Describing Maize (Zea mays L.) Landrace Persistence in the Bajío of Mexico: A Survey of (original) (raw)

Agricultural development and maize diversity in Mexico

Human Ecology, 1988

Mexico is within the center of origin ofZea mays and has among the highest levels of maize genetic diversity in the world. This diversity is traced to factors at the regional and farm levels. Loss of crop genetic diversity has been related to economic and agricultural development, although opposed views of this exist for the Mexican case. Agricultural development appears to be affecting virtually all types of farms in Mexico. A case study in Chiapas suggests that the adoption of some improved varieties has enhanced genetic diversity in maize, but one improved type competes with landraces in the most favorable land. The adoption of this improved type is associated with greater access to capital and with lower risk.

Inexplicable or Simply Unexplained? The Management of Maize Seed in Mexico

2013

Farmer management of plant germplasm pre-dates crop domestication, but humans' role in crop evolution and diversity remains largely undocumented and often contested. Seemingly inexplicable practices observed throughout agricultural history, such as exchanging or replacing seed, continue to structure crop populations across the developing world. Seed management practices can be construed as events in the life history of crops and management data used to model crop demography, but this requires suitable quantitative data. As a prerequisite to addressing the causes and implications of maize seed management, we describe its patterns of variation across Mexico by drawing from the literature and new analysis. We find that rates of seed replacement, introduction and diffusion differ significantly across regions and altitudinal zones, but interactions among explanatory factors can obscure patterns of variation. The type, source, geographic origin and ownership of seed help explain observed rates. Yet, controlling for the characteristics of germplasm barely reduces interregional differences vastly exceeding variation across elevations. With few exceptions, monotonic altitudinal trends are absent. Causal relationships between management practices and the physical environment could determine farmers' wellbeing and crop conservation in the face of climate change. Scarce and inconsistent data on management nevertheless could prevent an understanding of these relationships. Current conceptions on the management and dynamics of maize diversity are founded on a patchwork of observations in surprisingly few and dissimilar environments. Our estimates of management practices should shed light on differences in maize population dynamics across Mexico. Consistency with previous studies spanning over a decade suggests that common sets of forces are present within large areas, but causal associations remain unknown. The next step in explaining crop diversity should address variation in seed management across space and time simultaneously while identifying farmers' values and motivations as underlying forces.

Peasant Friendly Plant Breeding and the Early Years of the Green Revolution in Mexico

Agricultural History, 2009

Despite their success in boosting cereals production overall, the Green Revolution programs of the 1950s and 1960s were often criticized for failing to achieve their declared aim of alleviating world hunger. Most critics argued that the programs had produced a technology unsuited to the needs of small peasant farmers. This paper explores why such inappropriate technology might have been developed, focusing on the early years of the Rockefeller Foundation's Mexican Agricultural Program (MAP). It shows that some foundation officers as well as agricultural advisors had prior experience of the problems faced by small farmers in the United States and elsewhere. Moreover, the foundation's expressed concern for rural poverty does not appear to have been mere posturing by an organization anxious to be seen as an agent of philanthropy. Furthermore, the program's early work in maize-breeding was well tailored to the conditions of Mexican agriculture. Once the MAP was up and running, however, it became apparent that the task of getting new varieties and cultivation practices to small farmers was going to be difficult. Needing to make some kind of impact quickly, MAP staff chose to concentrate upon projects that were likely to find a rapid uptake. This meant setting aside the needs of peasant farmers to develop high-yielding varieties suited to large commercial farms.

