Lessons from an Irish Banana Man

While in Ireland this summer on a week long quasi-historical tour (shout out to my in-laws and Gate 1 Travel), we had the opportunity to visit Kylemore Castle & Abbey, built in 1867 by the son of a wealthy cotton business man, Mitchell Henry, and his wife, Margaret. As I toured the grounds, I was overcome with amazement at what this man accomplished in his lifetime, and Henry immediately became one of my heroes.

You may be wondering, "what does this have to do with development?", or you may have already skipped to the pictures, and I don't blame you! One way I define development is positive change-- which the Henry's did plenty of in their lifetimes.

• They provided jobs to over 300 impoverished rural land tenants to build their massive castle and hired many of these same people to work on their property. 

• They were kind and generous to their employees, giving them a very livable wage during tough economic times.

•  Mitchell fought for the political freedom of the Irish people in Parliament, and he wasn't even Irish!--though his grandfather was.
   
• They planted 300,000 trees per year, restoring degraded soils. As a tree-lover myself, at this point I knew Mitchell and I would have been best buds.

• As Protestants they promoted social unity by hosting their Catholic neighbors at their castle.

• After Margaret's death at the young age of 44, Mitchell built a miniature Gothic cathedral in her honor.

• They had incredible gardens for their time which included heated greenhouses that grew bananas and other tropical fruit--in Ireland!
• Mitchell did agricultural research and shared the knowledge with the locals.

•  They used hydroelectric power to provide electricity to their castle. At night when the whole castle was lit up and gleaming off the water, it was an incredible view. Just think what people would've thought in the 1870's when electricity was extremely rare!

If you're an ag development nerd like me, you'll find Kylemore Castle a refreshing place to visit. Mitchell Henry realized the importance of fighting for political freedom while also encouraging grassroots efforts. He knew that job creation would empower individuals more than handouts. He showed how ideas spread through success in on-farm research can have a lasting impact. He demonstrated how caring for the environment is a worthy investment, benefiting himself and many future generations. Mitchell Henry was a man before his time. The Henry legacy is one that inspires each of us to bring about positive change in our own Ireland.

Source: Personal experience and History of Kylemore Castle & Abbey by Kathleen Villiers-Tuthill

Catching Up

Well, I'm back from my blogging hiatus, so once again I'll soon be sharing my thoughts, questions, and ideas regarding agriculture, poverty, finance, and making a difference. But first I must introduce the best thing that's ever happened to me, my lovely Rachel, whom I married three years ago in Pleasant Hope, Missouri.

Rachel has a warm, welcoming personality, a love for adventure, enjoyment of the simple pleasures in life, a little sass (the good kind!), and she always sees the good in other people--always. It's really kind of amazing. But best of all she challenges me to be a better person. She really is the best!

We've already had some epic adventures together, like buying a house

Making new friends (who also like Pronto Pups!)

 Traveling through Europe

 
Welcoming our first nephew, JR, into the world

Farming with Dad

And many other adventures. Life's not perfect, but it's really great. We are so blessed. And God challenges us: how can we out of this blessing love other people? Are we leaving this earth better than we found it? I hope the answer is yes. This is Greg, signing off. Until next time!

Africa in a month

This past March, K-State send me to Africa for a month. It was one great adventure. Here are a few details!

Though not very evident from the picture, South Africa is the corn capital of Africa, and a major exporter to the rest of the continent. They are the only country in Africa that has approved GM corn. (Aside from driving on the "wrong" side of the road, this picture could have been taken in Kansas).

 

In Malawi, it is illegal to carry more than one bag of coal per person into town. In this case, a policy designed to reduce deforestation has resulted in high coal prices and thousands of jobs!


 

I had the privelage to meet up with my Uncle's family in Ethiopia (Henok, Chris, Robel, Aman). They were so hospitable and they took me to the finest restaurants Ethiopia (and Africa) has to offer. My Uncle Haig back in Atlanta was surely jealous!






The highlight of my trip? Getting to see my Uncle Tom and Aunt Marcy in Niamey, Africa! They provided me with plenty of laughs and the best homemade food. Also, if you visit, I can almost guarantee that you will find the worlds best mango smoothie waiting for you upon your arrival! Here, we are eating kabobs on a rooftop cafe overlooking the Niger River. Wow! Also, I must note that Niger has been extremely blessed with the presence of Kirk and Becca, two K-Staters! (Right Uncle Tom?)

 

 

And not surprisingly, my thoughtful fiancee made a map of Africa so that she could keep track of where I was. Thankfully, we were able to maintain semi-regular communication, but as you can imagine it was pretty tough to be away. Next time she'll be along for the adventure. I can't wait!!

