Inventing Makhathini: Creating a prototype for the dissemination of genetically modified crops into Africa

Abstract

This paper evaluates the experiences of smallholder farmers in the Makhathini Flats, South Africa, who have been cultivating Bt cotton since 1998. I begin by focusing on the high adoption rates achieved soon after its introduction and re-emphasize the context - geographical, institutional, historical - that underpinned this initial period of success, arguing that the story of Bt cotton in Makhathini reflects these structural processes as much as it serves as an endorsement of genetically modified (GM) technology. The paper then shifts to an investigation of how the representation of Makhathini's success has been used as crucial ammunition to help convince other African nations to adopt GM crops. In the final part of the article I emphasize the disconnect between the dominant representation of Makhathini that is celebrated in the scholarly and popular literature and the realities faced by its cotton growers. I argue that the representation of Makhathini's success with Bt cotton has outlived the realities recounted by its farmers. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.