Related developments
Opportunities and limitations for functional agrobiodiversity (FAB) in the European context
Planned reforms in European agricultural policy could facilitate the implementation of functional agrobiodiversity (FAB) concepts in the sector. However, impediments to the adoption of FAB approaches still exist, mainly (i) translation of general knowledge to tailored, ready-to-use management practices, (ii) limited information on the effectiveness of FAB measures in terms of crop yield and quality, profitability, and reduction of agrochemical inputs, (iii) lack of appropriate financial accounting systems that allow fair accounting of the private investments and public benefits, and (iv) the implementation of FAB measures at the right spatial scales, which requires coordination among the various actors in a region. This paper explores the current and new legislation that may provide incentives to address these limitations. (via ELN-FAB Newsletter, April 2013)
22/05/2013
Agro-ecosystems: reservoirs of biodiversity to be promoted
Biodiversity conservation policy and scientific choices made over the past 20 years have led to the development of global assessments, and management and conservation tools for living organisms. Such standardisation of environmental policies and instruments tends to marginalise cultivated tropical ecosystems and their related practices. A multi-disciplinary team of researchers demonstrate how the standardisation of conservation methods has lead to a decline in species diversity and local knowledge in agricultural landscapes. Because they are reservoirs of biodiversity in their own way, agro-ecosystems should be better understood and protected. (IRD, 02/2013)
22/05/2013
Wild foods could improve nutrition and food security
Malnutrition could be greatly reduced and food security improved by ensuring improved access to nutrient-rich forest-derived foods like berries, bushmeat, roots, insects and nuts for the world’s poorest populations. The critical role forests could play in improving food security and nutrition is poorly reflected in national development and food security strategies. Forest foods haven´t received much attention in part due to the current method of measuring food security in terms of energy (or calories) and not in terms of micronutrients, which has meant that foods that aren´t a good source of calories – but have plenty of micronutrients – have been overlooked. (IRIN and CIFOR, 10/04/2013)
22/05/2013
Wild parent spawns super salt-tolerant rice
A cross between two different rice parents – the exotic wild rice species Oryza coarctata and rice variety IR56 of the cultivated rice species O. sativa expels salt into the air through glands on its leaves. IRRI is perfecting the new salt-tolerant rice and will test it widely to ensure it meets all the needs of farmers and consumers. The new variety will be available for farmers to grow within 4–5 years. (IRRI, 15/04/2013)
22/05/2013
New cowpea varieties offer promise
The new cowpea varieties combine extra-early maturity, high protein and high yield potential with resistance to major diseases and tolerance to heat and drought. Cowpea is a major food legume and a source of dietary protein for masses in Africa, Asia and South America. The dry grains from cowpeas are used as a pulse (edible seed) and its young leaves, pods and green seeds are also used as a vegetable. The varieties being tested were developed during the last five years from crosses involving the best cowpea lines from the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and those from Texas A&M University. (AgriLife Today, 10/04/2013)
22/05/2013
Distributions and conservation concerns for the wild relatives of major crops mapped
After gathering data on the distribution of Crop Wild Relatives (CWR) plants, CIAT has begun to map the distribution of CWR and their conservation concerns. The resulting gap analysis will inform subsequent collecting and breeding efforts under the ‘Adapting Agriculture to Climate Change: Collecting, Protecting, and Preparing Crop Wild Relatives’ project, led by the Global Crop Diversity Trust and the Millennium Seed Bank. Gap analysis results have been completed for nearly 500 CWR taxa related to 29 globally important crops, including maps displaying distributions, patterns of richness, and areas worldwide where CWR are particularly in need of collecting for conservation and in order to be made accessible for breeding efforts.http://dapa.ciat.cgiar.org/distributions-and-conservation-concerns-for-the-wild-relatives-of-major-crops-mapped-2/(CIAT DAPA, 11/04/2013)
22/05/2013
A systems approach to understand biodiversity
Central to the approach is a need to standardise, store openly, and link together disparate datasets in a fully interoperable way. The field of genomics serves as a useful analogy, with a culture of openness in data sharing, standardisation and tool development.http://blogs.biomedcentral.com/bmcseriesblog/2013/04/15/a-systems-approach-to-understand-biodiversity/(BioMed Central, 15/04/2013)
22/05/2013
FAO: World’s gene pool crucial for survival
