News – Page 57

Hans Braun receives prestigious Norman Borlaug Award for Lifetime Achievement in Wheat Research

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on October 12, 2020. Posted in News.

Hans-Joachim Braun, director of CIMMYT's Global Wheat Program, speaks at the 8th International Wheat Conference in 2010. Braun has dedicated nearly four decades to wheat research. (Photo: Petr Kosina/CIMMYT) — Hans-Joachim Braun, director of CIMMYT’s Global Wheat Program, speaks at the 8th International Wheat Conference in 2010. Braun has dedicated nearly four decades to wheat research. (Photo: Petr Kosina/CIMMYT)

Hans Braun, director of the Global Wheat Program at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), has received the Norman Borlaug Lifetime Achievement Award for nearly four decades of wheat research. He received the award on October 9, 2020, during the virtual Borlaug Global Rust Initiative (BGRI) Technical Workshop.

“We rest on the shoulders of a lot of mighty people who have come before us,” said Ronnie Coffman, vice chair of BGRI, speaking to a global audience of wheat scientists and farmers as he presented four individuals with the award. “Each of these individuals has contributed to the improvement of wheat and smallholder livelihoods in major and enduring ways.”

Responsible for technical direction and implementation of the Global Wheat Program at CIMMYT and the CGIAR Research Program on Wheat (WHEAT), Braun leads and manages a team of 40 international scientists who develop wheat germplasm. This germplasm is distributed to around 200 cooperators in wheat-producing countries worldwide, and is responsible for the derived varieties being grown on more than 50% of the spring wheat area in developing countries.

Lifetime achievement

“In his 35 years with CIMMYT, Hans has become familiar with all major wheat-based cropping systems in the developing and developed world,” said Coffman, who called Braun an important collaborator and close personal friend.

“Hans was integral to the BGRI’s efforts in preventing Ug99 and related races of rust from taking out much of the 80% of the world’s wheat that was susceptible when Ug99 was first identified in 1999,” Coffman explained. He “has been an integral partner in the development and implementation of the Durable Rust Research in Wheat (DRRW) and Delivering Genetic Gain in Wheat (DGGW) projects.”

Braun delivered a keynote speech accepting the award and discussing the bright future of wheat, despite the many challenges that lie ahead.

“The future of wheat improvement in developing countries remains on the shoulders of public organizations and institutions. It is paramount that we share germplasm, information and knowledge openly,” he said.

He emphasized the need to “keep the herd together” and maintain strong, global partnerships.

Braun also noted the importance of continuing to improve nutritional content, growing within planetary boundaries, and taking farmers’ preferences seriously. He highlighted CIMMYT’s exceptional capacity as one of the world’s largest and most impactful wheat breeding programs, and encouraged national partners to continue their close collaboration.

He recalled what Norman Borlaug told him in 2004, when he became head of the Global Wheat Program: “Hans, I have confidence you can lead the program and I will always help you” — and how he did.

“I would like to thank all with whom I cooperated over four decades and who contributed to make CIMMYT’s program strong,” concluded Hans. “I am very optimistic that the global wheat community will continue to develop the varieties farmers need to feed 10 billion.”

This story was first posted on the BGRI blog and on the WHEAT website.

Learn more about the other distinguished scientists receiving this award, and the Technical Workshop outcomes, on the BGRI website.

Hands hold wheat grain from harvest near Belbur, Nakuru, Kenya. (Photo: Peter Lowe/CIMMYT)

Against the grain: New paper reveals the overlooked health benefits of maize and wheat

Written by Mary Donovan on October 12, 2020. Posted in Press releases.

Cereal crops like maize and wheat deserve greater consideration as part of a healthy, nutritious diet, according to the authors of a new paper.

A review of agri-nutrition research and dietary guidance found that the potential health benefits provided by cereals were often overlooked or undervalued as part of nutritious diets, including their role in reducing non-communicable diseases such as heart disease and diabetes.

The study identified two key explanations for the oversight. The first is that many cereal crops with varying nutritional qualities are indiscriminately grouped under the broad category of “staples.”

A second problem lies in the fact that cereals are usually considered to be a major source of dietary energy alone. However, reducing nutritional attributes to macro- and micro-nutrients misses other beneficial elements of cereals known as “bioactive food components.” These include carotenoids, flavonoids, and polyphenols, and compounds that comprise dietary fiber.

“Most whole grain cereals provide differing amounts of proteins, fats, minerals and vitamins, in addition to being important sources of dietary energy,” said Jason Donovan, a senior economist at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and co-author of the paper published in Food Policy.

“Only relative to other ‘nutrient-rich’ foodstuffs can cereals be described as ‘nutrient-poor’.”

In the paper, entitled Agri-nutrition research: Revisiting the contribution of maize and wheat to human nutrition and health, the authors called on researchers and policymakers to embrace the multiple dietary components of cereals in addressing under- and over-nutrition, micronutrient deficiencies and the growing global problem of non-communicable diseases.

“Through increasing the availability of, and access to, healthy foods derived from cereals, we can better address the growing triple burden of malnutrition that many countries are facing,” said Olaf Erenstein, co-author and director of CIMMYT’s Socioeconomics program.

“To feed the world within planetary boundaries, current intakes of whole grain foods should more than double and address tricky issues like the current over-processing, to make the most of the nutrition potential of maize and wheat.”

