Waitrose working to encourage sustainable food production
Millions of dollars are due to be paid out to small-scale farmers in Zambia affected by a recent severe dry spell, following the introduction of a new government insurance scheme powered by University of Reading science. Satellite-based rainfall estimates for Africa produced by the University’s TAMSAT research group have allowed around US$2.8m to be triggered for farmers […]
A series of workshops is bringing together African researchers, businesses and policy makers to explore how knowledge exchange could help provide safe, sustainable water. Lancaster University staff delivered the first of five week-long Knowledge Exchange workshops, to initiate the start of the £7M RECIRCULATE project, supported by the UK Government’s Global Challenges Research Fund. RECIRCULATE aims to […]
Two crops or one? Sometimes, growing two crops simultaneously on the same piece of land – called intercropping – can benefit farmers. But it needs careful planning and resource management. In some parts of Africa, farmers intercrop sorghum – a grain – and peanuts. But they face a major information gap. There hasn’t been much […]
An international scientific alliance to fast track-crop improvement in sub-Saharan Africa is launched today. The Alliance to Accelerate Crop Improvements in Africa (ACACIA) supports African scientists to find solutions to local food security challenges – and maximise the impact of the John Innes Centre’s cutting-edge science in Africa.
Professor Kenneth Wilson of Lancaster Environment Centre has flown to Zambia to assess the Fall armyworm outbreaks that are devastating crops in southern Africa. The Fall armyworm – a caterpillar that eats its way through staple cereal crops, like maize, and other crops, including beans and peas – poses a major threat to food security […]
Trees may be easy to spot on the plains of Africa but they are often overlooked as a source of income for farmers. A University of Illinois (USA) study shows trees on farms may help reduce rural poverty and maintain biodiversity.
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