Genetic resources for food and agriculture play a crucial role in enabling crops, livestock, aquatic organisms and forest trees to withstand climate change-related conditions and tackle nutritional deserts.http://goo.gl/fTOBa(FAO, 15/04/2013)
22/05/2013
Fighting hunger with micronutrient-rich crops and diverse food
An interview featuring Howarth Bouis, director of HarvestPlus, a programme that promotes micronutrient-rich staple food crops through biofortification that offers a good overview of the latest research on the subject.http://www.cgiar.org/consortium-news/tackling-malnutrition-means-quality-as-well-as-quantity/(CGIAR, 9/04/2013)
22/05/2013
West Africa’s farmer rice varieties can grow without fertilisers
Researchers at Wageningen University in the Netherlands and AfricaRice in Benin studied 26 varieties of rice developed and cultivated locally by farmers in five West African countries between 2006 and 2012. Their findings suggest that farmer rice varieties can grow without fertilisers, require no special maintenance and can develop ways of coping with stress. This makes them highly adaptable to a wide range of environments. An additional benefit of the local varieties is that they produce higher and sometimes superior yields to imported varieties.http://www.scidev.net/en/agriculture-and-environment/farming-practices/news/local-rice-makes-the-grade-in-west-africa.html(Scidev.net, 25/03/2013)
22/05/2013
Greater Sago use will help to promote food security in the Pacific
The launch of the Regional Sago Network for Asia and the Pacific (SNAP) in March 2013 marks the promotion of underutilized indigenous food crops such as Sago palm. Sago has a high starch yield potential and grows in swamps and wetlands with minimal competition from other food crops for land and water use. Sago has many advantages over other starch-producing food crops. It can grow in swamps and wet land which are not suitable for agricultural production. It is tolerant to drought and floods. It increases farm household income and employment through the production of confectionery and cookies, roofing material from leaves and the production of woven mats and handicrafts. The Sago worm cultured from old Sego trunks is a local delicacy with high market value. Additionally it contributes to slowing the pace of global warming through its year-round carbon dioxide absorbing function. (FAO, 14/12/2012)
10/04/2013
New varieties of beans to be distributed in Cameroon
Farmers in Cameroon are growing new varieties of beans that are providing up to three times the yields of traditional crops, which have been under attack from pests and disease as well as adverse weather patterns. Seven varieties of hardier and more nutritious beans are now being distributed to farmers, following extensive trials by the country's Institute of Agricultural Research for Development (IRAD). The varieties were selected from hundreds given to Cameroon by the Pan-Africa Bean Research Alliance (PABRA), a multi-agency initiative that coordinates research on the continent. (SciDev.Net, 22/03/2013)
10/04/2013
CARICOM assesses biodiversity-related statistics and indicators
Representatives from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat are currently visiting Member States to assess their current position regarding statistics on the environment. The exercise targets National Statistical Offices, Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEA) focal points, ministries and environment departments and agencies engaged in the production and use of environment statistics in the areas of forestry, land use and agriculture, coastal and marine resources and biodiversity. The main aim of the exercise is to strengthen inter-agency coordination to fill any gaps in environment statistics in the area of biodiversity. http://www.caricom.org/jsp/pressreleases/press_releases_2012/pres301_12.jsp (CARICOM, 11/2012)
7/03/2013
Can genomics boost productivity of orphan crops?
This opinion piece by Rajeev K. Varshney of ICRISAT and colleagues in Nature Biotechnology explains why the availability of advanced tools to support genomics-assisted breeding, should not be an issue anymore in developing orphan crops, mainly staples. However they note that the ‘magnitude of the breeding effort for those orphan crops and the capacity of adopting modern technologies is extremely variable across developing countries and generally directly related to the health of the national economy’. They believe that ‘centralized service facilities for high-throughput sequencing and genotyping, together with access to genomics and analytical breeding tools, should enhance implementation and adoption of molecular breeding in developing countries’. They recommend that ‘continued training of breeders and geneticists in modern genomics and molecular breeding approaches and their retention in developing countries coupled with adequate institutional and governmental support will be critical for the sustainable and effective integration of genomics-assisted breeding in crop improvement programmes for ensuring food security in developing countries’.Nature Biotechnology 30, 1172–1176 (2012).
