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Beneficial bioactives

Written by Emma Orchardson on . Posted in Publications.

Popular starchy staples maize and wheat provide more than simple dietary energy, but they are often found at the center of debates around the excessive consumption of carbohydrates.

While the nutrient contribution of whole grains is commonly emphasized in dietary guidelines, the milling and subsequent processing of cereal products tends to reduce or remove much of the important protein, fat, vitamin and mineral content, and in recent years there has been increasing concern about the ultra-processing of cereal-based food products containing noxious dietary components that exacerbate the occurrence of non-communicable diseases.

For these reasons — and because of the focus on energy content — maize and wheat are not often considered to be among the categories of “nutrient-rich” foods that can contribute to reducing micronutrient malnutrition. Consequently, it is unsurprising that a popular perception that cereals make a limited contribution to nutritious diets persists. This view has not been successfully challenged by a necessarily nuanced understanding of the complex role of cereals, and particularly the carbohydrate fractions, in human nutrition.

“In addition to the hidden micronutrients, there is sound scientific and popular awareness of the importance of some dietary components such as dietary fiber,” says Nigel Poole, Emeritus Professor of International Development at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS).

“Though there is as yet imperfect scientific understanding and public awareness of the carbohydrates which make up dietary fiber,” he explains, “biomedical research continues to highlight the importance of carbohydrates in health and well-being. Moreover, there is a need for further knowledge on the nature and roles of many other bioactive food components that are not usually considered to be nutrients.”

These bioactives are substances such as carotenoids, flavonoids, and polyphenols. Most of the beneficial effects of the consumption of whole grain cereals on non-communicable diseases are currently attributed to the bioactive components of dietary fiber and the wide variety of phytochemicals.

A growing body of evidence from cereal chemistry, food science and metabolic studies shows that the bioactives in cereals are important for nutrition, health and well-being. In a new working paper authored in collaboration with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), Poole demonstrates that there is considerable potential for plant breeding strategies to improve these elements of grain composition. This could be done through exploiting natural variation, genetic and genomic selection methods, and mutagenesis and transgenesis in order to modify cell wall polysaccharides, and specifically to improve the starch composition and structure in breeding material through natural and induced mutations.

Rebalancing the agri-nutrition research agenda, Poole argues, is necessary in order to explore, explain and exploit the contribution to diets of hitherto less-researched nutrient-dense crops and other foods. Nevertheless, because of the quantities in which cereals are consumed, the nutritional contribution of cereals in addition to energy complements the consumption of micronutrient-rich fruits, vegetables, nuts and pulses in diverse diets.

To leverage the bioactive content of cereals — including dietary fiber — as well as the macro- and micronutrient content, a comprehensive approach to food and nutrition systems from farm to metabolism is needed, spanning research disciplines and food systems’ stakeholders throughout the agri-food industries, and embracing policy makers, nutrition advocacy, and consumer education and behavior change.

Read the full working paper: Food security, nutrition and health: Implications for maize and wheat research and development

Nigel Poole conducted research for this paper during a year-long Visiting Fellowship at CIMMYT, with support from scientists at the institution.

A mixture of doubled haploid maize kernels seen in close-up at CIMMYT’s Agua Fria experimental station in Mexico. (Photo: Alfonso Cortés/CIMMYT)

New publications: Doubled haploids in maize — development, deployment and challenges

Written by Emma Orchardson on . Posted in Publications.

Haploids — which are produced naturally in maize — were first identified in the crop about a century ago. Today they are used widely in different breeding programs, particularly in the development of doubled haploids, which are highly uniform, genetically pure and stable. Doubled-haploid technology has simplified logistics to make the maize breeding process more efficient and intuitive, facilitated studies at the molecular and genomic level, and increased genetic gains in different breeding programs.  

In a recent review article, scientists from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) examine strategies for haploid induction and identification, chromosome doubling and production of doubled haploid seed through self-fertilization. They also discuss the potential applications and key challenges linked with doubled haploid technology in maize, and suggest future research directions for people involved in fast-track maize breeding, the seed industry, and academia.  

Extensive studies of haploids and doubled haploids have increased our understanding of the genetic basis and mechanisms involved in haploid induction, the factors that affect haploid induction, different markers to identify putative haploids, and different chemicals agents that can be used for chromosome doubling.  

The technology is useful because the resulting plants are free from different social issues and legal regulations associated with transgenic crops. It maximizes genetic gains in breeding programs, is one of the fastest tools available for developing large numbers of inbred lines quickly and reduces the cost of breeding programs. 

“Deployment of doubled haploid technology is much needed for commercial hybrid maize breeding programs to make them more efficient and economical,” says article co-author Abdurahman Beshir, a maize seed systems specialist based in Nepal. “The technology is also useful to have accelerated varietal turnover and a higher maize seed replacement rate in different market segments.”  

Many multinational seed companies have adopted doubled haploid technology for the wide-scale production of inbred lines. The development of novel techniques for haploid induction and the subsequent production of doubled haploid plants holds significant potential for the management of genetic resources, germplasm enhancement and the development of novel plant populations. Researchers at CIMMYT have also made significant efforts to help national breeding programs adopt this technology, especially in South Asia, where the organisation has shared haploid inducers with numerous partners in Pakistan.  

But, while this technology can accelerate maize breeding, it still faces challenges at each step of doubled haploid line development and the authors argue there is a need to extensively explore the genetic potential of this technology to continue increasing the genetic gains associated with different breeding programs.  

Read the full article: Doubled haploids in maize: Development, deployment, and challenges

Cover image: A mixture of doubled haploid maize kernels seen in close-up at CIMMYT’s Agua Fria experimental station in Mexico. (Photo: Alfonso Cortés/CIMMYT)

Read more new publications from CIMMYT researchers: 

  1. Choudhary, M., Meena, V. S., Panday, S. C., Mondal, T., Yadav, R. P., Mishra, P. K., Bisht, J. K., & Pattanayak, A. (2021). Long-term effects of organic manure and inorganic fertilization on biological soil quality indicators of soybean-wheat rotation in the Indian mid-Himalaya. Appl. Soil Ecol., 157. 
  2. Costa-Neto, G., Fritsche-Neto, R., & Crossa, J. (2021). Nonlinear kernels, dominance, and envirotyping data increase the accuracy of genome-based prediction in multi-environment trials. Heredity, 126(1), 92-106.  
  3. Jat, H. S., Datta, A., Choudhary, M., Sharma, P. C., & Jat, M. L. (2021). Conservation Agriculture: Factors and drivers of adoption and scalable innovative practices in Indo-Gangetic plains of India – a review. International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability, 19(1), 40-55.  
  4. Jena, P. R., De Groote, H., Nayak, B. P., & Hittmeyer, A. (2021). Evolution of Fertiliser Use and its Impact on Maize Productivity in Kenya: Evidence from Multiple Surveys. Food Sec., 13(1), 95-111.  
  5. Krishna, V. V., & Kubitza, C. (2021). Impact of oil palm expansion on the provision of private and community goods in rural Indonesia. Ecol. Econ., 179, 106829.  
  6. Novotny, I. P., Fuentes-Ponce, M. H., Tittonell, P., Lopez-Ridaura, S., & Rossing, W. A. H. (2021). Back to the people: The role of community-based responses in shaping landscape trajectories in Oaxaca, Mexico. Land Use Policy, 100, 104912.  
  7. Romero-Salas, E. A., Navarro-Noya, Y. E., Luna-Guido, M., Verhulst, N., Crossa, J., Govaerts, B., & Dendooven, L. (2021). Changes in the bacterial community structure in soil under conventional and conservation practices throughout a complete maize (Zea mays L.) crop cycle. Appl. Soil Ecol., 157, 103733.  
  8. Simtowe, F., & De Groote, H. (2021). Seasonal participation in maize markets in Zambia: Do agricultural input subsidies and gender matter? Food Sec., 13(1), 141-155.  
  9. Simtowe, F., Makumbi, D., Worku, M., Mawia, H., & Rahut, D. B. (2021). Scalability of Adaptation strategies to drought stress: The case of drought tolerant maize varieties in Kenya. International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability, 19(1), 91-105.  
  10. Sserumaga, J. P., Makumbi, D., Oikeh, S. O., Otim, M., Machida, L., Anani, B. Y., Nhamucho, E., Beyene, Y., & Mugo, S. (2021). Evaluation of early-generation tropical maize testcrosses for grain-yield potential and weevil (Sitophilus zeamais Motschulsky) resistance. Crop Protection, 139, 105384.  
Dairy cattle eats processed maize stover in India. (Photo: P.H. Zaidi/CIMMYT)

New publications: Scientists find genomic regions associated with better quality stover traits in maize for animal feed

Written by Alison Doody on . Posted in Publications.

Researchers from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) have identified new genomic regions associated with maize stover quality, an important by-product of maize which can be used in animal feed.

The results of the study, published this month in Nature Scientific Reports, will allow maize breeders to select for stover quality traits more quickly and cost-effectively, and to develop new dual purpose maize varieties without sacrificing grain yield.

The researchers screened diverse Asia-adapted CIMMYT maize lines from breeders’ working germplasm for animal feed quality traits. They then used these as a reference set to predict the breeding values of over a thousand doubled haploid lines derived from abiotic stress breeding programs based on genetic information. Based on these breeding values, the scientists further selected 100 of these double haploid lines and validated the performance of stover quality traits through field-based phenotyping.

The results demonstrate the feasibility of incorporating genomic prediction as a tool to improve stover traits, circumventing the need for field or lab-based phenotyping. The findings significantly reduce the need for additional testing resources — a major hindrance in breeding dual-purpose maize varieties.

Interestingly, the researchers found that increased animal feed quality in maize stover had no impact on grain yield, a concern raised by scientists in the past.

“The main purpose of this study and overall purpose of this CIMMYT and ILRI collaboration was to optimize the potential of maize crops for farm families, increase income, improve livelihoods and sustainably manage the crop livestock system, within limited resources,” said P.H. Zaidi, a maize physiologist at CIMMYT and co-author of the study.

“More than 70% of the farmers in the tropics are smallholders so they don’t have a lot of land to grow crops for grain purposes and separate stover for animal feed, so this is a very sustainable model if they grow dual purpose maize.”

By growing maize simultaneously for both human consumption and animal feed, farmers can get the most out of their crops and conserve natural resources like land and water.

A farmer works in a maize field close to the Pusa site of the Borlaug Institute for South Asia (BISA), in the Indian state of Bihar. (Photo: M. DeFreese/CIMMYT)
A farmer works in a maize field close to the Pusa site of the Borlaug Institute for South Asia (BISA), in the Indian state of Bihar. (Photo: M. DeFreese/CIMMYT)

Fodder for thought

The findings from this study also validate the use of genomic prediction as an important breeding tool to accelerate the development and improvement of dual-purpose maize varieties, according to CIMMYT Maize Breeder and first author of the study, M.T. Vinayan.

With the demand for animal feed increasing around the world, crop scientists and breeders have been exploring more efficient ways to improve animal feed quality in cereals without compromising grain yields for human consumption.

“Not all maize varieties have good stover quality, which is what we realized when we started working on this project. However, we discovered that there are a few which offer just as good quality as sorghum stover — a major source of livestock fodder particularly in countries such as India,” said Zaidi.

The publication of the study is a fitting tribute to the late Michael Blummel, who was a principal scientist and deputy program leader in the feed and forage development program at ILRI and co-author of this study.

“A couple of years back Dr Blummel relocated from the Hyderabad office at ILRI to its headquarters at Addis Ababa, but he used to frequently visit Hyderabad, and without fail met with us on each visit to discuss updates, especially about dual-purpose maize work. He was very passionate about dual-purpose maize research with a strong belief that the additional income from maize stover at no additional cost will significantly improve the income of maize farmers,” Zaidi said. “Michael was following this publication very closely because it was the first of its kind in terms of molecular breeding for dual purpose maize. He would have been very excited to see this published.”

Read the full article:
Genome wide association study and genomic prediction for stover quality traits in tropical maize (Zea mays L.)

Cover photo: Dairy cattle eats processed maize stover in India. (Photo: P.H. Zaidi/CIMMYT)

A farmer compares yellow and orange maize in Kwanza Sul, Angola. (Photo: Florence Sipalla/CIMMYT)

Crop variety guide for farmers

Written by Emma Orchardson on . Posted in Publications.

As part of a rural resilience project in Zimbabwe, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) has published a new guide to stress-tolerant crop varieties for smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe.

The guide is a critical output of a project led by CIMMYT and the international humanitarian response agency GOAL, in collaboration with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), the Government of Zimbabwe and other partners. With financial support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the project aims to reach 5000 smallholder farmers in target areas in the country.

Among the project components is the promotion of stress-tolerant seed and climate-smart agriculture practices to rural smallholders. With increasing threats of climate change and a decline in soil fertility, using these improved varieties and climate-smart practices is critical to help farmers adapt to external stresses.

To support variety adoption, a team of CIMMYT experts have identified suitable drought-tolerant and nutritious maize, sorghum and millet varieties. These will be promoted through “mother and baby” trials, designed to facilitate conversations among farmers, extension, and researchers, in these areas.

The new crop variety guide aims to help smallholder farmers in target areas make informed choices by providing critical information about the prioritized products and their maturity length, drought-tolerance, nutritional value, and pest and disease resistance. Direct linkages with private sector seed companies will ensure that farmers have access to this seed at affordable prices.

Implementing crop rotation between these best-suited, stress-tolerant varieties and climate-resilient cowpeas and groundnuts in a conservation agriculture system can improve food and nutrition security even under a variable climate.

Starting with good seed, and enhanced with improved agronomic practices, smallholder farmers have a greater chance of reliable yields and improved income.

Download the manual: Variety description: maize, sorghum, millet, cowpeas and groundnuts

A farmer empties a metal silo filled with maize grain in Embu, Kenya. (Photo: CIMMYT)

Who benefits?

