European, North America, and Australian agriculture has been built based on decades of subsidized investments, especially in phosphorus and lime to build up the basic fertility of soils. For example E.J. Russell in his classic book “The World of the Soil” points out that in the later 1950s in the UK annual farm subsidies were £73 million and price guarantee payments were £191 million. He advised “the subsidies must be sufficient to keep the weaker farmers in business” and that “these subsidies are likely to be a permanent feature of our agriculture”. And they have been. How do we expect African agriculture to succeed without similar levels of investment, especially given the low base status of many soils and widespread phosphorus deficiency? There is however opportunity to learn the lessons of the past by avoiding excessive fertilizer applications and deploying sustainable land management practices that maintain tight nutrient cycling and prevent nutrients entering the environment.
European, North America, and Australian agriculture has been built based on decades of subsidized investments, especially in phosphorus and lime to build up the basic fertility of soils. For example E.J. Russell in his classic book “The World of the Soil” points out that in the later 1950s in the UK annual farm subsidies were £73 million and price guarantee payments were £191 million. He advised “the subsidies must be sufficient to keep the weaker farmers in business” and that “these subsidies are likely to be a permanent feature of our agriculture”. And they have been. How do we expect African agriculture to succeed without similar levels of investment, especially given the low base status of many soils and widespread phosphorus deficiency? There is however opportunity to learn the lessons of the past by avoiding excessive fertilizer applications and deploying sustainable land management practices that maintain tight nutrient cycling and prevent nutrients entering the environment.