Ferdiana Nyangoma has been a resident of Kadindima village in Kasese district for the last 20 years.
During most of these years, she never had to buy food to feed her family. But that is exactly what she is doing today.
"We sold all our maize during the harvest, now we have nothing to eat", she says.
Nyangoma explains that with higher profits available to food crop traders, many have moved in to buy and stock as much produce as possible, enticing farmers with attractive prices. This development has coincided with an improvement in the road infrastructure.
In the past, food-laden trucks used to stop in towns, particularly Fort Portal and Kasese, but now they can go as far as Rwimi and Kadindima to pick maize at lower prices.
As a result, farmers sell their produce at relatively low prices yet buy food at higher prices.
"We were selling our maize for Shs 100 a kilo, yet now we have to buy posho at Shs 1,600 a kilo", says Nyangoma.
The problem is not unique to Kasese or Kabarole. From Iganga to Tororo, farmers who used to have enough rice to eat and even send the surplus to relatives in Kampala now buy from urban markets. In Kabale, Ndorwa West MP, David Bahati, says he is humbled by how bad things have turned in his constituency.
"People are buying beans, maize and sweet potatoes from Kabale town for consumption, yet in the past they always had a surplus even in the off season", he laments.
Food security
Bahati believes the solution lies in farmers increasing the productivity of their land through growing larger quantities of crops to deal with the increasingly aggressive market.
However, Bahati admits that his advice has limitations; farmers have very small gardens. Besides, the problem is bigger than merely expanding gardens, as Dr Geoffrey Bahiigwa of Makerere University's Economic Policy Research Centre explains.
"Available agricultural and population statistics indicate that per capita food production in 1997 was 44% less than what it was in 1970.
This means that the country's food crop production has not been keeping pace with an increasing population and other external pressures", he says.
Dr Bahiigwa adds that he is not surprised by the outcry over high food prices that have culminated in public protests; he warns the problem could get worse. He laments that the agricultural sector is not receiving adequate funding and support from government that would enhance food security.
Scientific response
Scientists at the National Agricultural Research Institute in Kawanda and the National Crops Resources Research Institute in Namulonge, have looked at the problem for 10 years and have some recommendations.
At Kawanda, Dr Geoffrey Arinaitwe and Dr Andrew Kiggundu have been working to revive the matooke crop, after the black sigatoka virus (bacterial wilt) destroyed a lot of the popular crop in central, western and eastern Uganda areas.
Dr Kiggundu describes matooke as the most important food crop in the country and the second most important cash crop, judging by the number of people who rely on it for livelihood.
"If you look at matooke on your plate, you don't realise how far it travels to reach its market. It used to grow in most parts of the country, but it is now restricted to the area after Lyantonde towards western Uganda and some parts of Bunyoro", he says.
Dr Kiggundu further explains that matooke is important because of its high yielding ability, at 60 tons per hectare per year, with a year-round ability to provide food.
The two scientists undertook research on how to improve the banana cropís ability to withstand the virus after conventional breeding techniques failed.
They used bio-technology techniques to transfer a gene from rice to matooke, creating a plant that is resistant to the virus. For two years, the 'new' banana plant has passed all laboratory tests, including one in which it was deliberately exposed to the virus.
The controversy
While the scientists are happy with the results, they are concerned that Parliament is delaying to pass a law that allows the growing of genetically modified crops (GMOs).
"We need laws that would allow farmers to raise these crops since research has already shown that they are safe", says Arinaitwe.
Kenya, which has already passed such a law on GMOs, looks more likely to benefit from this research. Kenyan scientists are seeking to develop insect-resistant maize and cotton, as well as virus-resistant sweet potatoes and cassava.
Kiggundu and Arinatwe are also involved in new research to enhance the matooke plant with vitamins and iron, which would make the crop more nutritious. At Namulonge, Dr Yona Baguma is leading research into disease and drought resistant varieties of cassava, while approval for field trials for weevil resistant sweet potatoes is pending.
However, researchers warn that unless Uganda passes the relevant GMO law, rich research findings could benefit other countries. A former member of the Agriculture committee of Parliament says they are concerned about the public perception of biotechnology.
"Most people are convinced that biotechnology is just a new science designed to finish off conventional crops, so if they were to be approved there is a fear that the crops would still be shunned", says former MP, Joseph Mugambe.
However, the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO) Director General, Dr Denis Kyetere, says those who believe that biotechnology is new research are mistaken.
"For many years our grandmothers mixed plant varieties of maize and beans to create new breeds and this took years; what we are doing in the laboratory is to speed up the process of breed improvement to deal with market need using natural implements, while increasing bio safety", he says.
He explains that several crop breeds have been improved over the years without much controversy and is confident that the fears around GMOs are largely unfounded.