While some carbohydrates can create a glycemic response that has negative effects on diabetes and obesity, dietary fiber in cereals comprises carbohydrates that are fermented in the large intestine with largely positive metabolic and health effects.

In addition, the naturally-occurring compounds found in maize and wheat can be enhanced through conventional breeding, genomic selection and bio- and industrial-fortification to offer enriched levels of beneficial components.

For example, scientists at CIMMYT have worked on new maize and wheat varieties with additional levels of vitamin A and zinc to help address some of the nutritional deficiencies found worldwide. Researchers are also improving how cereals are produced, processed, and stored to increase productivity and improve food safety while maintaining their nutritional benefits.

One of challenges in maximizing the nutritional benefit of cereal-based foods in diets is that the processing of grains often causes substantial losses of essential vitamins and minerals. Meanwhile, manufacturing industries create ultra-processed foods that often contain noxious qualities and components, which contribute directly to the significant and increasing global health and economic costs of non-communicable diseases.

“If we are to end hunger by delivering healthy, diverse and nutritional diets in the next decade, we need a broader and more nuanced understanding of the nutritional and health-promoting value of diverse foods, including cereals,” added Nigel Poole, co-author and Professor of International Development at SOAS University, London.

“Cereals and so-called ‘nutrient-rich’ foods are complementary in agri-nutrition, both of which require additional research, resources and attention so that one does not replace the other.”

RELATED PUBLICATIONS:

Agri-nutrition research: Revisiting the contribution of maize and wheat to human nutrition and health

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR INTERVIEW REQUESTS:

Donna Bowater, Marchmont Communications, donna@marchmontcomms.com, +44 7929 212 534

ABOUT CIMMYT:

The International Maize and What Improvement Center (CIMMYT) is the global leader in publicly-funded maize and wheat research and related farming systems. Headquartered near Mexico City, CIMMYT works with hundreds of partners throughout the developing world to sustainably increase the productivity of maize and wheat cropping systems, thus improving global food security and reducing poverty. CIMMYT is a member of the CGIAR System and leads the CGIAR programs on Maize and Wheat and the Excellence in Breeding Platform. The Center receives support from national governments, foundations, development banks and other public and private agencies. For more information visit staging.cimmyt.org

See our coverage of World Food Day 2020.

Wheat blast has made the intercontinental jump to Africa

Written by Mary Donovan on October 9, 2020. Posted in In the media.

For the first time, wheat blast, a fast-acting and devastating fungal disease, has been reported on the African continent, according to a new article published by scientists from the Zambian Agricultural Research Institute (ZARI), the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the US Department of Agriculture – Foreign Disease Weed Science Research Unit (USDA-ARS).

Food production in Africa: Role of improved seeds in enhancing food security

Written by Mary Donovan on October 9, 2020. Posted in In the media.

This year’s Nobel Peace Prize award is likely to turn the eyes of the world to the millions of people who suffer from, or face the threat of hunger. CGTN Africa has been running a series on food production in the continent. The series is in line with this year’s Nobel Peace Prize theme — making food security an instrument of peace. This episode focuses on the impact of improved seeds.

Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0saDuHlVZs&feature=youtu.be

Empowered rural women take on entrepreneurship

Written by Nima Chodon on October 9, 2020. Posted in Features.

Sashimoni Lohar, a fifty-three-year-old from Badbil village, in Odisha, is like any other woman you would encounter in India’s rural heartlands. Her life is mostly confined within the boundaries of her home and farm.

The COVID-19 lockdown has been hard on people across India, but particularly agonizing for families like Lohar’s. Both her sons lost their jobs as laborers, one in a town near home, and the other in a city in a different state. Her younger son Debodutta, a migrant laborer stuck in the southern Indian city of Bengaluru when the midnight lockdown was announced, managed to survive and returned home two months later, aggrieved and penniless. Her husband remained the only earning family member, though on a meager salary, and the family dreaded not only the virus but hunger, as the small reserve of income and rations they had was coming to an end.

Lohar was the only one who refused to give up hope. With support from her village self-help group (SHG), she cultivated two acres of hybrid maize this year. The income generated through selling the crop at a roadside stall next to her farm ensured the wellbeing of her family in this critical period. For a brief time, along with her husband’s small income, she became the provider for the family with seven mouths to feed during the lockdown.

Lohar did worry for her jobless sons’ futures but believed that as a successful maize farmer with the skills acquired in the last few years, she can do even better. “Maize farming has supported us during this low-income and very critical period. I shall continue maize cultivation and hope to increase our lease in land next year,” said a visibly triumphant Lohar.

Investing in maize

Today, along with her husband and a new-found entrepreneurial spirit, she hopes to keep Debodutta and her older son closer to home. After lockdown restriction were eased, she invested about Rs.12,000 (roughly US$165) into maize cultivation and set up two stalls by the national highway next to the farm to sell green maize cobs again alongside her family. They made back almost double their investment from less than one acre and she plans to keep the excess as dry grain for the poultry feed mill. A budding entrepreneur full of confidence, Lohar now plans to start a small grocery shop with a loan in the coming months.

