Author: Rodrigo Ordóñez

Rodrigo Ordóñez was CIMMYT's Communications Manager. Since 2023 he is the Head of Communications & Knowledge Management at the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), also part of CGIAR. ℹ️ Rodrigo Ordonez on LinkedIn

Wheat at a CIMMYT field trial. (Photo: H. Hernandez Lira/CIMMYT)

Essential actions to mitigate the food crisis, stabilize supply and transition to greater agrifood system resilience

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on July 19, 2022. Posted in Press releases.

As the Russia-Ukraine war continues to degrade global food security, a new analysis lays out concrete actions that governments and investors must do now to mitigate near-term food security risks and stabilize wheat supplies, while transitioning toward long-term resilience.

The guidance, published in Nature Food by scientists from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and partners, lays out short-, medium- and long-term steps to respond to the global food crisis and ultimately lead to a more resilient global agrifood system.

“The Russia-Ukraine war will impact global food security over months — if not years,” said CIMMYT Global Wheat Program Director and lead author Alison Bentley. “We now need to move beyond defining the problem to implementing practical actions to ensure stable supply, safeguard the livelihoods of millions of vulnerable people and bring resilience to our global agrifood system.”

The war in Ukraine and trade sanctions against Russia are triggering a level of volatility that could easily overwhelm existing mitigation mechanisms. More than 2.5 billion people worldwide consume wheat-based foods; those in lower- to middle-income countries dependent on imports from Russia and Ukraine are particularly affected. Some of the world’s poorest countries, such as Bangladesh, Sudan and Yemen, rely heavily on Russian and Ukrainian wheat. Given the highly interconnected nature of contemporary agrifood systems, few will remain unaffected by this new global food shock.

Mitigate the immediate crisis

The first priority, according to the authors, is to mitigate the immediate crisis by boosting wheat production in existing high- and low-productivity areas, ensuring grain access and blending wheat flour with other low-cost cereals. Bundled agronomic and breeding improvements and sustainable farming practices can reduce dependence on imported grain and fertilizer, while coordinated, multilateral policies can help conserve grain stocks for human consumption and avert trade restrictions.

Increase the resilience of wheat supply

In the medium term, the authors emphasized the need to increase the local, regional, and global resilience of the wheat supply. This can be done by expanding production within agro-ecological boundaries, supporting national wheat self-sufficiency and providing technical assistance, to increase the production of high-yielding disease-resistant wheat and to mainstream capacity for pest and disease monitoring.

Transition to system-level resilience

Finally, to reach crucially needed resilience in the world’s agrifood system, long-term measures must be taken that encompass agroecosystem diversity, address gender disparities in agriculture and rural communities and sustain increased investment in a holistic, agrifood transition.

“The current global food crisis underscores and compounds existing inequalities in our global food system,” Bentley said. “A transition to agrifood system resilience requires us to urgently balance global food supply needs with the multi-layered challenges of climate change, achieving gender equity, nutritional sufficiency and livelihood security.”

RELATED RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS:

Near- to long-term measures to stabilize global wheat supplies and food security

This research is supported by CGIAR Trust Fund Contributors.

INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITIES:

Alison Bentley – Director, Global Wheat Program, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT)

FOR MORE INFORMATION, OR TO ARRANGE INTERVIEWS, CONTACT THE MEDIA TEAM:

Marcia MacNeil, Head of Communications, CIMMYT. m.macneil@cgiar.org, +52 5558042004 ext. 2019.

Rodrigo Ordóñez, Communications Manager, CIMMYT. r.ordonez@cgiar.org, +52 5558042004 ext. 1167.

Ricardo Curiel, Communications Manager, CIMMYT. r.curiel@cgiar.org, +52 5558042004 ext. 1144.

ABOUT CIMMYT:

The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) is an international organization focused on non-profit agricultural research and training that empowers farmers through science and innovation to nourish the world in the midst of a climate crisis.

Applying high-quality science and strong partnerships, CIMMYT works to achieve a world with healthier and more prosperous people, free from global food crises and with more resilient agrifood systems. CIMMYT’s research brings enhanced productivity and better profits to farmers, mitigates the effects of the climate crisis, and reduces the environmental impact of agriculture.

CIMMYT is a member of CGIAR, a global research partnership for a food secure future dedicated to reducing poverty, enhancing food and nutrition security, and improving natural resources.

For more information, visit staging.cimmyt.org.

CIMMYT Annual Report 2020

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on July 6, 2022. Posted in Annual reports.

We began 2020 with grim news of the COVID-19 pandemic spreading from country to country, wreaking havoc on national economies, causing countless personal tragedies, and putting additional pressure on the livelihoods of the poor and hungry.

The global crisis exposed the enormous vulnerability of our food system.

If we have learned anything from the past year, it is that we need to urgently invest in science for renewed food systems that deliver affordable, sufficient, and healthy diets produced within planetary boundaries.

During this time, the dedication and resilience of the CIMMYT community allowed us to continue making important advances toward that vision.

We hope you enjoy reading our stories and will join us in actively working towards resilience, renewal and transition in our agri-food systems, to ensure that they are strong in the face of current and future crises.

Read the web version of the Annual Report 2020

Download the Annual Report 2020 in PDF format

Download the financial report 2020

Representatives from CGIAR leadership, CGIAR Centers, government and other stakeholders stand for a group photo during the launch of the AgriLAC Resiliente Initiative in Guatemala City. (Photo: CGIAR)

AgriLAC Resiliente presented in Guatemala

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on June 28, 2022. Posted in Press releases.

Latin America and the Caribbean possess the largest reserve of arable land on the planet, 30% of renewable water, 46% of tropical forests and 30% of biodiversity. These resources represent an important contribution to the world’s food supply and other ecosystem services. However, climate change and natural disasters, exacerbated by COVID-19, have deteriorated economic and food security, destabilizing communities and causing unprecedented migration, impacting not only the region but the entire world.

Against this regional backdrop, AgriLAC Resiliente was created. This CGIAR Initiative seeks to increase the resilience, sustainability and competitiveness of the region’s agrifood systems and actors. It aims to equip them to meet urgent food security needs, mitigate climate hazards, stabilize communities vulnerable to conflict and reduce forced migration.

Guatemala was selected to present this Initiative, which will also impact farmers in Colombia, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Peru, and will be supported by national governments, the private sector, civil society, and regional and global donors and partners.

