Food Tank, Professor Norman Uphoff on the Productive Use of Land

The System of Rice Intensification, known as SRI, can reduce water requirements, increland productivity, and promotes less reliance on artifical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, and other agrochemicals, all while buffering against the effects of climate change and reducing greenhouse gases (GHG).

In a recent interview with Food Tank, Professor Norman Uphoff at Cornell, who has been studying the impacts of SRI management for more than 15 years, describes SRI as not a fixed technology, but, instead, as a set of principles and ideas. Ideas that translate into a combination of agroeconomic practices, which might differ depending on agro-ecological and cropping system conditions, but that can have widespread benefits.

Application of SRI practices can raise household incomes, enhance soil fertility, and protect crops against climatic, pest, and disease stresses.