Rice Biofortification

by Brooks, Sally

• ISBN13: 9781849711005
• ISBN10: 1849711003
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-08-31
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Biofortification'”the enrichment of staple food crops with essential micronutrients'”has been heralded as a uniquely sustainable solution to the problem of micronutrient deficiency or 'hidden hunger'. Particular attention is being focussed on biofortification of rice'”the world's most important food crop'”and large amounts of effort and funding are being invested in this 'silver bullet' solution. Through an in-depth analysis of international rice biofortification efforts across the US, Philippines and China, this book provides an important critique of such goal-oriented, top-down approaches. These approaches, the author argues, exemplify a model of global, public goods science that is emerging within complex, international research networks. It provides vital lessons for those researching and making decisions on science and research policy, showing that if this model becomes entrenched, it is likely to close down the options on technological solutions, channelling research towards top-down models at the expense of more incremental approaches that respond to local diversity and the complexity and uncertainty of the way people interact with their environment. The author proposes a series of key changes to institutions and practices that might allow more diverse and context-responsive alternatives to emerge. These issues are particularly important now with increasing concerns over food security and as donors and policy makers are increasingly committed to ambitious visions of impact at scale across many development-aimed technological issues'”visions which may never become a reality and may preclude more effective pathways from being pursued.

Author Biography

Sally Brooks has held various roles in international development as a researcher and practitioner. She has a PhD from the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) and is a research officer with the STEPS Centre, Sussex.

Table of Contents

Abbreviations	p. ix
Acknowledgements	p. xiii
Introduction: Why Biofortification?	p. 1
Global Science, Public Goods?	p. 3
Biofortification as Biopolitics	p. 4
Focus on Rice: Iconic Crop, Model Cereal	p. 5
On Researching International Science Policy Processes	p. 7
Chapter Preview	p. 12
'Old Lessons and New Paradigms': Locating Biofortification	p. 15
International Crop Research and the CGIAR	p. 16
Pathways Linking Agriculture, Nutrition and Health	p. 32
'Old Lessons and New Paradigms'	p. 40
Building the Argument: The Case of Iron Rice	p. 43
Introduction	p. 43
A Win-Win Proposition: Nutrition and Yield	p. 44
IR68144: 'A Serendipitous Discovery'	p. 48
Iron Rice: The Silver Bullet?	p. 51
Proof of Concept: The Sisters of Nutrition	p. 53
From IR68144 to MS13: 'A Special Variety'	p. 59
National Release: In the Shadow of Hybrid Rice	p. 63
Conclusion	p. 66
An Institutional Model? The Case of Golden Rice	p. 68
Introduction	p. 68
Rice Biotechnology: Laying the Foundations	p. 69
Vitamin A Deficiency: Construction of a Public Health Problem	p. 71
Golden Rice: A Scientific Breakthrough	p. 74
A Science Policy Controversy	p. 76
Granting Access, Keeping Control	p. 83
Framing 'Acceptance': The Case of the Philippines	p. 88
Conclusion	p. 91
An Alliance Around an Idea: The Shifting Boundaries of HarvestPlus	p. 93
Introduction	p. 93
Back to Basics? A Challenge Program	p. 94
A Turning Point: Enrolling the Gates Foundation	p. 100
Establishing HarvestPlus	p. 105
HarvestPlus Comes to IRRI	p. 107
Interdisciplinary Encounters	p. 109
Brokers or Gatekeepers? Organizational Tensions and 'Global Science'	p. 114
Constructing Demand, Predicting Impact	p. 116
Impact and 'Spin-Offs'	p. 119
Business as Usual? The Pro VitaMinRice Consortium	p. 121
Conclusion	p. 123
Global Science, Public Goods? A Synthesis	p. 125
International Research Partnerships: Rhetoric and Reality	p. 125
Towards Interdisciplinary Integration?	p. 128
De-linking Impact and Context	p. 130
GM or Not GM - Is that the question?	p. 133
Boundary Terms and 'Escape Hatches'	p. 135
Conclusion	p. 138
Locating and Engaging 'Users'	p. 140
Rethinking Upstream-Downstream Relations	p. 141
Towards a More Reflexive 'Public Goods' Science?	p. 141
Notes	p. 143
References	p. 157
Index	p. 171
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