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Our Daily Bread: The Essential Norman Borlaug
Norman Borlaug deserves recognition as the greatest humanitarian. Here’s why: In the 1960s hunger was going global. Asia was wracked by famine, Latin America was hungry, and Africa was about to face the Sahel drought and massive starvation.
Worse still, almost half the world’s 3 billion people were under the age of 30. Billions of babies were about to be born into a planet unable to feed them.
Then a miracle occurred: the productivity of wheat doubled, tripled and in some places quadrupled. It happened in almost 100 countries all at once.
Soon thereafter, the productivity of rice, corn and other cereals followed suit.
Borlaug worked only with wheat but he set the trend toward making cereal crops efficient in using land, sunlight, growing time, and inputs, not to mention immune to major diseases.
Nowadays his influence can be seen worldwide: Most crop plants have gotten shorter. No longer shoulder-high, wheat is now waist high or knee high. No longer 12 feet tall, corn is now head-high. That is the most visible part of the Borlaug legacy. And it’s why 7 billion people are eating on the same land that half a century ago could not feed half that number.
This farm kid from Iowa achieved all this under difficult conditions in a hungry country: Mexico. He did it with dedication and with conventional plant breeding. He gave his seeds away freely to all who asked. He trained young people from almost every wheat-growing nation, including the U.S. and Canada, and sent them home with seeds of his most advanced research lines. That is why food production soared so quickly and global famine was averted. Borlaug’s students – widely known as Wheat Apostles – were pre-positioned and pre-programmed to make the most of his latest and most productive seeds.
Norman Borlaug is an Indiana Jones of our time. He was bold and adventurous and faced down difficulty (sometimes danger) his whole life. He is a great role model for humanitarian achievement.
Our Daily Bread tells the Borlaug story in lively style. It has been called The World's First Cereal Thriller. The author worked with Borlaug and recorded the behind-the-scenes dramas that have not been made public until now.
Worse still, almost half the world’s 3 billion people were under the age of 30. Billions of babies were about to be born into a planet unable to feed them.
Then a miracle occurred: the productivity of wheat doubled, tripled and in some places quadrupled. It happened in almost 100 countries all at once.
Soon thereafter, the productivity of rice, corn and other cereals followed suit.
Borlaug worked only with wheat but he set the trend toward making cereal crops efficient in using land, sunlight, growing time, and inputs, not to mention immune to major diseases.
Nowadays his influence can be seen worldwide: Most crop plants have gotten shorter. No longer shoulder-high, wheat is now waist high or knee high. No longer 12 feet tall, corn is now head-high. That is the most visible part of the Borlaug legacy. And it’s why 7 billion people are eating on the same land that half a century ago could not feed half that number.
This farm kid from Iowa achieved all this under difficult conditions in a hungry country: Mexico. He did it with dedication and with conventional plant breeding. He gave his seeds away freely to all who asked. He trained young people from almost every wheat-growing nation, including the U.S. and Canada, and sent them home with seeds of his most advanced research lines. That is why food production soared so quickly and global famine was averted. Borlaug’s students – widely known as Wheat Apostles – were pre-positioned and pre-programmed to make the most of his latest and most productive seeds.
Norman Borlaug is an Indiana Jones of our time. He was bold and adventurous and faced down difficulty (sometimes danger) his whole life. He is a great role model for humanitarian achievement.
Our Daily Bread tells the Borlaug story in lively style. It has been called The World's First Cereal Thriller. The author worked with Borlaug and recorded the behind-the-scenes dramas that have not been made public until now.
284 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2011
35 people are currently reading
249 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
October 22, 2012
Biography of the plant scientist behind high-yield wheat in the 40s-60s, not great writing but a good story, and recommended under the category "everyone should know more about how the Green Revolution came about" - 15 years of crazily dedicated plant breeding in Mexico in Borlaug's case, and a belief that working with farmers and for farmers, out in the fields, was worthwhile. Also, they used to give out Nobel Peace Prizes for real accomplishment.