A few years ago, many women from these tribal areas in Odisha did not even step out of their houses and villages. They were reluctant to go to the market or the bank – anywhere away from the familiarity of their home. Today, through the opportunities afforded by government economic development programs and collaborations such as the one with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center’s (CIMMYT) Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia project (CSISA), these women have established themselves as successful maize farmers and entrepreneurs.

Lohar is just one of many women in the rural villages of Odisha — particularly in Mayurbhanj district where COVID-19 has left many male family members jobless — who either individually or in groups erected about 27 small stalls adjacent to their maize fields to sell green cobs to travelers on the highway. Many are very confident and determined to support and lead their families through this difficult time.

Women shows off maize stall. — Farmer and budding entrepreneur Sashimoni Lohar proudly shows off her new maize stall next to her farm. (Photo: Wasim Iftikar/CIMMYT)

Engaging tribal groups

Mayurbhanj is a district in Odisha where nearly 58.7 percent of the population are from tribal groups. During the kharif — autumn, monsoon and cultivation — season, thousands of hectares of upland are left fallow, due to lack of education and knowledge and tribal farmers’ low risk-bearing capacity. CSISA began working in the district in 2013, improving farming systems for higher yields and providing sustainable livelihood options for tribal farmers.

From 2013 to 2020, CSISA, in collaboration with the State Department of Agriculture, Department of Horticulture, NGO partners, private seed companies, women SHG federations and the Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), helped develop maize cultivation as an important part of the tribal people’s livelihoods. Thousands of hectares of fallow lands are now being converted to cultivate maize, focusing on sustainable agriculture and livelihoods, predominantly involving women as most men were occupied or engaged in migrant jobs. This year alone, more than 100 tribal women from Badbil village have cultivated approximately 120 acres of commercial hybrid maize.

CSISA supports the farmers all the way from sowing to crop harvesting. To strengthen dry grain marketing and to avail the benefits of different schemes under the government of Odisha’s support for farmer producer groups (FPGs), CSISA has formed two women’s FPGs in Badbil alone. Some of the SHGs working with CSISA on maize cultivation in the region in the last four-five years include Maa Jagat Janani, Johar Jaher Aya, Biswa Jay Maa Tarini, Maa Saraswati, Subha Patni, and Maa Brundabati.

The women from the villages in Mayurbhanj have become well-known, both within and outside the district, for their good quality green cobs and marketing intelligence. These women had the courage to change their circumstances and lifted their families out of situations of uncertainty and hardship. The rows of industrious rural women selling maize by the national highway became national news, and many of the state’s media channels that come to cover this story hailed their determination and capacity for income generation, even in a pandemic, as symbols of women’s empowerment in the tribal community.

Cover photo: A womens’ group sells green cobs by the national highway next to their maize farm. (Photo: Wasim Iftikar/CIMMYT)

See our coverage of the International Day of Rural Women.

Donald L. Winkelmann, Director General of CIMMYT from 1985 to 1994. (Photo: CIMMYT)

Honoring the life and legacy of Donald Winkelmann

Written by Rodrigo Ordóñez on October 9, 2020. Posted in News.

With sorrow we report the passing of Donald Winkelmann, who served as Director General of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) from 1985 to 1994.

During his tenure, CIMMYT expanded notably and gained recognition as a research center committed to sustainable agricultural development. Winkelmann successfully negotiated CIMMYT’s final status as a public international organization.

The Center’s first economist, Winkelmann arrived in 1972 to conduct and coordinate what became a landmark series of adoption studies on emerging maize and wheat technologies from CIMMYT. He established CIMMYT’s Economics program and served as its first director.

In his first address as Director General, he emphasized that, when competing against “new forces” and technological changes “the old personality of CIMMYT must endure — the commitment to excellence and action, and to the ideal of making things better.”

Winkelmann was appointed for a second term as Director General by the Board of Trustees in 1990.

On November 23, 1994, he received the Order of the Aztec Eagle — the highest distinction given to a foreigner by the Mexican government. During the award ceremony, the Under-Secretary of Foreign Relations of Mexico, Ambassador Andres Rozenthal, highlighted three stages of Winkelmann’s contributions to Mexico. First, as visiting professor of economics at the Post Graduate College (1966-1971), where he helped train Mexican agricultural economists with new tools and methodologies. Second, as founder and director of the Economics program at CIMMYT (1971-1985), where he addressed themes such as on-farm research and comparative advantage studies, generated research methodologies, and carried out training workshops in agricultural economics. Lastly, as Director General of CIMMYT (1985-1994), where he helped strengthen collaboration between CIMMYT and Mexican research institutions, while working on allocation of resources to research, strategic planning and research impacts.”

After retiring from CIMMYT in November 1994, Winkelmann accepted the appointment of Chair of the CGIAR’s Technical Advisory Committee (TAC).

The CIMMYT community sends its warmest condolences to the Winkelmann family.

Donald L. Winkelmann, Director General of CIMMYT from 1985 to 1994. (Photo: CIMMYT)

Director General Martin Kropff (left) and former Deputy Director General Marianne Bänziger (third from left) greet Donald Winkelmann and his wife Breege during a visit to the CIMMYT headquarters in October 2019. (Photo: CIMMYT)

En route to improved agronomic literacy

Written by Mary Donovan on October 8, 2020. Posted in Features.

