Sustainable Farming In Developing Countries

Here in the United States many of us take our electric or gas cookstoves for granted; we just walk into the kitchen and flip the burner on whenever we want to cook up the family meal or snack. In developing nations around the world millions of people are dependent on charcoal for their daily cooking needs. Not only that, they are often cooking in homes without cook fans or even the simplest of ventilation, hence many families are subjected to health damaging indoor air pollution. To help these families the Danish biotech firm Novozymes has been working on a plan to create a sustainable agricultural business model for farmers in these areas in order to teach them to sustainably farm for food and for biomass, instead of relying on charcoal. In addition, a network would be set up in order for these farmers to make a profit trading their surplus crop on the open market. Yes, plans like these will benefit companies like Novozymes as well, but in its broadest sense the fundamental principles of helping farmers and communities in developing countries to rely on sustainable agriculture for food and energy needs while increasing their livelihood is a plus for everyone.