U.S. Farmers Travel to Afghanistan to Wean Growers Off Poppy

More than 60 American farmers have traveled to Afghanistan to help train and convince their Afghan counterparts to grow corn, wheat, rice and other crops instead of poppy, which makes opium that finances the Taliban. But it’s a hard sell. Afghan farmers receive nearly $1,500 per acre of poppy while wheat is worth $500 per acre. U.S. farmers are teaching the Afghans water and soil conservation techniques and showing them how to get their crops to market in hopes of making them more money.