Food's Frontier

"By now it is clear that the techniques of the first "Green Revolution," which averted mass starvation a generation ago - pesticides, chemical fertilizers, focusing on a few key crops - are threatening the food supply for future generations. This time, however, solutions to the dilemma seem most likely to come from the still-developing world, where the path to alternative methods and philosophies, based on indigenous knowledge and native crops as well as cutting-edge technology, is still open.". "Richard Manning reports on this new Green Revolution, assembling a mosaic portrait of the emerging face of agriculture and culture from pioneering research under way in Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Uganda, India, China, Chile, Brazil, Mexico, and Peru. By bringing in the voices of scientists, farmers, and ordinary citizens and placing their stories in social and political context, Manning gives us an eye-opening look at how the world will feed itself in the decades to come. With particular attention to the perils and promise of bioengineering, he presents some surprising and controversial solutions to our most pressing environmental problem."--BOOK JACKET.