The Impact of New Wheat Technology on Income Distribution: A Green Revolution Case Study, Turkey, 1960-1983

Abstract

During the decade of 1965-75, the brought about major changes in the agricultural production of developing countries in Latin America, North Africa, the Near East, and Far East Asia. The term Green Revolution refers to a particular type of land-saving technology that is characterized by the introduction of high-yielding grain varieties together with increased fertilizer consumption and extensive irrigation facilities. Turkey was an early adopter of high-yielding varieties (HYVs) of wheat. Wheat, both in production and as a staple food, is the single most important crop in the country. As of 1983, 13 million hectares of the total crop area (17 million hectares) were planted to cereals, with 9 of these 13 million hectares sown to wheat.1 In Turkey wheat is utilized primarily as human food; per capita consumption exceeds 200 kilograms. Despite this high level of consumption and Turkey's population growth rate-2.2% per annum-the Turkish wheat sector managed to move from a net-importer to a net-exporter position. The key factor in this development was the adoption of improved wheat technologies in the mid-1960s and early 1970s. The average wheat yields in Turkey increased from 1.19 tonnes/ hectare in 1952 to 1.21 tonnes/hectare in 1969 and leveled off around