At a workshop on June 27–28, 2022, in Guatemala City, partners consolidated their collaboration by presenting the Initiative and developing a regional roadmap. Workshop participants included representatives from the government of Guatemala, NGOs, international cooperation programs, the private sector, producer associations, and other key stakeholders from the host country. Also at the workshop were the leaders from CGIAR research Centers involved in the Initiative, such as the Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the International Potato Center (CIP) and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

Joaquín Lozano, CGIAR Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, presents during the launch of the AgriLAC Resiliente Initiative. (Photo: CGIAR)

Impact through partnerships

“Partnerships are the basis for a future of food security for all through the transformation of food systems in the context of a climate crisis. AgriLAC’s goal of a coordinated strategy and regional presence will facilitate strong joint action with partners, donors, and producers, and ensure that CGIAR science continues to be leveraged so that it has the greatest possible impact,” said Joaquín Lozano, CGIAR Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean.

This Initiative is one of many CGIAR Initiatives in Latin America and consists of five research components: Climate and nutrition that seeks to use collaborative innovations for climate resilient and nutritious agrifood systems; Digital agriculture through the use of digital and inclusive tools for the creation of actionable knowledge; Low-emission competitiveness focused on agroecosystems, landscapes and value chains that are low in sustainable emissions; Innovation and scaling with the Innova-Hubs network for agrifood innovations and scaling; and finally, Science for timely decision making and establishment of policies, institutions, and investments for resilient, competitive and low-emission agrifood systems.

“We know the important role that smallholder farmers, both women and men, will play in the appropriation of the support tools that the Initiative will offer, which will allow them to make better decisions for the benefit of their communities. That is why one of the greatest impacts we expect from the project will be the contribution to gender equality, the creation of opportunities for youth, and the promotion of social inclusion,” said Carolina González, leader of the Initiative, from the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT.

Bram Govaerts, Director General of CIMMYT, said: “In Guatemala, we have had the opportunity to work side by side with farmers who today, more than ever, face the vicious circle of conflict, poverty and climate change. Through this Initiative, we hope to continue making progress in the transformation of agrifood systems in Central America, helping to make agriculture a dignified and satisfying job and a source of prosperity for the region’s producers.”

“I realize the importance of implementing strategic actions designed to improve the livelihoods of farmers. The environmental impact of development without sustainable planning puts at risk the wellbeing of humanity. The Initiatives of this workshop contribute to reducing the vulnerability of both productive systems and farmers and their families. This is an ideal scenario to strengthen alliances that allow for greater impact and respond to the needs of the country and the region,” said Jose Angel Lopez, Guatemala’s Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Food.

Bram Govaerts, Director General of CIMMYT (right), presents during the launch of the AgriLAC Resiliente Initiative. (Photo: CGIAR)

National and regional strategies

AgriLAC Resiliente will also be presented in Honduras, where national partners will learn more about the Initiative and its role in achieving a resilient, sustainable, and competitive Latin America and the Caribbean, that will enable it to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

Under the general coordination of CGIAR, other Initiatives are also underway in Guatemala that will synergize with the global research themes toward the transformation of more resilient agrifood systems.

“We are committed to providing a structure that responds to national and regional priorities, needs, and demands. The support of partners, donors and producers will be key to building sustainable and more efficient agrifood systems,” Lozano said.

About CGIAR

CGIAR is a global research partnership for a food-secure future, dedicated to transforming food, land, and water systems in a climate crisis. Its research is carried out by 13 CGIAR Centers/Alliances in close collaboration with hundreds of partners, including national and regional research institutes, civil society organizations, academia, development organizations and the private sector. www.cgiar.org

We would like to thank all Funders who support this research through their contributions to the CGIAR Trust Fund.

About the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT

The Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) delivers research-based solutions that address the global crises of malnutrition, climate change, biodiversity loss, and environmental degradation. The Alliance focuses on the nexus of agriculture, nutrition and environment. We work with local, national, and multinational partners across Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean, and with the public and private sectors and civil society. With novel partnerships, the Alliance generates evidence and mainstreams innovations to transform food systems and landscapes so that they sustain the planet, drive prosperity, and nourish people in a climate crisis.

The Alliance is a CGIAR Research Center. https://alliancebioversityciat.org

About CIMMYT

The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) is an international nonprofit agricultural research and training organization that empowers farmers through science and innovation to nourish the world in the midst of a climate crisis. Applying high-quality science and strong partnerships, CIMMYT works toward a world with healthier, more prosperous people, freedom from global food crises, and more resilient agrifood systems. CIMMYT’s research brings higher productivity and better profits to farmers, mitigates the effects of the climate crisis, and reduces the environmental impact of agriculture.

CIMMYT is a CGIAR Research Center. https://staging.cimmyt.org

About CIP

The International Potato Center (CIP) was founded in 1971 as a research-for-development organization with a focus on potato, sweetpotato and andean roots and tubers. It delivers innovative science-based solutions to enhance access to affordable nutritious food, foster inclusive sustainable business and employment growth, and drive the climate resilience of root and tuber agrifood systems. Headquartered in Lima, Peru, CIP has a research presence in more than 20 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

CIP is a CGIAR Research Center. https://cipotato.org/

About IFPRI

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries. IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 50 countries. Global, regional, and national food systems face major challenges and require fundamental transformations. IFPRI is focused on responding to these challenges through a multidisciplinary approach to reshape food systems so they work for all people sustainably.

IFPRI is a CGIAR Research Center. www.ifpri.org

The race against time to breed a wheat to survive the climate crisis

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on June 12, 2022. Posted in In the media.

CIMMYT scientists are using biodiversity, testing forgotten wheat varieties from across the world, to find those with heat- and drought-tolerant traits. The aim is to outpace human-made global heating and breed climate-resilient varieties so yields do not collapse, as worst-case scenarios predict.

Reporter Nina Lakhani visited CIMMYT’s experimental station in Ciudad Obregon, in Mexico’s Sonora state, and witnessed CIMMYT’s unique role in fighting climate change through the development of resilient varieties as “international public goods”.

A generalized wiring diagram for wheat, as proposed by the authors. The diagram depicts the traits most commonly associated with the source (left) and sink (right) strengths and others that impact both the sink and source, largely dependent on growth stage (middle). TGW, thousand grain weight.

Diagram links physiological traits of wheat for yield potential

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on May 25, 2022. Posted in Press releases.

