Troops Teaching Afghan farmers modern techniques

Teaching Afghan farmers modern techniques

GHAZNI, Afghanistan

By Michelle Tan - Staff writer
Posted : Sunday Oct 26, 2008 15:49:29 EDT
The $172,000, 53-acre Jungal Bagh demonstration farm north of town is a refreshingly green patch of land that soon will become a centerpiece of an effort to bring local farmers out of the dark ages.

The farm will have a power generation system, cool storage capability, a greenhouse, a cistern, an orchard, row crops and beehives, giving local farmers a place to learn new, more efficient and productive techniques. The Texas National Guard’s Agribusiness Development Team is developing the project.

“We want to transfer technology and techniques to the local farmers,” said Maj. Conan Martin, the agribusiness team chief, who has a background in biology, chemistry and pharmaceuticals.

That will enable farmers, who make up at least 70 percent of the population, to move from subsistence farming to productive farming, Martin said.

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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/10/army_afghan_demofarm_102608w/