Food and Agriculture

Lessons from Liberia for Scaling Poverty Reduction Globally

By Adolphus B. W. Doe
For the past three years, BRAC International has been piloting in Liberia an adaptation of its acclaimed Graduation approach, whose impact on reducing extreme poverty was first proven in Bangladesh. The success of the Liberia pilot, which I managed, provides not only further proof of impact but vital lessons that can enhance and accelerate scaling of the approach globally.

The Future of Food: Jellyfish, Farmed Insects, 3D Printed Meat?

By IPS Correspondents
Between the devastating effects of climate change and the fast advancing new technologies, it seems now evident that the future of food will change. Whether it's new foods like jellyfish, edible insects and cell-based meat, or new technologies like blockchain, artificial intelligence and nanotechnology, the future promises exciting opportunities for feeding the world, says a new report.

War in Ukraine Poised to Threaten Global Food Security

By Lawrence Haddad
The war in Ukraine is a catastrophe for that country and for the world. In any crisis it is the most vulnerable that will be most affected, and this time it is no different.

Egypt Rushes to Find Alternative Wheat Suppliers Following Ukraine Crisis

By Hisham Allam
Egypt is scrambling to find alternate sources of wheat after the Russian invasion of Ukraine has put supply to the country in jeopardy. This is especially urgent because the price of bread in Egypt has in the past sparked protests in the country.

The Very Hungry Dragon: Meat-ing China’s Self-sufficiency Targets for Dairy and Protein

By Genevieve Donnellon-May
Food security has long been a high priority for the Chinese central government and has been linked to China’s national security in recent years. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs recently released a national five-year plan under which China will seek to maintain a target to produce 95 percent of the protein domestically until 2025: China aims to become self-sufficient in poultry and eggs, 85 percent self-sufficient for beef and mutton, 70 percent for dairy, and 95 percent self-sufficient in pork. These targets intersect with many of the Chinese central government’s current aims to meet the growing demand for protein and dairy, safeguard food security, and other major policies.

Peasants Marginalized by Big Farmers

By Vikas Rawal and Jomo Kwame Sundaram
A recent Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) study shows the largest farms cultivate a high and increasing share of agricultural land in much of the world. Farm size concentration World Agricultural Census data for 129 countries show about 40% of the world’s farmland is operated by farms over 1000 hectares (ha) in size. About 70% is operated by the top 1% of farms, all bigger than 50 ha each.

Agricultural Power, Waning Industry Dictate Brazil’s Future

By Mario Osava
With its accelerated growth agriculture has emerged as a key sector of Brazil's economy, but it is failing on its own to spread prosperity and reduce poverty and inequality, with industry in decline.

Many Good Reasons to Eat More Pulses – And Perhaps Less Meat!

By Baher Kamal
Pulses and meat are both needed as part of your diet, however… While the total emissions of greenhouse gases from global livestock amount to 7.1 Gigatonnes of Co2-equivalent per year, representing 14.5% of all anthropogenic emissions, pulses have root nodules that absorb inert nitrogen from soil air and convert it into biologically useful ammonia, a process referred to as biological nitrogen fixation.

From Zero Yield to Bumper Harvest

By Esmie Komwa Eneya
In the past, the people of Sande Village in Chikwawa district, Malawi, would go to bed with empty stomachs even when the rest of the country harvested bumper yields.

Looking to the Future: China’s Priorities for Food Security in 2022 and Beyond

By Genevieve Donnellon-May
Safeguarding food security has long been a critical priority for the Chinese central government. President Xi’s latest comments and meetings demonstrate continued concerns at the top about China’s food security. Ahead of the 20th National Congress this year and the release of the No 1 policy document, there are already several hints regarding what the Chinese central authorities could prioritise in terms of food security for this year and beyond. Other factors, including the potential influences of gene-edited plants, commercialisation of genetically modified (GM) crops, and of a Russia-Ukraine conflict should also be considered.

No Perfect Solution: Africa’s Smallholder Farmers Must Use Both Traditional and New Practices

As an agricultural and environmental scientist, I’ve worked for decades exploring the practical challenges that smallholder farmers encounter in East Africa. These include controlling weeds that can choke their crops and looking for new ways to deal with pests or diseases that threaten their harvests.

The Dilemma of Zimbabwe’s Food Security Efforts

By Ignatius Banda
On January 10, the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) arrested three men found with fertilizer worth about 130,000 US dollars.

Heatwave and Drought Hit South America’s Crops and Economy

By Jorgelina Hiba
Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay, the three major agricultural producers in South America, are currently experiencing a prolonged period of drought and low water levels in their main rivers. This is severely impacting harvests, as well as river transport of important summer crops, with maize and soybeans the main casualties. 

Our Global Food Systems Are Rife with Injustice: Here’s How We Can Change This

The pandemic – alongside growing threats from climate change, widespread malnutrition, economic instability and geopolitical conflict – has heightened problems with the ways we produce, distribute and consume food. And it’s made clear the urgent need to make global food systems more just.

Community Organization and Solidarity in Peru Tackle Hunger in Pandemic

By Mariela Jara
It's nine o'clock in the morning and Mauricia Rodríguez is already peeling garlic to season the day's lunch at the Network of Organized Women of Villa Torreblanca, one of more than 2,400 solidarity-based soup kitchens that have emerged in the Peruvian capital in response to the worsening poverty caused by the partial or total halt of economic activities in the country due to COVID-19.

Asia-Pacific: Just 5% of the Region’s Population Owns 70% of Its Total Wealth

By Baher Kamal
The Asia-Pacific region is experiencing growing inequality even while registering impressive economic growth and poverty reduction. Such sharp inequalities continue to be persistent in the region, with nearly 2 in 4 people still unable to afford a healthy diet.

A Call to Action on Living Lands

By Patricia Scotland
If the ocean is the lifeblood of the Commonwealth, then forests are the lungs that breathe life into its whole system. From the vast boreal woodlands of Canada to the rich primary forests of Papua New Guinea, the Commonwealth covers nearly a quarter of all forest land in the world - an estimated 900 million hectares. These biodiversity havens not only house about half of all animal species on earth, they also give us clean air, water and food, supporting the livelihoods of millions of people while tackling climate change.

Too Harmful: The March of Salt and Plastics on World Soils

By Baher Kamal
There are more under-reported consequences of human activities unmatching the rhythm of Mother Nature. Such is the case, among many others, of the growing salinisation and ‘plastification’ of the world's soils.

Ecstasy as Zimbabwe’s Smallholder Farmers Secure European Pineapple Market

By Tonderayi Mukeredzi
In her wildest dreams, smallholder farmer Sarudzai Sithole never imagined that her pineapples could someday stock the produce section of Europe’s finest supermarkets.

Why Does Yangtze River Have its Own Protection Law?

By Genevieve Donnellon-May and Mark Wang
The new Yangtze River Protection Law (YRPL), which came into effect on March 1, 2021, is China’s first legislation on a specific river basin. The Yangtze River is China’s longest and largest river system, stretching over 6,300 kilometres and has over 700 tributaries. With a drainage basin covering more than 1.8 million square kilometres, approximately one-fifth of China’s total land area, the river basin is home to over 40% of the country’s population.

Rural Women in Peru Seed Water Today to Harvest It Tomorrow

By Mariela Jara
"When I was a little girl we didn't suffer from water shortages like we do now. Today we are experiencing more droughts, our water sources are drying up and we cannot sit idly by," Kely Quispe, a small farmer from the community of Huasao, located half an hour from Cuzco, the capital of Peru's ancient Inca empire, told IPS.
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