Agricultural Biotechnology in Africa - Matthew A. Schnurr

Schnurr, Addison, & Mujabi-Mujuzi. (2020). Limits to biofortification: farmer perspectives on a Vitamin-A enriched banana in Uganda. Journal of Peasant Studies, 47(2), 326-345.

This paper draws on three data sets to evaluate whether biofortification fix synchs with existing farming systems, using the case study of the East African Highland Banana, known locally as matooke in Uganda. We argue that the positive scenario outlined by proponents rests on a number of assumptions related to the health, social and economic contexts facing producers. Full-text …

Schnurr & Addison. (2017). Which variables influence farmer adoption of Genetically Modified (GM) orphan crops? Measuring attitudes and intentions to adopt GM matooke banana in Uganda, AgBioForum 20(2), 133-147.

This study uses participatory ranking exercises to investigate the variables that determine attitudes and intentions to adopt matooke banana in Uganda. Results suggest that attitudes and potential patterns of adoption will vary significantly according to region, farm size, membership in a farmer’s association, previous experience with improved varieties and visits from extension workers. Full-text (protected)|Pre-publication …

Schnurr. (2017). GMOs and poverty: Yield gaps, differentiated impacts and the search for alternative questions. Canadian Journal of Development Studies, 38(1), 149-157

This short commentary reflects on the question: Can genetically modified (GM) crops help the poor? It aims not to provide a definitive answer but rather to grapple with the question itself, in the hope of illuminating some of the critical assumptions and values that shape exchanges on this polarising and politicised question. Full-text (protected) |Pre-publication version

Addison & Schnurr. (2016). Introduction to symposium on labor, gender and new sources of agrarian change. Agriculture and Human Values, 33(4), 961-965

In this symposium introduction, we review how scholarship in agrarian political economy has engaged with agrarian change through links to labor, land use and gender relations. We argue that the integration of labor and gender offers a particularly insightful framework for not only assessing contemporary patterns of agrarian change, but also for critically engaging with …

Addison & Schnurr. (2016). Growing burdens: Disease-resistant Genetically Modified Banana and the gendered implications for labour in Uganda. Agriculture and Human Values, 33(4), 967-978

This article explores the research we conducted in Uganda regarding the introduction of genetically modified varieties of Matooke, a traditional cooking banana that is the country’s primary carbohydrate. Full-text (protected)