June 12, 2023
Wow! What a great book. Dr. Norm Borlaug was the 1970 Nobel Peace Prize winner who helped feed the world by improving wheat crop yields through cross pollination and other methods. His efforts were tireless and inspirational. One of the most interesting things brought up in this true story was that a little over 100 years ago in America, farms were powered by humans and animals with nary a motor or engine to help with the back breaking world - oh, what progress we have made!
August 19, 2013
Extremely interesting!
Describes the life up until the Nobel Prize of the wheat scientist/breeder Dr. Norman Borlaug. If you need information on him, here's an excerpt from Penn & Teller, including a short interview with Borlaug: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEBtO... (NSFW language). In a nutshell, he developed wheat-varieties with extremely high yield, raised Mexico from a poor wheat-importing country to a wheat-exporting country, and prevented famines in India, Pakistan and China.
Makes for some interesting thoughts on the current GMO-debate (did you know hybrid seeds in the 1930s were not allowed to be re-sold?), mostly because people are now acting the same way they did towards Borlaug's hybrid seeds in the 60s ("it's unnatural", "we're too dependent on modern methods", "traditional plants go into extinction" etc.). Especially in the beginning is the writing a bit weird (Quote: "Contemplating those events upstairs was super scary"), thus the 4 stars.
It's also interesting that Borlaug was able to give seeds of new hybrids away basically for free since he was funded mostly by the Rockefeller Foundation. Good to know that the Foundation is involved in the development of Golden Rice (which is available for free too for developing countries).
Plus it's only $3 on Kindle, so there's that.
Recommended for: Anyone who needs some inspiration on what one person can achieve in their life.
Describes the life up until the Nobel Prize of the wheat scientist/breeder Dr. Norman Borlaug. If you need information on him, here's an excerpt from Penn & Teller, including a short interview with Borlaug: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEBtO... (NSFW language). In a nutshell, he developed wheat-varieties with extremely high yield, raised Mexico from a poor wheat-importing country to a wheat-exporting country, and prevented famines in India, Pakistan and China.
Makes for some interesting thoughts on the current GMO-debate (did you know hybrid seeds in the 1930s were not allowed to be re-sold?), mostly because people are now acting the same way they did towards Borlaug's hybrid seeds in the 60s ("it's unnatural", "we're too dependent on modern methods", "traditional plants go into extinction" etc.). Especially in the beginning is the writing a bit weird (Quote: "Contemplating those events upstairs was super scary"), thus the 4 stars.
It's also interesting that Borlaug was able to give seeds of new hybrids away basically for free since he was funded mostly by the Rockefeller Foundation. Good to know that the Foundation is involved in the development of Golden Rice (which is available for free too for developing countries).
Plus it's only $3 on Kindle, so there's that.
Recommended for: Anyone who needs some inspiration on what one person can achieve in their life.
May 28, 2024
Great farmer. Terrible husband.
August 25, 2016
A wonderful, concise book on Dr. Borlaug's achievements, and how he went about getting there.
Of particular interest to me was the last section, as it was related to his work in South Asia - both in Pakistan and India. The first two sections are also make for an interesting read.
Apart from the well feted Dr. Swaminathan, Dr. Borlaug provides interesting stories on the heroes & villians of the 60's in the Indian Govt. It is interesting to read about the Rockfeller Foundation's work first in supporting the work in Mexico, and then later in India. As also of the Ford Foundation in Pakistan. One common thread across all 3 sections of the book, is how various Americans played a positive role in increasing food productivity the world over. I wish that someone studies the mindset (humaneness) behind this in detail. President Johnson's role, even if it comes across as a bit callous, in speeding up the loosening of state control over the production of Fertilizers in India, is also documented in a balanced manner by the author.
One anecdote from the book stands out for me. This is related to the story of the scientists from Pakistan, who had to grow their crops surreptitiously. Had they not taken Dr. Borlaug on the pre-dawn tour & shown him of the successfully transplanted crop, perhaps the good doctor, would not have been able to respond positively back to Dr. Swaminathan in India with a plan on how India could hope to grow the Mexican strain and gain self-sufficiency. Serendipity at it's best.
This book deserves to be read by youngsters the world over so that they can understand the power of hard work, dedication, positivity & a giving spirit.
