CABI Blogs: hand picked... and carefully sorted

Dr Rob Reeder goes 'bananas' about pests and diseases on the Urban Farm Podcast

Plant pathologist Dr Rob Reeder has this week spoken to Greg Peterson of the US-based Urban Farm Podcast about how the global supply of bananas (particularly the Cavendish variety) could be put at risk from a three-pronged attack of pests and diseases.

In the podcast, Dr Reeder reveals the reasons why the fungus known as Panama disease tropical race 4 (TR4), together with the Banana Bunchy Top Virus (BBTV) and the Banana Skipper butterfly (Erionota spp), could destroy banana plantations across Asia, Africa and Latin America.

As part of the solution to the problem, which could cost the global banana industry $35 billion as highlighted by CABI in a story publicised in December, Dr Reeder underlines the work of the Plantwise programme including how it helps farmers in developing countries diagnose and manage pests and diseases at its plant clinics.

Capitalising on Africa’s agriculture to achieve ‘zero hunger’

 

 

It’s a sobering fact that, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), nearly 233 million children, women and men in Africa went to bed each night hungry in 2014-16.

CABI Board Member and 2017 Africa Food Prize winner Professor Ruth Oniang’o has devoted her career helping farmers grow nutritious and healthy crops, to not only help reduce hunger but to achieve sustainable and profitable livelihoods.

African indigenous vegetables to help fight hidden hunger in Uganda

African Indigenous Vegetables (AIV) are an excellent source of essential vitamins and minerals including micro-nutrients, supplementary protein, fibre and calories. Micro-nutrient deficiency threatens nutrition security and also causes hidden hunger in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite their nutritive value, these vegetables have not been a high priority in national food programmes. As a result, adequate resources have not been allocated to promote their production and consumption in the region.