Written by Emma Orchardson on . Posted in Publications.

Maize post-harvest losses in smallholder farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa have been shown to result in significant costs at household and national level, making it difficult to move towards achievement of SDG2 – Zero Hunger.

Within smallholder farming systems, new grain storage technologies such as metal silos can help reduce these losses during storage. However, technologies are often introduced into systems with complex sets of relationships, which may differentially affect the ability of women and men to secure the expected benefits. This, in turn, can have a knock-on effect on adoption rates and expected outcomes.

A recent study by an international team of researchers investigated whether modern storage structures such as metal silos provide equal benefits to women and men farmers in sub-Saharan Africa, using a mixed methods approach to explore the relationships governing maize production and storage in Kenya, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe, where 1717 metal silos have been introduced through the Effective Grain Storage Project (EGSP).

The authors used random sampling to carry out quantitative surveys on metal silo owners in Kenya (124 respondents) and Malawi (100 respondents). Qualitative surveys using purposive sampling were also conducted in all four countries covering 14 ethnic groups using focus group discussions (360 respondents), key informant interviews (62 respondents), and household case studies (62 respondents). “Our aim was to understand gendered post-harvest management and storage strategies in traditional systems and to map changes when metal silos were introduced,” explain the authors.

“We hypothesized that existing gender norms might differentially influence women’s ability to benefit from the introduction of metal silos and our findings seem to indicate that this is correct. In most instances when metal silos are introduced, ownership of the grain storage facility and any benefits attached to that ownership typically switch from women to men, or men’s existing control over stored maize is deepened.”

A farmer from Embu, Kenya, demonstrates how to load maize grain into a metal silo for storage. (Photo: CIMMYT)
A farmer from Embu, Kenya, demonstrates how to load maize grain into a metal silo for storage. (Photo: CIMMYT)

Their findings highlight that roles and responsibilities regarding the ownership and management of storage structures are strongly gendered. Though there are differences between ethnic groups and countries, overall men benefit more than women from the introduction of metal silos. Ownership of a grain storage facility and the benefits attached to this ownership can switch from women to men, with women having less scope for bargaining over their rights to use the stores for their own needs and the benefit of all household members.

Many of the women interviewed suggested that this compromised their ability to access sufficient maize because men might insist on taking any grain set aside to meet their personal needs. “We did not measure how much grain is taken and whether food security is indeed negatively affected, but our research registers that women are concerned about this issue.”

The qualitative research explored whether ownership over the granary — and control over the maize stored within — changed when metal silos were purchased. In all four countries, cultural norms tend to result in men typically owning all large household assets such as land, water pumps, ox-ploughs and carts, etc. They generally make key decisions about how these assets are to be used as well. Furthermore, the income differential between women and men in male-headed households means that it is considerably more difficult for women than men to make a large purchase like a metal silo. “As a consequence of these factors, we found men were more likely to own metal silos in each country.”

There is some differentiation between ethnic groups. In Zimbabwe, for example, Zezuru women who had previously owned and managed a dura — a traditional granary — lost control over maize grain reserves when metal silos were introduced. But for Korekore women nothing changed: men had always controlled traditional storage technologies and the maize within, and they continued to do so when metal silos were introduced. These examples highlight the fact that despite the cultural differences between ethnic groups, Zimbabwean women lost out across the board when metal silos were introduced, either through losing control over storage structures, or because male ownership was not challenged.

In light of these findings, the authors argue that understanding social context is key to designing and disseminating post-harvest technologies that meet the needs and preferences of both men and women farmers in various cultural contexts.

Their results make a strong case for ensuring that agricultural policy-makers prioritize the provision of equal access to improved technologies, as this is crucial not only for supporting women to meet their individual production goals, but also for ensuring that household-level food security needs are met.

Read the full study “Do metal grain silos benefit women in Kenya, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe?” in the Journal of Stored Products Research.

A diagram outlines the links between different factors influencing gender dynamics in demand articulation and adoption of laborsaving technologies. (Graphic: Nancy Valtierra/CIMMYT)

New publications: Voicing demand for farm power

Written by Emma Orchardson on . Posted in Publications.

A new study examines how intra-household gender dynamics affect women’s articulation of demand for and adoption of labor-saving technologies in maize-based systems, drawing on empirical data from diverse household categories in Ethiopia and Kenya, where both women and men play important roles in agriculture.

Where agriculture relies heavily on manual labor, small-scale mechanization can reduce labor constraints and contribute to higher yields and food security. However, demand for and adoption of labor-saving machinery remains weak in many areas. Paradoxically, this includes areas where women face a particularly high labor burden.

“How do we make sense of this?” asks Lone Badstue, a rural development sociologist at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT). “What factors influence women’s articulation of demand for and use of farm power mechanization?”

To answer this question, an international team of researchers analyzed data from four analytical dimensions — gender division of labor; gender norms; gendered access to and control over resources like land and income; and intra-household decision-making — to show how interactions between these influence women’s demand for and use of mechanization.

“Overall, a combination of forces seems to work against women’s demand articulation and adoption of labor-saving technologies,” says Badstue. Firstly, women’s labor often goes unrecognized, and they are typically expected to work hard and not voice their concerns. Additionally, women generally lack access to and control over a range of resources, including land, income, and extension services.

This is exacerbated by the gendered division of labor, as women’s time poverty negatively affects their access to resources and information. Furthermore, decision-making is primarily seen as men’s domain, and women are often excluded from discussions on the allocation of labor and other aspects of farm management. Crucially, many of these factors interlink across all four dimensions of the authors’ analytical framework to shape women’s demand for and adoption of labor-saving technologies.

A diagram outlines the links between different factors influencing gender dynamics in demand articulation and adoption of laborsaving technologies. (Graphic: Nancy Valtierra/CIMMYT)
A diagram outlines the links between different factors influencing gender dynamics in demand articulation and adoption of laborsaving technologies. (Graphic: Nancy Valtierra/CIMMYT)

Demand articulation and adoption of labor-saving technologies in the study sites are shown to be stimulated when women have control over resources, and where more permissive or inclusive norms influence gender relations. “Women’s independent control over resources is a game changer,” explains Badstue. “Adoption of mechanized farm power is practically only observed when women have direct and sole control over land and on- or off-farm income. They rarely articulate demand or adopt mechanization through joint decision-making with male relatives.”

The study shows that independent decision-making by women on labor reduction or adoption of mechanization is often confronted with social disapproval and can come at the cost of losing social capital, both within the household and in the community. As such, the authors stress the importance of interventions which engage with these issues and call for the recognition of technological change as shaped by the complex interplay of gender norms, gendered access to and control over resources, and decision-making.

Read the full article ‘How local gender norms and intra-household dynamics shape women’s demand for labor-saving technologies: insights from maize-based livelihoods in Ethiopia and Kenya’ in Gender, Technology and Development.

Read more recent publications by CIMMYT researchers:

1. Activity profiling of barley vacuolar processing enzymes provides new insights into the plant and cyst nematode interaction. 2020. Labudda, M., Rozanska, E., Prabucka, B., Muszynska, E., Marecka, D, Kozak, M, Dababat, A.A, Sobczak, M. In: Molecular Plant Pathology v. 21, no, 1, pg. 38-52.

2. Heteromorphic seeds of wheat wild relatives show germination niche differentiation. 2020. Gianella, M., Balestrazzi, A., Pagano, A., Müller, J.V., Kyratzis, A.C., Kikodze, D., Canella, M., Mondoni, A., Rossi, G., Guzzon, F. In: Plant Biology v. 22, no. 2, pg. 191-202.

3. Genetic dissection of maternal influence on in vivo haploid induction in maize. 2020. Nair, S.K., Chaikam, V., Gowda, M., Hindu, V., Melchinger, A.E., Prasanna, B.M. In: The Crop Journal v. 8 no. 2, pg. 287-298.

4. Genome-wide analyses and prediction of resistance to MLN in large tropical maize germplasm. 2020. Nyaga, C., Gowda, M., Beyene, Y., Muriithi, W.T., Makumbi, D., Olsen, M., Mahabaleswara, S.L., Jumbo, M.B., Das, B., Prasanna, B.M. In: Genes v. 11, no. 1, art. 16.

5. Performance and yield stability of maize hybrids in stress-prone environments in eastern Africa. 2020. Rezende, W.S., Beyene, Y., Mugo, S.N., Ndou, E., Gowda, M., Julius Pyton Sserumaga, Asea, G., Ismail Ngolinda, Jumbo, M.B., Oikeh, S.O., Olsen, M., Borém, A., Cruz, C.D., Prasanna, B.M. In: The Crop Journal v. 8, no. 1, pg. 107-118.

6. Genetic analysis of QTL for resistance to maize lethal necrosis in multiple mapping populations. 2020. Awata, L.A.O., Beyene, Y., Gowda, M., Mahabaleswara, S.L., Jumbo, M.B., Tongoona, P., Danquah, E., Ifie, B.E., Marchelo-D’ragga, P.W., Olsen, M., Ogugo, V., Mugo, S.N., Prasanna, B.M. In: Genes v. 11, no. 1, art. 32.

7. Variation in occurrence and aflatoxigenicity of Aspergillus flavus from two climatically varied regions in Kenya. 2020. Monda, E., Masanga, J., Alakonya, A. In: Toxins v. 12, no. 1, art. 34.

8. A detached leaf assay to rapidly screen for resistance of maize to Bipolaris maydis, the causal agent of southern corn leaf blight. 2020. Aregbesola, E., Ortega Beltran, A., Falade, T. D. O., Gbolagade Jonathan, Hearne, S., Bandyopadhyay, R. In: European Journal of Plant Pathology v. 156, no. 1, pg. 133-145.

9. Spread and impact of fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda J.E. Smith) in maize production areas of Kenya. 2020. De Groote, H., Kimenju, S.C., Munyua, B., Palmas, S., Kassie, M., Bruce, A.Y. In: Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment v. 292, art. 106804.

10. Genetic dissection of grain yield and agronomic traits in maize under optimum and low-nitrogen stressed environments. 2020. Berhanu Tadesse Ertiro, Olsen, M., Das, B., Gowda, M., Labuschagne, M. In: International Journal of Molecular Sciences v. 21, no. 2, art. 543.

11. ToxA-Tsn1 interaction for spot blotch susceptibility in Indian wheat: an example of inverse gene-for-gene relationship. 2020. Sudhir Navathe, Punam S. Yadav., Chand, R., Vinod Kumar Mishra, Vasistha, N.K., Prabina Kumar Meher, Joshi, A.K., Pushpendra Kumar Gupta In: Plant Disease v. 104, no. 1, pg. 71-81.

12. Novel sources of wheat head blast resistance in modern breeding lines and wheat wild relatives. 2020. Cruppe, G., Cruz, C.D., Peterson, G.L., Pedley, K.F., Asif, M., Fritz, A.K., Calderon Daza, L., Lemes da Silva, C., Todd, T.C., Kuhnem, P., Singh, P.K., Singh, R.P., Braun, H.J., Barma, N.C.D., Valent, B. In: Plant Disease v. 104, no. 1, pg. 35-43.

13. Stripe rust resistance genes in a set of Ethiopian bread wheat cultivars and breeding lines. 2020. Gebreslasie Zeray Siyoum, Huang, S., Gangming Zhan, Badebo, A., Qingdong Zeng, Jianhui Wu, Qilin Wang, Shengjie Liu, Lili Huang, Xiaojing Wang, Zhensheng Kang, Dejun Han In: Euphytica v. 216, no. 2, art. 17.

14. Appraisal of wheat genomics for gene discovery and breeding applications: a special emphasis on advances in Asia. 2020. Rasheed, A., Takumi, S., Hassan, M.A., Imtiaz, M., Ali, M., Morgounov, A.I., Mahmood, T., He Zhonghu In: Theoretical and Applied Genetics v. 113, pg. 1503–1520.

15. Diversity and incidence of plant-parasitic nematodes associated with saffron (Crocus sativus L.) in Morocco and their relationship with soil physicochemical properties. 2020. Mokrini, F., Salah-Eddine Laasli, Karra, Y., El Aissami, A., Dababat, A.A. In: Nematology v. 22, no. 1, pg. 87-102.

16. Maya gene variants related to the risk of type 2 diabetes in a family-based association study. 2020. Domínguez-Cruz, M.G., Muñoz, M. de L., Totomoch-Serra, A., García-Escalante, M.G., Burgueño, J., Valadez-González, N., Pinto-Escalantes, D., Diaz-Badillo, A. In: Gene v. 730, art. 144259.

17. Effect of allele combinations at Ppd-1 loci on durum wheat grain filling at contrasting latitudes. 2020. Arjona, J.M., Royo, C., Dreisigacker, S., Ammar, K., Subira, J., Villegas, D. In: Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science, v. 206, no. 1, pg. 64-75.

18. Yield and quality in purple-grained wheat isogenic lines. 2020. Morgounov, A.I., Karaduman, Y., Akin, B., Aydogan, S., Baenziger, P.S., Bhatta, M.R., Chudinov, V., Dreisigacker, S., Velu, G., Güler, S., Guzman, C., Nehe, A., Poudel, R., Rose, D., Gordeeva, E., Shamanin, V., Subasi, K., Zelenskiy, Y., Khlestkina, E. In: Agronomy v. 10, no. 1, art. 86.

19. Anther extrusion and its association with Fusarium head blight in CIMMYT wheat germplasm. 2020. Kaijie Xu, Xinyao He, Dreisigacker, S., He Zhonghu, Singh, P.K. In: Agronomy v. 10, no. 1 art. 47.

20. Does farm structure affect rural household incomes? Evidence from Tanzania. 2020. Chamberlin, J., Jayne, T.S. In: Food Policy v. 90, art. 101805.