Of particular interest to me was the last section, as it was related to his work in South Asia - both in Pakistan and India. The first two sections are also make for an interesting read.
Apart from the well feted Dr. Swaminathan, Dr. Borlaug provides interesting stories on the heroes & villians of the 60's in the Indian Govt. It is interesting to read about the Rockfeller Foundation's work first in supporting the work in Mexico, and then later in India. As also of the Ford Foundation in Pakistan. One common thread across all 3 sections of the book, is how various Americans played a positive role in increasing food productivity the world over. I wish that someone studies the mindset (humaneness) behind this in detail. President Johnson's role, even if it comes across as a bit callous, in speeding up the loosening of state control over the production of Fertilizers in India, is also documented in a balanced manner by the author.
One anecdote from the book stands out for me. This is related to the story of the scientists from Pakistan, who had to grow their crops surreptitiously. Had they not taken Dr. Borlaug on the pre-dawn tour & shown him of the successfully transplanted crop, perhaps the good doctor, would not have been able to respond positively back to Dr. Swaminathan in India with a plan on how India could hope to grow the Mexican strain and gain self-sufficiency. Serendipity at it's best.
This book deserves to be read by youngsters the world over so that they can understand the power of hard work, dedication, positivity & a giving spirit.
January 18, 2017
Another selection for the American Agri-Women book club. Norman Borlaug is one of my heros. This book covers his boyhood in Iowa to his research days. It briefly touches on the prizes and accolades he recieved which include the Nobel Peace Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal and was also awarded the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian honor. His work in plant breeding was so important that he has been said to have saved a billion lives and ended a famine in India. Several countries went from being net importers of food to self sufficient because of him. I met Dr. Borlaug when my grandmother organized a get together with him at Oregon State University. I was about two.
April 1, 2019
What an amazing person Dr Borlaug was ! His life is so inspiring, his passion to empower people he barely knew, so infectious ! Dr Borlaug and his willingness to go above and beyond for a research that took more than sixteen years, is unbelievably motivating. The book although flawed in language at some points, paints a vivid picture of Norm Borlaug as a person, coach, scientist and brilliant humanitarian. His own narration of his flaws as a human makes everything very relatable as well as pushes you to think how far and how much a single person's efforts can help to rebuild dwindling economies.
The science and technical details are kind of necessary to realize the impact. So, if technical language bothers you, this book isn't for you.
The science and technical details are kind of necessary to realize the impact. So, if technical language bothers you, this book isn't for you.
March 4, 2014
Highly engaging biography of one of history's least well-known contributors to ending hunger globally. Norman Borlaug created the food revolution of the 60s, preventing widespread annual famine in Mexico, India, Pakistan, and around the world. He educated the next generation of wheat and grain scientists, in practical and effective breeding methods. Along the way he also introduced Little League baseball in Mexico.
October 19, 2012
Poorly written biography of a great man. It was very interesting to read how some people opposed green revolution even when country was threatened by famine with very similar arguments as those used by today's Luddites on the left.
February 7, 2013
An unexpectedly gripping read. I was pretty sure it would be another dull, lifeless memoir type of book but it is a very gripping biography of a wonderful man who literally gave all for humanity. Totally recommend this to anyone who needs a little inspiration of their own.
February 13, 2013
Fantastic biography of an inspirational life. Norm's story of accomplishments is amazing and has touched the whole world. Though few realize how much their modern world was made possible by his humble efforts.
January 31, 2018
Although at times told in a manner that makes It seems more serendipitious than achieved through hardwork and pure human ingenuity, this os still the story of one of the biggest, albeit unknown, heroes in recent human history, and should be read by everyone.
August 22, 2013
Very interesting story with a lot of history about our food supply.
November 27, 2014
Interesting story
Not very well written, but fascinating for anyone involved with food production. A great story of hard work and perseverance.
Not very well written, but fascinating for anyone involved with food production. A great story of hard work and perseverance.
August 23, 2015
Interesting read; enjoyed how he mentioned the bohemians from Spillville, Iowa were some of the toughest baseball competition back when Borlaug was living in Saude.
October 3, 2015
A little too detailed on the botany.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews