CEOs need to accelerate their action plans to safeguard the production of commodities critical to the global population and economy as heat stress and drought risk rise around the world, according to PwC's report, Climate Risks to Nine Key Commodities: Protecting People and Prosperity, published. The report, which analysed nine …
MANGALURU: As finance minister Arun Jaitley is busy giving final touches to the Union Budget for 2018-19, an ASSOCHAM-EY joint paper has said that nearly 4% of India's GDP is estimated to have been lost due to malnutrition and certainly women and children deserve a better deal in expenditure outlay, …
Global rice production systems face two opposing challenges: the need to increase production to accommodate the world's growing population while simultaneously reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Adaptations to drainage regimes are one of the most promising options for methane mitigation in rice production. Whereas several studies have focused on mid-season …
Rice (Oryza sativa L.) production is facing major challenges, including scarcity of irrigation water and ongoing climate change. Modifications of the current cropping techniques could increase yield, save water, and mitigate greenhouse gas emission. We investigated the effect of planting methods (young seedlings, wide spacing with alternate wetting and drying …
A study has warned that the dry-season irrigated rice in West Africa’s Sahel region has reached the critical threshold of 37 degrees Celcius – the tipping point. It added that further temperature rise could devastate rice yields in the region due to decreasing photosynthesis at high temperatures. According to the …
Nagpur: Amid paddy growers of east Vidarbha reeling under a major pest attack, some of them who have adopted organic farming claim they could prevent losses in their fields using natural pesticides. They had gathered at a meet organized in the city by Bijotsav — an organization promoting organic agriculture. …
Chinese researchers have found a major quantitative trait locus (QTL) that can be used to cultivate high-manganese, low-cadmium rice, the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) said in a statement Tuesday. According to Qian Qian, chief expert and researcher in the field at CAAS, people often have an inadequate intake …
It is a major challenge to achieve the goal of increasing grain yield, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) and irrigation water productivity (IWP) in cereals. This study investigated if progressive integrative crop management technology in rice (Oryza sativa L.) could improve agronomic and physiological performances, and consequently, increase grain yield, NUE …
The El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) in 2016 adversely affected Vietnam particularly the Mekong River Delta (MRD), where more than 90% of the country’s rice export is produced annually. To address this and prepare for future climate risks, the Department of Crop Production (DCP), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) …
This study is the first of its kind to quantify possible effects of climate change on rice production in Africa. We simulated impacts on rice in irrigated systems (dry season and wet season) and rainfed systems (upland and lowland). We simulated the use of rice varieties with a higher temperature …
Without a renewed commitment to policy change, commodity-dependent developing countries (CDDCs) are by 2030 set to lag behind countries with more diverse economies in their social and economic achievements, UNCTAD and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said in a report. The Commodities and Development Report …
A critical question for agricultural production and food security is how water demand for staple crops will respond to climate and carbon dioxide (CO2) changes, especially in light of the expected increases in extreme heat exposure. To quantify the trade-offs between the effects of climate and CO2 on water demand, …
This publication shares the challenges, lessons learned, and cases of success by partner countries in the Consortium for Unfavorable Rice Environments (CURE). The book also offers insights into drivers of change and enabling factors (social, cultural, economic, environmental, and others) that helped partner countries benefit from technologies and make an …
Moisture response functions for soil microbial carbon (C) mineralization remain a critical uncertainty for predicting ecosystem-climate feedbacks. Theory and models posit that C mineralization declines under elevated moisture and associated anaerobic conditions, leading to soil C accumulation. Yet, iron (Fe) reduction potentially releases protected C, providing an under-appreciated mechanism for …
While food commodity prices have been generally stable, the cost of importing food is forecast to rise six per cent in 2017 to $1.413 trillion, making it the second highest bill on record, according to the latest Food Outlook published by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), expressing concern …
From Aztec pigweed to dragon beans - several ancient, often forgotten foods are making their way to the dinner table in an effort to diversify the diet of a growing global population. In an initiative to cut the world's dependency on major crops like wheat and rice - Britain's Prince …
Changes in tropical wetland, ruminant or rice emissions are thought to have played a role in recent variations in atmospheric methane (CH4) concentrations. India has the world’s largest ruminant population and produces ~ 20% of the world’s rice. Therefore, changes in these sources could have significant implications for global warming. …
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is working with the industry to understand the challenges being faced in promoting fortification of wheat flour, rice and double fortification of salt, its chief executive officer Pawan Kumar Agarwal said at an ASSOCHAM event held in New Delhi. "We have …
Roughly 60% of the protein content in the average Indian diet comes from cereals Successive generations of Indians have quibbled about the sliding quality of dana-pani (food-drink) and hawa-pani (air-water). Now, US-based scientists have proven that more carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere is indeed sapping the nutrient content of …
The contents and properties of soil organic phosphorus (Po) largely drive ecosystem productivity with increasing development of natural soil. We hypothesized that soil Po would initially increase with paddy management and then would persist under steady-state conditions. We analyzed soils from a 2000-year chronosequence of a rice-wheat rotation and an …
Scientists have developed a hardy new hybrid rice that is rainfed, needs no irrigation, grows fast and does well in drier, maize-growing areas. Conventional rice requires irrigation and a lot of water. The new variety is also resistant to devastating rice blast disease. According to rice breeder John Kimani at …
