The potential growth of Africa’s food and beverage markets will only be possible with adequate investment in small and medium-sized agribusiness enterprises. Small African firms engaged in agribusiness greatly outnumber the large players. Policymakers need to support agribusiness and technology incubators, export-processing zones and production networks. They must also sharpen …
A potato genetically engineered by J.R. Simplot Company to resist the pathogen has cleared its first federal regulatory hurdle. Sold under the company’s Innate brand. This is the second genetically engineered potato developed by Simplot to gain approval — In March, the USDA cleared sale of the Innate potato whose …
Effective storage of grains such as maize, beans, cowpea, groundnuts and rice has always been a major challenge to smallholder farmers, not only in the country, but the rest of Africa. Grains are mostly destroyed by pests and insects within three months of storage due to the lack of proper …
One major public concern about GMOs is their affect on human health. Are there differences in nutritional content, allergic response, or undesired side effects such as toxicity, organ damage, or gene transfer? To address these concerns, over 100 research studies have compared effects of traditional food to GM food. Major …
In a finite world with an ever-expanding population, agricultural innovation is vital in order to increase productivity and secure the global food supply. But agricultural research and development (R&D) is a risky and costly business. In the past, agricultural R&D was largely publicly funded but today, increasingly the private sector …
Just mentioning genetic modification (GM) creates division. The anti-GM lobby sees red mist, the pro-GM lobby seemingly wants to roll out the red carpet and others see GM as a red herring, a distraction from other (more easily acceptable) solutions to our huge food challenges. See …
Agriculture Minister Senzeni Zokwana said genetically modified farming techniques are being developed by his department and should be adopted by the industry. “We are working with the department of technology in finding new methods by which we can improve new cultivars, the new seeds that are 20 percent resistant to …
The Director General of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Dr. Nteranya Sanginga, has called on Southern African countries to tap into the youth population in the region to address food insecurity and end unemployment. Addressing policymakers and youths in the region at a conference organised by Centre for …
The Zambian government has called on African countries to adopt climate resilient agricultural policies if the continent is to adapt to the effects of climate change. While acknowledging the adverse effects of extreme climate on agricultural production on the African continent, Minister of Agriculture and Livestocks Permanent Secretary David Shamulenge …
Pity the poor farmer who saves seeds. According to anti-GMO activists, the hapless seed saver who’s simply trying to raise crops more cheaply by not paying for new seeds each year, is being oppressed by evil “Big Ag”–companies that only want to sell their hybrid and patented seeds (often, but …
Sign up for our Week in Review
Get news alerts from our RSS Feed
Follow us on Twitter