[HN Gopher] Australia's gains in wheat-farm productivity
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       Australia's gains in wheat-farm productivity
        
       Author : tiarafawn
       Score  : 51 points
       Date   : 2025-07-30 10:06 UTC (3 days ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.reuters.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.reuters.com)
        
       | skywal_l wrote:
       | "The green revolution has won a temporary success in man's war
       | against hunger and deprivation; it has given man a breathing
       | space. If fully implemented, the revolution can provide
       | sufficient food for sustenance during the next three decades. But
       | the frightening power of human reproduction must also be curbed;
       | otherwise the success of the green revolution will be ephemeral
       | only."
       | 
       | Norman Borlaug
       | 
       | Nobel Prize lecture [0]
       | 
       | [0]
       | https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1970/borlaug/lecture...
        
         | XorNot wrote:
         | Most countries on Earth have declining birth rates, many first
         | world countries have negative population growth.
         | 
         | Overpopulation isn't a thing.
        
           | gefriertrockner wrote:
           | Overpopulation is a thing in parts of South Asia and Africa.
           | Climate change can affect the agricultural output in many
           | countries and thus the land will support less people. The
           | population growth is still very relevant in most of the
           | affected countries. So overpopulation will definitely be a
           | thing, unless there are real technological breakthroughs.
        
         | pseudo0 wrote:
         | A bit ironic to quote that considering how the speech was 55
         | years ago, and the green revolution is going stronger than
         | ever. If anything the crisis of the next 50 years will be the
         | economic and societal pressures crushing the childbirth rate in
         | Western countries.
        
         | decimalenough wrote:
         | His lecture was in 1970 and the "three decades" elapsed 25
         | years ago. People are still starving, but not for lack of
         | agricultural production.
        
       | dinkblam wrote:
       | > Australia has among the lowest agricultural subsidies
       | 
       | other countries would be wise to adopt that, but there is zero
       | chance of that happening.
        
         | mike-the-mikado wrote:
         | > other countries would be wise to adopt that
         | 
         | Until they can't import food and can't feed their people
        
       | neonate wrote:
       | https://archive.md/yxoUc
        
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       (page generated 2025-08-02 23:01 UTC)