Impact of modern rice varieties on food security and cultivar diversity; the Bangladesh case
2001
Bose, M.L. | Isa, M.A. | Bayes, A. | Sen, B. and Hossain, M.
Bangladesh, an extremely land-scarce country in Asia, has done fairly well in meeting the food needs of its fast-growing population. Modern rice varieties now cover about 60% of the land. Technological progress has contributed to a reduction in the unit cost of production, a factor that helped to keep food prices within affordable limits of the urban and rural poor. But has the diffusion of modern rice varieties led to an erosion of cultivar diversity? This chapter examines this question with data generated on the adoption of specific varieties at the district, village, and household level by measuring the varietal diversity index. The data show low cultivar diversity at the household level but substantial diversity at the village and district level. A multivariate regression analysis does not support the hypothesis that the diffusion of modern varieties has contributed to an erosion of cultivar diversity. Farmers use a diverse set of varieties to suit different land elevations and soil types and to pre erve other traits such as good grain quality, appropriate growth duration, and pest resistance. Cultivar diversity is higher at the district and village levels because of the higher complexity of agroecological conditions at larger geographical scales.
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