each family work their backyard.
Chairman Mao? I thought you were dead!