funder_partner: CGIAR Research Program on Maize (MAIZE)
The CGIAR Research Program on Maize (MAIZE) is an international collaboration between more than 300 partners that seeks to mobilize global resources in maize research and development to achieve a greater strategic impact on maize-based farming systems in Africa, Latin America and South Asia.
Led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) as its main CGIAR partner, MAIZE focuses on increasing maize production for the 900 million poor consumers for whom maize is a staple food in Africa, Latin America and South Asia. MAIZEâs overarching goal is to double maize productivity and increase incomes and livelihood opportunities from sustainable maize-based farming systems.
MAIZE Flagship Projects (FPs) and Cluster of Activities
FP1: Enhancing MAIZEâs R4D strategy for impact
⢠Foresight and targeting of R4D strategies
⢠Learning from M&E, adoption and impacts
⢠Enhancing gender and social inclusiveness
⢠Value chain analysis
FP2: Novel diversity and tools for improving genetic gains
⢠Informatics, database management and decision support tools
⢠Development of enabling tools for germplasm improvement
⢠Unlocking genetic diversity through trait exploration and gene discovery
⢠Pre-breeding: development of germplasm resources
FP3: Stress-tolerant and nutritious maize
⢠Climate resilient maize with abiotic and biotic stress tolerance
⢠Tackling emerging trans-boundary disease/pest challenges
⢠Nutritional quality and end-use traits in elite genetic backgrounds
⢠Precision phenotyping and mechanization of breeding operations
⢠Seed production research and recommendations
⢠Stronger maize seed systems
FP4: Sustainable intensification of maize-based systems
⢠Multi-scale farming system framework to better integrate and enhance adoption of sustainable intensification options
⢠Participatory adoption and integration of technological components
⢠Development and field-testing of crop management technologies
⢠Partnership and collaborations models for scaling
CIMMYT maize germplasm bank staff preparing the order for the repatriation of Guatemalan seed varieties. (Photo: CIMMYT)
The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) maize germplasm bank recently received an award in recognition of its contributions towards the Buena Milpa initiative in Guatemala, which aims to enhance the sustainability of maize systems in the country. Denise Costich, head of the maize germplasm bank, received the award on behalf of CIMMYT during the event âMaize of Guatemala: Repatriation, conservation and sustainable use of agro-biodiversity,â held on September 7, 2018, in Guatemala City.
The seed varieties stored in the CIMMYT germplasm bank were of vital importance in efforts to restore food security in the aftermath of Hurricane Stan, which swept through Guatemala in 2005, leading to 1,500 deaths. Many farmers lost entire crops and some indigenous communities were unable to harvest seed from their traditional maize varieties, known as landraces. Generations of selection by farmers under local conditions had endowed these varieties with resistance to drought, heat, local pests and diseases. Such losses were further exacerbated by the discovery that the entire maize seed collection in Guatemalaâs national seed bank had been damaged by humidity; the seeds were vulnerable to insects and fungus and could not be replanted.
In 2016, drawing upon the backup seed stored in its maize germplasm bank in Mexico, CIMMYT sent Guatemalan collaborators seed of 785 native Guatemalan maize varieties, including some of the varieties that had been lost. Collaborators in Guatemala subsequently planted and multiplied the seed from the historic CIMMYT samples, ensuring the varieties grow well under local conditions. On completion of this process, the best materials will be returned to local and national seedbanks in Guatemala, where they will be available for farmers and researchers to grow, study and use in breeding programs.
Jointly hosted by the government of Guatemala through the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food and the Ministry of Culture and Sport, the recent ceremony signified the official delivery of the repatriated seed into the national system. Attendees celebrated the importance of maize in Guatemala and witnessed the presentation of repatriated maize collections to local and national Guatemalan seedbank authorities, including the Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology (ICTA).
