Going Direct2Farm
Carmen Thönnissen, Programme Manager from the Swiss Agency for Development and Coopertation, recently visited CABI’s Direct2Farm project with her colleagues in Meerut, India. Read Carmen's report on her visit and the impact of mobile technology on Agriculture. On 23 April 2013, we – from the Swiss Agency for Development and Coopertation (SDC) – had the pleasure to…
Attack of the 340 million propagule timebomb! Stories of Phytophthora
Latest CABI Author focus out now - Kurt Lamour tells how the deadly nature of Phytophthora has been devastating crops since the Potato famine!
Reducing hunger and undernutrition – how are we doing?
Hunger and undernutrition are amongst the most persistent global development challenges. Part of Millennium Development Goal 1 is to ‘Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger’ (UN, 2012). With global numbers of undernourished people static at 870 million for the past 5 years and undernutrition contributing to the deaths…
A green future? 3 experts give their views on the future of the world’s forests
To mark International Day of Forests, we brought together three experts in the field to suggest their own thoughts on what lies ahead for forests. Below they offer their hopes, and fears, for these vital ecosystems in the years to come.
Day 2 of the ‘Rachel Carson & Ruth Harrison 50 Years on Conference’
Rachel Carson has sparked the modern day environmental movement with her book Silent Spring published 50 years ago and Ruth Harrison’s book Animal Machines, also written 50 years ago, alerted the public to the undeniable suffering of calves living in veal crates and birds in battery cages. The second and final day of the conference…
Schmallenberg – the impact of the virus hitting UK farms
Schmallenberg virus was first reported in in cattle the summer of 2011 near the town in Northern Germany that gives it its name. Since then, the spread of the virus has been rapid. In the UK, it was first reported on 11 farms in January 2012, and has grown month-on-month since then. It is spread…
Chocolate Made in South Africa for homesick Brits?
This blog is about the weirdness of global trade… and the lengths (literally) we go for chocolate. The wrapper on my Marks & Spencer (M&S) valentine chocolates read: “Made with our exclusive British Milk chocolate recipe, Made in South Africa”. Incredibly, it seemed that a firm in South Africa (SA) was targeting local people with…
How alien species cost Europe €12bn a year
A report from the European Environment Agency (EEA) sets out the staggering cost of alien species – animals and plants brought to Europe from other parts of the world. The cost, and the threat to health and the environment, is said to be greater than expected, costing at least €12bn (£10bn) a year. More than…
Measuring up? Analysing aid and international development at OxFID 2013
By Daniel O'Hara Return On Investment. To many that phrase brings to mind the corporate sector, with its insistence on low costs and high profits. Far fewer people would think of ROI in relation to international development – its focus on getting the best value for money perhaps seems at odds with development’s aims of…
Urban agriculture – why is it important?
Today is the second day of the Urban Agriculture Summit 2013 ’Transformative solutions on how we feed people in the urban era’ currently being held in Linköping, Sweden (29-31 January). So why this specific gathering on urban agriculture? A recent UN report estimated that the Earth’s population will increase by 40% and exceed 9 billion people…