As crop yields are pushed closer to biophysical limits, achieving yield gains becomes increasingly challenging. Traditionally, scientists have worked on the premise that crop yield is a function of photosynthesis (source), the investment of assimilates into reproductive organs (sinks) and the underlying processes that enable and connect the expression of both. Although the original source-and-sink model remains valid, it must embrace more complexity, as scientific understanding improves.

A group of international researchers are proposing a new wiring diagram to show the interrelationships of the physiological traits that impact wheat yield potential, published on Nature Food. By illustrating these linkages, it shows connections among traits that may not have been apparent, which could serve as a decision support tool for crop scientists. The wiring diagram can inform new research hypotheses and breeding decisions, as well as research investment areas.

The diagram can also serve as a platform onto which new empirical data are routinely mapped and new concepts added, thereby creating an ever-richer common point of reference for refining models in the future.

“If routinely updated, the wiring diagram could lead to a paradigm change in the way we approach breeding for yield and targeting translational research,” said Matthew Reynolds, Distinguished Scientist and Head of Wheat Physiology at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and lead author of the study. “While focused on yield potential, the tool can be readily adapted to address climate resilience in a range of crops besides wheat.”

Breeding milestone

The new wiring diagram represents a milestone in deterministic plant breeding. It dovetails simpler models with crop simulation models.

It takes into account how source and sink strengths may interact with wheat developmental stages to determine yield. For example, at the time of stem growth, spike growth or effective grain filling.

This diagram can be used to illustrate the relative importance of specific connections among traits in their appropriate phenological context and to highlight major gaps in knowledge. This graphical representation can also serve as a roadmap to prioritize research at other levels of integration, such as metabolomic or gene expression studies. The wiring diagram can be deployed to identify ways for improving elite breeding material and to explore untapped genetic resources for unique traits and alleles.

Yield for climate resilience

The wheat scientific community is hard at work seeking new ways to get higher yields more quickly to help the world cope with population growth, climate change, wars and stable supplies of calories and protein.

“To ensure food and nutritional security in the future, raising yields must be an integral component of making crops more climate-resilient. This new tool can serve as a roadmap to design the necessary strategies to achieve these goals,” said Jeff Gwyn, Program Director of the International Wheat Yield Partnership (IWYP).

— ENDS —

READ THE FULL PUBLICATION:

A wiring-diagram to integrate physiological traits of wheat yield potential

INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITIES:

Matthew Reynolds – Distinguished Scientist and Head of Wheat Physiology at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT)

Gustavo Ariel Slafer – Research Professor at the Catalonian Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA) and Associate Professor of the University of Lleida

For more information or to arrange interviews, please contact the CIMMYT media team:

Marcia MacNeil and Rodrigo Ordóñez: https://staging.cimmyt.org/media-center/

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:

The study is an international collaboration of scientists from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the Catalonian Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA), the Center for Research in Agrotechnology (AGROTECNIO), the University of Lleida, the University of Nottingham, the John Innes Centre, Lancaster University, Technische Universität München, CSIRO Agriculture & Food, and the International Wheat Yield Partnership (IWYP).

ABOUT CIMMYT:

Applying high-quality science and strong partnerships, CIMMYT works to achieve a world with healthier and more prosperous people, free from global food crises and with more resilient agri-food systems. CIMMYT’s research brings enhanced productivity and better profits to farmers, mitigates the effects of the climate crisis, and reduces the environmental impact of agriculture.

CIMMYT is a member of CGIAR, a global research partnership for a food-secure future dedicated to reducing poverty, enhancing food and nutrition security, and improving natural resources.

For more information, visit staging.cimmyt.org.

ABOUT IWYP:

The International Wheat Yield Partnership (IWYP) represents a long-term global endeavor that utilizes a collaborative approach to bring together funding from public and private research organizations from a large number of countries. Over the first five years, the growing list of partners aims to invest up to US$100 million.

For more information, visit https://iwyp.org

Wheat leaves showing symptoms of heat stress. (Photo: CIMMYT)

Wheat versus heat

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on May 20, 2022. Posted in Blogs.

Across South Asia, including major wheat-producing regions of India and Pakistan, temperature extremes are threatening wheat production. Heatwaves have been reported throughout the region, with a century record for early onset of extreme heat. Monthly average temperatures across India for March and April 2022 exceeded those recorded over the past 100 years.

Widely recognized as one of the major breadbaskets of the world, the Indo-Gangetic Plains region produces over 100 million tons of wheat annually, from 30 million hectares in Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan, primarily supporting large domestic demand.

The optimal window for wheat planting is the first half of November. The late onset of the 2021 summer monsoon delayed rice planting and its subsequent harvest in the fall. This had a knock-on effect, delaying wheat planting by one to two weeks and increasing the risk of late season heat stress in March and April. Record-high temperatures over 40⁰C were observed on several days in March 2022 in the Punjabs of India and Pakistan as well as in the state of Haryana, causing wheat to mature about two weeks earlier than usual.

In-season changes and effects

Prior to the onset of extreme heat, the weather in the current season in India was favorable, prompting the Government of India to predict a record-high wheat harvest of 111 million tons. The March heat stress was unexpected and appears to have had a significant effect on the wheat crop, advancing the harvest and likely reducing yields.

Departure of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) during the period from March 22 to April 7 from the average of the previous five years. The NDVI is a measure of the leaf area and the greenness of vegetation. The yellow areas in the Punjabs of India and Pakistan, as well as in the state of Haryana, indicate that wheat matured earlier than normal due to elevated temperatures. Maximum temperatures reached 40⁰C on March 15 and remained at or above this level throughout the wheat harvesting period. (Map: Urs Schulthess/CIMMYT).

In the North-Western Plains, the major wheat basket of India, the area of late-sown wheat is likely to have been most affected even though many varieties carry heat tolerance. Data from CIMMYT’s on-farm experiments show a yield loss between 15 to 20% in that region. The states of Haryana and Punjab together contribute almost 30% of India’s total wheat production and notably contribute over 60% of the government’s buffer stocks. In the North-Eastern Plains, in the states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, around 40% of the wheat crop was normal or even early sown, escaping heat damage, whilst the remainder of late-sown wheat is likely to be impacted at a variable level, as most of the crop in this zone matures during the third and fourth week of March.

The Government of India has now revised wheat production estimates, with a reduction of 5.7%, to 105 million tons because of the early onset of summer.

India has reported record yields for the past 5 years, helping it to meet its goal of creating a reserve stock of 40 million tons of wheat after the 2021 harvest. It went into this harvest season with a stock of 19 million tons, and the country is in a good position to face this year’s yield loss.

