Nearly 10 million people live on the world’s 148th largest land mass, and Haiti hurts for food.
According to Anastasia Telesetsky, University of Idaho associate professor of law, 28 percent of Haitian land is arable for food production. Telesetsky introduced Professor of Microbial Ecology Guy Knudsen’s speech titled “Food Security in Haiti” — Tuesday’s daytime Borah Symposium event.
Knudsen has taught microbiology courses at the University of the Nouvelle Grand’Anse (UNOGA) in Haiti as well as at UI.
“We are the agricultural institute of Idaho,” Knudsen said. “We have a lot to offer Haiti, but a mindset that we need to free ourselves of is (that) the whole world doesn’t look like U.S. agriculture.”
Knudsen discussed the history of Haiti in war and food in comparison to U.S. actions. He said the U.S. military was involved with Haiti from 1888 to 2010, with Haiti earthquake response.
“Haiti is not at war, but has had a long history of military action of the U.S.,” Knudsen said.
Among earthquake response efforts was a donation of corn and vegetable seeds to Haiti from a company called Monsanto. The U.S.-based agricultural biotechnology corporation donated 130 tons of seeds as what Knudsen called a “major P.R. coup,” after criticism for dioxin contamination, genetically modified foods and farmer lawsuits.
Some Haitian citizens performed demonstrations against the seed donation, as Knudsen said Haiti officials said seeds weren’t affected by the earthquake. With the Monsanto seeds, there was need for more chemicals and water inputs. Toxic fungicides were used in crops, and there was a loss of land acres, which led to a loss of indigenous plants.
Knudsen said markets don’t always know best, and the loss of indigenous plants contributed to the loss of food sovereignty. He said the focus might need to switch from seed donations to food production assistance.
Other food sovereignty losses include a banana and plantain disease that spread through Haiti. While Knudsen said the U.S. could control such a disease with fungicides, it is not applicable to Haiti due to the drastic difference of crop sizes and plant placement.
Despite U.S. agricultural difference, Knudsen said he hopes to push UI to integrate agricultural extension activities with UNOGA.
“U.S. markets don’t always know best,” Knudsen said. “Big farms aren’t always the best farms and … (Haitian) peasant agriculture has a lot to offer us.”
Lindsey Treffry can be reached at [email protected]