Norman Borlaug 1914-2009

He was widely known as the "Father of the Green Revolution" and "The Man Who Fed the World" for his pioneering work developing high-yielding wheat for areas with limited cultivated land and increasing population.

 

Dr. Borlaug was one of only five people in history to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Congressional Gold Medal (an honor shared by Nelson Mandela, Elie Wiesel, Mother Teresa, and Martin Luther King, Jr.).

 

Dr. Borlaug devoted his life to ensuring food security for what he termed "the forgotten world," mostly developing nations, where "most of the people, comprising more than 50% of the total world population, live in poverty, with hunger as a constant companion."

 

When Dr. Borlaug received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, then-President Gerald Ford stated that Borlaug’s work "has pushed back the shadow of hunger on this planet and given us precious time to force its final retreat."

 

Dr. Borlaug was born March 25, 1914, near Cresco, and often stated "Whatever I’ve been able to do in life for good….in large part goes back to the experience of growing up on the soil, [on] a very small farm in Howard County, Iowa."

 

In 1985 Dr. Borlaug was the driving force behind the establishment of the World Food Prize, headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, and awarded annually to persons who have made outstanding contributions to food and agriculture throughout the world.

 

In addition, several acres of his Iowa boyhood farm have been dedicated to the education of new generations of agricultural scientists.