In Pakistan, using satellite-based crop monitoring systems, the national space agency Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SPARCO) estimated wheat production reduction close to 10%: 26 million tons, compared to the production target of 29 million tons, for the 2021-22 season.

Rural and farming health impacts

Alongside a direct negative impact on agricultural productivity, the extreme temperatures in South Asia are likely to have negative health implications for the large rural labor force involved in wheat production. There is a growing body of evidence documenting declining health status in the agricultural workforce in areas of frequent temperature extremes. This also adds to the substantial human and environmental health concerns linked to residue burning.

We recommend that systematic research be urgently undertaken to characterize and understand the impacts of elevated temperatures on the health of field-based workers involved in wheat production. This is needed to develop a holistic strategy for adapting our global cropping systems to climate change.

Amplifying wheat supply risks

Combined with the wheat supply and price impacts of the current conflict in Ukraine and trade restrictions on Russian commodities, these further impacts on the global wheat supply are deeply troubling.

India had pledged to provide increased wheat exports to bolster global supplies, but this now looks uncertain given the necessity to safeguard domestic supplies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Indian government supported domestic food security by providing free rations — mainly wheat and rice — to 800 million people over several months. This type of support relies on the availability of large buffer stocks which appear stable, but may be reduced if grain production and subsequent procurement levels are lower than desired.

We are already seeing indications of reduced procurement by governments with market prices running higher than usual. However, although the Food Corporation of India has procured 27% less wheat grain in the first 20 days of the wheat procurement season compared to the same period last year, the Government of India is confident about securing sufficient wheat buffer stocks.

As with the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, it is likely that the most marked effects of both climate change and shortages of staple crops will hit the poorest and most vulnerable communities hardest.

A chain reaction of climate impacts

The real impacts of reduced wheat production due to extreme temperatures in South Asia demonstrate the realities of the climate emergency facing wheat and agricultural production. Direct impacts on farming community health must also be considered, as our agricultural workforce is pushed to new physical limits.

Anomalies, which are likely to become the new normal, can set off a chain reaction as seen here: the late onset of the summer monsoon caused delays in the sowing of rice and the subsequent wheat crop. The delayed wheat crop was hit by the unprecedented heatwave in mid- to late March at a relatively earlier stage, thus causing even more damage.

Preparing for wheat production tipping points

Urgent action is required to develop applied mitigation and adaptation strategies, as well as to plan for transition and tipping points when key staple crops such as wheat can no longer be grown in traditional production regions.

A strategic design process is needed, supported by crop and climate models, to develop and test packages of applied solutions for near-future climate changes. On-farm evidence from many farmers’ fields in Northwestern India indicates that bundled solutions — no-till direct seeding with surface retention of crop residues coupled with early seeding of adapted varieties of wheat with juvenile heat tolerance — can help to buffer terminal heat stress and limit yield losses.

Last but not least, breeding wheat for high-temperature tolerance will continue to be crucial for securing production. Strategic planning needs to also encompass the associated social, market and political elements which underpin equitable food supply and stability.

Download the pre-print:
Wheat vs. Heat: Current temperature extremes threaten wheat production in South Asia

Zhuang Qiaosheng (center) receives CIMMYT delegations in Beijing in 1997. (Photo: CIMMYT)

In memory of Zhuang Qiaosheng

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on May 16, 2022. Posted in News.

Zhuang Qiaosheng passed away in Beijing on May 8, 2022, at the age of 105. He was the most celebrated wheat breeder in China and enjoyed a high reputation in the international community.

As a leader of Wheat Breeding Program at Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), Zhuang developed 20 high-yielding and disease-resistant winter wheat varieties from 1947 to 1995, with a total planting area of 28 million hectares in achieving notable yield increase.

Zhuang served as a member of the Board of Trustees of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) from 1984 to 1987. He made great contributions to the collaboration between CIMMYT and China, including the opening of the CIMMYT office in China and the establishment of a shuttle breeding project for improving scab resistance.

Zhuang Qiaosheng (center) with Sanjaya Rajaram (left) and Tom Lumpkin in Beijing in 2017. (Photo: CIMMYT)

He did everything possible to enlarge CIMMYT activities in China before fully retiring in 2015.

He was a close friend to many CIMMYT staff, including the late distinguished scientist Sanjaya Rajaram. He also strongly recommended He Zhonghu, distinguished scientist and CIMMYT Country Representative for China, to work at CIMMYT as a postdoctoral fellow in 1990.

The CIMMYT community sends its deepest condolences to the Zhuang family.

Diane Saunders (left), Group Leader at the John Innes Centre and project co-lead, observes workshop participants during the use of MARPLE. (Photo: Danny Ward/John Innes Centre)

MARPLE reaches South Asia

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on May 12, 2022. Posted in News.

Workshop participants stand for a group photo. (Photo: Danny Ward/John Innes Centre)

On April 26–29, 2022, researchers from Nepal participated in a workshop on the use of MARPLE Diagnostics, the most advanced genetic testing methodology for strain-level diagnostics of the deadly wheat yellow rust fungus. Scientists from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the John Innes Centre trained 21 researchers from the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) and one from iDE. The workshop took place at NARC’s National Plant Pathology Research Centre in Khumaltar, outside the capital Kathmandu.

“The need for new diagnostic technologies like MARPLE and the critical timing of the workshop was highlighted by the severe yellow rust outbreak observed this season in the western areas of Nepal,” commented Dave Hodson, Senior Scientist at CIMMYT and project co-lead. “Having national capacity to detect the increasing threats from yellow rust using MARPLE will be an important tool to help combat wheat rusts in Nepal”.

The yellow rust fungus can cause grain yield losses of 30–80 % to wheat, Nepal’s third most important food crop.

Current diagnostic methods for wheat rust used in Nepal are slow, typically taking months between collecting the sample and final strain identification. They are also costly and reliant on sending samples overseas to highly specialized labs for analysis.

MARPLE (Mobile and Real-time PLant disEase) Diagnostics is the first method to place strain-level genetic diagnostics capability directly into the hands of Nepali researchers, generating data in-country in near-real time, for immediate integration into early warning systems and disease management decisions.

“This is a fantastic opportunity to bring the latest innovations in plant disease diagnostics for the wheat rust pathogens to where they are needed most, in the hands of researchers in the field working tirelessly to combat these devastating diseases,” commented Diane Saunders, Group Leader at the John Innes Centre and project co-lead.

