Diverse user testing groups critical for downloads and sustained usage of agricultural apps
For poor, rural communities, agriculture is seen as a pathway out of poverty and when considering agricultural development, we often look to digital solutions; ICT for development. But how much are these technologies taken up and more importantly, actually used by their target end users? In a recent paper, published in Journal of Agricultural &…
Farmers in Malawi to benefit from space-age technology in fight against devastating crop pests
Farmers in Malawi are the latest to benefit from a CABI-led consortium, funded by the UK Space Agency, which is providing a Pest Risk Information Service (PRISE) to fight pest outbreaks that could devastate crops and livelihoods across the country. The service, which uses state-of-the-art technology to help inform farmers in sub-Saharan Africa – including Zambia, Ghana and…
Plantwise helps with managing the invasive Fall Armyworm in Vietnam
During a recent visit to a plant clinic session in Vinh Phuc, Vietnam, first-hand evidence of this devastating invasive pest was shown to visiting CABI staff. A 76-year-old farmer, Madam Nguyen Thi Nam brought along damaged maize plant to seek advice from the plant doctor, Mrs Dang Thi Quynh Nga.
World Food Prize winner’s vision sown in CABI-led Plantwise programme in Myanmar
World Food Prize Laureate for 2019 Simon N. Groot, founder of East-West Seed, helped train CABI Plantwise plant doctors in Myanmar so farmers can grow more and lose less to pests and diseases (Photo: World Food Prize). Simon N. Groot, the Dutch founder of East-West Seed, has won the World Food Prize 2019 for empowering millions…
Update: New Pest & Disease Records (07 June 2019)
We’ve selected a few of the latest new geographic, host and species records for plant pests and diseases from CAB Abstracts. Records this month include the first report of a novel alphapartitivirus in Rhizoctonia oryzae-sativae, the causal agent of aggregate sheath spot disease of rice; a report on Bursaphelenchus rockyi sp. in peat moss in…
‘Green Super Rice’: Improving smallholder incomes and reducing hunger across Asia and Africa
Scientists and crop breeders in China have produced new varieties of rice called ‘Green Super Rice’ (GSR) to help tackle the global burden of increasing populations, food production and farmer incomes with its 20% increase in yield across varying challenging growing conditions.
How can tomato farming be improved in Kenya? Study finds producers face a ‘myriad of constraints’
In a recently published paper in Scientific African, CABI’s Willis Ochilo led on a study which captured a better understanding of tomato producers in Kenya, describing in detail the production practices in order to identify challenges and opportunities for increasing tomato productivity for the country’s smallholder communities. Tomato is a good source of vitamins A…
How bees can be a friend to smallholders
In an unprecedented study, honey bees have been found to be the world’s most important single species pollinator in natural ecosystems. Working alongside wild bees, they are also said to be responsible for every one in three bites of food. For the smallholder farmer, befriending bees – both honey and wild – could mean more…
CABI-led £1.6 million collaboration helps reduce China’s reliance on harmful pesticides
A CABI-led project involving an international team of remote sensing and plant protection experts is helping China reduce its reliance on harmful pesticides to fight crop pests and diseases including yellow rust fungal disease of wheat and locusts. The £1.6 million STFC Newton Agri-Tech Fund-financed project is leaving a lasting legacy in helping the Chinese Government…
Update: New Pest & Disease Records (07 May 2019)
We’ve selected a few of the latest new geographic, host and species records for plant pests and diseases from CAB Abstracts. Records this month include the first report of Pratylenchus neglectus on maize in Hungary, the first report of Cecidochares connexa parasitism in West Africa and a report on Phalaenopsis petal spot disease in Taiwan.