Will we eat? Dealing with the impact of food shortages
Food shortages are a continuous problem around the world - to deal with them, should countries simply ensure they have a reserve of food? Then why do we still see food crises?
International Coffee Day 2020: How CABI supports smallholder coffee farmers
Coffee - the valued crop and source of livelihood for millions - is celebrated annually to promote the efforts of all involved in its production. From farmer to manufacturer, barista and consumer. Now in its sixth year, International Coffee Day 2020 comes at a time in history when the Covid-19 pandemic presents a unique challenge to the world including the global coffee industry. With that in mind, this year’s focus is on supporting the next generation of coffee producers – young people, entrepreneurs - people who the future of coffee depends on.
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…
Natural horsemanship versus traditional methods – is the animosity finally dissolving?
There once was a process of breaking horses that involved force, domination and control – indeed the word ‘breaking’ was not coined for any other reason than to represent the fact that the horse’s spirit must essentially be broken to ensure a complaint and willing beast of burden. Over the years the process of breaking…
CAB Thesaurus reaches new milestone with over 3 million terms/labels
The 2020 edition of CAB Thesaurus has been published after reaching a significant milestone – it now includes more than 3 million terms/labels with special focus given to the needs of Plantwise, Compendia, VetMed Resource, and the Global Health and the CAB Abstracts databases.
How smallholder farmers can combat their reliance on staple crops
The world’s population relies overwhelmingly on four staple crops which together account for more than three-quarters of our food supply: maize, rice, soybean and wheat. Global food shortages will arise when these crops fail in a warmer climate, as is increasingly the case.
‘Seeing is Believing’: An innovative concept of bundling agricultural services for the benefit of smallholder farmers
By Akanksha Nagpal & Arun Jadhav Smallholder farmers in India are increasingly exposed to climate change and extreme weather events. Research on innovative strategies and tools to improve agricultural risk management is the need of the hour. ‘Seeing is believing’, as the phrase goes, underpins the innovative concept of the project entitled ‘Picture Based Insurance…
CABI highlighted as a ‘Top 10’ organisation in the food security sector
CABI has been highlighted as a ‘Top 10’ organisation within the food security sector by Development Aid – a leading, innovative membership organisation providing comprehensive information services for the international developmental sector.
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.
Overcoming data sharing challenges: Lessons from OFRA
Between 2013 and 2017, CABI delivered a collaborative project, Optimizing Fertilizer Recommendations for Africa (OFRA). The project had a goal of improving the capacity of National Agricultural Research Institutions in developing fertilizer recommendations for efficient and profitable fertilizer use in 13 sub-Saharan African countries, within the framework of Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) practices under smallholder farming.