The Irish Potato Blight
In the 1800’s the Irish greatly depended on the potato for food. They were politically held hostage by the British and were forced to farm their land and sell their crops to England. Farmers would rent out a plot of land, use most of it for planting grains to be sold to the British and use a minute amount of space for living with their large families. The only source of food available to them was potatoes. Potatoes were a reliable source of food however, they had more proteins than beans and also supplied plenty of starch and vitamins. Also, potatoes were capable of growing in the poor soil and climate of Ireland, more so than other plants and had a high yield for low labor. The population of Ireland expanded quickly in the mid 19th century. It was believed that having a large family was the sign of wealth and coupled with the reliability potatoes gave, made it possible to easily raise a large family. By around 1840 the population of Ireland grew to 8 million.
The English were in control of Ireland and were neglectful of the Irish. Ireland does not have a lot of natural resources and so the people living there were still using stone tools. This made them look inferior in the eyes of the British. When Ireland became part of the U.K., they were used as an agricultural colony and were mandated to only produce what was not produced in Britain. Primarily, the Irish would export wheat, oats and barley. The British did not favor potatoes, so the Irish kept the potatoes to sustain themselves. This favored the British because it meant that all of the grains could be exported to Britain. This further increased the reliance on potatoes by the Irish.
In 1845, potatoes began dying and turning black and inedible. This affliction spread throughout all of Ireland and soon there were no potatoes left. This led to the death of approximately two million Irish. What caused this disease, what we now call blight, is a fungus called Phytophthora infestans and was discovered by Anton de Bary. This fungus likely originated in Peru, travelled to Belgium and finally to Ireland. The fungus enters the leaf vie the stomata and absorbs all of the nutrients causing the plant to die. The fungus likes cool temperatures, high rainfall and humidity, wind and water. The fungus will sit in a pool of water and wait to be splashed onto a plant by the wind or falling raindrops. The fungus can then infect the tuber when the plant is pulled out of the ground. Further complicating things, potatoes are able to be stored throughout the winter and therefore able to carry an infection over to the next seasons crop. These factors, coupled with the unilateral reliance on potatoes being the sole source of food, led to the rapid eradication of potatoes on Ireland.
As a result of the destruction of the potatoes and their political situation, many of the Irish immigrated to Canada and the United States. According to laws at the time, landlords were required to support peasants by either sending them to workhouses or paying for passage to Canada. Workhouses required £12 a year per person as opposed to £6 per person for passage to Canada. The ships that were used to transport people to Canada were not designed for people. The people had to stay below deck where it was crowded and lacking beds and toilets. Many people on board had lice or typhus and the conditions onboard made them easy to spread. Around 20% of the people would die on their way to Canada. However, for those who survived, they were able to establish communities and some even managed to greatly influence history. Many Irish ended up in Boston and New York and grew through social activism and unionization. During WWI and WWII, it was likely that their lobbying greatly contributed to the idea of isolationism and the late entry of the United States into those wars. The Irish firmly cemented themselves into the United States.
Modern technology is capable of preventing disease like the potato blight from impacting society. Genetic engineering is one technology that has shown an ability to change agriculture to make it safer and healthier than it has ever been. Gene editing allows for changes that give plants protections against pathogens or predatory insects as well as higher yield and adaptations for a wider range of environments. Plants can be modified to be resistant to herbicides that can be used on weeds or an insecticide. They can also be modified so that they can retain water better or survive warmer climates, allowing for a greater chance of survival in warming climates. Animals, like salmon, have also been modified to grow larger and faster. However, this technology is new, and we do not yet know the long-term effects. Nevertheless, the many positive results are encouraging and give great hope that this technology can be used to protect our agriculture from great threats like the potato blight.
All Information is taken from resources on Canvas