South American tomato leaf miner, Tuta absoluta, reported in Nepal for the first time
South American tomato leaf miner, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick), has been reported in a tomato farm for the first time in Nepal and the presence has been confirmed in five districts, Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Bhaktapur, Kavrepalanchowk and Dhading district. Studies carried out by the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) in May and June this year have identified…
La Necrosis letal del maíz amenaza la producción en América del Sur
English version below the break. Artículo elaborado por Joao A. Jeque Junior, Léna Durocher-Granger y José Gómez Vargas. La enfermedad conocida como la necrosis letal del maíz (MLN, por sus siglas en inglés), causada por la co-infección de dos virus, está amenazando la producción de maíz en el Ecuador. Según el Ministerio de Agricultura, la incidencia…
Surveillance critical to halting deadly tomato pest
By Jackie Opara. Reblogged from SciDev.Net Effective surveillance and integrated pest management could curb the devastating impacts of tomato pest, Tuta absoluta, also called tomato leaf miner, which is ravaging the crop in Nigeria, experts say. T. absoluta has affected most parts of northern Nigeria tomato farms in Kaduna state, causing a loss of more than 1…
Farming First and GACSA launch creative partnership to explore “Climate-Smart Agriculture in Action”
Contributed by Farming First One billion farmers all over the world, responsible for growing the food that feeds the planet, are under unprecedented pressure from a changing climate. For eight months in a row now, temperatures have been the highest on record. Food shortages are affecting an estimated 100 million people in the wake of drought…
CABI’s Dr Kuhlmann talks plant health innovation at G20 Agricultural Chief Scientists meeting
Yesterday, CABI’s Executive Director of Global Operations, Dr Ulrich Kuhlmann, spoke about the importance of agricultural innovation and sharing plant health knowledge at the 5th meeting of the G20 Agricultural Chief Scientists (MACS). As the host country, China chaired the meeting. The G20 MACS took place in Xi’an on 30-31 May 2016, with representatives from…
Campaigning for Safe Chemical Use in Uganda
A loud booming voice on a megaphone breaks the silence in the farming village of Kaptum centre..”Akwaa! lo mite kapurto nyepo ceyec cepo nyepokaptisyet!”, (come attend a plant health rally by ministry of agriculture officials). Farmers quickly gather and listen attentively as Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) officials conduct the plant health…
CPM11 kicks off at the FAO in Rome
Contributed by Melanie Bateman, CABI On Monday 04 April 2016, the 11th of session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) kicked off in Rome. The meeting began with opening remarks from Mr. Daniel Gustafson, FAO Deputy Director General of Operations, and a hearty welcome to the new IPPC Secretary, Mr. Jingyuan Xia.
Tackling food security with urban agriculture
The world population is projected to increase by an additional one billion people by 2030 with Africa and Asia accounting for the greater share of this population growth. According to UN reports, more than half of the world’s population currently live in urban areas. By 2030, it is expected that more than 70 percent of the…
Factsheet of the month: February 2016 – Rotation against purple seed stain in soya
At the beginning of January, a new research centre opened in Benin, which aims to boost productivity and incomes of smallholder farmers, and create job opportunities. Researchers based at the Green Innovation Center, which has been funded by the Federal German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), will develop tools for training and improve frameworks…
Plant clinics help tackle crop diseases in Rwanda
Excerpt from The New Times article, published 22 January 2016 It is a Monday evening and Dominique Nkundukozera, a farmer in Rusatira Sector in Huye District, is seated on a chair at Kinkanga market, with several cassava stems. He had brought the stems for examination by experts at a ‘Plant Health Clinic’ at the market.…