21. GAR dwarf gene Rht14 reduced plant height and affected agronomic traits in durum wheat (Triticum durum). 2020. Shan Duan, Zhangchen Zhao, Yue Qiao, Chunge Cui, Morgounov, A.I., Condon, A.G., Liang Chen, Yin-Gang Hu In: Field Crops Research v. 248, art. 107721.

22. Ex-ante and ex-post coping strategies for climatic shocks and adaptation determinants in rural Malawi. 2020. Abid, M., Ali, A., Rahut, D.B., Raza, M., Mehdi, M. In: Climate Risk Management v. 27, art. 100200.

23. Management of spot blotch and heat stress in spring wheat through azoxystrobin-mediated redox balance. 2020. Sudhir Navathe, Chand, R., Vinod Kumar Mishra, Pandey, S.P., Kumar, U., Joshi, A.K. In: Agricultural Research v. 9, pg. 169–178.

24. Spatial variation in fertilizer prices in Sub-Saharan Africa. 2020. Bonilla Cedrez, C., Chamberlin, J., Guo, Z., Hijmans, R.J. In: PLoS One v. 115, no. 1, art. e0227764.

25. Unravelling the variability and causes of smallholder maize yield gaps in Ethiopia. 2020. Banchayehu Tessema Assefa, Chamberlin, J., Reidsma, P., Silva, J.V., Ittersum, M.K. van. In: Food Security v. 12, pg. 83-103.

26. Linking land distribution with food security: empirical evidence from Pakistan. 2020. Mahmood, H.Z., Ali, A., Rahut, D.B., Pervaiz, B., Siddiqui, F. In: Journal of Animal and Plant Sciences v. 30, no.1, pg. 175-184.

27. Agricultural growth and sex-disaggregated employment in Africa: future perspectives under different investment scenarios. 2020. Frija, A., Chebil, A., Mottaleb, K.A., Mason-D’Croz, D., Dhehibi, B. In: Global Food Security v. 24, art. 100353.

28. Genetic diversity analysis using DArTseq and SNP markers in populations of Aegilops species from Azerbaijan. 2020. Abbasov, M., Sansaloni, C.P., Burgueño, J., Petroli, C.D., Akparov, Z., Aminov, N., Babayeva, S., Izzatullayeva, V., Hajiyev, E., Rustamov, K., Mammadova, S.A., Amri, A., Payne, T.S. In: Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution v. 67, no. 2, pg. 281-291.

29. Bridging the disciplinary gap in conservation agriculture research, in Malawi. A review. 2020. Hermans, T.D.G., Whitfield, S., Dougill, A.J., Thierfelder, C. In: Agronomy for Sustainable Development v. 40, no. 1, art. 3.

30. Scaling agricultural mechanization services in smallholder farming systems: case studies from sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Latin America. 2020. Van Loon, J., Woltering, L., Krupnik, T.J., Baudron, F., Boa, M., Govaerts, B. In: Agricultural Systems v. 180, art. 102792.

A rice farmer in central Bangladesh tends to his crop. (Photo: Scott Wallace/World Bank)

New publications: COVID-19 induced economic loss and ensuring food security for vulnerable groups

Written by Emma Orchardson on . Posted in Publications.

At present, nearly half of the world’s population is under some form of government restriction to curb the spread of COVID-19. In Bangladesh, in the wake of five deaths and 48 infections early in the year, the government imposed a nationwide lockdown between March 24 and May 30, 2020. Until April 17, 38 of the country’s 64 districts were under complete lockdown.

“While this lockdown restricted the spread of the disease, in the absence of effective support, it can generate severe food and nutrition insecurity for daily wage-based workers,” says Khondoker Mottaleb, an agricultural economist based at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT).

Of the 61 million people who make up Bangladesh’s employed labor force, nearly 35% are paid daily. In a new study published in PLOS ONE, Mottaleb examines the food security and welfare impacts of the lockdowns on these daily-wage workers — in both farm and non-farm sectors — who are comparatively more resource-poor in terms of land ownership and education, and therefore likely to be hit hardest by a loss in earnings.

Using information from 50,000 economically active workers in Bangladesh, collected by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), the study quantifies the economic losses from the COVID-19 lockdowns based on daily-wage workers’ lost earnings and estimates the minimum compensation packages needed to ensure their minimum food security during the lockdown period.

Using the estimated daily wage earnings, the authors estimate that a one-day, complete lockdown generates an economic loss equivalent to $64.2 million. After assessing the daily per capita food expenditure for farm and non-farm households, the study estimates the need for a minimum compensation package of around $1 per day per household to ensure minimum food security for the daily wage-based worker households.

In May 2020, the Government of Bangladesh announced the provision of approximately $24 per month to two million households, half of whom will receive additional food provision. While this amount is in line with Mottaleb’s findings, he stresses than this minimum support package is only suitable for the short-term, and that in the event of a prolonged lockdown period it will be necessary to consider additional support for other household costs such as clothing, medicine and education.

“Without effective support programs, the implementation of a strict lockdown for a long time may be very difficult, if poor households are forced to come out to search for work, money and food,” explains Mottaleb. “In the event of a very strict lockdown scenario, the government should consider issuing movement passes to persons and carriers of agricultural input and output to support smallholder agriculture, wage workers and agricultural value chains.”

Read the full article:
COVID-19 induced economic loss and ensuring food security for vulnerable groups: Policy implications for Bangladesh

Read more recent publications from CIMMYT researchers:

  1. Potential of climate-smart agriculture in reducing women farmers’ drudgery in high climatic risk areas. 2020. Khatri-Chhetri, A., Punya Prasad Regmi, Nitya Chanana, Aggarwal, P.K. In: Climatic Change v. 158, pg. 29-42.
  2. Crop–livestock integration in smallholder farming systems of Goromonzi and Murehwa, Zimbabwe. 2020. Mkuhlani, S., Mupangwa, W., MacLeod, N., Lovemore Gwiriri, Nyagumbo, I., Manyawu, G., Ngavaite Chigede. In: Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems v. 35, no. 3, pg. 249-260.
  3. Effects of maize residue and mineral nitrogen applications on maize yield in conservation-agriculture-based cropping systems of Southern Africa. 2020. Mupangwa, W., Thierfelder, C., Cheesman, S., Nyagumbo, I., Muoni, T., Mhlanga, B., Mwila, M., Sida T.S., Ngwira, A. In: Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems v. 35, no. 2, pg. 322-335.
  4. From interest to implementation: exploring farmer progression of conservation agriculture in Eastern and Southern Africa. 2020. Brown, B., Nuberg, I., Llewellyn, R. In: Environment, Development and Sustainability v. 22, pg. 3159-3177.
  5. Spatial variability of soil physicochemical properties in agricultural fields cultivated with sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L.) in southeastern Mexico. 2020. Salgado-Velázquez, S., Salgado-García, S., Rincón-Ramírez, J.A., Rodrigues, F., Palma-López, D.J., Córdova-Sánchez, S., López-Castañeda, A. In: Sugar Tech v. 22, pg. 65-75.
  6. Apparent gains, hidden costs: examining adoption drivers, yield, and profitability outcomes of rotavator tillage in wheat systems in Nepal. 2020. Paudel, G.P., Krishna, V.V., McDonald, A. In: Journal of Agricultural Economics v. 71, no. 1, pg. 199-218.
  7. Multi‐site bundling of drought tolerant maize varieties and index insurance. 2020. Awondo, S.N., Kostandini, G., Setimela, P.S., Erenstein, O. In: Journal of Agricultural Economics v. 71, no.1, pg. 239-259.
  8. Leaving no one behind: how women seize control of wheat–maize technologies in Bangladesh. 2020. Farnworth, C.R., Jafry, T., Rahman, S., Badstue, L.B. In: Canadian Journal of Development Studies v. 41, no. 1, pg. 20-39.
  9. Learning adaptation to climate change from past climate extremes: evidence from recent climate extremes in Haryana, India. 2020. Aryal, J.P., Jat, M.L., Sapkota, T.B., Rahut, D.B., Rai, M., Jat, H.S., Sharma, P.C., Stirling, C. In: International Journal of Climate Change Strategies and Management v. 12. No. 1, pg. 128-146.
  10. Climate change mitigation options among farmers in South Asia. 2020. Aryal, J.P., Rahut, D.B., Sapkota, T.B., Khurana, R., Khatri-Chhetri, A. In: Environment, Development and Sustainability v. 22, pg. 3267-3289.
  11. Does climate-smart village approach influence gender equality in farming households? A case of two contrasting ecologies in India. 2020. Hariharan, V.K., Mittal, S., Rai, M., Agarwal, T., Kalvaniya, K.C., Stirling, C., Jat, M.L. In: Climatic Change v. 158, pg. 77-90.
  12. First Report of TTRTF race of wheat stem rust, Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici, in Ethiopia. 2020. Tesfaye, T., Chala, A., Shikur, E., Hodson, D.P., Szabo, L.J. In: Plant Disease v. 104, no. 1, 293-293.
  13. Multi-level socioecological drivers of agrarian change: longitudinal evidence from mixed rice-livestock-aquaculture farming systems of Bangladesh. 2020. Aravindakshan, S., Krupnik, T.J., Groot, J.C.J., Speelman, E. N., Amjath Babu, T.S, Tittonell, P. In: Agricultural Systems v. 177, art. 102695.
  14. Carbon sequestration potential through conservation agriculture in Africa has been largely overestimated: comment on: “Meta-analysis on carbon sequestration through conservation agriculture in Africa”. 2020. Corbeels, M., Cardinael, R., Powlson, D.S., Chikowo, R., Gerard, B. In: Soil and Tillage Research v. 196, art. 104300.
  15. Operationalizing the concept of robustness of nitrogen networks in mixed smallholder systems: a pilot study in the mid-hills and lowlands of Nepal. 2020. Alomia-Hinojosa, V., Groot, J.C.J., Speelman, E. N., Bettinelli, C., McDonald, A., Alvarez, S., Tittonell, P. In: Ecological Indicators v. 110, art. 105883.
  16. The spread of smaller engines and markets in machinery services in rural areas of South Asia. 2020. Justice, S., Biggs, S. In: Journal of Rural Studies v. 73, pg. 10-20.
  17. Functional farm household typologies through archetypal responses to disturbances. 2020. Tittonell, P., Bruzzone, O., Solano-Hernández, A., Lopez-Ridaura, S., Easdale, M.H. In: Agricultural Systems v. 178, art. 102714.
  18. Data on a genome-wide association study of type 2 diabetes in a Maya population. 2020. Totomoch-Serra, A., Domínguez-Cruz, M.G., Muñoz, M. de L., García-Escalante, M.G., Burgueño, J., Diaz-Badillo, A., Valadez-González, N., Pinto-Escalantes, D. In: Data in Brief v. 28, art. 104866.
  19. On-farm performance and farmers’ participatory assessment of new stress-tolerant maize hybrids in Eastern Africa. 2020. Regasa, M.W., De Groote, H., Munyua, B., Makumbi, D., Owino, F., Crossa, J., Beyene, Y., Mugo, S.N., Jumbo, M.B., Asea, G., Mutinda, C.J.M., Kwemoi, D.B., Woyengo, V., Olsen, M., Prasanna, B.M. In: Field Crops Research v. 246, art. 107693.
  20. Different uncertainty distribution between high and low latitudes in modelling warming impacts on wheat. 2020. Wei Xiong, Asseng, S., Hoogenboom, G., Hernandez-Ochoa, I.M., Robertson, R., Sonder, K., Pequeno, D.N.L., Reynolds, M.P., Gerard, B. In. Nature Food v. 1, pg. 63-69.
  21. Gender relations along the maize value chain in Mozambique. 2020. Adam, R.I., Quinhentos, M., Muindi, P., Osanya, J. In: Outlook on Agriculture v. 49, no. 2, pg. 133–144.
  22. Genetic dissection of zinc, iron, copper, manganese and phosphorus in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) grain and rachis at two developmental stages. 2020. Cu, S.T., Guild, G., Nicolson, A., Velu, G., Singh, R.P., Stangoulis, J. In: Plant Science v. 291, art. 110338.
  23. Indigenous knowledge of traditional foods and food literacy among youth: insights from rural Nepal. 2020. Gartaula, H., Patel, K., Shukla, S., Devkota, R. In: Journal of Rural Studies v. 73, pg. 77-86.
  24. Analysis of household access to drinking water, sanitation, and waste disposal services in urban areas of Nepal. 2020. Behera, B., Rahut, D.B., Sethi, N. In: Utilities Policy v. 62, art. 100996.
  25. Mapping of QTL for partial resistance to powdery mildew in two Chinese common wheat cultivars. 2020. Xiaoting Xu, Zhanwang Zhu, Aolin Jia, Fengju Wang, Jinping Wang, Yelun Zhang, Chao Fu, Luping Fu, Guihua Bai, Xianchun Xia, Yuanfeng Hao, He Zhonghu In: Euphytica v. 216, no. 1, art. 3.
  26. Enabling smallholder farmers to sustainably improve their food, energy and water nexus while achieving environmental and economic benefits. 2020. Gathala, M.K., Laing, A.M., Tiwari, T.P., Timsina, J., Islam, Md.S., Chowdhury, A.K., Chattopadhyay, C., Singh, A.K., Bhatt, B. P., Shrestha, R., Barma, N.C.D., Dharamvir Singh Rana, Jackson, T., Gerard, B. In: Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews v. 120, art. 109645.
  27. Harnessing wheat Fhb1 for Fusarium resistance. 2020. Yuanfeng Hao, Rasheed, A., Zhanwang Zhu, Wulff, B.B.H., He Zhonghu In: Trends in Plant Science v. 25, no. 1, pg. 1-3.
  28. Energy-efficient, sustainable crop production practices benefit smallholder farmers and the environment across three countries in the Eastern Gangetic Plains, South Asia. 2020. Gathala, M.K., Laing, A.M., Tiwari, T.P., Timsina, J., Saiful Islam, Bhattacharya, P.M., Dhar, T., Ghosh, A., Sinha, A.K., Chowdhury, A.K., Hossain, S., Hossain, M.I., Molla, M.S.H., Rashid, M., Kumar, S., Kumar, R., Dutta, S.K., Srivastwa, P.K., Chaudhary, B., Jha, S.K., Ghimire, P., Bastola, B., Chaubey, R.K., Kumar, U., Gerard, B. In: Journal of Cleaner Production v. 246, art. 118982.

