Whose Revolution Transformed Agriculture?

American agronomist Norman Borlaug (1914-2009) developed semi-dwarf, disease-resistant wheat varieties that dramatically increased yields in Mexico, India, and Pakistan during the 1960s and 1970s. India wheat production, for example, nearly doubled between 1965 and 1970. His work, which became known as the Green Revolution, is credited with saving an estimated one billion people from starvation. Borlaug received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Congressional Gold Medal — one of only seven people to receive all three. Critics note that the Green Revolution also increased dependence on fertilisers, pesticides, and irrigation.