Suraj Baidya senior scientist and chief of the National Plant Pathology Research Centre at NARC noted the worrying recent geographical expansion of yellow rust in Nepal. “Due to global warming, yellow rust has now moved into the plain and river basin area likely due to evolution of heat tolerant pathotypes. MARPLE Diagnostics now gives us the rapid diagnostics needed to help identify and manage these changes in the rust pathogen population diversity,” he said.

The highly innovative MARPLE Diagnostics approach uses the hand-held MinION nanopore sequencer, built by Oxford Nanopore, to generate genetic data to type strains of the yellow rust fungus directly from field samples.

Beyond MARPLE Diagnostics, Saunders noted that “the workshop has also opened up exciting new possibilities for researchers in Nepal, by providing local genome-sequencing capacity that is currently absent.”

MARPLE (Mobile and Real-time PLant disEase) Diagnostics is a revolutionary mobile lab kit. It uses nanopore sequence technology to rapidly diagnose and monitor wheat rust in farmers’ fields. (Photo: Danny Ward/John Innes Centre)

What’s next for MARPLE Diagnostics in Nepal?

Following the successful workshop, Nepali researchers will be supported by CIMMYT and the John Innes Centre to undertake MARPLE Diagnostics on field samples collected by NARC. “The current plan includes monitoring of yellow rust on the summer wheat crop planted at high hill areas and then early sampling in the 2022/23 wheat season,” Hodson noted.

“We were struck by the enthusiasm and dedication of our colleagues to embrace the potential offered by MARPLE Diagnostics. Looking forward, we are excited to continue working with our Nepali colleagues towards our united goal of embedding this methodology in their national surveillance program for wheat rusts,” Saunders remarked.

MARPLE Diagnostics is supported by the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Current and Emerging Threats to Crops, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the UK Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) Innovator of the Year Award, the CGIAR Big Data Platform Inspire Challenge, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

This article was originally published on the JIC website.

Stripe rust, also known as yellow rust, on wheat with droplets of rain. (Photo: A. Yaqup/CIMMYT)

Protecting plant health for food and nutritional security

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on May 11, 2022. Posted in Blogs.

Robust and resilient agrifood systems begin with healthy crops. Without healthy crops the food security and livelihoods of millions of resource-constrained smallholder famers in low- and middle-income countries would be in jeopardy. Yet, climate change and globalization are exacerbating the occurrence and spread of devastating insect-pests and pathogens.

Each year, plant diseases cost the global economy an estimated $220 billion — and invasive insect-pests at least $70 billion more. In addition, mycotoxins such as aflatoxins pose serious threats to the health and wellbeing of consumers. Consumption of mycotoxin-contaminated food can cause acute illness, and has been associated with increased risk of certain cancers and immune deficiency syndromes.

Effective plant health management requires holistic approaches that strengthen global and local surveillance and monitoring capacities, and mitigate negative impacts through rapid, robust responses to outbreaks with ecologically friendly, socially-inclusive and sustainable management approaches.

Over the decades, CGIAR has built a strong foundation for fostering holistic plant health protection efforts through its global network of Germplasm Health Units, as well as pathbreaking rapid-response efforts to novel transboundary threats to several important crops, including maize, wheat, rice, bananas, cassava, potatoes and grain legumes.

On May 12, 2022, CGIAR is launching the Plant Health and Rapid Response to Protect Food Security and Livelihoods Initiative (Plant Health Initiative). It presents a unified and transdisciplinary strategy to protect key crops — including cereals, legumes, roots, tubers, bananas and vegetables — from devastating pests and diseases, as well as mycotoxin contamination. CGIAR Centers will pursue this critical work together with national, regional and international partner institutions engaged in plant health management.

A comprehensive strategy

Prevention. When and where possible, prevention is always preferable to racing to find a cure. Reactive approaches, followed by most institutions and countries, generally focus on containment and management actions after a pest outbreak, especially pesticide use. These approaches may have paid off in the short- and medium-term, but they are not sustainable long-term. It has become imperative to take proactive actions on transboundary pest management through globally coordinated surveillance, diagnostics and deployment of plant health solutions, as well as dynamic communications and data sharing.

To this end, under this Initiative CGIAR will produce a diagnostics and surveillance toolbox. It will include low-cost and robust assays, genomics- and bioinformatics-based tools for pathogen diagnosis and diversity assessment, as well as information and communications technologies for real-time data collection and crowdsourcing. This will be complemented by the development of interoperable databases, epidemiological and risk assessment models, and evidence-based guidance frameworks for prioritizing biosecurity measures and rapid response efforts to high-risk insect-pests and diseases.

Integrated pest management strategies have been key in dealing with fall armyworm in Africa and Asia. (Photo: B.M. Prasanna/CIMMYT)

Adoption of integrated approaches. The goal of integrated pest and disease management is to economically suppress pest populations using techniques that support healthy crops. An effective management strategy will judiciously use an array of appropriate approaches, including clean seed systems, host-plant resistance, biological control, cultural control and the use of environmentally safer pesticides to protect crops from economic injury without adversely impacting the environment.

Through the Plant Health Initiative, CGIAR will promote system-based solutions using ecofriendly integrated pest and disease management innovation packages to effectively mitigate the impact of major insect-pests and diseases affecting crop plants. It will also implement innovative pre- and post-harvest mycotoxin management tools and processes.

Integrating people’s mindsets. The lack of gender and social perspectives in plant health surveillance, technology development, access to extension services and impact evaluation is a major challenge in plant health management. To address this, CGIAR will prioritize interdisciplinary data collection and impact evaluation methods to identify context-specific social and gender related constraints, opportunities and needs, as well as generate evidence-based recommendations for policy makers and stakeholders.

Interface with global and regional Initiatives. The Plant Health Initiative will build on the critical, often pioneering work of CGIAR. It will also work closely with other CGIAR global initiatives — including Accelerated Breeding, Seed Equal, Excellence in Agronomy and Harnessing Equality for Resilience in Agrifood Systems — and Regional Integrated Initiatives. Together, this network will help support CGIAR’s work towards developing and deploying improved varieties with insect-pest and disease resistance, coupled with context-sensitive, sustainable agronomic practices, in a gender- and socially-inclusive manner.