Masuriya, a rural village in Nepal’s Gauriganga municipality, was one of the villages affected during the country’s civil war which ran from 1996-2006. Since 2012, Bandana Joshi, chairperson of a local cooperative, has been encouraging women in her village to optimize fertilizer application to maximize plant growth and profitability, and improve livelihoods. However, her journey to this day was not an easy one.

In the years of the civil war, women in the villages like Masuriya faced the burden to make ends meet for their children and elderly family members, as most men fled in fear of war or migrated to earn income. It was during this time that Joshi and a group of 24 women who were operating a savings and credit firm realized that more women in their village needed monetary support to carry out their livelihood activities. They decided to expand their services and formed a cooperative to empower rural women and make finance available in the village. Their cooperative, Sana Kisan Sahakari Sanstha Limited, now has 1,186 women members, more than half of whom belong to marginalized communities – 514 Janajatis and 154 Dalits.

Many of the members are small commercial farmers, owning about 1.4 ha of land for farming as their sole source of income. Most have traditionally grown cereals such as rice and wheat alongside a few vegetables and had limited knowledge on cash crop farming and soil fertility management. They would produce and sell their surplus rice and wheat when they needed cash to buy groceries or pay household bills.

Woman prepares cauliflower for marketing. — Cooperative member prepares cauliflower for marketing. (Photo: Uttam Kunwar/CIMMYT)

In October 2016, researchers from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center’s (CIMMYT) Nepal Seed and Fertilizer (NSAF) project and the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC), launched an integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) program and worked alongside the cooperative to disseminate and encourage the use of ISFM technologies among its members. The purpose was to show farmers the benefits of ISFM – an integration of organic inputs and inorganic fertilizers with improved seeds – for rice, wheat and cauliflower cultivation, that includes balanced fertilizer application to increase yield. The project team conducted research trials and on-farm demonstrations on these crops as part of the initiative and built capacity through farmer field days and trainings on best management practices.

As a strategic entry point, the cooperative in coordination with female community volunteers helped implement the ISFM program. Women received training on the right source and amount of fertilizer that matches crop needs, and the right time and place to apply these fertilizers to maximize nutrient uptake and improve crop yields. NSAF researchers engaged with lead farmers and the cooperative’s leadership to influence their acceptance of the new fertilizer application practices, and they in turn motivated the members to use balanced fertilizer application. In 2020, these activities have been critical in building awareness on balanced fertilizer application for more than 800 farmers on over 700 ha of land, with each household able to raise their crop productivity by at least 50% for vegetables and 25% for cereals.

Better soil, better harvest

So far, the use of balanced fertilizer application has benefited more than a hundred members of the cooperative by gaining an average income of $219 in a season from cultivating cauliflower – a cash crop in Nepal’s Terai region. This additional return has helped farmers to adequately feed an average family of 4.5 people for the entire year.

Dutrani Chaudhary, a cooperative member, said that she was able to raise cauliflower production by 64% by applying balanced fertilizers that supplied all the essential nutrients – nitrogen, phosphorus, potash and micro-nutrient boron. She earned about $238 from 0.033 ha of land, which is a much larger gain for any farmer from a single season. As well as boosting her pride and confidence, she can now contribute for her children’s school fees and household expenditures.

After witnessing positive results, many other farmers in the village started applying major nutrients using urea, DAP (Di-ammonium Phosphate) and MoP (Muriate of Potash) to increase crop productivity. In 2017, Joshi and her members noticed a sharp rise in fertilizer procurement from the cooperative among farmers resulting in almost double the sales compared to 2015. Prior to the project’s agronomic literacy programs on soil fertility management, she sold merely 15 tons urea and 10 tons of DAP. Thereafter, fertilizer sales increased to 32.6 tons and 27.9 tons, for urea and DAP respectively, in just two years.

“For the first time in 2018 we sold 500 kilograms of MoP since the cooperative established,” explained Joshi. MoP was never considered a priority by the farmers before and they rarely purchased it from the cooperative.

Women in field. — Women participating in farmer field day of cauliflower in Masuriya. (Photo: Uttam Kunwar/CIMMYT)

On the rise

Now more organized and well-equipped, the cooperative has started organizing programs this year on off-seasonal and seasonal vegetable cultivation on crops such as tomato, cauliflower and cucurbits that have aided around 150 member households. “We have prioritized balanced fertilizer application in our vegetable production program,” says Madhuri Chaudhary, manager of the cooperative.

The woman-led rural institution has achieved remarkable success over the years by learning and adopting best agronomic practices including fertilizer application, planting and cultivation methods that helped increase crop productivity and household income. Having seen the benefits, male family members now encourage them to participate in agronomic literacy programs to acquire advanced knowledge and skills.

Joshi and her team of visionary women have been successful in setting up an inclusive new movement in Masuriya village, which has led to their active participation in development activities and decision-making roles not only at the household level but also in societal issues around women’s rights. Passionate to learn new skills and grow financially independent, these rural women are confident in making their own decisions for themselves, their family and for the wider society. Although it started small, the cooperative has now boomed towards improving rural women’s economic empowerment and sparking better livelihood opportunities in the area.

Cover photo: Balanced nutrient management helps farmer Dharma Devi generate better household income from cauliflower cultivation. (Photo: Uttam Kunwar/CIMMYT)

Q&A: How blockchain can create social and environmental impacts

Written by Matthew O'Leary on October 7, 2020. Posted in Features.