Feature image: A rice farmer in central Bangladesh tends to his crop. (Photo: Scott Wallace/World Bank).

Wheat fields at CIMMYT’s Campo Experimental Norman E. Borlaug (CENEB) in Ciudad Obregón, Mexico. (Photo: CIMMYT)

Retrospective quantitative genetic analysis and genomic prediction of global wheat yields

Written by Marcia MacNeil on . Posted in Publications.

The process for breeding for grain yield in bread wheat at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) involves three-stage testing at an experimental station in the desert environment of Ciudad Obregón, in Mexico’s Yaqui Valley. Because the conditions in Obregón are extremely favorable, CIMMYT wheat breeders are able to replicate growing environments all over the world and test the yield potential and climate-resilience of wheat varieties for every major global wheat growing area. These replicated test areas in Obregón are known as selection environments (SEs).

This process has its roots in the innovative work of wheat breeder and Nobel Prize winner Norman Borlaug, more than 50 years ago. Wheat scientists at CIMMYT, led by wheat breeder Philomin Juliana, wanted to see if it remained effective.

The scientists conducted a large quantitative genetics study comparing the grain yield performance of lines in the Obregón SEs with that of lines in target growing sites throughout the world. They based their comparison on data from two major wheat trials: the South Asia Bread Wheat Genomic Prediction Yield Trials in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh initiated by the U.S. Agency for International Development Feed the Future initiative and the global testing environments of the Elite Spring Wheat Yield Trials.

The findings, published in Retrospective Quantitative Genetic Analysis and Genomic Prediction of Global Wheat Yields, in Frontiers in Plant Science, found that the Obregón yield testing process in different SEs is very efficient in developing high-yielding and resilient wheat lines for target sites.

The authors found higher average heritabilities, or trait variations due to genetic differences, for grain yield in the Obregón SEs than in the target sites (44.2 and 92.3% higher for the South Asia and global trials, respectively), indicating greater precision in the SE trials than those in the target sites. They also observed significant genetic correlations between one or more SEs in Obregón and all five South Asian sites, as well as with the majority (65.1%) of the Elite Spring Wheat Yield Trial sites. Lastly, they found a high ratio of selection response by selecting for grain yield in the SEs of Obregón than directly in the target sites.

“The results of this study make it evident that the rigorous multi-year yield testing in Obregón environments has helped to develop wheat lines that have wide-adaptability across diverse geographical locations and resilience to environmental variations,” said Philomin Juliana, CIMMYT associate scientist and lead author of the article.

“This is particularly important for smallholder farmers in developing countries growing wheat on less than 2 hectares who cannot afford crop losses due to year-to-year environmental changes.”

In addition to these comparisons, the scientists conducted genomic prediction for grain yield in the target sites, based on the performance of the same lines in the SEs of Obregón. They found high year-to-year variations in grain yield predictabilities, highlighting the importance of multi-environment testing across time and space to stave off the environment-induced uncertainties in wheat yields.

“While our results demonstrate the challenges involved in genomic prediction of grain yield in future unknown environments, it also opens up new horizons for further exciting research on designing genomic selection-driven breeding for wheat grain yield,” said Juliana.

This type of quantitative genetics analysis using multi-year and multi-site grain yield data is one of the first steps to assessing the effectiveness of CIMMYT’s current grain yield testing and making recommendations for improvement—a key objective of the new Accelerating Genetic Gains in Maize and Wheat for Improved Livelihoods (AGG) project, which aims to accelerate the breeding progress by optimizing current breeding schemes.

This work was made possible by the generous support of the Delivering Genetic Gain in Wheat (DGGW) project funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) and managed by Cornell University; the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Feed the Future initiative; and several collaborating national partners who generated the grain yield data.

Read the full article: Retrospective Quantitative Genetic Analysis and Genomic Prediction of Global Wheat Yields

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

Cover photo: Wheat fields at CIMMYT’s Campo Experimental Norman E. Borlaug (CENEB) in Ciudad Obregón, Mexico. (Photo: CIMMYT)

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

New publications: Power, agency and benefits among women and men maize farmers

Written by Emma Orchardson on . Posted in Publications.

For smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa, new agricultural technologies such as improved maize varieties offer numerous benefits — increased incomes, lower workloads and better food security, among others. However, when new technologies are introduced, they can denaturalize and expose gender norms and power relations because their adoption inevitably requires women and men to renegotiate the rules of the game. The adoption of new varieties will often be accompanied by a number of related decisions on the allocation of farm labor, the purchase and use of inorganic fertilizers, switching crops between women- and men-managed plots, and the types of benefit household members expect to secure may change.

In an article published this month in Gender, Technology and Development, researchers from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) explore how women in Nigeria negotiate these new power dynamics to access and secure the benefits of improved maize varieties and, more broadly, to expand their decision-making space.

Using focus group and interview data collected as part of the GENNOVATE project, the authors draw on case studies from four villages — two in the northern states of Kaduna and Plateau; two in the southwestern state of Oyo — to develop an understanding of the relationship between gender norms, women’s ability and willingness to express their agency, and the uptake of agricultural technologies. “This is an important step toward improving the capacity of agricultural research for development to design and scale innovations,” say the authors. “Achieving this ambition is highly relevant to maize.”

The results were similar across all four sites. The authors found that women in each area were constrained by powerful gender norms which privilege male agency and largely frown upon women’s empowerment, thus limiting their ability to maximize the benefits from improved varieties or realize their agency in other domains.

All women respondents remarked that improved maize varieties were easy to adopt, have higher yields and mature quickly, which meant that income flows started earlier and helped them meet household expenditures on time. They prioritized the contribution of improved maize to securing household food security, which helped them meet their ascribed gender roles as food providers.

“At the same time though, women felt they could not maximize their benefits from improved maize varieties due to men’s dominance in decision-making,” the authors explain. “This was particularly the case for married women.”

“Men are meant to travel far – not women”

Woman selling white maize at Bodija market in Ibadan, Nigeria. (Photo: Adebayo O./IITA)
Woman selling white maize at Bodija market in Ibadan, Nigeria. (Photo: Adebayo O./IITA)

Embedded gender norms – particularly those relating to mobility – infuse the wider environment and mean that women’s access to opportunities is considerably more restricted than it is for men.

The findings demonstrate that both women and men farmers secure benefits from improved maize varieties. However, men accrue more benefits and benefit directly, as they have unfettered mobility and opportunity. They can access markets that are further away, and the maize they sell is unprocessed and requires no transformation. Additionally, men do not question their right to devote profits from maize primarily to their own concerns, nor their right to secure a high level of control over the money women make.

On the other hand, women respondents — regardless of age and income cohort — repeatedly stated that while it is hard to earn significant money from local sales of the processed maize products they make, it is also very difficult for them to enter large markets selling unprocessed, improved maize.

The difficulties women face in trying to grow maize businesses may be partly related to a lack of business acumen and experience, but a primary reason is limited personal mobility in all four communities. For example, in Sabon Birni village, Kaduna, women lamented that though the local market is not large enough to accommodate their maize processing and other agri-business ventures, they are not permitted travel to markets further afield where ‘there are always people ready to buy’.

“Women’s benefits relate to the fact that improved maize varieties increase the absolute size of the ‘maize cake’,” say the authors. “They expect to get a larger slice as a consequence. However, the absolute potential of improved varieties for boosting women’s incomes and other options of importance to women is hampered by gender norms that significantly restrict their agency.”

The implications for maize research and development are that an improved understanding of the complex relational nature of empowerment is essential when introducing new agricultural technologies.

Read the full paper:
Unequal partners: associations between power, agency and benefits among women and men maize farmers in Nigeria

Other recent publications from GENNOVATE:

Continuity and Change: Performing Gender in Rural Tanzania

Engaging men in gender-equitable practices in maize systems of sub-Saharan Africa

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

Read more recent publications by CIMMYT researchers:

  1. Phenotypic characterization of Canadian barley advanced breeding lines for multiple disease resistance. 2019. Osman, M., Xinyao He, Capettini, F., Helm, J., Singh, P.K. In: Cereal Research Communications v. 47, no. 3, pg. 484-495.
  2. Tillage and crop rotations enhance populations of earthworms, termites, dung beetles and centipedes: evidence from a long-term trial in Zambia. 2019. Muoni, T., Mhlanga, B., Forkman, J., Sitali, M., Thierfelder, C. In: Journal of Agricultural Science v. 157, no. 6, pg. 504-514.
  3. Genética de la resistencia a roya amarilla causada por Puccinia striiiformis f. sp. tritici W. en tres genotipos de trigo (Triticum aestivum L.) = Genetics of the resistance to yellow rust caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici W. in three genotypes of wheat (Tritcum aestivum L.). 2019. Rodriguez-Garcia, M.F., Rojas Martínez, R.I., Huerta-Espino, J., Villaseñor Mir, H.E., Zavaleta Mejía, E., Sandoval-Islas, S., Crossa, J. In: Revista Fitotecnia Mexicana v. 42, no. 1, pg. 31-38.
  4. Mapping of maize storage losses due to insect pests in central Mexico. 2019. García-Lara, S., García-Jaimes, E., Bergvinson, D.J. In: Journal of Stored Products Research v. 84, art. 101529.
  5. Analysis of distribution systems for supply of synthetic grain protectants to maize smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe: implications for hermetic grain storage bag distribution. 2019. Govereh, J., Muchetu, R.G., Mvumi, B.M., Chuma, T. In: Journal of Stored Products Research v. 84, art. 101520.
  6. Agronomic performance and susceptibility of seven Ghanaian improved sweet potato varieties to the sweet potato weevil, Cylas spp. (Coleoptera: Brentidae) in Coastal Savanna zone of Ghana. 2019. Adom, M., Fening, K.O., Wilson, D.D., Adofo, K., Bruce, A.Y. In: African Entomology v. 27, no. 2, pg. 312-321.
  7. Validation of candidate gene-based markers and identification of novel loci for thousand-grain weight in spring bread wheat. 2019. Sehgal, D., Mondal, S., Guzman, C., Garcia Barrios, G., Franco, C., Singh, R.P., Dreisigacker, S. In: Frontiers in Plant Science v. 19, art. 1189.
  8. Genomic prediction and genome-wide association studies of flour yield and alveograph quality traits using advanced winter wheat breeding material. 2019. Kristensen, P.S., Jensen, J., Andersen, J.P., Guzman, C., Orabi, J., Jahoor, A. In: Genes v. 10, no. 9, art. 669.
  9. Identification of superior doubled haploid maize (Zea mays) inbred lines derived from high oil content subtropical populations. 2019. Silva-Venancio, S., Preciado-Ortiz, R.E., Covarrubias-Prieto, J., Ortíz-Islas, S., Serna-Saldivar, S.O., García-Lara, S., Terron Ibarra, A., Palacios-Rojas, N. In: Maydica v. 64, no. 1, pg. 1-11.
  10. Tillage and residue-management effects on productivity, profitability and soil properties in a rice-maize-mungbean system in the Eastern Gangetic Plains. 2019. Rashid, M.H., Timsina, J., Islam, N., Saiful Islam. In: Journal of Crop Improvement v. 33, no. 5, pg. 683-710.
  11. Mapping of genetic loci conferring resistance to leaf rust from three globally resistant durum wheat sources. 2019. Kthiri, D., Loladze, A., N’Diaye, A., Nilsen, K., Walkowiak, S., Dreisigacker, S., Ammar, K., Pozniak, C.J. In: Frontiers in Plant Science v. 10, art. 1247.
  12. Compost amended with N enhances maize productivity and soil properties in semi-arid agriculture. 2019. Shahid Iqbal, Arif, M., Khan, H.Z., Yasmeen, T., Thierfelder, C., Tang Li, Khan, S., Nadir, S., Jianchu Xu In: Agronomy Journal v. 111 no. 5, pg. 2536-2544.
  13. Simulation-based maize–wheat cropping system optimization in the midhills of Nepal. 2019. Laborde, J.P., Wortmann, C.S., Blanco-Canqui, H., McDonald, A., Lindquist, J.L. In: Agronomy Journal v. 111, no. 5, pg. 2569-2581.
  14. Affordability linked with subsidy: impact of fertilizers subsidy on household welfare in Pakistan. 2019. Ali, A., Rahut, D.B., Imtiaz, M. In: Sustainability v. 11, no. 19, art. 5161.
  15. Field-specific nutrient management using Rice Crop Manager decision support tool in Odisha, India. 2019. Sharma, S., Rout, K.K., Khanda, C.M., Tripathi, R., Shahid, M., Nayak, A.D., Satpathy, S.D., Banik, N.C., Iftikar, W., Parida, N., Kumar, V., Mishra, A., Castillo, R.L., Velasco, T., Buresh, R.J. In: Field Crops Research v. 241, art. 107578.
  16. Balanced nutrient requirements for maize in the Northern Nigerian Savanna: parameterization and validation of QUEFTS model. 2019. Shehu, B.M., Lawan, B.A., Jibrin, J. M., Kamara, A. Y., Mohammed, I.B., Rurinda, J., Shamie Zingore, Craufurd, P., Vanlauwe, B., Adam, A.M., Merckx, R. In: Field Crops Research v. 241, art. 107585.
  17. Factor analysis to investigate genotype and genotype × environment interaction effects on pro-      vitamin A content and yield in maize synthetics. 2019. Mengesha, W., Menkir, A., Meseka, S., Bossey, B., Afolabi, A., Burgueño, J., Crossa, J. In: Euphytica v. 215, no. 11, art. 180.
  18. Agricultural productivity and soil carbon dynamics: a bioeconomic model. 2019. Berazneva, J., Conrad, J.M., Güereña, D. T., Lehmann, J., Woolf, D. In: American Journal of Agricultural Economics v. 101, no.4, pg. 1021-1046.
  19. Effect of manures and fertilizers on soil physical properties, build-up of macro and micronutrients and uptake in soil under different cropping systems: a review. 2019. Dhaliwal, S.S., Naresh, R.K., Mandal, A., Walia, M.K., Gupta, R.K., Singh, R., Dhaliwal, M.K. In: Journal of Plant Nutrition v. 42, no. 2, pg. 2873-2900.
  20. Combined study on genetic diversity of wheat genotypes using SNP marker and phenotypic reaction to Heterodera filipjevi. 2019. Majd Taheri, Z., Tanha Maafi, Z., Nazari, K., Zaynali Nezhad, K., Rakhshandehroo, F., Dababat, A.A. In: Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution v. 66, no. 8, pg. 1791-1811.
  21. Characterization of QTLs for seedling resistance to tan spot and septoria nodorum blotch in the PBW343/Kenya Nyangumi wheat recombinant inbred lines population. 2019. Singh, P.K., Sukhwinder-Singh, Zhiying Deng, Xinyao He, Kehel, Z., Singh, R.P. In: International Journal of Molecular Sciences v. 20, no. 21, art. 5432.
  22. Rapid identification and characterization of genetic loci for defective kernel in bread wheat. 2019. Chao Fu, Jiuyuan Du, Xiuling Tian, He Zhonghu, Luping Fu, Yue Wang, Dengan Xu, Xiaoting Xu, Xianchun Xia, Zhang Yan, Shuanghe Cao In: BMC Plant Biology v. 19, no. 1, art. 483.
  23. Nitrogen fertilizer rate increases plant uptake and soil availability of essential nutrients in continuous maize production in Kenya and Zimbabwe. 2019. Pasley, H.R., Cairns, J.E., Camberato, J.J., Vyn, T.J. In: Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems v. 115, no. 3, pg. 373-389.
  24. Identification of a conserved ph1b-mediated 5DS–5BS crossing over site in soft-kernel durum wheat (Triticum turgidum subsp. durum) lines. 2019. Ibba, M.I., Mingyi Zhang, Xiwen Cai, Morris, C.F. In: Euphytica v. 215, art. 200.
  25. Optimum and decorrelated constrained multistage linear phenotypic selection indices theory. 2019. Ceron Rojas, J.J., Toledo, F.H., Crossa, J. In: Crop Science v. 59, no. 6, pg. 2585-2600.
  26. Comparison of weighted and unweighted stage-wise analysis for genome-wide association studies and genomic selection. 2019. Tigist Mideksa Damesa, Hartung, J., Gowda, M., Beyene, Y., Das, B., Fentaye Kassa Semagn, Piepho, H.P. In: Crop Science v. 59, no. 6, pg. 2572-2584.
  27. Effects of drought and low nitrogen stress on provitamin a carotenoid content of biofortified maize hybrids. 2019. Ortiz-Covarrubias, Y., Dhliwayo, T., Palacios-Rojas, N., Thokozile Ndhlela, Magorokosho, C., Aguilar Rincón, V.H., Cruz-Morales, A.S., Trachsel, S. In: Crop Science v. 59, no. 6, pg. 2521-2532.
  28. Designing interventions in local value chains for improved health and nutrition: insights from Malawi. 2019. Donovan, J.A., Gelli, A. In: World Development Perspectives v. 16, art. 100149.