8/02/2013
Farmers in East Africa not consulted on draft policy for Plant Variety Protection
East African farmers petitioned the African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation (ARIPO), following the latter’s proposed draft of a regional harmonised policy and legal framework on plant variety protection. The draft policy will make it mandatory for small-scale farmers in East Africa to buy all their seeds from multinational firms and stop using seeds from past harvests. The farmers’ group faults the process used to develop the draft policy and the negative impact its adoption would have on small-scale farmers, food security and on agricultural biodiversity. The draft policy will give powers to ARIPO regional offices to grant and administer breeders’ rights on behalf of all the contracting states. It also paves the way for the African Union (AU) to start discussions on the cultivation, import and export of genetically modified crops in Africa at the next AU summit to be held in January 2013. Observers and civil society representatives have criticized these developments as they have had little access to the negotiation table and are asking ARIPO to undertake comprehensive consultations with all relevant stakeholders and desist from rushing governments into adopting the draft legislation.(IP-Watch, 5/11/2012 and The East African, 16/12/2012)
8/02/2013
Diversity and production methods of fluted pumpkin (Telfairia occidentalis Hook F.): Experience with vegetable farmers in Makurdi, Nigeria
Telfairia occidentalis is an indigenous vegetable consumed by millions of people in Nigeria. The seeds are in high demand as they serve as food oil for making margarine. However, commercial growers in the middle belt zone of Nigeria, source telfairia seeds from south-eastern states of Nigeria. The growers claimed that seeds of the accessions grown in the area are not as viable as those from southeast Nigeria. Thus, seeds are scarce and expensive at time of planting. This survey sought to examine farmers’ perception of diversity and determine the status of fluted pumpkin production as a basis for facilitating further studies, in order to help resolve the constraints to telfairia seed production. The results showed that the farmers, predominantly female (78%), were able to identify two cultivars ‘Ugwu-elu’ and ‘Ugwu-ala’ by their distinctive characteristics – leaves, stem, fruit and seed. The crop was produced on low ridges, with two seeds planted in a hole about 6 cm deep, at a spacing of 31 x 45 cm, giving a population of approximately 71,700 plants/ha. Mulching and fertilizer use were not practised but weeding and irrigation were undertaken. Apparently, seed production is possible in Makurdi and breeders can breed for telfairia seed.(African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 7, Is. 8, 17/04/2008)
23/11/2012
GBIF publishes new guide for creating national species checklists
The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) has released a report providing guidance for policy and procedures related to accessing and capturing information for national species checklists. Noting that such checklists are invaluable resources for research and biodiversity-related activities, the report says they should be integrated, coordinated and disseminated from a single platform and compiled by expert taxonomists, but this is not always the case. The report titled ‘Best Practice Guide for Compiling, Maintaining and Disseminating National Species Checklists’ was produced by the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) through funding from GBIF.(via IISD Reporting Services, 10/2012)
23/11/2012
Plantwise Knowledge Bank
The Commonwealth Agricultural Bureau International (CABI) has launched the Plantwise Knowledge Bank, a web-based portal that combines plant health information with diagnostic tools, fact sheets and other information resources to assist farmers in identifying and controlling crop pests. The knowledge bank aims to provide extension workers, government organizations, researchers and farmers in developing countries with information to diagnose, treat and prevent plant pests and diseases, in order to reduce threats to food security. The website includes: a diagnostic tool that allows users to identify plant problems based on pictures of symptoms; country-specific pages that provide localized information; and factsheets that describe easily applicable treatments.The knowledge bank complements CABI's Plantwise network of plant clinics in developing countries, which provide support to local farmers to overcome plant health problems. (IISD Reporting Services – Biodiversity, 7/2012)
23/10/2012
Bird diversity at risk as farmlands replace agroforests
An early 2012 study published in the Journal of Ornithology and picked up by Mongabay indicates that wooded 'shade' plantations where coffee and cacao are grown are better for bird diversity than open farmlands, although forests still are the best habitat for tropical birds. Agroforests contain much higher levels of bird diversity than their open agricultural counterparts, according to this research. If large forests and agroforests continue to be replaced by simple open farms, bird communities will become much less specialized and entire groups may become extinct. Important roles for birds, such as pollination, pest control or seed dispersal, may remain unfilled if ongoing trends toward open agriculture continues and biodiversity decreases.(Mongabay, 13/9/2012)
23/10/2012
Crop Wild Relatives and Climate Change
This resource is being developed by the project ‘Adapting agriculture to climate change: collecting, protecting and preparing crop wild relatives’. This Project is led by the Global Crop Diversity Trust and the Millennium Seed Bank of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, UK, and is supported by the Government of Norway. It is being implemented through partnerships with national and international crop conservation and use programmes, universities and other research institutions, and in accordance with the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Many individual scientists, herbaria, genebanks and specialist institutes are contributing advice and information to the Project and this website. The Project aims to collect the wild relatives of 26 key crops, conserve them in genebanks, and prepare them for use in plant breeding programmes in time to breed new crop varieties adapted to new climates.http://www.cwrdiversity.org/
26/09/2012
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