Targeting localized priorities with strategic partnerships

Effective plant health monitoring and rapid response efforts rely on the quality of cooperation and communication among relevant partner institutions. In this Initiative, CGIAR places special emphasis on developing and strengthening regional and international networks, and building the capacity of local institutions. It will enable globally and regionally coordinated responses by low- and middle-income countries to existing and emerging biotic threats.

To this end, CGIAR will work closely with an array of stakeholders, including national plant protection organizations, national agricultural research and extension systems, advanced research institutions, academia, private sector, and phytosanitary coordination networks.

The geographic focus of interventions under this Initiative will be primarily low- and middle-income countries in Latin America, South and Southeast Asia, and sub-Saharan Africa.

Coupled with CGIAR’s commitment to engaging, mobilizing and empowering stakeholders at various scales across the globe, the Plant Health Initiative represents an enormous step towards integrating people’s mindsets, capacities and needs towards holistic and sustainable plant health management. It will ultimately protect the food and nutritional security and livelihoods of millions of smallholders and their families.

Participants of the kick-off meeting for the Ukama Ustawi Initiative stand for a group photo in Nairobi, Kenya. (Photo: Mwihaki Mundia/ILRI)

New CGIAR Initiative to catalyze resilient agrifood systems in eastern and southern Africa

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on May 9, 2022. Posted in News.

Partners of CGIAR’s new regional integrated Initiative in eastern and southern Africa held a kick-off meeting in Nairobi on March 2–3, 2022. Eighty-five people participated, including national agricultural research extension programs, government representatives, private sector actors, funders and national and regional agricultural research and development organizations.

Entitled Ukama Ustawi, the Initiative aims to support climate-smart agriculture and livelihoods in 12 countries in eastern and southern Africa: Kenya, Zambia, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe (in Phase 1); Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda (in Phase 2); and Eswatini, Madagascar, Mozambique and South Africa (in Phase 3).

The Initiative aims to help millions of smallholders intensify, diversify and de-risk maize-mixed farming through improved extension services, institutional capacity strengthening, targeted farm management bundles, policy support, enterprise development and private investment.

Ukama Ustawi is a bilingual word derived from the Shona and Swahili languages. In Shona, Ukama refers to partnerships, and in Swahili, Ustawi means well-being and development. Together, they resemble the vision for the Initiative to achieve system-level development through innovative partnerships.

The meeting brought together partners to get to know each other, understand roles and responsibilities, identify priorities for 2022, and review the cross-cutting programmatic underpinnings of Ukama Ustawi — including gender and social inclusion, capacity strengthening and learning.

Baitsi Podisi, representing the Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA), said he is excited to be part of the Initiative: “CCARDESA, in its cooperation and coordination mandate, can learn a lot from CGIAR in restructuring to respond to the changing times.” Podisi supported the partnership with CGIAR in the Initiative’s embedded approach to policy dialogue, working with partners such as CCARDESA, the Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa (ASARECA) and the Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN).

Similarly, FANRPAN’s Francis Hale emphasized the need not to re-invent the wheel but to work with partners who already have a convening power, to advance the policy agenda for diversification and sustainable intensification.

What were key issues discussed?

One of the features of Ukama Ustawi is the use of four interconnected platforms: a scaling hub, a policy hub, an accelerator program and a learning platform. These will provide spaces for exchange and learning with partners across all CGIAR Initiatives in the region. Partners conducted a series of ‘fishbowl’ interactions across work packages to review the planned activities and provide a clearer understanding of deliverables, identify synergies, potential overlaps, common partners and countries, and set timelines.

The Initiative will work with innovative multimedia platforms to change knowledge, attitudes and practices of millions of farmers in eastern and southern Africa. One key partner in this area is the Shamba Shape Up TV show and the iShamba digital platform. Sophie Rottman, Producer of Shamba Shape Up, said she is looking forward to the work with Initiative partners, that will help expand the show to Uganda and Zambia.

Jean Claude Rubyogo, representing the Pan-Africa Bean Research Alliance (PABRA) said: “It is time we move away from CGIAR-initiated to country-initiated development activities. This is what Ukama Ustawi is all about”.

Martin Kropff, Global Director of Resilient Agrifood Systems at CGIAR, explained CGIAR’s regional integrated initiatives are designed to respond to national/regional demands. “The initiatives will start by working with partners to assess the food and nutritional challenges in the region, and tackle them by bringing in innovative solutions.”

The event was concluded by agreeing on the implementation of the inception phase of the Ukama Ustawi Initiative, and follow-on discussions to finalize key activities in 2022.

Learn more about the Ukama Ustawi Initiative.

Materials from the meeting are available online:

This article was originally published on CGIAR.org.

Nilupa Gunaratna (right), statistician at the International Nutrition Foundation, helps a farmer and her daughter to fill in a survey form on quality protein maize (QPM) as part of the QPM Development (QPMD) project in Karatu, Tanzania. (Photo: CIMMYT)

Turning data swamps into data lakes

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on April 26, 2022. Posted in Blogs.

Recently, I published the technical description of Ontology-Agnostic Metadata Schema (OIMS) in the journal Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, as part of a special issue on “Agile Data-Oriented Research Tools to Support Smallholder Farm System Transformation.”

CGIAR and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) are dedicated to providing research data information products (RDIP) in open access, following the FAIR data standards. FAIR stands for findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable. Organizations dedicated to open data have made massive progress in making data findable and accessible. A clear example is a free, open-access repository of research studies developed by CIMMYT scientists. Article 4.1.c.i. of the CGIAR data policy states that “Relevant data assets (e.g. datasets) and metadata shall be interoperable and fit for reuse.”

This is easier said than done. There are well-established standards for descriptive metadata such as the Dublin Core and the derived standard used widely across the CGIAR, aptly called CGcore, used in CIMMYT’s Dataverse research data repository. However, these standards are lacking in many domains for describing the actual content of data sets.

At best, idiosyncratic data dictionaries are developed for specific datasets, projects and sometimes even programs. Idiosyncratic data dictionaries help make data interoperable but, in many cases, require a lot of preprocessing before scientists can actually reuse the data. Having a standard for data dictionaries would be a huge leap forward, but is not likely to happen anytime soon.

The next best thing is to standardize the way that you describe data dictionaries. This was recognized by the community of practice on socioeconomic data of the CGIAR Platform for Big data in Agriculture. Over the past few years, efforts led by CIMMYT set to remedy that lack of a standard, resulting in the flexible, extensible, machine-readable, human-intelligible and ontology-agnostic metadata schema (OIMS).

