The 2023 Africa Agriculture Trade Monitor, a flagship publication of AKADEMIYA2063 and the International Food Policy Research Institute, provides an overview of trade in agriculture in Africa, including analysis of short- and long-term trends and drivers behind Africa’s global trade, intra-African trade, and trade within Africa’s regional economic communities. The …
Laxma Jarpula, farmer, hasn’t met agriculture scientists who say India’s food security and agricultural production rely heavily on pesticides. Three years ago, he decided to risk his cotton crop with pests, rather than pesticides. “I’d put the insects in the pesticides, and they wouldn’t die. The more pesticide I used, …
The Andhra Pradesh government's appeal for an injunction against us biotech major Monsanto may fail in the face of weak anti-monopoly law. The state government had filed its appeal seeking to restrain Monsanto from charging exorbitant prices from farmers for Bt cotton seeds, before the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices …
a dam to protest: Opposing the ongoing preparations for the Polavaram dam project, tribal organisations of the state staged a day-long bandh in the state's Khammam district on March 24, 2006. The project would displace over 300,000 tribals from Khammam district and West and East Godavari districts in Andhra Pradesh …
function graph() { var popurl="image/20060331/33_graph.jpg" winpops=window.open(popurl,"","width=500,height=300,scrollbars=yes") } Tangled web Vidarbha cotton farmers hit by state failure The number of suicides by cotton farmers in Vidarbha has risen alarmingly this cotton season (see graph: Suicide spike).This is not just a consequence of increasing input costs, water scarcity and the high interest …
In the past five years, when cotton farmers of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab were struggling, Gujarat farmers were making hay, to the tune of Rs 5,000 crore a year. The state’s total yield has increased by 5.6 million bales in the past five years. This additional yield means an …
What's the secret of Navbharat-151's success? This is designed as a shorter-duration variety (140 days) as against 180 days to facilitate the rabi crop. Because it originates from the best local selections, it suits local conditions well. Besides, this is a long-staple variety and has potential yield of 5,500 kg …
function graph() { var popurl="files/images/20060331/35_graph.jpg" winpops=window.open(popurl,"","width=250,height=250,scrollbars=yes") } More than 70 countries globally produce and export cotton. Of these, eight countries are responsible for almost 80 per cent of global output. The world’s cotton market is dominated by the us which is the second largest producer after China and the largest …
Can we ever do without imports? A few lakh bales of imports, even if they continue for a long time, should not be a major concern because the percentage of imports to total demand of raw cotton has been consistently low at around 2 per cent only. Will the import …
Take the pesticide problem. Although cotton occupies only 5 per cent of India's agricultural land, it accounts for 54 per cent of pesticide use. Andhra Pradesh cotton growers use more than 30 per cent of the country's pesticides and almost 70 per cent of pesticides used for growing cotton. "Since …
Why is government and public sector research promoting American varieties and their hybrids even after independence? There was a shortage of cotton after partition, as large cotton-growing areas were in Pakistan. Self-sufficiency was narrowly defined as self-sufficiency of long staple cotton and all research work has been directed on this …
Bt cotton seeds sold in India are priced in the range of Rs 1,750-1,850 per 450 gramme packet, while the normal hybrid costs Rs 300-500 and illegal Bt is sold at Rs 450-900. The higher pricing of legally approved Bt seeds is due to the royalty of Rs 1,200 which …
Water is a big concern. Growing cotton is water-intensive at the best of times as is manufacturing textiles and treating the waste generated. In India, cotton guzzles more water than anywhere in the world
Cotton has a long and tortuous history in India and its ramifications are extremely complex. The origin of the problems of today's cotton farmers was the attempt by the British to introduce long-staple American cotton, which did not suit Indian conditions. This was compounded after independence, when the establishment continued …
A group of Texan cotton farmers has sued Monsanto and two affiliated companies for massive crop losses. The farmers claimed the companies failed to warn them of a defect in their genetically altered cotton seed. The lawsuit seeks an injunction against a "longstanding campaign of deception. The two affiliated companies …
"Kidney Sale Centre," proclaims a banner sprawled across a ramshackle bamboo tent at Shingnapur village in Amravati district of Maharashtra. The farmers here are threatening to sell their kidneys. "We have invited the Prime Minister and the President to inaugurate this kidney shop. They should allow us to sell our …
"WHY else do you think people who barely get enough to eat, who don't even earn Rs.50 a day, have borrowed money to come for this rally?" asked D.P. Vishe, a farmer from Shahpur in Thane district, Maharashtra. "Because this is the only hope we have left. To come together …
Though there is a great deal of variability in the expected performance of Bt cotton depending on the environment, the regulation and marketing of the hybrids reflects a uniformity of approach that is inexplicable. Academic studies continue to talk of the importance of studying toxicity and monitoring resistance build-up even …
on january 2, 2006, the Andhra Pradesh (ap) agriculture department petitioned the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission (mrtpc), New Delhi, against the multinational seed giant Monsanto Biotech Limited. The ap government has blamed Monsanto for charging "abnormally high prices' from farmers for Bt cotton seeds on which it has …
