The One-Straw Revolution by
Masanobu Fukuoka
My rating:
5 of 5 stars
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I kept running into references to this book in my readings about food and farming, and, eventually, I figured it must be a must-read. One topic thatâs of interest to me (and should be of interest to everyone) is how [or, perhaps, whether] humanity can be sustainably fed, given the realities of human nature. Fukuoka (d. 2008) was at the vanguard of whatâs been called the ânatural farmingâ movement (a term he admitted he didnât love.) He spent decades growing rice, other grains, and fruits in rural Shikoku, Japan, using a minimalist approach.
The book mixes philosophy, biography, commentary on food / nutrition, and instruction in Fukuokaâs approach to agriculture. Guided by a philosophy of âwu weiâ (i.e. âeffortless action,â) Fukuoka figured out how to reduce the amount of effort and resources put into farming, while maintaining crop yields that were competitive with the standard farming model. His approach appears backwards, lazy, and unlikely to succeed. He didnât plow his fields. He planted by casting seed into the previous crop before harvesting it (note: he alternated rice with winter grains.) He didnât weed, but rather let white clover grow freely and used the stalks and chaff from one harvest as cover for the next (again, rotating crops,) a cover that biodegraded into nutrients. He used no chemicals, neither fertilizer nor insecticide. And yet, important details of his approach kept his yields up while using minimal resources to maximum effect by operating in accord with nature (e.g. no insecticides seems to risk infestation, but it also means that you havenât killed the creatures that eat pests.)
Fukuokaâs philosophy combines the principles of nature, Buddhist & Taoist concepts, and â believe it or not — something reminiscent of Nihilism (without calling it such.) There are parts of the book that some might find disagreeable. For example, Fukuoka uses an analogy that draws on the Mahayanist view of the distinction between Mahayana and âHinayanaâ that Theravadins may find offensive (fyi: the older branch of Buddhism considers âHinayanaâ to be derogatory and believes itâs a label based on a mistaken belief.) [To be fair, Fukuoka explicitly stated that he belonged to no religion and he claimed no expertise on the subject.] More likely to take offense are scientists and agricultural researchers, a group who takes it from both barrels. [Fukuoka says his opposition to scientists is that they fill the same role in society as the discriminating mind plays in mental activity, and he values the non-discriminating mind.]
I found this book to be loaded with food-for-thought. It raises a number of questions that arenât answered inside (e.g. is Fukuokaâs approach scalable?,) but itâs a fascinating and highly readable introduction to natural farming. Iâd highly recommend it for those interested in the subject.
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