The paper in the journal Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems describes a lightweight, flexible, and extensible metadata schema. It is designed to succinctly describe data collected for international agricultural research for development, facilitating interoperability. The schema is also meant to make it easier to store, retrieve and link different datasets stored in a data lake.

Agricultural research data comes to the surface

The paper discusses a need for this type of schema. Typically, agricultural research data comes in different formats and from different sources. For example, we can have structured surveys, semi-structured surveys, mobile phone records and satellite data. In the case of socioeconomic data, it can be particularly “messy.” To facilitate interoperability, we need to find methods to describe these datasets, which are machine readable — or actionable.

There have been other attempts to provide a standardized way to make data interoperable. Past approaches have been comprehensive but cumbersome. That could be the reason why they are typically only used by larger-scale projects. OIMS provides a framework that can be used by all data managers and scientists to enhance the interoperability for research data to ensure the data can be reused with much more ease.

The paper provides a detailed description of OIMS, including: the metadata schema, which describes the data dictionary; and the self-describing metadata, which describes the fields in the metadata. The paper then demonstrates the utility of this schema using a small segment of a household survey.

This paper presents an internally consistent approach to providing metadata for data files when standards are missing. It is flexible and extensible, so it will not be obsolete before it is implemented at scale. The approach is based on the concept of data lakes where data is stored as is. To ensure that data lakes do not become swamps, metadata is indispensable. The OIMS metadata schema approach can help to standardize the description of metadata and thus can be considered the fishing gear to extract data from the data lake.

As part of the on-going work started by the community of practice on socioeconomic data of the CGIAR Platform for Big Data in Agriculture, implementation of the OIMS metadata schema approach on datasets that can create indicators highlighted in the 100Q approach with linkages to the nascent socioeconomic ontology SEOnt is envisaged. This will provide datasets with enhanced interoperability.

With more and more datasets using the OIMS approach in the near future, it will become possible to turn what is currently a socioeconomic data swamp into a data lake. This will provide timely actionable information to support agri-food systems transformation — helping smallholders make a living while staying within planetary boundaries.

Implementing OIMS in practice requires data managers and scientists that collect the data to actively engage in providing the relevant metadata. As mentioned before, some of the metadata can be gleaned from the software solutions the scientists use already. As these are structured metadata, they can be extracted by machines. Often it does require curation by the scientist involved, especially when the software solution does not provide key information that the scientist has at hand but is not documented in a machine-readable way.

Read the full paper:
A Flexible, Extensible, Machine-Readable, Human-Intelligible, and Ontology-Agnostic Metadata Schema (OIMS)

Service providers participate in a training at the Institute of Agricultural Engineering, Zimbabwe. (Photo: Frédéric Baudron/CIMMYT)

Turning the mechanization wheels on Zimbabwe’s small-scale farms

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on April 19, 2022. Posted in News.

Farmers learn about two-wheel tractors. (Photo: CIMMYT)

A new project aims to climate-proof Zimbabwean farms through improved access to small-scale mechanization to reduce labor bottlenecks. Harnessing Appropriate-scale Farm mechanization In Zimbabwe (HAFIZ) is funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) through ACIAR and led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT).

The project aligns with the Zimbabwean nationwide governmental program Pfumvudza, which promotes agricultural practices based on the principles of conservation agriculture. The initiative aims to increase agricultural productivity through minimum soil disturbance, a permanent soil cover, mulching and crop diversification.

Over 18 months, the project will work with selected service providers to support mechanized solutions that are technically, environmentally and economically appropriate for use in smallholder settings.

Speaking during the project launch, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development in Zimbabwe, John Basera, explained the tenets of Pfumvudza which translates as “a new season.” A new season of adopting climate-smart technologies, conservation agriculture practices and increasing productivity. Simply put, Pfumvudza means a sustainable agricultural productivity scheme.

“Pfumvudza was a big game-changer in Zimbabwe. We tripled productivity from 0.45 to 1.4 [metric tons] per hectare. Now the big challenge for all of us is to sustain and consolidate the growth, and this is where mechanization comes into place,” Basera said. “This project is an opportunity for the smallholder farmer in Zimbabwe, who contributes to over 60% of the food in the country, to be able to produce more with less.”

The mechanics of sustainable intensification

Building on the findings of the completed ACIAR-funded project Farm Mechanization and Conservation Agriculture for Sustainable Intensification (FACASI), the new initiative will work with selected farmers and service providers to identify farming systems most suitable for mechanization. It will also assist companies in targeting their investments as they test a range of technologies powered by small-engine machinery adapted to the Zimbabwe context and transfer the resultant learnings to South Africa.

Conservation agriculture adoption offers multidimensional benefits to the farmers with significant yields and sustainability of their systems. The introduction of mechanization in systems using animals for draught reduces the livestock energy demand — energy that will contribute to increasing meat and milk production.

A service provider demonstrates a small-scale maize sheller in Nyanga, Zimbabwe. (Photo: Frédéric Baudron/CIMMYT)

While conservation agriculture and research alone cannot solve all the issues affecting agricultural productivity, awareness-raising is integral to help address these issues, and this is where small-scale mechanization comes in, says ACIAR Crops Research Program Manager, Eric Huttner.

“We learnt a lot from FACASI and a similar project in Bangladesh on the opportunities of appropriate small-scale mechanization as a tool towards sustainable intensification when adopted by farmers,” he explained. “If we avoid the mistakes of the past, where large-scale mechanization efforts were invested in the wrong place and resulted in ineffective machines unusable for farmers, we can make a huge difference in increasing yields and reducing farm drudgery,” Huttner said.

The project is funded by DFAT through ACIAR and implemented by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in partnership with the Zimbabwe Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, the University of Zimbabwe, the University of Kwa Zulu Natal in South Africa and private sector companies – Kurima, Zimplow and Hello Tractor.

Maize and other food crops on sale at Ijaye market, Oyo State, Nigeria. (Photo: Adebayo O./IITA)

The worst global food security crisis in 50 years could be already here

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on April 10, 2022. Posted in News.

As agricultural researchers around the world explore ways to avert what is quickly becoming the worst global food crisis in 50 years, it is imperative to shift the focus from efficient food value chains to resilient food systems.

This was one of the key messages Bram Govaerts, director general of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) shared with global and local audiences at a series of lectures and presentations at Cornell University the week of March 14, 2022.

