Government always has unintended consequences
February 23, 2010
– Comments (4)
Like China, India is striving to become independent by increasing agricultural yields. Not only is this an important security for these countries' large populations, but it would have the beneficial side-effect of increasing incomes for some of their poorest citizens (which in turn might allow a more consumer-oriented culture to develop and lead potentially to decoupling...though that's admittedly a long way off).
But as China's pollution census showed (farmer abuse of chemical fertilizer has effed their groundwater) and as India's urea subsidy is making farmland less productive, these moves can often have unintended side effects:
India has been providing farmers with heavily subsidized fertilizer for more than three decades. The overuse of one type—urea—is so degrading the soil that yields on some crops are falling and import levels are rising. So are food prices, which jumped 19% last year. The country now produces less rice per hectare than its far poorer neighbors: Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
It's incredible sometimes how badly countries around the world have messed up agricultural policy.
RSS Headlines
Fool UK