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 …
Zimbabwe's response to the outbreak of the fall armyworm has been hampered by farmer's lack of information and pesticides to fight it. This has worsened the food insecurity situation as it targets staple crop-maize. A report by the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) warned that a tenth of Zimbabwe's maize …
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) released its assessment of national policies and the vulnerability of industries to climate change in selected sub-sectors in Egypt, Kenya, Senegal and South Africa. The report resulted from the first phase of the project titled “Low-carbon and climate-resilient industrial development in Africa (LCCR)”, …
Joyce Matheka’s one acre farm located in Makueni County in lower-eastern Kenya was a spectacle to behold on Friday thanks to a lush green foliage that announced a bumper harvest in the near future. The middle-aged mother of eight defied cynical voices to experiment with a new and improved maize …
An outbreak of fall armyworms that has attacked corn plants in South Africa may spread to sugarcane in the KwaZulu-Natal province, where a warm climate would help the pest survive through the year, the Agricultural Research Council said. The alien pest, confirmed in South Africa this month, has already spread …
The study by Tegemeo Institute of Agricultural Policy shows that for every one acre of maize that is planted by small scale farmers, only 0.72 per cent of the seeds used are hybrid. Tegemeo noted that despite the acreage under maize going up yearly, this has not helped in increasing …
Farmers in Uganda have called on the government to put in place measures to help them manage the impending food shortage. Severe drought that has led to major crop failures, lack of pasture and receding water levels in lakes and rivers has been reported in several parts of East Africa …
A South African Emergency Plant Pest Response Plan, which deals with new pest detections, is already in motion to fight the Fall Army Worm (FAW). Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Senzeni Zokwana briefed the media on Monday following the detection of Spodoptera Frugiperda (Fall Army Worm) for the first time …
An invasive pest known as the armyworm is rapidly spreading in the African continent, destroying maize crops. If left unchecked, the caterpillar might reach tropical Asia and the Mediterranean, scientists have warned. The Britain-based Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International (Cabi) said the pest, native to Americas, could very well …
Scientists are calling for urgent action to halt the spread of a pest that is destroying maize crops is spreading rapidly across Africa. The fall armyworm poses a major threat to food security and agricultural trade, warns the Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International (Cabi). It says farmers' livelihoods are …
The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has confirmed that the fall armyworm is indeed in SA. But experts say the pest, which has already devastated crops in several neighbouring countries, is unlikely to wreak as much havoc locally as it has elsewhere. Agricultural Business Chamber economist Wandile Sihlobo said …
The food supply is being increasingly challenged by climate change and water scarcity. However, incremental changes in traditional cropping systems have achieved only limited success in meeting these multiple challenges. In this study, we applied a systematic approach, using model simulation and data from two groups of field studies conducted …
South Africa's agriculture ministry is registering pesticides for use against the fall armyworm in the event that tests confirm the presence of the Central American pest in the country's maize belt, a spokesperson said on Thursday. Countries with confirmed outbreaks can face import bans on agricultural products because the armyworm …
Crop diversification is one way of improving the profitability of small-scale irrigation schemes. The 25 de Setembro scheme is an ideal site to analyze diversification, as it is influenced by the markets in Maputo and South Africa. This study uses information gathered from observations, discussions with irrigators and an irrigator …
Attempts to measure the impacts of climate change on agriculture must invariably rely on models that translate changes in climate to changes in agricultural outcomes. This need for models exists even when assessing the impacts of climate trends that have already occurred, since simultaneous changes in other factors that affect …
Zambia's President Edgar Lungu ordered the air force on Wednesday to join other government agencies in an emergency operation to contain the spread of pests that have invaded maize fields in many parts of the country. The armyworms, which feast on young maize plants and are capable of wiping out …
Climate change is affecting every aspect of human activities, especially the agriculture. In China, extreme drought events caused by climate change have posed a great threat to food safety. In this work we aimed to study the drought risk of maize in the farming–pastoral ecotone in Northern China based on …
The fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda is a prime noctuid pest of maize on the American continents where it has remained confined despite occasional interceptions by European quarantine services in recent years. The pest has currently become a new invasive species in West and Central Africa where outbreaks were recorded for …
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa agriculture suffers from very low productivity, with risks of crop failures owing to persistent weather anomalies. The Climate Change Centre at the University of Agriculture, Peshawar, has warned the provincial government that the surging temperature will make the land unsuitable for cultivating wheat, maize and sugarcane. The most …
University of Guelph plant scientists have shown for the first time how an ancient crop teams up with a beneficial microbe to protect against a devastating fungal infection, a discovery that may benefit millions of subsistence farmers and livestock in developing countries. Their discovery may also point the way toward …
Deals would put the majority of seeds, chemicals and GM traits in the hands of three companies, deepening poverty for small-scale farmers When an Indian farmer plants his cotton crop, there’s at least a 75% chance the seeds have been been bought from a company owned by Monsanto. If a …
