Meeting human needs within the ecological limits of our planet calls for continuous reflection on, and redesigning of, agricultural technologies and practices. Such technologies include fertilisers, the discovery and use of which have been one of the key factors for increasing crop yield, agricultural productivity and food security. Fertiliser use comes, however, at an environmental cost, and fertilisers have also not been a very economically effective production factor to lift many poor farmers out of poverty, especially in African countries where application on poor soils of unbalanced compositions of nutrients in fertilisers has shown limited impact on yield increase. Agronomic practices to apply existing mineral fertilisers, primarily containing N, P and K, at the right time, the right place, in the right amount, and of the right composition can improve the use efficiency of fertilisers. However, the overall progress to reduce the negative side effects is inadequate for the desired transformation toward sustainable agriculture in poor countries. Globally, there have been no fundamental reflections about the role and functioning of mineral fertilisers over the past 5 decades or more, and compared to other sectors, dismal investments have been made in mineral fertiliser research and development (R&D).In this paper, we reflect on current fertilisers and propose a more deliberate adoption of knowledge of plant physiological processes-including the diversity of mineral nutrient uptake mechanisms, their translocation and metabolism-as an entry point in identifying the physicochemical "packaging" of nutrients, their composition, amount and timing of application to meet plant physiological needs for improved instantaneous uptake. In addition to delivery through the root, we suggest that efforts be redoubled with several other uptake avenues, which as of now are at best haphazard, for the delivery of nutrients to the plant, including above ground parts and seed coating. Furthermore, ecological processes, including nutrient-specific interactions in plant and soil, plantmicroorganism symbiosis, and nanotechnology, have to be exploited to enhance nutrient uptake. It is hoped that concerted R&D efforts will be pursued to achieve these strategies.

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Indian agricultural input industries have gone through a major transformation in the last 40 years. State owned firms grew during the Green Revolution and then stagnated or declined. Indian corporations that were protected from foreign competition are now exporters of agricultural tractors and pesticides. Foreign multinational corporations are rapidly increasing their role in the seed, pesticide, and tractor industries. Entry by large Indian firms and multinationals has increased competition in the input industries. Private agribusiness R&D in India grew from $23 million in 1985 to $250 million in 2009 in 2005 US dollars. This is the same time period as a transformation in the agricultural input industry, rapid growth in demand for agricultural inputs, breakthroughs in information technology and biotechnology, and changes in intellectual property rights. An econometric model was used to test whether the transformation of agricultural input industry was a major factor in the growth of R&D expenditure or not. This article analyzes a unique, firm level sales and R&D data set from the seed, pesticide, tractor, and fertilizer industries in 2000-2009. The estimated model indicates that agribusiness firms' R&D expenditures from 2000 to 2009 were positively related to variables associated with industry transformation such as firm size, ownership by multinationals, and declining industry concentration. The model also indicates that strengthening patent policy as well as growth in the size of research-intensive industries like the seed industry contributed to the growth of agribusiness R&D in India. JEL classifications: L1, O31, O38, Q12, Q16, Q18 (C. E. Pray).ence and technology policies such as public section research and stronger IPRs or was it primarily due to the general liberalization of the Indian economy and the ensuing transformation of the Indian agribusiness sector? This is the major topic of this article. Our objective is to assess whether the transformation of the input industries was a major cause of the increase in private R&D and what other factors made important contributions to R&D growth.Indian agricultural input industries went through several major transformations in the last 40 years. There was rapid growth of sales of modern inputs led by the growth of privatesector sales of seeds, pesticides, machinery, animal genetics and medicine, and animal feed. At the same time, sales of inputs by the public sector that includes public agencies like the extension systems, farmer-owned cooperatives, 1 and state-owned 1 In India, farmer own cooperatives such as IFFCO and KRIBCO are major fertilizer producers and distributors. They are controlled by the central government of India and are managed like state owned enterprises.

Journal articleThe study relates village seed systems to biological diversity of millet crops grown by farmers in the semi-arid lands of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, India. In these subsistence-oriented, semi-arid production systems the environment is marginal for crop growth and often there is no substitute for millet crops. Across communities, farmers grow 13 different combinations of pearl millet, sorghum, finger millet, little millet, and foxtail millet varieties, but individual farmers grow an average of only 2–3 millet varieties per season. The “village seed system” in this study refers to all channels through which farmers acquire genetic materials, separate from or in interaction with the commercial seed industry, observed at the local level. Data are compiled through household surveys and interviews with traders and dealers in village and district markets. Based on the concept of the seed lot, several seed system parameters are defined and measured by millet crop. Most seed transactions, including gifts of seed, appear to be monetized. Seed supply channels differ by improvement status of the genetic material. Regression results confirm that seed system parameters are statistically significant determinants of the spatial diversity of millet crops measured at the village level. Furthermore, both the trade through weekly village markets (shandies) and through the formal seed supply channel contribute positively to the breadth of genetic materials in these communities. Ways should be found to strengthen and improve the overall efficiency of the seed system, including both formal and informal channels, in order to reduce the costs to farmers of procuring and managing diverse crop varieties." -- Authors' Abstract"IFPRI3; ISI; Subtheme 10.1; Theme 10; GRP1; pro-poor science and technology policiesEPTDP