Safer food through Aflatoxin control in Pakistan
Aflatoxins are a group of toxins produced by certain fungi found in crops such as maize, peanuts, cottonseed and tree nuts. The fungi responsible, Aspergillus flavus, can contaminate crops before and after harvest as well as contaminate animal products if infected feeds are given to livestock. Consumption of these toxins in high concentrations can contribute…
CABI on cotton (part 2): The famous farmer and The compost king
In part one of ‘CABI on cotton’ we heard about 100 Pakistan cotton farmers, as part of CABI’s Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), attending a seminar on integrated pest management. In part two, we hear a couple of success stories from farmers on how taking part in BCI is helping them produce better cotton.
CABI on cotton (part 1): Farmer seminar on pest management
Cotton. How many of us come into daily contact (literally) with this wondrous natural fiber? Used in a huge array of materials, from the obvious clothing and cotton wool buds, to the less obvious products like cottonseed oils used to make soap, margarine, emulsifiers, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, rubber and plastics, the cotton plant is woven into…
Africa Soil Health Consortium builds NARO’s capacity in communication material development
Authored by: Abigael Mchana, Communication Officer, CABI Kenya Developing fit-for-purpose, interactive and effective communication materials for farmers and their intermediaries is not an easy task. You cannot create a poster with generic text or images and then distribute it to your audience en-masse. It requires an in-depth analysis of your primary stakeholder, an understanding of…
Navigating ABS measures is ‘work in progress’
In this guest blog special, Dan Leskien, Senior Liaison Officer at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), considers how much work still needs to be done to implement Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) measures in respect of genetic resources… I wish to commend CABI for its initiative to prepare and implement…
Four animals and insects that humans can’t live without
When people start to think about the ecosystem and nature as a whole, many don't fully grasp the importance of relying on other species. Everything on earth is connected, whether we realize it or not.
One health – human, animal, environmental and plant health
Ahead of One Health Day tomorrow (3rd November 2018), Robert Taylor, CABI’s Editorial Director, explores the relationships between human, animal, environmental and plant health… The ‘One health’ initiative launched in 2007 was designed primarily to break down the barriers between human and veterinary medicine, particularly for dealing with zoonotic diseases. The link between BSE and…
Trick or treat? The spooky species list
Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction. It may seem like some of the species in this article are the making of horror films and scary stories but they’re all too real. Besides giving us the creeps, these spooky specimens offer up some surprising ‘tricks’ and ‘treats’ for humans and the environment.
‘Digging deep’ to strengthen the potato value chain in Pakistan
CABI in Pakistan, under its ACIAR-funded ‘Strengthening Vegetable Value Chain in Pakistan’ (SVVCP) project, is committed to improving the value chain of vegetables for smallholder farmers so they can improve their livelihoods. Dr Babar E. Bajwa, Project Leader, reports on the progress being made so far… Potato is a major crop in Pakistan with great…
Soybean farmers in Nigeria embrace new production technologies
By Solomon Duah, Communications Specialist, CABI Ghana There is a growing interest and enthusiasm in the production of soybean among farmers in selected states in Nigeria as new yield-enhancing and soil fertility-improving technologies are being introduced to them through an integrated farmer education campaign.