Crop Diversity in Peasant and IndustrializedAgriculture: Mexico and California

Society & Natural Resources, 2003

The loss of biological diversity of crops in centers of crop origins and evolution (``Vavilov centers'') is recognized as a cost of agricultural modernization. Another effect is to alter processes of crop evolution by restructuring farmer seed management. This article uses two case studies of``traditional'' and``developed '' agriculture to examine crop diversity and the management of crop evolutionary processes. The Mexican milpa is regarded as a descendant of Mesoamerican agriculture within which crop evolution of maize, beans, squash, and numerous other species developed and acquired diversity. Here, farmer-based selection prevails. California peach orchards are far removed from the original region of peach domestication, evolution, and diversity. Here, breeder-based selection prevails. The contrast is intended to show three things. First, farmer-based selection versus breeder-based selection is not necessarily a contrast of diverse versus not diverse farming systems. Second, agricultural development, including a prominence of centralized crop improvement, commercial agriculture, and well-integrated markets, can actually lead to increased diversity. Third, conserving the elements of farmerbased crop evolution may be equally important as conserving crop genetic diversity.

Impact of Public- and Private- Sector Maize Breeding Research in Asia, 1966-1997/98: Front Matter

2001

This book presents results of a study of the impacts of international maize breeding research in seven developing countries of Asia (China, India, Indonesia, Nepal, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam). It provides comprehensive, updated documentation of the status of Asia's national maize seed industries, including information on the roles of the public and private sectors in maize R&D, descriptions of the germplasm products developed by public and private breeding programs, data on the extent of farmers' adoption of modern maize varieties, and analysis of varietal adoption patterns and trends. Information on emerging trends in maize research and maize seed industries is also provided. An introductory chapter on the maize economy of Asia is followed by a chapter synthesizing results of the study for Asia as a whole. More detailed, country-level studies are presented in the remaining six chapters.

Peasant-friendly plant breeding and the early history of the Green Revolution in Mexico

Agricultural History, vol 83(3), 2009

Despite their success in boosting cereals production overall, the Green Revolution programs of the 1950s and 1960s were often criticized for failing to achieve their declared aim of alleviating world hunger. Most critics argued that the programs had produced a technology unsuited to the needs of small peasant farmers. This paper explores why such inappropriate technology might have been developed, focusing on the early years of the Rockefeller Foundation's Mexican Agricultural Program (MAP). It shows that some foundation officers as well as agricultural advisors had prior experience of the problems faced by small farmers in the United States and elsewhere. Moreover, the foundation's expressed concern for rural poverty does not appear to have been mere posturing by an organization anxious to be seen as an agent of philanthropy. Furthermore, the program's early work in maize-breeding was well tailored to the conditions of Mexican agriculture. Once the MAP was up and running, however, it became apparent that the task of getting new varieties and cultivation practices to small farmers was going to be difficult. Needing to make some kind of impact quickly, MAP staff chose to concentrate upon projects that were likely to find a rapid uptake. This meant setting aside the needs of peasant farmers to develop high-yielding varieties suited to large commercial farms.

Impact of Public and Private Sector Maize Breeding Research in Asia, 1966-1997/98

CIMMYT eBooks, 2001

Technical Editor CIMMYTMR (www.cimmyt.org) is an internationally funded, nonprofit, scientific research and training organization. Headquartered in Mexico, CIMMYT works with agricultural research institutions worldwide to improve the productivity, profitability, and sustainability of maize and wheat systems for poor farmers in developing countries. It is one of 16 food and environmental organizations known as the Future Harvest Centers. Located around the world, the Future Harvest Centers conduct research in partnership with farmers, scientists, and policymakers to help alleviate poverty and increase food security while protecting natural resources. The centers are supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) (www.cgiar.org), whose members include nearly 60 countries, private foundations, and regional and international organizations. Financial support for CIMMYT's research agenda also comes from many other sources, including foundations, development banks, and public and private agencies. Future Harvest® builds awareness and support for food and environmental research for a world with less poverty, a healthier human family, well-nourished children, and a better environment. It supports research, promotes partnerships, and sponsors projects that bring the results of research to rural communities, farmers, and families in Africa, Asia, and Latin America (www.futureharvest.org).  International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) 2001. All rights reserved. The opinions expressed in this publication are the sole responsibility of the authors. The designations employed in the presentation of materials in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of CIMMYT or its contributory organizations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. CIMMYT encourages fair use of this material. Proper citation is requested.