Opinion: Listen Up On Ag Research

Many of you probably recall the commercials back in the 1980s for the financial firm with the slogan: “When E.F. Hutton talks, people listen.” I was reminded of this recently when I read that Bill Gates is decrying the lack of money being devoted to agricultural innovation and research.

When Gates, the founder of Microsoft and one of the richest men in the world, speaks, people listen. Beyond his sheer stature in the business world, his work with his wife through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation makes the remarks even more weighty. The Foundation is the largest philanthropic organization in the world.

Gates made his comments in his annual letter, which laid out priorities for the Foundation in 2012. “Given the central role that food plays in human welfare and national stability, it is shocking — not to mention short-sighted and potentially dangerous — how little money is spent on agricultural research,” he wrote.

Research commissioned by the Foundation shows just $3 billion a year is spent researching the seven most important crops, including wheat, maize, rice, cassava, sorghum, legumes, and sweet potatoes. Of that, $1.5 billion comes from countries’ public funds, $1.2 billion from private companies and $300 million from the international research organization Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research. By comparison, the Gates Foundation made $2.4 billion in grant payments across a range of program areas in 2010.

While he points out the challenge of a population swelling to 9.7 billion by 2050, he brings a can-do, capitalist attitude to the challenge. He noted the 1968 book by Paul Ehrlich titled “The Population Bomb.” That book began with the statement: “The battle to feed all of humanity is over. In the 1970s, hundreds of millions of people will starve to death in spite of any cash programs embarked upon now.”

In other words, Ehrlich was saying, “Hang it up. We’re done.” Luckily, Gates noted, ag researchers like Dr. Norman Borlaug were not so fatalistic in their way of thinking.

These are transformative times that we live in. I am thrilled to be a part of agriculture, because I have no doubt farmers and agricultural innovation have the potential to lead the way to better and more prosperous times.

And, it’s not just Bill Gates talking. DuPont’s executive vice president James Borel recently urged more than 200 business, government, and non-profit leaders to commit to a new level of collaboration to achieve global food security at the Feeding The World summit in Geneva.

“We know that the consequences of hunger and malnutrition are so devastating, so multi-faceted, that no one company, country, or organization has all the answers. It will take all of us working corroboratively to ensure that every person has enough nutritious food to eat,” Borel said. “Together, we must take action.”

DuPont has committed to invest $10 billion in ag innovation by the end of 2020 and its corporate counterparts also are investing huge amounts into R&D.

What I love about the two examples above is they represent solutions from the private sector, not just the government. God forbid they are even “1%ers.” Governments have their role, but true innovation only thrives with free enterprise. The “Occupiers” might chew on that while they are out contributing to society by spending all their time in parks, beating on their little drums.