Blockchain promises to revolutionize the economic system by changing the way we communicate over the internet. Though it is best known for tracking bitcoin, many researchers believe the digital trust technology can have positive social and environmental benefits through supply chains. This is one of the foundational principles of AgriFoodTrust, a testing and learning platform and knowledge base for digital trust and transparency technologies.

However, at the moment there is little research into the mechanisms by which blockchain implementations in the supply chain create these positive impacts, said Susanne Köhler, a doctoral student at Aalborg University, who is working to examine exactly how blockchain-based technologies can change supply chains for good.

Blockchain is a distributed ledger technology that allows the storing and exchange of assets and information between two entities globally in a secure, transparent and immutable way, without the need for a trusted centralized authority to authenticate parties and validate transactions. It offers the opportunity to revolutionize how we trust individuals and institutions and how we view contracts, certifications, land titles, medical records and personal data.

In the food system for example, blockchain is being used to improve trust by tracking information along the supply chain to curb the spread of counterfeit maize seeds in Africa.

As part of her research, Köhler is interviewing actors working with blockchain from a range of industries to further explore how this disruptive technology can be used to increase the resilience of individuals, communities and ecosystems. Her research is carried out at Aalborg University within the Sustainable Blockchain Technologies project financed by the Independent Research Fund Denmark – Social Sciences.

Köhler answered a few questions about her research.

Could you please explain the aim of your research? Who are you interviewing?

The purpose of this study is to discover the mechanisms by which blockchain-based technologies in the supply chain create positive social and environmental impacts. It has been claimed that blockchain will bring a variety of positive impacts, but it is unclear how and if the impacts are due to blockchain or another component in a system of technologies. We want to find out what the status-quo of blockchain-based technologies in the supply chain is, what impacts these implementations currently have and might have in the future, and how these impacts are generated. To do so, I am interviewing different actors involved in implementing blockchain-based technologies in supply chains such as technology developers, brands and NGOs. At this point, I do not focus on a specific industry.

What can we learn by comparing approaches to blockchain in different supply chains to improve social and environmental impact?

All blockchain-based implementations are different. They can differ in terms of system architecture, governance structures, implementation stage and environmental factors. Blockchain is a component in a system of technologies. One implementation may work with facial recognition to identify trusted producers and verify asset registration. Others may use registered mobile phones to enter assets to the blockchain. As the technology is still in its infancy and many implementations are in early stages, looking at different implementations can help us gain an understanding of blockchain’s overall potential. Each case can provide a different perspective that highlights how blockchain brings impacts. This helps to shape the larger picture. In turn, individuals can learn from this larger picture.

Person holding maize seed. — Maize seed ready for planting in Nicaragua. (Photo: Neil Palmer / CIAT)

What barriers do projects face implementing blockchain in projects? How will your research help overcome these challenges?

Impact is defined as changes to specific targets such as human wellbeing or ecosystem wellbeing. It is important to measure these impacts in order to understand the gains of having a blockchain-based implementation and to help anticipate drawbacks before the technology scales up. Currently, few projects are measuring impact, because they are still in early stages. This means that we are working with few data, novel implementations, uncertain conditions and small-scale implementations. Therefore, we interview different projects and different kinds of actors – such as technology providers or brands. We want to understand blockchain-based technologies in the supply chain, gain an understanding of their benefits, and provide a scientific basis to explain how blockchain currently impacts supply chains and how it may do so in the future. This will help anticipate drawbacks, focus on developing the potentials for blockchain to be used to create impact, and communicate benefits more clearly. This knowledge may be important for overcoming regulatory and other barriers.

What do you aim to do with your results? Who will benefit?

The results will be published in a peer-reviewed journal ensuring scientific rigor. We want to contribute to the discussion of how blockchain creates positive social and environmental impacts. The results may support decision-making of various stakeholders including brands, technology providers and policy makers.

Can you tell us about the Sustainable Blockchain Technologies project?

Experts have claimed that blockchain will be a game changer in many different industries. It may even change the world we live in for the better. The Sustainable Blockchain Technologies project develops from this premise to investigate and anticipate the environmental and social effects of blockchain beyond the hype and with solid scientific basis. The main hypothesis is that while blockchain allows for secure, robust, and trustworthy solutions, and can bring clear improvements compared to current technologies in terms of traceability and transparency, this comes at a cost. Thus, the main objective of the project is investigating what environmental and social impacts blockchain will have as an alternative or substitute of currently available technologies. We look at this broad objective from two different perspectives. First, we conduct environmental assessments of blockchain technology itself. Second, we analyze blockchain potentials of applications in the supply chain.

This story was originally posted on the website of the CGIAR Platform for Big Data in Agriculture (https://bigdata.cgiar.org/).

Cover photo: Sita Kumari, farmer, uses mobile phone apps to enhance her yields and get access to market and labor. (Photo: C. De Bode/CGIAR)

Women find a role in Bangladesh’s agricultural mechanization sector

Written by Nur-A-Mahajabin Khan on October 7, 2020. Posted in Features.

