259 News & Press Releases found
SciDev.Net News
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Why I turned from GM opponent to advocate
Just under 20 years ago, when the issue of GMOs was first hitting the news, I was a dedicated anti-biotech activist. I believed that genetic modification was a dangerous technology that would harm the environment and dispossess farmers around the ...
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Assessing stressed crops from the sky
In Peru, the International Potato Center (CIP), Lima, uses drones to aerially assess crop performance under different stresses, such as pests, diseases, drought and frost — all of them widespread phenomena in the Andes, one area where CIP ...
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Cultural change in Kenyan banana farming
Farmers in Nkubu, Meru County, central Kenya, are experimenting with a new banana production method with the help of the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and the Kaguri Agricultural Training Centre The introduction of ...
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Bats can help protect rice farms against pests
Bats that prey on a major rice pest in Thailand could save paddy harvests worth millions of dollars and help contribute to better food security, scientists say in a paper published in Biological Conservation in March. Using data from a previous ...
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Reviving Nepal with hybrid tomatoes
Five years ago, diseases and storms during the monsoon season would wipe out the majority of Nepalese tomato plantations. Discouraged, Nepali farmers slowly started abandoning tomato production. But the tomato is a big part of local cuisine, so ...
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Seaweed forests could help power tropical islands
Harvesting seaweed ‘forests’ and feeding them into large underwater digesters could one day meet the world’s energy needs, with nine per cent of the ocean floor being enough to replace fossil fuels entirely, according to an ...
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Climate-hit fisheries ‘can still meet demand in 2050’
Fish catches will need to increase by only 3.4 per cent to meet global dietary demand in 2050, according to a study predicting how climate change will affect marine ecosystems. The authors warn that achieving this will require the wider ...
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Seed bank targets food security in Asia
Many neglected indigenous plants can play an important role in fighting hunger, soil erosion and loss of biodiversity in developing countries. The ECHO Asia Seed Bank in Thailand encourages the use of such plants by saving their seeds and ...
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Crop pests ‘vastly underestimated’ warns study
The number of different pests plaguing crops in the developing world may be vastly underestimated, contributing to severely reduced harvests in some of the world’s most important food-producing nations, say researchers. About 200 pests and ...
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Africa and India cultivate agricultural research ties
Africa and India are gearing up to further enhance cooperation in agricultural science, technology and innovation, and move beyond dialogue to a range of practical options from a virtual biotech platform to agribusiness centres, seed investments and ...
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The dire need to support ‘orphan crop’ research
In spite of debate over its definition, the term ‘orphan crops’ refers to crops that are under-researched and underfunded due to their limited importance in the global market. These include cereals, legumes, vegetables, root crops, ...
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Google Earth enables remote tracking of fish catches
Persian Gulf governments could use Google’s free global satellite imaging program to better monitor and control fishing in their waters, say experts. Their comments follow a study that used Google Earth to uncover huge discrepancies between ...
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The land of vanishing pastures
The northern Indian regions of Kashmir and Ladakh are home to a variety of livestock that provides meat as well as fine wool used to produce the famous Pashmina shawls. But overgrazing, strong winds and car traffic are now destroying pastures and ...
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Plankton beats insecticides at mosquito control
Improving the biodiversity of ponds and lakes in malaria-endemic regions could offer a powerful and sustainable way to control malaria. A common mosquito-controlling strategy is to apply biological insecticides, such as Bacillus thuringiensis ...
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Pest ants help to improve Indonesian cocoa yields
Native ants living in cacao trees in Indonesia that are often seen as pests in fact seem to boost their yields, a study suggests. Scientists from Germany, Indonesia and Sweden studying how ant communities affect cocoa yields in Sulawesi found that ...
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Africa and EU team up on food and farming research
African and European officials have agreed to work together on food, nutrition and agricultural research, with the first round of calls for research grants in this area expected next week. Senior representatives from the European Commission, the ...
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Focus on Gender: women are more than agricultural victims
The editor of a recent UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report has concluded that smallholder farmers must be involved in biotechnology and innovation research to reduce poverty. In doing this, one challenge will be to include female ...
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Technology transforms quinoa, and women’s lives
The Waldo Ballivián municipality lies 4000 metres above sea level, in rural Bolivia. In February this year the NGO Practical Action began working with communities there to strengthen their capacity to produce quinoa by introducing ...
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Q&A: Bruce Campbell on the need to focus on farming
Farmers in countries that are vulnerable to climate are severely affected by changes in temperature, erratic weather and shifting seasons caused by global warming. Local adaptation policies are important, but most international aid is currently ...
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Global map of seeds, food and biodiversity launched
A recently launched (15 October) website aims to provide news and resources on crop seeds and biodiversity threats for researchers, policymakers, educators and farmers. The site’s interactive map presents more than 375 case studies from ...