New publications: Rotation, mulch and zero tillage reduce weeds

Written by Emma Orchardson on . Posted in Publications.

Despite the many benefits of conservation agriculture, uptake by smallholder farmers remains limited. Alongside the struggle to maintain adequate soil cover and limited opportunities for crop diversification, weed management is a major constraint to the widespread adoption of conservation agriculture.

Although all three components of the practice – zero or minimal tillage, permanent soil cover and crop diversification – can reduce weed populations, the effects of these efforts may only become apparent in the medium to long term. As a result, many smallholders are likely to forgo these in favor of hand weeding, cheap herbicides and tillage – which controls weeds in the short term but also brings weed seeds from the seedbank to the soil surface and creates optimum conditions for germination.

In an effort to evaluate the impact of using conservation agriculture practices for weed management, researchers from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) used data from a long-term trial in the Mexican Highlands to evaluate weed biomass, density and diversity with and without herbicide control.

Results of their study – recently published in Agronomy – show that weed density and biomass were generally much lower in areas where conservation agriculture was practiced, compared to conventional tillage. All three components helped to significantly reduce weed biomass, with an even greater reduction when all three practices were applied together. When herbicides were applied, weed biomass in conservation agriculture was 91% lower in maize and 81% lower in wheat than in conventional tillage.

The authors found that different treatments favored different weed species but did not observe any trend toward increased perennial weeds in conservation agriculture. The data from their study supports claims that if adequate weed control is achieved in the initial years, weed populations in conservation agriculture systems are lower than in conventional tillage ones. Given these weed-controlling effects, the authors posit that these practices are likely to lead to lower herbicide use in the long term – which may be welcome news for smallholders who have reported weed management to be particularly problematic in the initial years after adopting conservation agriculture.

Read the full article in Agronomy: Rotation, Mulch and Zero Tillage Reduce Weeds in a Long‐Term Conservation Agriculture Trial

See more recent publications from CIMMYT researchers:

  1. Paddy in saline water: analysing variety-specific effects of saline water intrusion on the technical efficiency of rice production in Vietnam. 2019. Dam, T.H.T., Amjath Babu, T.S., Zander, P., Muller, K. In: Outlook on Agriculture v. 48 no. 3 page 237-245.
  2. Doubled haploid technology for line development in maize: technical advances and prospects. 2019. Chaikam, V., Molenaar, W., Melchinger, A.E., Prasanna, B.M. In: Theoretical and Applied Genetics v. 132 no. 12 pg. 3227-3243.
  3. Smallholder farmers’ willingness to pay for scale-appropriate farm mechanization: Evidence from the mid-hills of Nepal. 2019. Paudel, G.P., KC, D.B., Rahut, D.B., Khanal, N.P., Justice, S.E., McDonald, A.J. In: Technology in Society v. 59, art. 101196.
  4. Variations in straw fodder quality and grain–Straw relationships in a mapping population of 287 diverse spring wheat lines. 2019. Joshi, A.K., Kumar, U., Vinod Kumar Mishra, Chand, R., Chatrath, R., Naik, R., Suma S. Biradar., Singh, R.P., Neeraj Budhlakoti, Devulapalli, R., Blummel, M. In: Field Crops Research v. 243, art. 107627.
  5. Dynamic biochar effects on nitrogen use efficiency, crop yield and soil nitrous oxide emissions during a tropical wheat-growing season. 2019. Abbruzzini, T.F., Davies, C.A., Toledo, F.H., Pellegrino Cerri, C.E. In: Journal of Environmental Management, v. 252, art. 109638.
  6. The impact of agricultural interventions can be doubled by using satellite data. 2019. Meha Jain, Singh, B., Preeti Rao, Srivastava, A., Poonia, S. P., Blesh, J., Azzari, G., McDonald, A., Lobell, D.B. In: Nature Sustainability v. 2, pg. 931-934.
  7. A wheat chromosome 5AL region confers seedling resistance to both tan spot and Septoria nodorum blotch in two mapping populations. 2019. Wenjing Hua, Xinyao He, Dreisigacker, S., Sansaloni, C.P., Juliana, P., Singh, P.K. In: The Crop Journal v. 7, no. 6, pg. 809-818.
  8. Environmental variables contributing to differential performance of tropical maize hybrids across heat stress environments in South Asia. 2019. Vinayan, M.T., Zaidi, P.H., Seetharam, K., Md Ashraful Alam, Ahmed, S., Koirala, K.B., Arshad, Md., Kuchanur, P.H., Patil, A., Mandal, S.S. In: Australian Journal of Crop Science v. 13, no. 6, page 828-836.
  9. The use of pentaploid crosses for the introgression of Amblyopyrum muticum and D-genome chromosome segments into durum wheat. 2019. Othmeni, M., Grewal, S., Hubbart-Edwards, S., Cai-Yun Yang, Scholefield, D., Ashling, S., Yahyaoui, A.H., Gustafson, P., Singh, P.K., King, I.P., King, J. In: Frontiers in Plant Science v. 10, art. 1110.
  10. Alternate energy sources for lighting among rural households in the Himalayan region of Pakistan: access and impact. 2019. Ali, A., Rahut, D.B., Mottaleb, K.A., Aryal, J.P. In: Energy & Environment v. 30, no. 7, 1291-1312.
  11. Assessing climate adaptation options for cereal-based systems in the eastern Indo-Gangetic Plains, South Asia. 2019. Fantaye, K. T., Khatri-Chhetri, A., Aggarwal, P.K, Mequanint, F., Shirsath, P.B., Stirling, C., Jat, M.L., Rahut, D.B., Erenstein, O. In: Journal of Agricultural Science v. 157, no. 3, 189-210.
  12. Doing research and ‘doing gender’ in Ethiopia’s agricultural research system. 2019. Drucza, K.L.,  Tsegaye, M., Abebe, L. In: Gender, Technology and Development v. 23, no. 1, pg. 55-75.
  13. Exploring high temperature responses of photosynthesis and respiration to improve heat tolerance in wheat. 2019. Posch, B.C., Kariyawasam, B.C., Bramley, H., Coast, O., Richards, R.A., Reynolds, M.P., Trethowan, R.M., Atkin, O.K. In: Journal of Experimental Botany v. 70, no. 19, pg. 5051-5069.
  14. Farming on the fringe: shallow groundwater dynamics and irrigation scheduling for maize and wheat in Bangladesh’s coastal delta. 2019. Schulthess, U., Zia Ahmed, Aravindakshan, S., Rokon, G.M., Alanuzzaman Kurishi, A.S.M., Krupnik, T.J. In: Field Crops Research v. 239, pg. 135-148.
  15. A Bayesian genomic multi-output regressor stacking model for predicting multi-trait multi-environment plant breeding data. 2019. Montesinos-Lopez, O.A., Montesinos-Lopez, A., Crossa, J., Cuevas, J., Montesinos-Lopez, J.C., Salas Gutiérrez, Z., Lillemo, M., Juliana, P., Singh, R.P. In: G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics v. 9, No. 10, pg. 3381-3393.
  16. 16. Improving grain yield, stress resilience and quality of bread wheat using large-scale genomics. 2019. Juliana, P., Poland, J.A., Huerta-Espino, J., Shrestha, S., Crossa, J., Crespo-Herrera, L.A., Toledo, F.H., Velu, G., Mondal, S., Kumar, U., Bhavani, S., Singh, P.K., Randhawa, M.S., Xinyao He, Guzman, C., Dreisigacker, S., Rouse, M.N., Yue Jin, Perez-Rodriguez, P., Montesinos-Lopez, O.A., Singh, D., Rahman, M.M., Marza, F., Singh, R.P. In: Nature Genetics v. 51, no. 10, pg. 1530-1539.
  17. Malting barley grain quality and yield response to nitrogen fertilization in the Arsi highlands of Ethiopia. 2019. Kassie, M., Fantaye, K. T. In: Journal of Crop Science and Biotechnology v. 22, no. 3, pg. 225-234.
  18. 18. Synergistic impacts of agricultural credit and extension on adoption of climate-smart agricultural technologies in southern Africa. 2019. Makate, C., Makate, M., Mutenje, M., Mango, N., Siziba, S. In: Environmental Development v. 32, art. 100458.
  19. An early warning system to predict and mitigate wheat rust diseases in Ethiopia. 2019. Allen, C., Thurston, W., Meyer, M., Nure, E., Bacha, N., Alemayehu, Y., Stutt, R., Safka, D., Craig, A.P., Derso, E., Burgin, L., Millington, S., Hort, M.C., Hodson, D.P., Gilligan, C.A. In: Environmental Research Letters v. 14, no. 11, art. 115004.
  20. 20. Understanding the relations between farmers’ seed demand and research methods: the challenge to do better. 2019. Almekinders, C., Beumer, K., Hauser, M., Misiko, M.T., Gatto, M., Nkurumwa, A.O., Erenstein, O. In: Outlook on Agriculture v. 48, no. 1, pg. 16-21.
  21. 21. Climate action for food security in South Asia? Analyzing the role of agriculture in nationally determined contributions to the Paris agreement. 2019. Amjath Babu, T.S., Aggarwal, P.K., Vermeulen, S. In: Climate Policy v. 19 no. 3, pg. 283-298.
  22. Future changes and uncertainty in decision-relevant measures of East African climate. 2019. Bornemann, F.J., Rowell, D.P., Evans, B., Lapworth, D.J., Lwiza, K., Macdonald, D.M.J., Marsham, J.H., Fantaye, K. T., Ascott, M.J., Way, C. In: Climatic Change v. 156, no. 3, pg. 365-384.
  23. Women’s time use and implications: for participation in cacao value chains: evidence from VRAEM, Peru. 2019. Armbruster, S., Solomon, J., Blare, T., Donovan, J.A. In: Development in Practice v. 29, no. 7, pg. 827-843.
  24. Estimates of the willingness to pay for locally grown tree fruits in Cusco, Peru. 2019. Blare, T., Donovan, J.A, Pozo, C. del. In: Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems v. 34, no. 1, pg. 50-61.
  25. 25. Smallholders’ coping mechanisms with wheat rust epidemics: lessons from Ethiopia. Debello, M. J., Hodson, D.P., Abeyo Bekele Geleta, Yirga, C., Erenstein, O. In: PLoS One v. 14 no. 7, art. e0219327.
  26. Fields on fire: alternatives to crop residue burning in India. 2019. Shyamsundar, P., Springer, N., Tallis, H., Polasky, S., Jat, M.L., Sidhu, H.S., Krishnapriya, P.P., Skiba, N., Ginn, W., Ahuja, V., Cummins, J., Datta, I., Dholakia, H.H., Dixon, J., Gerard, B., Gupta, R., Hellmann, J., Jadhav, A., Jat, H.S., Keil, A., Ladha, J.K., Lopez-Ridaura, S., Nandrajog, S., Paul, S., Ritter, A., Sharma, P.C., Singh, R., Singh, D., Somanathan, R. In: Science v. 365, no. 6453 pg. 536-538.
  27. Climate shock adaptation for Kenyan maize-legume farmers: choice, complementarities and substitutions between strategies. 2019. Tongruksawattana, S., Wainaina, P. In: Climate and Development v. 11, no. 8, pg. 710-722.
  28. Development of a participatory approach for mapping climate risks and adaptive interventions (CS-MAP) in Vietnam’s Mekong River Delta. 2019. Bui Tan Yen, Nguyen Hong Son, Le Thanh Tung, Amjath Babu, T.S., Sebastian, L. In: Climate Risk Management v. 24, pg. 59-70.
  29.  Genetic divergence and diversity in Himalayan Puccinia striiformis populations from Bhutan, Nepal, and Pakistan. 2019. Khan, M.R., Rehman, Z., Nazir, S.N., Tshewang, S., Baidya, S., Hodson, D.P., Imtiaz, M., Sajid Ali In: Phytopathology v. 109, no. 10, pg. 1793-1800.
  30. Herencia de la resistencia del trigo (Triticum aestivum L.) huites F95 a roya amarilla causada por Puccinia striiformis F. sp. tritici W. = Inheritance of resistance to yellow rust caused by Puccinia striiformis F. sp. tritici on huites F95 wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). 2019. Rodriguez-Garcia, M.F., Huerta-Espino, J., Rojas Martínez, R.I., Singh, R.P., Villaseñor Mir, H.E., Zavaleta Mejía, E., Sandoval-Islas, S., Crossa, J, Caixia Lan In: Agrociencia v. 53, no. 5, pg. 765-780.

