Some experts doubt the Philippines will reach its goal of self-sufficiency in rice production by the end of next year, saying it will take until at least 2020, but most likely longer. The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank agree that financing requirements for necessary infrastructure developments are too large and realistically unattainable. The […]
Avoiding Future Famines
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) recently published a collaborative report titled “Avoiding Future Famines: Strengthening the Ecological Foundation of Food Security through Sustainable Food Systems”, arguing for the importance of using eco-friendly practices over environmentally-friendly practices in ensuring global food security. The report recognizes reducing postharvest loss and food waste as key strategies. http://www.unep.org/publications/ebooks/avoidingfamines/portals/19/UNEP_Food_Security_Report.pdf
Workshop on Post-Harvest Losses by The ADM Institute
The ADM Institute presented at the “Workshop on Post-Harvest Losses” hosted by Empraba in Brazil in late October. The event brought together researchers from Brazil and the United States who are working on reducing losses in the soybean supply chain. Attendees developed working groups focusing on four main areas: loss harvesting, transportation, storage, and public […]
Wasted: How America Is Losing Up to 40 Percent of Its Food from Farm to Fork to Landfill
Wasted: How America Is Losing Up to 40 Percent of Its Food from Farm to Fork to Landfill (PDF) was recently issued by the NRDC. http://www.nrdc.org/food/files/wasted-food-IP.pdf
Africa: Private Equity Deal to Spur Growth in Agribusiness
Zeder Investments Limited is committing US $46.7 million to acquire and expand Chayton Africa, an agricultural business. Chayton Africa will be transformed from its status as a private equity vehicle into an agricultural operating company. The company currently produces 10% of Zambian soya and 5% of its wheat, with production increase estimates for the next […]
Government Urged to Enact Agricultural Marketing Act
The Zambia Co-operative Federation (ZCF) director general James Chirwa reports that farmers are afraid to diversify their crops because they lack market certainty. Most ‘buying’ depots have no scales, sieves, stacking machines, and no moisture meters. Crop marketing in Zambia is directly affected by high input prices; the government needs to provide enough financial resources […]
Cambodia: Business Not As Usual—Loan Products and Banking Services for Postharvest Sector
The Cambodia Postharvest Learning Alliance sponsored its first business roundtable, Loan products and banking services for the postharvest sector, after which representatives from microfinance institutions presented their various loan products and banking services. They look to implement improved postharvest technologies as sustainable business models. The event offered farmers an opportunity to interact with banking institutions, […]
Exploring Sustainable Solutions for Increasing Global Food Supplies
‘Exploring Sustainable Solutions for Increasing Global Food Supplies’ is a report from a workshop held by the National Research Council. Agricultural issues related to climate change, energy efficiency, food value chain, political economy, and more are all discussed. http://www.scribd.com/doc/76873514/Exploring-Sustainable-Solutions
FAO/WFP Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission to the Democratic People’s Rebulic of Korea
The FAO released a report on the food security situation in North Korea, focusing on reasons for PHL (PDF) and the market situation for poor households. http://www.fao.org/docrep/014/al982e/al982e00.pdf
“Energy-Smart” Agriculture Need to Escape Fossil Fuel Trap
The FAO is pushing for efficient energy usage in the agricultural sector, as a means of combating food price and fossil fuel price increases. The food sector uses 95 exa-Joules yearly, which is nearly 30% of energy consumption globally. Efficient postharvest processing and transportation can help to reduce energy use, and PHL reduction gains a […]