It is a general perception, globally and in Bangladesh, that women do not have a role in the agricultural mechanization sector. However, a deeper look into the sector shows a different reality. Women in Bangladesh are owners and managers in businesses supported by the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia Mechanization Extension Activity (CSISA-MEA), funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Feed the Future initiative.

Professions have no gender

Poly Rani married her husband, Poritosh Kumar Malo, when she was 15. He is an engineer who established his own machine manufacturing business, RK Metal Ltd of Faridpur. As the business expanded Rani began to help her husband with office administration work, leaving him time to supervise the manufacturing side.

“After my marriage, my husband asked me to spend some time in his shop, as he was busy with his job. I never thought I would work in a mechanical workshop where everything is related to machines and male-dominated. Eventually, I started to like it, and now it is my passion. I know every machine and their functions very well. Therefore, when customers arrive, I can explain things,” Rani said.

With support of CSISA-MEA, their business has expanded quickly, now employing 15 staff and manufacturing 38 types of small machines such as rice threshers, corn shellers and fodder choppers. They sell up to 400 machines a year. As the couple expanded the business, Rani’s administrative role became more important and diverse. She now manages the finances and takes orders for machines, using Facebook and YouTube.

“I wish I was a bit more educated and knew better these technical things. I have a dream that one of my daughters will become an engineer and join our workshop, because professions have no gender — we put gender identity with professions. I can cook, raise children and manage a business as well.”

Woman works machinery. — Poly Rani uses machinery at her workshop. (Photo: Poritosh Malo)

Seedlings of change

It is rare for women in Bangladesh to run businesses that provide farmers with mechanization services. One exception is a group of nine women from Baliakandi Upazila in Rajbari District. They have owned and provided planting services for four years using a power tiller operated seeder (PTOS), which annually earns them approximately $500 each. However, this machine cannot transplant rice.

Rice transplanting is a major labor-consuming activity in Bangladesh, where workers manually transplant 11 million hectares of rice each year. A new machine, called the rice transplanter, is being introduced to Bangladesh. However, to transplant rice seedlings with this machine, the seedlings have to be raised on plastic sheets so they have a mat of roots that allows the machine to pick them up and plant them. With the growing popularity of these machines, the women’s group saw raising these seedlings as a good business opportunity. After learning the seedling raising technology from CSISA-MEA, they have produced and sold seedlings sufficient for 10 hectares. The next step is to buy a rice transplanter!

Women working in field. — Women’s group works in the field. (Photo: Sourov Dey)

Gender gap

Jorina Begum is the sole breadwinner of her family at 25, caring for her mother, four-year-old son and two disabled siblings in Ramnagor, Sadar, Jashore. After her father’s death when she was ten years old, Begum had to abandon school and start working as a foundry cleaner. She married at an early age and quickly became a mother, but immediately after her son’s birth, her husband left her.

She now works in a foundry where she paints machine parts. “My wage is 75% less than the male workers,” said Begum. “I get only 200 taka [$2] per hour. I work the same hours as the men do but I am paid less, because I cannot do the heavy work and I do not have training.”

In foundries and machinery workshops, women are considered less productive than men. “If I could receive some training, I could perform better and earn more, which will benefit my employer and my family,” said Begum.

To respond to this need, CSISA-MEA is working to raise women’s capacity to work in the agricultural mechanization sector and manage machinery-based businesses through technical and business training. Through these opportunities, more women like Rani and Begum will be able to contribute to the development of this sector.

Cover photo: Jorina Begum works in the foundry workshop. (Photo: Touhidur Rahman)

CIMMYT researcher Bram Govaerts participates in the World Food Prize and Borlaug Dialogue.

Leading US agronomy organization awards fellowship to CIMMYT agri-food systems expert

Written by Ricardo Curiel on October 6, 2020. Posted in News.

The director of the Integrated Development program and Representative for the Americas at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), Bram Govaerts, has been elected as Fellow by the leading professional organization of agronomists in the United States.

The American Society of Agronomy (ASA) presented this award to Govaerts for his outstanding contributions to the field of agronomy.

“His initiatives, excellence in science for impact and the partnerships he inspired have resulted in improved nutrition, nature conservation, and national and international resilience and food security”, announced the ASA in a news release.

Being an ASA Fellow is the highest honor offered by the organization, with only 0.3% of active and emeritus members holding this distinction.

The awarding body recognized Govaerts as an international authority in maize and wheat cropping systems who works for a successful transition to sustainable intensification of small-scale farming in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Bram Govaerts (third from right) with the members of management committee of the Río Fuerte Sur Farmer Association (AARFS) (Photo: José Saucedo)

“Bram engages from the field in a remote village all the way up to the office of the president, and from livelihoods and social inclusion to science and business development, in a tireless effort to generate systems change creating sustainable agri-food systems for nutrition, nature conservation and peace,” said Sanjay Rajaram, ASA Fellow, 2014 World Food Prize Laureate, distinguished scientist and retired CIMMYT Wheat Program director, who nominated Govaerts to the ASA’s Fellows Committee.

“I am honored and grateful for receiving this award which shows, above all, that CIMMYT stands for impact and sound science that saves millions of lives, a duty to humanity that we must never compromise,” Govaerts said.