Conservation agriculture for sustainable intensification in Eastern India

Written by Marcia MacNeil on . Posted in Publications.

A new policy brief produced by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) lays out a clear case for the benefits and importance of conservation agriculture, and a road map for accelerating its adoption in Eastern India.

A collaborative effort by research and policy partners including ICAR, the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS), The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), and national academic and policy institutions, the brief represents the outputs of years of both rigorous scientific research and stakeholder consultations.

Eastern India — an area comprising seven states — is one of the world’s most densely populated areas, and a crucial agricultural zone, feeding more than a third of India’s population. The vast majority — more than 80% — of its farmers are smallholders, earning on average, just over half the national per capita income.

Conservation agriculture (CA) consists of farming practices that aim to maintain and boost yields and increase profits while reversing land degradation, protecting the environment and responding to climate change. These practices include minimal mechanical soil disturbance, permanent soil cover with living or dead plant material, and crop diversification through rotation or intercropping. A number of studies have shown the success of conservation agriculture in combatting declining factor productivity, deteriorating soil health, water scarcity, labor shortages, and climate change in India.

The road map lists recommended steps for regional and national policy makers, including

  • establishing a database repository on conservation agriculture for eastern India,
  • setting up common learning platform and sites for science-based evidence on CA,
  • developing an effective and productive supply chain system for CA machinery,
  • offering subsidies for CA machinery as incentives to farmers,
  • adopting pricing strategies to encourage market demand for sustained adoption of CA,
  • developing synergies for effective coordination between NARS and CGIAR institutions, and
  • building capacity among stakeholders.

Read the full policy brief here:

Conservation Agriculture for Sustainable Intensification in Eastern India

A combine harvester equipped with the Super SMS (left) harvests rice while a tractor equipped with the Happy Seeder is used for direct seeding of wheat. (Photo: Sonalika Tractors)
A combine harvester equipped with the Super SMS (left) harvests rice while a tractor equipped with the Happy Seeder is used for direct seeding of wheat. (Photo: Sonalika Tractors)

Partners include the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), the National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS), the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), the Trust for Advancement of Agricultural Sciences (TAAS), the Borlaug Institute for South Asia (BISA), Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Bihar Agricultural University, and the Department of Agriculture of the state of Bihar.

 

Women harvest wheat in India. (Photo: J. Cumes/CIMMYT)

New publications: From working in the fields to taking control

Written by Alison Doody on . Posted in Publications. 1 Comment on New publications: From working in the fields to taking control

Using data from 12 communities across four Indian states, an international team of researchers has shed new light on how women are gradually innovating and influencing decision-making in wheat-based systems.

The study, published this month in The European Journal of Development Research, challenges stereotypes of men being the sole decision-makers in wheat-based systems and performing all the work. The authors, which include researchers from the CGIAR Research Program on Wheat (WHEAT)-funded GENNOVATE initiative, show that women adopt specific strategies to further their interests in the context of wheat-based livelihoods.

In parts of India, agriculture has become increasingly feminized in response to rising migration of men from rural areas to cities. An increasing proportion of women, relative to men, are working in the fields. However, little is known about whether these women are actually taking key decisions.

The authors distinguish between high gender gap communities — identified as economically vibrant and highly male-dominant — and low gender gap communities, which are also economically vibrant but where women have a stronger say and more room to maneuver.

The study highlights six strategies women adopt to participate actively in decision-making. These range from less openly challenging strategies that the authors term acquiescence, murmuring, and quiet co-performance (typical of high gender gap communities), to more assertive ones like active consultation, women managing, and finally, women deciding (low gender gap communities).

In acquiescence, for example, women are fully conscious that men do not expect them to take part in agricultural decision-making, but do not articulate any overt forms of resistance.

In quiet co-performance, some middle-income women in high gender gap communities begin to quietly support men’s ability to innovate, for example by helping to finance the innovation, and through carefully nuanced ‘suggestions’ or ‘advice.’ They don’t openly question that men take decisions in wheat production. Rather, they appear to use male agency to support their personal and household level goals.

In the final strategy, women take all decisions in relation to farming and innovation. Their husbands recognize this process is happening and support it.

A wheat farmer in India. (Photo: J. Cumes/CIMMYT)
A wheat farmer in India. (Photo: J. Cumes/CIMMYT)

“One important factor in stronger women’s decision-making capacity is male outmigration. This is a reality in several of the low gender gap villages studied—and it is a reality in many other communities in India. Another is education—many women and their daughters talked about how empowering this is,” said gender researcher and lead-author Cathy Farnworth.

In some communities, the study shows, women and men are adapting by promoting women’s “managerial” decision-making. However, the study also shows that in most locations the extension services have failed to recognize the new reality of male absence and women decision-makers. This seriously hampers women, and is restricting agricultural progress.

Progressive village heads are critical to progress, too. In some communities, they are inclusive of women but in others, they marginalize women. Input suppliers — including machinery providers — also have a vested interest in supporting women farm managers. Unsurprisingly, without the support of extension services, village heads, and other important local actors, women’s ability to take effective decisions is reduced.

“The co-authors, partners at Glasgow Caledonian University and in India, were very important to both obtaining the fieldwork data, and the development of the typology” said Lone Badstue, researcher at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and another co-author of the paper.

The new typology will allow researchers and development partners to better understand empowerment dynamics and women’s agency in agriculture. The authors argue that development partners should support these strategies but must ultimately leave them in the hands of women themselves to manage.

“It’s an exciting study because the typology can be used by anyone to distinguish between the ways women (and men) express their ideas and get to where they want”, concluded Farnworth.

Read the full article in The European Journal of Development Research:
From Working in the Fields to Taking Control. Towards a Typology of Women’s Decision-Making in Wheat in India

Women harvest wheat in India. (Photo: J. Cumes/CIMMYT)
Women harvest wheat in India. (Photo: J. Cumes/CIMMYT)

See more recent publications from CIMMYT researchers:

  1. isqg: A Binary Framework for in Silico Quantitative Genetics. 2019. Toledo, F.H., Perez-Rodriguez, P., Crossa, J., Burgueño, J. In: G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics v. 9, no. 8, pag. 2425-2428
  2. Short-term impacts of conservation agriculture on soil physical properties and productivity in the midhills of Nepal. 2019. Laborde, J.P., Wortmann, C.S., Blanco-Canqui, H., McDonald, A., Baigorria, G.A., Lindquist, J.L. In: Agronomy Journal v.111, no. 4, pag. 2128-2139.
  3. Meloidogyne arenaria attacking eggplant in Souss region, Morocco. 2019. Mokrini, F., El Aimani, A., Abdellah Houari, Bouharroud, R., Ahmed Wifaya, Dababat, A.A. In: Australasian Plant Disease Notes v. 14, no. 1, art. 30.
  4. Differences in women’s and men’s conservation of cacao agroforests in coastal Ecuador. 2019. Blare, T., Useche, P. In: Environmental Conservation v. 46, no. 4, pag. 302-309.
  5. Assessment of the individual and combined effects of Rht8 and Ppd-D1a on plant height, time to heading and yield traits in common wheat. 2019. Kunpu Zhang, Junjun Wang, Huanju Qin, Zhiying Wei, Libo Hang, Pengwei Zhang, Reynolds, M.P., Daowen Wang In: The Crop Journal v. 7, no. 6, pag. 845-856.
  6. Quantifying carbon for agricultural soil management: from the current status toward a global soil information system. 2019. Paustian, K., Collier, S., Baldock, J., Burgess, R., Creque, J., DeLonge, M., Dungait, J., Ellert, B., Frank, S., Goddard, T., Govaerts, B., Grundy, M., Henning, M., Izaurralde, R.C., Madaras, M., McConkey, B., Porzig, E., Rice, C., Searle, R., Seavy, N., Skalsky, R., Mulhern, W., Jahn, M. In: Carbon Management v. 10, no. 6, pag. 567-587.
  7. Factors contributing to maize and bean yield gaps in Central America vary with site and agroecological conditions. 2019. Eash, L., Fonte, S.J., Sonder, K., Honsdorf, N., Schmidt, A., Govaerts, B., Verhulst, N. In: Journal of Agricultural Science v. 157, no. 4, pag. 300-317.
  8. Genome editing, gene drives, and synthetic biology: will they contribute to disease-resistance crops, and who will benefit?. 2019. Pixley, K.V., Falck-Zepeda, J.B., Giller, K.E., Glenna, L.L., Gould, F., Mallory-Smith, C., Stelly, D.M., Stewart Jr, C.N. In: Annual Review of Phytopathology v. 57, pag. 165-188.
  9. Rice mealybug (Brevennia rehi): a potential threat to rice in a long-term rice-based conservation agriculture system in the middle Indo-Gangetic Plain. 2019. Mishra, J. S., Poonia, S. P., Choudhary, J.S., Kumar, R., Monobrullah, M., Verma, M., Malik, R.K., Bhatt, B. P. In: Current Science v. 117, no. 4, 566-568.
  10. Trends in key soil parameters under conservation agriculture-based sustainable intensification farming practices in the Eastern Ganga Alluvial Plains. 2019. Sinha, A.K., Ghosh, A., Dhar, T., Bhattacharya, P.M., Mitra, B., Rakesh, S., Paneru, P., Shrestha, R., Manandhar, S., Beura, K., Dutta, S.K., Pradhan, A.K., Rao, K.K., Hossain, A., Siddquie, N., Molla, M.S.H., Chaki, A.K., Gathala, M.K., Saiful Islam., Dalal, R.C., Gaydon, D.S., Laing, A.M., Menzies, N.W. In: Soil Research v. 57, no. 8, Pag. 883-893.
  11. Genetic contribution of synthetic hexaploid wheat to CIMMYT’s spring bread wheat breeding germplasm. 2019. Rosyara, U., Kishii, M., Payne, T.S., Sansaloni, C.P., Singh, R.P., Braun, HJ., Dreisigacker, S. In: Nature Scientific Reports v. 9, no. 1, art. 12355.
  12. Joint use of genome, pedigree, and their interaction with environment for predicting the performance of wheat lines in new environments. 2019. Howard, R., Gianola, D., Montesinos-Lopez, O.A., Juliana, P., Singh, R.P., Poland, J.A., Shrestha, S., Perez-Rodriguez, P., Crossa, J., Jarquín, D. In: G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics v. 9, no. 9 pag. 2925-2934.
  13. Deep kernel for genomic and near infrared predictions in multi-environment breeding trials. 2019. Cuevas, J., Montesinos-Lopez, O.A., Juliana, P., Guzman, C., Perez-Rodriguez, P., González-Bucio, J., Burgueño, J., Montesinos-Lopez, A., Crossa, J. In: G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics v. 9. No. 9, pag. 2913-2924.
  14. Multi-environment QTL analysis using an updated genetic map of a widely distributed Seri × Babax spring wheat population. 2019. Caiyun Liu, Khodaee, M., Lopes, M.S., Sansaloni, C.P., Dreisigacker, S., Sukumaran, S., Reynolds, M.P. In: Molecular Breeding v. 39, no. 9, art. 134.
  15. Characterization of Ethiopian wheat germplasm for resistance to four Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici races facilitated by single-race nurseries. 2019. Hundie, B., Girma, B., Tadesse, Z., Edae, E., Olivera, P., Hailu, E., Worku Denbel Bulbula, Abeyo Bekele Geleta, Badebo, A., Cisar, G., Brown-Guedira, G., Gale, S., Yue Jin, Rouse, M.N. In: Plant Disease v. 103, no. 9, pag. 2359-2366.
  16. Marker assisted transfer of stripe rust and stem rust resistance genes into four wheat cultivars. 2019. Randhawa, M.S., Bains, N., Sohu, V.S., Chhuneja Parveen, Trethowan, R.M., Bariana, H.S., Bansal, U. In: Agronomy v. 9, no. 9, art. 497.
  17. Design and experiment of anti-vibrating and anti-wrapping rotary components for subsoiler cum rotary tiller. 2019. Kan Zheng, McHugh, A., Hongwen Li, Qingjie Wang, Caiyun Lu, Hongnan Hu, Wenzheng Liu, Zhiqiang Zhang, Peng Liu, Jin He In: International Journal of Agricultural and Biological Engineering v. 14, no. 4, pag. 47-55.
  18. Hydrogen peroxide prompted lignification affects pathogenicity of hemi-bio-trophic pathogen Bipolaris sorokiniana to wheat. 2019. Poudel, A., Sudhir Navathe, Chand, R., Vinod Kumar Mishra, Singh, P.K., Joshi, A.K. In: Plant Pathology Journal v. 35, no. 4, pag. 287-300.
  19. Population-dependent reproducible deviation from natural bread wheat genome in synthetic hexaploid wheat. 2019. Jighly, A., Joukhadar, R., Sehgal, D., Sukhwinder-Singh, Ogbonnaya, F.C., Daetwyler, H.D. In: Plant Journal v. 100, no, 4. Pag. 801-812.
  20. How do informal farmland rental markets affect smallholders’ well-being? Evidence from a matched tenant–landlord survey in Malawi. 2019. Ricker-Gilbert, J., Chamberlin, J., Kanyamuka, J., Jumbe, C.B.L., Lunduka, R., Kaiyatsa, S. In: Agricultural Economics v. 50, no. 5, pag. 595-613.
  21. Distribution and diversity of cyst nematode (Nematoda: Heteroderidae) populations in the Republic of Azerbaijan, and their molecular characterization using ITS-rDNA analysis. 2019. Dababat, A.A., Muminjanov, H., Erginbas-Orakci, G., Ahmadova Fakhraddin, G., Waeyenberge, L., Senol Yildiz, Duman, N., Imren, M. In: Nematropica v. 49, no. 1, pag. 18-30.
  22. Response of IITA maize inbred lines bred for Striga hermonthica resistance to Striga asiatica and associated resistance mechanisms in southern Africa. 2019. Gasura, E., Setimela, P.S., Mabasa, S., Rwafa, R., Kageler, S., Nyakurwa, C. S. In: Euphytica v. 215, no. 10, art. 151.
  23. QTL mapping and transcriptome analysis to identify differentially expressed genes induced by Septoria tritici blotch disease of wheat. 2019. Odilbekov, F., Xinyao He, Armoniené, R., Saripella, G.V., Henriksson, T., Singh, P.K., Chawade, A. In: Agronomy v. 9, no. 9, art. 510.
  24. Molecular diversity and selective sweeps in maize inbred lines adapted to African highlands. 2019. Dagne Wegary Gissa, Chere, A.T., Prasanna, B.M., Berhanu Tadesse Ertiro, Alachiotis, N., Negera, D., Awas, G., Abakemal, D., Ogugo, V., Gowda, M., Fentaye Kassa Semagn In: Nature Scientific Reports v. 9, art. 13490.
  25. The impact of salinity on paddy production and possible varietal portfolio transition: a Vietnamese case study. 2019. Dam, T.H.T., Amjath Babu, T.S., Bellingrath-Kimura, S., Zander, P. In: Paddy and Water Environment In: 17. No. 4, pag. 771-782.

