Africa’s youth want to cultivate careers, not just crops
This article was originally published on SciDev.Net We need to ensure that Africa’s future farmers not only grow crops but careers as well, argues Sylvia Ng’eno By 2050, Sub-Saharan Africa will be home to a third of the world’s young people, who will play a key part in feeding future generations. No region is this phenomenon of having…
E-plant clinics launched in Mozambique
E-plant clinics have been successfully launched in Mozambique this November, following two trainings and official launches. The trainings took place in a village called Tenga, Moamba near the capital city of Maputo (around 80 km), and in Morrumbene District near the city of Inhambane. Training was delivered in partnership with the National Directorate of Agricultural…
Farmer Health: A Case Against Pesticides
Guest blog by Julie Potyraj; read her previous post on community health here For most of us, the point of choosing sustainably grown foods is to protect our own health and to minimize environmental damage. While these are important reasons for making better choices at the grocery store, what about the human side and the health of those…
Farmer Field Day training in Malawi
On Tuesday, June 3rd, Land O’Lakes held another in a series of Farmer Field Day training events at one of their signature Answer Plot® sites, known locally as Yankho Plot™ sites in Malawi. This farmer training event was held in Salima district, Malawi, on a plot planted with several varieties of rice. On this day,…
Food for thought: Cocoa farmers from Ivory Coast taste chocolate for the first time
In the past twenty years, the Ivory Coast has produced over 25 million tonnes of cocoa beans; far more than any other country. However, this video suggests that some cocoa farmers might never have seen the end product of the crop they spend their time cultivating. This has implications for the cocoa supply chain: if…
Can you guess this plant clinic?
Take a close look at the photo below. Can you guess where in the world this plant clinic is located? It is one of hundreds of clinics, operated by national partners in local markets and meeting places, where farmers can find the plant health advice they need. Click ‘Read more’ for the location answer….
Black Sigatoka Ravages Caribbean
Caribbean banana farmers are abandoning fields where crops have been badly affected by Black Sigatoka disease. Black Sigatoka has badly affected several countries in the region, including Dominica, St. Lucia, Grenada and Guyana. Black Sigatoka is considered the most destructive disease of bananas and plantains and is caused by the fungus Mycosphaerella fijiensis. It first arrived in…
How plant clinics are helping farmers in Puducherry, India
Plantwise plant clinics are currently operating in 31 countries in Asia, Africa and Central & Latin America. Thousands of farmers come to these clinics for advice on managing their crops, particularly crops that are being affected by pests or disease. The video below gives the story of a farmer in Puducherry, India, who got advice…
Agroecology – benefiting farmers around the world
This week, the UK Minister of State for Agriculture and Food, David Heath, has announced his support for the use of agroecological farming methods which are seen as the foundation of sustainable agriculture. The International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology (IAASTD) define agroecology as “the science and practice of applying ecological concepts and principles…
Plantwise Photo Of The Month- April
To read more about the work Plantwise is doing in Bolivia follow this link. To read Spanish factsheets specific to Bolivia on the Plantwise Knowledge Bank click here.