Born in Belgium, Govaerts studied Bioscience Engineering at K.U. Leuven, where he earned a master’s degree in the same subject with specialization in Soil Conservation and Tropical Agriculture. Research stays in Ethiopia and Mexico sparked his interest in sustainable intensification of small-scale farming systems. He achieved a doctoral degree in Bioscience Engineering – Soil Science, also from K.U. Leuven.

Govaerts cut his teeth as cropping systems expert at CIMMYT, where he progressed from post-doctoral fellow to his current position. He received the Norman Borlaug Field Award in 2014 from the World Food Prize Foundation. Govaerts has co-authored over 90 peer-reviewed publications. He is a member of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network on Data and Statistics (TReNDS) for the Sustainable Development Goals and A.D. White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University.

Wheat spikes damaged by wheat blast. (Photo: Xinyao He/CIMMYT)

Scientists find genomic regions associated with wheat blast resistance in CIMMYT nurseries

Written by Madeline Dahm on October 5, 2020. Posted in News.

Wheat spike damaged by wheat blast. — Wheat blast damages wheat spikes. (Photo: Xinyao He / CIMMYT)

In an article published in Nature Scientific Reports, a team of scientists led by wheat breeder Philomin Juliana from the International Wheat and Maize Improvement Center (CIMMYT) conducted a large genome-wide association study to look for genomic regions that could also be associated with resistance to wheat blast.

Juliana and fellow scientists found 36 significant markers on chromosome 2AS, 3BL, 4AL and 7BL that appeared to be consistently associated with blast resistance across different environments. Among these, 20 markers were found to be in the position of the 2NS translocation, a chromosomal segment transferred to wheat from a wild relative, Aegilops ventricosa, that has very strong and effective resistance to wheat blast.

The team also gained excellent insights into the blast resistance of the globally-distributed CIMMYT germplasm by genomic fingerprinting a panel over 4,000 wheat lines for the presence of the 2NS translocation, and found that it was present in 94.1% of lines from International Bread Wheat Screening Nurseries (IBWSNs) and 93.7% of lines from Semi-Arid Wheat Screening Nurseries (SAWSNs). Although it is reassuring that such a high percentage of CIMMYT wheat lines already have the 2NS translocation and implied blast resistance, finding other novel resistance genes will be instrumental in building widespread, global resilience to wheat blast outbreaks in the long-term.

The researchers used data collected over the last two years from CIMMYT’s IBWSNs and SAWSNs by collaborators at the Bangladesh Wheat and Maize Research Institute (BWMRI) and Bolivia’s Instituto Nacional de Innovación Agropecuaria y Forestal (INIAF).

Devastating fungal disease

Wheat blast, caused by the fungus Magnaporthe oryzae pathotype Triticum, was first identified in 1985 in South America, but has been seen in Bangladesh in recent years. The expansion of the disease is a great concern for regions of similar environmental conditions in South Asia, and other regions globally.

Although management of the disease using fungicide is possible, it is not completely effective for multiple reasons, including inefficiency during high disease pressure, resistance of the fungal populations to some classes of fungicides, and the affordability of fungicide to resource-poor farmers. Scientists see the development and deployment of wheat with genetic resistance to blast as the most sustainable and farmer-friendly approach to preventing devastating outbreaks around the world.

This work was made possible by the generous support of the Delivering Genetic Gains in Wheat (DGGW) project funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) and managed by Cornell University, the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Feed the Future initiative, the CGIAR Research Program on Wheat (WHEAT), the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), The Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsråd), and the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR).

Read the full article:
Genome‑wide association mapping for wheat blast resistance in CIMMYT’s international screening nurseries evaluated in Bolivia and Bangladesh

This story was originally posted on the website of the CGIAR Research Program on Wheat (wheat.org).

Starting with Seeds

Written by Mary Donovan on October 5, 2020. Posted in News.

Seeds are the start and the first step in a solution for global hunger.

B.M. Prasanna, director of the Global Maize Program and of the CGIAR Research program on Maize at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), says smallholder farms in sub-Saharan Africa make up 80% of all farms there, and contribute significantly to food production in the region.

“Over the past 15 years, CIMMYT and partners in sub-Saharan Africa have been able to intensively work with seed companies to invest in deployment of climate-resilient and nutritionally enriched maize seed, and generate demand for such products,” Prasanna says.

Efforts in controlling maize disease boosting steady supply of certified seeds

Written by Mary Donovan on October 5, 2020. Posted in In the media.

Efforts towards managing the Maize Lethal Necrosis (MLN), a viral disease affecting maize, have contributed to reducing seed production losses from 33 per cent to 16 per cent in the last four years, bolstering steady supply of maize seeds in the Eastern African region.

Seed Seekers, Seed Keepers, Seed Growers

Written by Mary Donovan on October 1, 2020. Posted in In the media.

Seed banks may be another resource for securing Indigenous seed, although these banks have other missions as well. The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), maintains seed banks and programs to preserve seeds native to specific regions. The group also leads the CGIAR Research Programs on Maize and Wheat and the Excellence in Breeding Platform to characterize genetic diversity so it can be used in conventional breeding programs to develop wheat and maize varieties that can address climate change, pest and disease resistance and yield to help manage food security.