New Publications: Cropping pattern zonation of Pakistan

Written by Mike Listman on . Posted in Publications. 1 Comment on New Publications: Cropping pattern zonation of Pakistan

The tremendous diversity of crops in Pakistan has been documented in a new publication that will foster more effective and targeted policies for national agriculture.

Using official records and geospatial modeling to describe the location, extent, and management of 25 major and minor crops grown in 144 districts of Pakistan, the publication “Cropping Pattern Zonation of Pakistan” offers an invaluable tool for resource planning and policymaking to address opportunities, challenges and risks for farm productivity and profitability, according to Muhammad Imtiaz, crop scientist and country representative in Pakistan for the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT).

“With rising temperatures, more erratic rainfall and frequent weather extremes, cropping pattern decisions are of the utmost importance for risk mitigation and adaptation,” said Imtiaz, a co-author of the new publication.

Featuring full-color maps for Pakistan’s two main agricultural seasons, based on area sown to individual crops, the publication was put together by CIMMYT and the Climate, Energy and Water Research Institute (CEWRI) of the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC), with technical and financial support from the Agricultural Innovation Program (AIP) for Pakistan, which is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

Pakistan’s main crops–wheat, rice, cotton and sugarcane—account for nearly three-quarters of national crop production. Various food and non-food crops are grown in “Rabi,” the dry winter season, October-March, and “Kharif,” the summer season characterized by high temperatures and monsoon rains.

Typically, more than one crop is grown in succession on a single field each year; however, despite its intensity, farming in Pakistan is largely traditional or subsistence agriculture dominated by the food grains, according to Ms. Rozina Naz, Principal Scientific Officer, CEWRI-PARC.

“Farmers face increasing aridity and unpredictable weather conditions and energy shortage challenges that impact on their decisions regarding the type and extent of crops to grow,” said the scientist, who is involved in executing the whole study. “Crop pattern zoning is a pre-requisite for the best use of land, water and capital resources.”

The study used 5 years (2013-14 to 2017-18) of data from the Department of Agricultural Statistics, Economics Wing, Ministry of National Food Security and Research, Islamabad. “We greatly appreciate the contributions of scientists and technical experts of Crop Science Institute (CSI) and CIMMYT,” Imtiaz added.

View or download the publication:
Cropping Pattern Zonation of Pakistan. Climate, Energy and Water Research Institute, National Agricultural Research Centre, Pakistan Agricultural Research Council, and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center. 2020. CDMX: CEWRI, PARC, and CIMMYT.

See more recent publications from CIMMYT researchers:

1. Plant community strategies responses to recent eruptions of Popocatépetl volcano, Mexico. 2019. Barba‐Escoto, L., Ponce-Mendoza, A., García-Romero, A., Calvillo-Medina, R.P. In: Journal of Vegetation Science v. 30, no. 2, pag. 375-385.

2. New QTL for resistance to Puccinia polysora Underw in maize. 2019. Ce Deng, Huimin Li, Zhimin Li, Zhiqiang Tian, Jiafa Chen, Gengshen Chen, Zhang, X, Junqiang Ding, Yuxiao Chang In: Journal of Applied Genetics v. 60, no. 2, pag. 147-150.

3. Hybrid wheat: past, present and future. 2019. Pushpendra Kumar Gupta, Balyan, H.S., Vijay Gahlaut, Pal, B., Basnet, B.R., Joshi, A.K. In: Theoretical and Applied Genetics v. 132, no. 9, pag. 2463-2483.

4. Influence of tillage, fertiliser regime and weeding frequency on germinable weed seed bank in a subhumid environment in Zimbabwe. 2019. Mashavakure, N., Mashingaidze, A.B., Musundire, R., Gandiwa, E., Thierfelder, C., Muposhi, V.K., Svotwa, E.In: South African Journal of Plant and Soil v. 36, no. 5, pag. 319-327.

5.  Identification and mapping of two adult plant leaf rust resistance genes in durum. 2019. Caixia Lan, Zhikang Li, Herrera-Foessel, S., Huerta-Espino, J., Basnet, B.R., In: Molecular Breeding v. 39, no. 8, art. 118.

6. Genetic mapping reveals large-effect QTL for anther extrusion in CIMMYT spring wheat. 2019. Muqaddasi, Q.H., Reif, J.C., Roder, M.S., Basnet, B.R., Dreisigacker, S. In: Agronomy v. 9 no. 7, art. 407.

7. Growth analysis of brachiariagrasses and ‘tifton 85’ bermudagrass as affected by harvest interval. 2019. Silva, V. J. da., Faria, A.F.G., Pequeno, D.N.L., Silva, L.S., Sollenberger, L.E., Pedreira, C. G. S. In: Crop Science v. 59, no. 4, pag. 1808-1814.

8. Simultaneous biofortification of wheat with zinc, iodine, selenium, and iron through foliar treatment of a micronutrient cocktail in six countries. 2019. Chunqin Zou, Yunfei Du, Rashid, A., Ram, H., Savasli, E., Pieterse, P.J., Ortiz-Monasterio, I., Yazici, A., Kaur, C., Mahmood, K., Singh, S., Le Roux, M.R., Kuang, W., Onder, O., Kalayci, M., Cakmak, I. In: Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry v. 67, no. 29, pag. 8096-8106.

9. Economic impact of maize stem borer (Chilo partellus) attack on livelihood of maize farmers in Pakistan. 2019. Ali, A., Issa, A.B. In: Asian Journal of Agriculture and Biology v. 7, no. 2, pag. 311-319.

10. How much does climate change add to the challenge of feeding the planet this century?. 2019. Aggarwal, P.K., Vyas, S., Thornton, P.K., Campbell, B.M. In: Environmental Research Letters v. 14 no. 4, art. 043001.

11. A breeding strategy targeting the secondary gene pool of bread wheat: introgression from a synthetic hexaploid wheat. 2019. Ming Hao, Lianquan Zhang, Laibin Zhao, Shoufen Dai, Aili Li, Wuyun Yang, Die Xie, Qingcheng Li, Shunzong Ning, Zehong Yan, Bihua Wu, Xiujin Lan, Zhongwei Yuan, Lin Huang, Jirui Wang, Ke Zheng, Wenshuai Chen, Ma Yu, Xuejiao Chen, Mengping Chen, Yuming Wei, Huaigang Zhang, Kishii, M, Hawkesford, M.J, Long Mao, Youliang Zheng, Dengcai Liu In: Theoretical and Applied Genetics v. 132, no. 8, pag. 2285-2294.

12. Sexual reproduction of Zymoseptoria tritici on durum wheat in Tunisia revealed by presence of airborne inoculum, fruiting bodies and high levels of genetic diversity. 2019. Hassine, M., Siah, A., Hellin, P., Cadalen, T., Halama, P., Hilbert, J.L., Hamada, W., Baraket, M., Yahyaoui, A.H., Legreve, A., Duvivier, M. In: Fungal Biology v. 123, no. 10, pag. 763-772.

13. Influence of variety and nitrogen fertilizer on productivity and trait association of malting barley. 2019. Kassie, M., Fantaye, K. T. In: Journal of Plant Nutrition v. 42, no. 10, pag. 1254-1267.

14. A robust Bayesian genome-based median regression model. 2019. Montesinos-Lopez, A., Montesinos-Lopez, O.A., Villa-Diharce, E.R., Gianola, D., Crossa, J. In: Theoretical and Applied Genetics v. 132, no. 5, pag. 1587-1606.

15. High-throughput phenotyping platforms enhance genomic selection for wheat grain yield across populations and cycles in early stage. 2019. Jin Sun, Poland, J.A., Mondal, S., Crossa, J., Juliana, P., Singh, R.P., Rutkoski, J., Jannink, J.L., Crespo-Herrera, L.A., Velu, G., Huerta-Espino, J., Sorrells, M.E. In: Theoretical and Applied Genetics v. 132, no. 6, pag. 1705-1720.

16. Resequencing of 429 chickpea accessions from 45 countries provides insights into genome diversity, domestication and agronomic traits. 2019. Varshney, R.K., Thudi, M., Roorkiwal, M., Weiming He, Upadhyaya, H., Wei Yang, Bajaj, P., Cubry, P., Abhishek Rathore, Jianbo Jian, Doddamani, D., Khan, A.W., Vanika Garg, Annapurna Chitikineni, Dawen Xu, Pooran M. Gaur, Singh, N.P., Chaturvedi, S.K., Nadigatla, G.V.P.R., Krishnamurthy, L., Dixit, G.P., Fikre, A., Kimurto, P.K., Sreeman, S.M., Chellapilla Bharadwaj, Shailesh Tripathi, Jun Wang, Suk-Ha Lee, Edwards, D., Kavi Kishor Bilhan Polavarapu, Penmetsa, R.V., Crossa, J., Nguyen, H.T., Siddique, K.H.M., Colmer, T.D., Sutton, T., Von Wettberg, E., Vigouroux, Y., Xun Xu, Xin Liu In: Nature Genetics v. 51, pag. 857-864.

17. Farm typology analysis and technology assessment: an application in an arid region of South Asia. 2019. Shalander Kumar, Craufurd, P., Amare Haileslassie, Ramilan, T., Abhishek Rathore, Whitbread, A. In: Land Use Policy v. 88, art. 104149.

18. MARPLE, a point-of-care, strain-level disease diagnostics and surveillance tool for complex fungal pathogens. 2019. Radhakrishnan, G.V., Cook, N.M., Bueno-Sancho, V., Lewis, C.M., Persoons, A., Debebe, A., Heaton, M., Davey, P.E., Abeyo Bekele Geleta, Alemayehu, Y., Badebo, A., Barnett, M., Bryant, R., Chatelain, J., Xianming Chen, Suomeng Dong, Henriksson, T., Holdgate, S., Justesen, A.F., Kalous, J., Zhensheng Kang, Laczny, S., Legoff, J.P., Lesch, D., Richards, T., Randhawa, H. S., Thach, T., Meinan Wang, Hovmoller, M.S., Hodson, D.P., Saunders, D.G.O. In: BMC Biology v. 17, no. 1, art. 65.

