Aflatoxin control in Pakistan: A project which will change landscape of country’s maize crop
Aflatoxin, produced by a poisonous fungus, is a serious threat to food security by contaminating many of Pakistan’s agricultural products, including cereal grains, chilies, dry fruits, nuts and milk.
The advantage of developing ‘linkages’ for Better Cotton Initiative in Sindh province, Pakistan
In agriculture, cotton crop plays a vital role in the economy of Pakistan as the fourth biggest producer in the world behind China, India and the United States. But cotton yields and livelihoods are at risk from a range of pests such as Whitefly, Thrips, Cotton Mealybug, Pink Bollworm, and other sucking and chewing type…
Boosting banana productivity in Tanzania: Farmer reaps rewards with up to three-fold increase
In Tanzania, where demand for bananas is high, banana farmers face the challenge of low productivity caused by pests and diseases and limited basic knowledge on banana management practices. The ‘Improving banana agronomy practices for small scale farmers in highland banana cropping systems East Africa’ project set a goal to raise banana productivity in Tanzania from 10mt/ha/yr to 25 mt/ha/year. The banana agronomy project which is led by National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO) is implemented in partnership with Tanzania Agricultural Research Institute (TARI), Bioversity International, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and CABI is also operated in Uganda.
Conservation of beneficial insects through NEFR installation in cotton crop
Cotton crop is the main source to produce the fiber, cotton seed cake, and for animal feed to support an increase in milk production and oil in good quantities. The sticks of cotton crop also support in burning fires for cooking purpose in the rural areas of Pakistan in places where other resources are not…
Training of organic cotton farmers for seed multiplication
Organic cotton refers to naturally cultivated cotton without the use of any synthetic agricultural chemicals, such as fertilizer or pesticides or transgenic technology, to secure sustainable, ecological and biodynamic agriculture. Organic cotton also promotes and enhances biodiversity and biological cycles and is beneficial to human health and the environment.
Aflatoxins: A peril which limits the export of maize crop from Pakistan
The agriculture sector is one of the most climate-sensitive sectors of Pakistan’s economy. It responds to temperature, precipitation, soil radiation, etc., which are directly associated with climate change. Rising temperature, uneven distribution of precipitation, floods, droughts, and other climatic disasters have affected human life along with socio-economic sectors of the world.
As a diamond cuts a diamond, ‘good fungus’ will reduce ‘bad fungus’ in maize crop
CABI, along with its partners Rafhan Maize Products Co. Ltd and with the support of the National Agricultural Research Centre (CDRI, ASI), are busy evaluating the efficacy of AflaPak™ in Pakistan – a biological control agent/product for outcompeting the strains of aflatoxin producing Aspergillus flavus in maize.
Summer studentship for young scientists announced by Global Burden of Crop Loss initiative
The Global Burden of Crop Loss initiative, announces a summer studentship programme providing young scientists with the opportunity to contribute to an exciting and important global effort to develop a global data-driven system to report losses to agricultural crops caused by pests and diseases.
AflaPak is on its way for maize growers to detain the toxic fungi in spring crop
In Pakistan maize crop of the spring season is more likely to be contaminated with the exposure of aflatoxin due to the favourable conditions; temperature (75.2-109 °F) and of relative humidity (62-99%) during the crop life cycle. To minimize the level of aflatoxin each country/region has its own version of non-toxigenic strains growing naturally in…
Is chocolate under threat?
Otherwise known as ‘the food of the gods’ Theobroma Cacao is cocoa - the key ingredient from which chocolate is produced. The various species of cocoa such as Criollo and Forastero mainly originate from the Amazon jungle and are planted and produced in Colombia, Brazil, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Indonesia, Ghana, Ecuador and Nigeria