“About 100 seed banks exist worldwide with seed used for cultural or heritage purposes and for production. CIMMYT has varieties that have been cultivated, conserved and cherished as grain and food crops for thousands of years,” says Tom Payne, head of the non-profit organization’s wheat germplasm collections and International Wheat Improvement Network. “Our seed bank conserves varieties that can be a source for finding old genes that will solve new problems. We have to have that diversity to address changing production environments.”

Breaking Ground: Jordan Chamberlin avidly explores the changing landscapes of Africa

Written by Jérôme Bossuet on October 1, 2020. Posted in Features.

Sub-Saharan Africa is undergoing important transformations, including climate change, population growth, urbanization and migration flows, and growth in digital technologies. What can we say about the likely development trajectories that African rural economies are on, and the implications for poor farming households? These are central questions for Jordan Chamberlin, an economist at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in Kenya.

Chamberlin’s desk is covered with screens teeming with numbers, complex mathematical equations, lines of code and aerial views of African landscapes. He combines traditional microeconomic analysis with geospatial modelling skills to study some of the ways in which rural transformations are occurring. In this era of big data, he examines the wealth of spatial and socioeconomic datasets to explore the relationships between drivers of change and smallholder welfare, sometimes revealing surprising insights on how rural communities in Africa are evolving.

“Are commercial farms good or bad for neighboring smallholder farmers? Which households can benefit from the rapidly evolving rural land markets in Africa? What drives migration between rural areas? These are some examples of the complex but increasingly important questions that inform how we understand the evolution of agri-food systems in developing countries,” Chamberlin explains. “Fortunately, we also increasingly have access to new data that helps us explore these issues.”

In addition to household survey datasets — the bread and butter of applied social scientists — today’s researchers are also able to draw on an ever-expanding set of geospatial data that helps us to better contextualize the decisions smallholder farmers make.

He cites current work, which seeks to understand input adoption behaviors through better measurement of the biophysical and marketing contexts in which small farms operate. “Evidence suggests that low use rates of inorganic fertilizer by smallholders is due in part to poor expected returns on such investments,” he explains, “which are the result of site-specific agronomic responses, rainfall uncertainty, variation in input-output price ratios, and other factors.”

We are increasingly able to control for such factors explicitly: one of Chamberlin’s recent papers shows the importance of soil organic carbon for location-specific economic returns to fertilizer investments in Tanzania. “After all, farmers do not care about yields for yields’ sake — they make agronomic investments on the basis of how those investments affect their economic welfare.”

Better data and models may help to explain why farmers sometimes do not adopt technologies that we generally think of as profitable. A related strand of his research seeks to better model the spatial distribution of rural market prices.

Jordan Chamberlin (left) talks to a farmer in Ethiopia’s Tigray region in 2019, while conducting research on youth outmigration from rural areas. (Photo: Jordan Chamberlin)

A spatial economist’s journey on Earth

Ever since his experience as a Peace Corps volunteer in Paraguay, where he worked as a beekeeping specialist, Chamberlin knew he wanted to spend his professional life working with smallholder farmers. He wanted to better understand how rural development takes place, and how policies and investments can help rural households to improve their welfare.

In pursuit of these interests, his academic journey took him from anthropology to quantitative geography, before leading him to agricultural economics. “While my fundamental interest in rural development has not changed, the analytical tools I have preferred have evolved over the years, and my training reflects that evolution,” he says.

Along with his research interests, he has always been passionate about working with institutions within the countries where his research has focused. While working with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Ethiopia, he helped establish a policy-oriented GIS lab at the Ethiopian Development Research Institute (EDRI). Years later, as part of his work with Michigan State University, he served as director of capacity building at the Indaba Agricultural Policy Research Institute (IAPRI), a not-for-profit Zambian research organization. He continues to serve as an external advisor on PhD committees, and considers mentorship a key part of his professional commitments.

He joined CIMMYT at the Ethiopia office in 2015 as spatial economist, part of the foresight and ex ante group of the Socioeconomics program.

As part of his research portfolio, he explores the role of new technologies, data sources and extension methods in the scaling of production technologies. Under the Taking Maize Agronomy to Scale in Africa (TAMASA) project, one area he has been working on is how we may better design location-specific agronomic advisory tools. Working with the Nutrient Expert tool, developed by the African Plant Nutrition Institute (APNI), he and his research team have conducted randomized control trials in Ethiopia and Nigeria to evaluate the impacts of such decision-support tools on farmer investments and productivity outcomes. They found that such tools appear to contribute to productivity gains, although tool design matters — for example, Nigerian farmers were more likely to take up site-specific agronomic recommendations when such information was accompanied by information about uncertainty of financial returns.

Jordan Chamberlin (center) talks to colleagues during a staff gathering in Nairobi. (Photo. Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)

Creative rethinking

While Chamberlin’s research portfolio is diverse, one commonality is the drive to use new data and tools to better guide how development resources are allocated.

“Given the scarcity of resources available to governments and their partners, it is important to have sound empirical foundations for the allocation of these resources. Within CIMMYT, I see my role as part of a multidisciplinary team whose goal is to generate such empirical guidance,” he says.

This research also contributes to better design of agricultural development policies.

“Even though many of the research topics that my team addresses are not traditional areas of emphasis within CIMMYT’s socioeconomic work, I hope that we are demonstrating the value of broad thinking about development questions, which are of fundamental importance to one of our core constituencies: the small farmers of the region’s maize and wheat-based farming systems.”