19. Genome-wide association study for multiple biotic stress resistance in synthetic hexaploid wheat. 2019. Bhatta, M.R., Morgounov, A.I., Belamkar, V., Wegulo, S.N., Dababat, A.A., Erginbas-Orakci, G., Moustapha El Bouhssini, Gautam, P., Poland, J.A., Akci, N., Demir, L., Wanyera, R., Baenziger, P.S. In: International Journal of Molecular Sciences v. 20, no. 15, art. 3667.

20.  Genetic diversity and population structure analysis of synthetic and bread wheat accessions in Western Siberia. 2019. Bhatta, M.R., Shamanin, V., Shepelev, S.S., Baenziger, P.S., Pozherukova, V.E., Pototskaya, I.V., Morgounov, A.I. In: Journal of Applied Genetics v. 60, no. 3-4, pag. 283-289.

21. Identifying loci with breeding potential across temperate and tropical adaptation via EigenGWAS and EnvGWAS. 2019. Jing Li, Gou-Bo Chen, Rasheed, A., Delin Li, Sonder, K., Zavala Espinosa, C., Jiankang Wang, Costich, D.E., Schnable, P.S., Hearne, S., Huihui Li In: Molecular Ecology v. 28, no. 15, pag. 3544-3560.

22. Impacts of drought-tolerant maize varieties on productivity, risk, and resource use: evidence from Uganda. 2019. Simtowe, F.P., Amondo, E., Marenya, P. P., Rahut, D.B., Sonder, K., Erenstein, O. In: Land Use Policy v. 88, art. 104091.

23. Do market shocks generate gender-differentiated impacts?: policy implications from a quasi-natural experiment in Bangladesh. 2019. Mottaleb, K.A., Rahut, D.B., Erenstein, O. In: Women’s Studies International Forum v. 76, art. 102272.

24. Gender differences in the adoption of agricultural technology: the case of improved maize varieties in southern Ethiopia. 2019. Gebre, G.G., Hiroshi Isoda, Rahut, D.B., Yuichiro Amekawa, Hisako Nomura In: Women’s Studies International Forum v. 76, art. 102264.

25. Tracking the adoption of bread wheat varieties in Afghanistan using DNA fingerprinting. 2019. Dreisigacker, S., Sharma, R.K., Huttner, E., Karimov, A. A., Obaidi, M.Q., Singh, P.K., Sansaloni, C.P., Shrestha, R., Sonder, K., Braun, H.J. In: BMC Genomics v. 20, no. 1, art. 660.

New publications: Gender differentiated small-scale farm mechanization in Nepal hills

Written by Emma Orchardson on . Posted in Publications.

The use of small-scale mechanization in smallholder farming systems in South Asia has increased significantly in recent years. This development is a positive step towards agricultural transformation in the region. Small-scale mechanization is now seen as a viable option to address labor scarcity and offset the impact of male outmigration in rural areas, as well as other shortages that undermine agricultural productivity.

However, most existing farm mechanization technologies are either gender blind or gender neutral. This is often to the detriment of women farmers, who are increasingly taking on additional agricultural work in the absence of male laborers. Minimizing this gender disparity among smallholders has been a key concern for policymakers, but there is little empirical literature available on gender and farm mechanization.

A new study by researchers at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) addresses this gap, using data from six districts in the highlands of Nepal to assess the impact of the gender of household heads on the adoption of mini-tillers — small machinery used to prepare and cultivate land before planting.

Their findings reveal that, when it comes to mini-tiller adoption, there is a significant gender gap. Compared to male-headed households, explain the authors, the rate of adoption is significantly lower among female-headed households. Moreover, they add, when male- and female-headed households have similar observed attributes, the mini-tiller adoption rate among the food insecure female-headed households is higher than in the food secure group.

The authors argue that this gender-differentiated mini-tiller adoption rate can be minimized in the first instance by increasing market access. Their findings suggest that farm mechanization policies and programs targeted specifically to female-headed households can also help reduce this adoption gap in Nepal and similar hill production agroecologies in South Asia, which will enhance the farm yield and profitability throughout the region.

Read the full article in Technology in Society:
Gender differentiated small-scale farm mechanization in Nepal hills: An application of exogenous switching treatment regression.

Women farmers test a mini tiller on farmland in Ramghat, Nepal. (Photo: CIMMYT)

See more recent publications from CIMMYT researchers:

  1. Effect of missing values on variance component estimates in multienvironment trials. 2019. Aguate, F.M., Crossa, J., Balzarini, M. In: Crop Science v. 59, no. 2, p. 508-517.
  2. The relative efficiency of two multistage linear phenotypic selection indices to predict the net genetic merit. 2019. Ceron Rojas, J.J., Toledo, F.H., Crossa, J. In: Crop Science v. 59, no. 3, p. 1037-1051.
  3. High-density mapping of triple rust resistance in barley using DArT-Seq markers. 2019. Dracatos, P.M., Haghdoust, R., Singh, R.P., Huerta-Espino, J., Barnes, C.W., Forrest, K.L., Hayden, M., Niks, R.E., Park, R.F., Singh, D. In: Frontiers in Plant Science v. 10, art. 467.
  4. Modernising breeding for orphan crops: tools, methodologies, and beyond. 2019. Ribaut, J.M., Ragot, M. In: Planta v. 250, no. 3, p. 971-977.
  5. An update of recent use of Aegilops species in wheat breeding. 2019. Kishii, M. In: Frontiers in Plant Science v. 1., art. 585.
  6. Genetics of greenbug resistance in synthetic hexaploid wheat derived germplasm. 2019. Crespo-Herrera, L.A., Singh, R.P., Reynolds, M.P., Huerta-Espino, J. In: Frontiers in Plant Science v. 10, art. 782.
  7. Genetics for low correlation between Fusarium head blight disease and deoxynivalenol (DON) content in a bread wheat mapping population. 2019. Xinyao He, Dreisigacker, S., Singh, R.P., Singh, P.K. In: Theoretical and Applied Genetics v. 132, no. 8, 2401-2411.
  8. Studying selection criteria and genetic variability for improvement of indigenous maize in Pakistan. 2019. Maqbool, M.A., Aslam, M., Issa, A.B., Khan, M. S., Saeed, M.T. In: Pakistan Journal of Agricultural Sciences v. 56, no. 4. 819-827.
  9. Genome wide association study of karnal bunt resistance in a wheat germplasm collection from Afghanistan. 2019. Gupta, V., Xinyao He, Kumar, N., Fuentes Dávila, G., Sharma, R.K., Dreisigacker, S., Juliana, P., Ataei, N., Singh, P.K. In: International Journal of Molecular Sciences v. 20, no. 13, art. 3124.
  10. Does caste determine farmer access to quality information? 2019. Krishna, V.V., Aravalath, L., Vikraman, S. In: PLoS One v. 14, no. 1, art. e0210721.
  11. Estimation of physiological genomic estimated breeding values (PGEBV) combining full hyperspectral and marker data across environments for grain yield under combined heat and drought stress in tropical maize (Zea mays L.). 2019. Trachsel, S., Dhliwayo, T., Gonzalez-Perez, L., Mendoza Lugo, J.A., Trachsel, M. In: PLoS One v. 14, no. 3, art. e0212200.
  12. Genetic diversity and linkage disequilibrium using SNP (KASP) and AFLP markers in a worldwide durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. var durum) collection. 2019. Roncallo, P.F., Beaufort, V., Larsen, A.O., Dreisigacker, S., Echenique, V. In: PLoS One v. 14, no. 6, art. e0218562.
  13. The abandonment of maize landraces over the last 50 years in Morelos, Mexico: a tracing study using a multi-level perspective. 2019. McLean R., F.D., Camacho Villa, T.C., Almekinders, C., Pè, M.E., Dell’Acqua, M., Costich, D.E. In: Agriculture and Human Values v. 36, no. 4, 651-668.
  14. Molecular screening of Zymoseptoria tritici resistance genes in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) using tightly linked simple sequence repeat markers. 2019. Mekonnen, T., Haileselassie, T., Kaul, T., Sharma, M., Abeyo Bekele Geleta, Kassahun, T. In: European Journal of Plant Pathology v. 155, no. 2, p. 593-614.
  15. Bacterial diversity based on a 16S rRNA gene amplicon data set from a high-altitude crater lake and glacial samples of the Iztaccihuatl volcanic complex (Mexico). 2019. Calvillo-Medina, R.P., Reyes‐Grajeda, J.P., Moreno-Andrade, V.D., Barba‐Escoto, L., Bautista‐de Lucio, V.M., Jones, G.H., Campos‐Guillen, J. In: Microbiology Resource Announcements v. 8, no. 12, art. e01636-18art. e01636-18art. e01636-18art. e01636-18art. e01636-18art. e01636-18.
  16. Mitigating the twin problems of malnutrition and wheat blast by one wheat variety, ‘BARI Gom 33’, in Bangladesh. 2019. Hossain, A., Mottaleb, K.A., Farhad, M., Barma, N.C.D. In: Acta Agrobotanica v. 72, no. 2, art. 1775.
  17. Sun-induced chlorophyll fluorescence III: benchmarking retrieval methods and sensor characteristics for proximal sensing. 2019. Cendrero-Mateo, M.P., Wieneke, S., Damm, A., Alonso, L., Pinto Espinosa, F., Moreno, J., Guanter, L., Celesti, M., Rossini, M., Sabater, N., Cogliati, S., Julitta, T., Rascher, U., Goulas, Y., Aasen, H., Pacheco-Labrador, J., Mac Arthur, A. In: Remote Sensing v. 11, no. 8, art. 962.
  18. Yield gains and associated changes in an early yellow bi-parental maize population following genomic selection for Striga resistance and drought tolerance. 2019. Badu-Apraku, B., Talabi, O., Fakorede, M. A. B., Fasanmade, Y., Gedil, M., Magorokosho, C., Asiedu, R. In: BMC Plant Biology v. 9, art. 129.
  19. Understanding factors associated with agricultural mechanization: a Bangladesh case. 2019. Aryal, J.P., Rahut, D.B., Maharjan, S., Erenstein, O. In: World Development Perspectives v. 13, p. 1-9.
  20. Wealth, education and cooking-fuel choices among rural households in Pakistan. 2019. Rahut, D.B., Ali, A., Mottaleb, K.A., Aryal, J.P. In: Energy Strategy Reviews v. 24, p. 236-243.
  21. Genome-wide association study and genomic prediction analyses of drought stress tolerance in China in a collection of off-PVP maize inbred lines. 2019. Nan Wang, Bojuan Liu, Xiaoling Liang, Yueheng Zhou, Song, J., Jie Yang, Hongjun Yong, Jianfeng Weng, Degui Zhang, Mingshun Li, Nair, S.K., San Vicente, F.M., Zhuanfang Hao, Zhang, X, Xinhai Li. In: Molecular Breeding v. 39, no. 8, art. 113.
  22. Wildlife trade and consumer preference for species rarity: an examination of caged-bird markets in Sumatra. 2019. Krishna, V.V., Darras, K., Grass, I., Mulyani, Y.A., Prawiradilaga, D.M., Tscharntke, T., Qaim, M. In: Environment and Development Economics v. 24, no. 4, p. 339-360.
  23. Correction to: high-throughput method for ear phenotyping and kernel weight estimation in maize using ear digital imaging. 2019. Makanza, R., Zaman-Allah, M., Cairns, J.E., Eyre, J., Burgueño, J., Pacheco Gil, R. A., Diepenbrock, C., Magorokosho, C., Amsal Tesfaye Tarekegne, Olsen, M., Prasanna, B.M. In: Plant methods v. 15, art. 52.
  24. Tradeoffs between groundwater conservation and air pollution from agricultural fires in northwest India. 2019. Singh, B., McDonald, A., Srivastava, A., Gerard, B. In: Nature Sustainability v. 2 no. 7, p. 580-583.
A wheat field in Pakistan, ready for harvest. (Photo: Kashif Syed/CIMMYT)

CIMMYT and Pakistan: 60 years of collaboration

Written by Mike Listman on . Posted in Publications. 1 Comment on CIMMYT and Pakistan: 60 years of collaboration

A new fact sheet captures the impact of CIMMYT after six decades of maize and wheat research in Pakistan.

Dating back to the 1960s, the research partnership between Pakistan and CIMMYT has played a vital role in improving food security for Pakistanis and for the global spread of improved crop varieties and farming practices.

Norman Borlaug, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and first director of CIMMYT wheat research, kept a close relationship with the nation’s researchers and policymakers. CIMMYT’s first training course participant from Pakistan, Manzoor A. Bajwa, introduced the high-yielding wheat variety “Mexi-Pak” from CIMMYT to help address the national food security crisis. Pakistan imported 50 tons of Mexi-Pak seed in 1966, the largest seed purchase of its time, and two years later became the first Asian country to achieve self-sufficiency in wheat, with a national production of 6.7 million tons.

CIMMYT researchers in Pakistan examine maize cobs. (Photo: CIMMYT)
CIMMYT researchers in Pakistan examine maize cobs. (Photo: CIMMYT)

In 2019 Pakistan harvested 26 million tons of wheat, which roughly matches its annual consumption of the crop.

In line with Pakistan’s National Food Security Policy and with national partners, CIMMYT contributes to Pakistan’s efforts to intensify maize- and wheat-based cropping in ways that improve food security, raise farmers’ income, and reduce environmental impacts. This has helped Pakistani farmers to figure among South Asia’s leaders in adopting improved maize and wheat varieties, zero tillage for sowing wheat, precision land leveling, and other innovations.

With funding from USAID, since 2013 CIMMYT has coordinated the work of a broad network of partners, both public and private, to boost the productivity and climate resilience of agri-food systems for wheat, maize, and rice, as well as livestock, vegetable, and fruit production.

Download the fact sheet:
CIMMYT and Pakistan: 60 years of collaboration

Cover photo: A wheat field in Pakistan, ready for harvest. (Photo: Kashif Syed/CIMMYT)