Sloppy eaters

I have a 10 month old Holstein calf named "Calfy 1." For some reason, he is a terrible eater. He scoops feed into his mouth until it is completely full, and then tosses it in the air. Almost 1/3 hits the ground...luckily we have 3 other calves that are willing to pick up after him!

Human beings are just as wasteful. As an ag. economist, we often focus on increasing production - which we have been quite successful at, and it makes a lot of sense.

However, we also must consider production loss.

Each year, 1.3 billion tonnes of food produced in the world is wasted, either in production or consumption (FAO key facts).

Approximately 22% of the food produced is wasted in production or retailing, and 8% is wasted by consumers.

This is our wheat field. If you look closely, you can see wheat kernels all over the ground. This is mostly unavoidable. Wheat = $ so as you can imagine, there is (or should be) a big monetary incentive for engineers to make combines more efficient.

45% of fruits and veggies are wasted, that's almost 1/2 of production that is never eaten!

How do we feed a growing world population? Increase production, improve harvest techniques, logistics, and transportation, and make wiser personal choices. Let's not imitate Calfy 1 if we can help it!

113 day fast

Since 1954, the US has given large quantities of food aid (1.4 million metric tonnes in 2012) to "food deficit" countries, either in the form of emergency assistance during a disaster or for projects such as school lunch programs. This week, Congress rejected major reforms to food aid that, in my opinion, would have been great steps in the right direction.

 
Food aid policy history:

1954 Public Law 480 - the US committed to give surplus grain to countries in need; however, the primary purpose was to get rid of excess grain, thus supporting grain prices for US farmers and promoting international trade (i.e. giving a bit selfishly)

1966 Food for Peace Act - amendments were made which shifted the focus of food aid to address humanitarian needs, but did not make really substantial changes. 

Until now, about 95% of food is sent from the US (rather than purchased regionally). The implications may be:

• Depressed food prices, which may hurt local farmers
• It takes 150 days for food sent from the US to reach the location of an emergency crisis versus 37 days if it is bought regionally

The new law would have allowed up to 45% of food to be procured locally or regionally, allowing food to reach it's destination in much better time. We can no longer argue that this would hurt US farmers - the amount of food aid pales in comparison to demand for grain used for cattle feed and ethanol.

The unfortunate part, of course, is that starving people we plan to help will just have to wait to eat an extra 113 days.

Quick trip to DC

This past weekend I traveled to Washington DC for an interview, and I made the most of it and spent a few days there.

 What my hotel room lacked in style...

 

 It made up for in soap (5 bars) and plastic cups (9 of them!) Why? I don't know

 The US Capitol, which I got to tour

 And the White House (not the same building, by the way, and a lot smaller)

 

The best part of the trip, was of course, getting to see my good friend Ayago (and Matt, no picture). He and I went to graduate school together at Kansas State University, now he works for the World Bank - he a smart and very cool guy

 

 And a sea cow - in the Smithsonian, how cool is that? it is so massive...I wish I raised sea cows and not just cows...but Kansas is quite far from the sea and this sea cow may be extinct so never mind

So glad to have the chance to see our nations capitol for the first time. It is a very beautiful city, with lots of sights to see and so full of history - I could have spent a lot more time looking around.

How would YOU answer this question?

In one of my recent applications (which I have filled out far too many at this point), they asked the question "How will we feed a growing global population in the face of a wide range of adverse factors?" And then they said to answer the question in 150-200 words, yikes! Well this is what I came up with, how would you answer this question?

            "To feed a growing global population in the face of a wide range of adverse factors is a complex challenge which will take a concerted effort to improve both the production and distribution of food. For agricultural production to increase, private and public agricultural research institutions must be committed to greater investment, coupled with well-trained extension agents to assure that technology reaches the field. Producers, particularly women in low-income countries, must be given equal access to productive capital, including inputs, education, credit, and crop insurance. Agricultural production must increase while conserving soil and water resources, learning from both successes and mistakes of the Green Revolution. But an increase in agricultural production will not guarantee that every mouth is fed; producers and consumers alike must be well connected to markets. Governments must commit to policies which reduce food waste, stimulate the production of nutritious food, and protect its most vulnerable citizens, particularly women and children. They must invest in rural infrastructure, giving farmers access to capital and allowing them to easily move surplus grain as yields increase.  The challenge is great, but with strong commitment from various actors, both public and private, feeding our growing planet is within reach." 

195 words, whew, barely made it.

And a picture to attract fellow bloggers:

 

A bridge in Nicaragua connects small farmers to a market where they can sell extra produce and buy goods

And finally a quote from Josette Sheeran, Vice-Chairman of the World Economic Forum, in her address to IFPRI on December 4, 2012, "Over the next 40 years, we need to produce more food than the last 8,000 years combined."

The challenge is great. Let's get too it! How would you answer this question?