Speaking as an Andrew White Professor-at-Large lecturer and lifetime Cornell faculty member, Govaerts advocated for ratcheting up investment in agricultural research and development. Not only this is necessary to avert the looming humanitarian catastrophe, he argued, but also to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and rebuild a more peaceful, resilient and food-secure world.

“Countries that are ill-prepared to absorb a global food shock are now facing similar conditions to those that triggered the Arab Spring a decade ago — possibly even worse,” Govaerts said.

In the lecture “Food Security: A legacy turned into a future challenge of peace, prosperity & empowerment,” he compared the current challenge to the 1970s famine threat in South Asia, which was averted by the introduction of improved, high-yielding wheat varieties bred in Mexico by the late Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Norman Borlaug.

“Today, humanity faces an existential challenge fueled by conflict, environmental degradation and climate change that urges a transformational response in the way that we produce, process, distribute and consume food,” he said.

In a public lecture “What is the leading agricultural research for development organization doing to help farmers adapt to climate change?” Govaerts acknowledged agriculture’s dual burden as both a cause and victim of climate change.

“We need to get climate change out of agriculture, and agriculture out of climate change,” he said, advocating for climate change as the driver of research and innovation, and calling for investment in transforming from efficiency to resilience.

Referencing the Ukraine crisis and its looming food security implications, he reminded attendees that we can all be inspired by Norman Borlaug’s accomplishments applying science to agriculture, and move quickly, together, to avert disaster.

“We need the same bold thinking, to do something before it’s too late,” Govaerts told the audience, which included nearly 200 online attendees and a full auditorium at Cornell’s College of Agricultural and Life Sciences.

“There is no ‘other’ team that is going to do it for us. This is the meeting. This is the team.”

CIMMYT implements integrated agri-food systems initiatives to improve maize and wheat seeds, farming practices and technologies to increase yields sustainably with support from governments, philanthropists and farmers in more than 40 countries.

In addition, along with the Nobel Peace Center and the Governments of Mexico and Norway, CIMMYT launched the Agriculture for Peace call in 2020 to mobilize funding for agricultural research and extension services to help deliver much-needed global food systems transformation.

Cover photo: Maize and other food crops on sale at Ijaye market, Oyo State, Nigeria. (Photo: Adebayo O./IITA)

Explore our coverage and analysis of the Russia-Ukraine war and its impact on global food security.

Russia-Ukraine conflict and global food security

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on April 4, 2022. Posted in Features.

For the past month, researchers from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) have analyzed the expected impacts of the Russia-Ukraine war on global food security.

The war in Ukraine and the sanctions against Russia will disrupt wheat supply chains, fertilizer exports and other components of food systems. Their combined effect, along with other factors, could unchain a major food security crisis as well as increased inequality.

Explore our analysis and coverage on major media outlets and journals. To get in touch with our experts, please contact the media team.

CIMMYT scientists have also made available a summary of key facts and figures about the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on wheat supply (PowerPoint, 32MB): changing patterns of consumption and effect on food prices, geographic export supply concentration, global wheat imports, and specific vulnerabilities particularly in the Global South.

Another food crisis?

The Russia-Ukraine conflict will cause massive disruptions to global wheat supply and food security. Agricultural research investments are the basis of resilient agri-food systems and a food-secure future.

Broken bread — avert global wheat crisis caused by invasion of Ukraine

War highlights the fragility of the global food supply — sustained investment is needed to feed the world in a changing climate, Alison Bentley explains on Nature.

Food is just as vital as oil to national security

A new Bloomberg op-ed urges nations to steer more money to organizations like CIMMYT that are advancing crucial research on how to grow more resilient wheat and maize crops in regions that are becoming steadily less arable.

What price wheat?

Crisis in Ukraine underscores the need for long-term solutions for global food security, Alison Bentley and Jason Donovan explain.

Multiple breadbasket failures: Nations must address looming food emergencies

The war in Ukraine, coupled with weather-related disruptions in the world’s major grain-producing regions, could unleash unbearable humanitarian consequences, civil unrest, and major financial losses worldwide, say Sharon E. Burke (Ecospherics) and Bram Govaerts (CIMMYT) on The Boston Globe.

BNI-enhanced wheat research wins 2021 Cozzarelli Prize

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on April 1, 2022. Posted in News.

The paper “Enlisting wild grass genes to combat nitrification in wheat farming: A nature-based solution” received the 2021 Cozzarelli Prize, which recognizes outstanding articles published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS). The paper was published as a joint research collaboration of Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS), the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) and Nihon University.

The study identifies of a chromosomal region that regulates the biological nitrification inhibition (BNI) ability of wheat grass (Leymus racemosus), a wild relative of wheat. It also outlines the development of the world’s first BNI-enhanced wheat, through intergeneric crossing with a high-yielding wheat cultivar.

This research result is expected to contribute to the prevention of nitrogen pollution that leads to water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, reducing the use of nitrogen fertilizer while maintaining productivity.

Best of the year

PNAS is one of the most cited scientific journals in the world, publishing more than 3,000 papers per year on all aspects of science. A total of 3,476 papers were published in 2021, covering six fields: Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Biological Sciences, Engineering and Applied Sciences, Biomedical Sciences, Behavioral and Social Sciences, and Applied Biological, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

The Cozzarelli Prize was established in 2005 as the PNAS Paper of the Year Prize and renamed in 2007 to honor late editor-in-chief Nicholas R. Cozzarelli. It is awarded yearly by the journal’s Editorial Board to one paper from each field reflecting scientific excellence and originality. The BNI research paper received the award in the category of Applied Biological, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.

The awards ceremony will be held online on May 1, 2022, and a video introducing the results of this research will be available.

Recently, lead researcher Guntur V. Subbarao presented this research on a talk at Princeton University’s Center for Policy Research on Energy and the Environment: “Low-nitrifying agricultural systems are critical for the next Green Revolution.”

Fruitful collaboration

CIMMYT has collaborated with JIRCAS on BNI-enhanced wheat research since 2009, with funding from Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. CIMMYT is one of the founding members of the BNI Consortium, established in 2015.

The CGIAR Research Programs on Wheat (WHEAT) and Maize (MAIZE) co-funded BNI research since 2014 and 2019 respectively, until their conclusion at the end of 2021.

BNI research has been positioned in the “Measures for achievement of Decarbonization and Resilience with Innovation (MeaDRI)” strategy of Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and was also selected as one of the ministry’s “Top 10 agricultural technology news for 2021.”

Read the full article:
Enlisting wild grass genes to combat nitrification in wheat farming: A nature-based solution