By: CropLife International
For 1.3 billion people working in agriculture around the world, farming is their primary source of income, so a harvest devastated by poor conditions can greatly impact their livelihoods. Having access to the latest plant science technologies not only helps these farmers better control pests and difficult conditions, but also improve their incomes and their lives. Hear from some farmers on how improved technologies have allowed them to invest more into their farms, create better lives and enjoy more free time.
U.S. Farmer Bill Horan says that biotechnology has given farm families one of the most precious gifts of all: time. “Part of that time I’m with my family, which allows me to be a better husband and a better father … those are gifts that were never part of the intention of the biotech revolution but they are absolutely changing rural America.”
“I learned about agrochemicals and how they are applied, and based on that, my yield has increased three-fold,” notes Honduran farmer Celia Mejia Dominguez. “In the past, we didn’t even have running water. Now I see a future for my children.”
French farmer Christophe Grison only uses pesticides when necessary but in those instances, they’re essential. “If I wouldn’t be able to use pesticides in my daily work to protect my plants and vegetables, I simply could not live,” he says. “I would have no economic gain … because my yield would be too low to cover my costs.”
Biotech cotton has dramatically improved profits and therefore, the livelihood of Indian farmer Goginei Brahmayya. “We are now economically sound and now have good food to eat and better clothes to wear,” he says. The extra income also allowed him to pay for his daughter’s master degree.
Honduran farmer Emiliano Dominguez credits agricultural training and technologies with his livelihood as he says his farm would have no profit without them. “I am really happy for my children, because they now have all these things I didn’t have when I was growing up,” he says.