âSupporting the seed conservation networks, on both the national and community levels in countries like Guatemala, is a key part of the mission of the CIMMYT Germplasm Bank,â said Costich. âOur collaboration with the Buena Milpa project has enabled the transfer of both seed and seed conservation technologies to improve the food security in communities with maize-centered diets.â
The Buena Milpa initiative in Guatemala is improving storage practices in community seed reserves: tiny, low-tech seed banks meant to serve as backups for villages in cases of catastrophic seed loss. So far, Buena Milpa has enabled 1,800 farmers to access community seed reserves. In addition, 13,000 farmers have applied improved practices and technologies.
The CIMMYT maize germplasm bank, headquartered in Mexico, serves as a backup for farmers and researchers in times of catastrophic seed loss by safeguarding maize genetic diversity, a crucial building block in global food security.
Nominations are open for the 2018 Maize-Asia Youth Innovators Awards. The first edition of these awards recognizes the contributions of young women and men below 35 years of age who are implementing innovations in Asian maize-based agri-food systems.
The awards aim to identify young innovators who can serve to inspire other young people to get involved in maize-based agri-food systems.
Winners will be given the opportunity to present their work at the 13th Asian Maize Conference in Ludhiana, India (October 8-12, 2018). They will also join a platform for young innovators from around the world to network and share their experiences.
MAIZE invites CGIAR researchers and partners to nominate young innovators for any of the following three categories:
a) Researcher: Maize research-for-development (in any discipline)
b) Farmer: Maize farming systems in Asia
c) Change agent: Maize value chains (i.e., extension agents, input and service suppliers,
transformation agents).
Felipa Martinez shows off some of her family’s maize from last year’s harvest. Photo: Matthew O’Leary
Felipa Martinez, an indigenous Mexican grandmother, grins as she shows off a bag bulging with maize cobs saved from last harvest season. With her family, she managed to farm enough maize for the year despite the increasing pressure brought by climate change.
Felipaâs grin shows satisfaction. Her main concern is her family, the healthy harvest lets her feed them without worry and sell the little left over to cover utilities.
âWhen our crops produce a good harvest I am happy because we donât have to spend our money on food. We can make our own tortillas and tostadas,â she said.
Her family belongs to the Chatino indigenous community and lives in the small town of Santiago Yaitepec in humid southern Oaxaca. They are from one of eleven marginalized indigenous communities throughout the state involved in a participatory breeding project with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) to naturally improve the quality and preserve the biodiversity of native maize.
These indigenous farmers are custodians of maize biodiversity, growing seeds passed down over generations. Their maize varieties represent a portion of the diversity found in the 59 native Mexican races of maize, or landraces, which first developed from wild grasses at the hands of their ancestors. These different types of maize diversified through generations of selective breeding, adapting to the environment, climate and cultural needs of the different communities.
In recent years, a good harvest has become increasingly unreliable, as the impacts of climate change, such as erratic rainfall and the proliferation of pests and disease, have begun to challenge native maize varieties. Rural poor and smallholder farmers, like Martinez and her family, are among the hardest hit by the mounting impacts of climate change, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
These farmers and their ancestors have thousands of years of experience selecting and breeding maize to meet their environment. However, climate change is at times outpacing their selection methods, said CIMMYT landrace improvement coordinator Martha Willcox, who works with the community and coordinates the participatory breeding project. Through the initiative, the indigenous communities work together with professional maize breeders to continuously improve and conserve their native maize.
Despite numerous challenges, farmers in the region are unwilling to give up their maize for other varieties. âThe native maize, my maize grows best here, it yields well in our environment. The maize is sweeter, it is heavier,â said Don Modesto Suarez, Felipaâs husband. âThis maize has been grown by our grandfathers and this is why I will not change it.â
Una mujer de la comunidad Chatino prepara tortillas muy grandes de maĂz criollo que son muy apreciadas en los mercados locales. Foto: Matthew OâLeary
This is because a communityâs native maize varieties are adapted to their specific microclimate, such as elevation and weather patterns, and therefore may perform better or be more resistant to local pests and diseases than other maize varieties. They may also have specific characteristics prized for local culinary traditions â for example, in Santiago Yaitepec the native maize varieties have a specific type of starch that allows for the creation of extra-large tortillas and tostadas that are in high demand in local markets.
Other varieties may not meet farmersâ specific needs or climate, and many families do not want to give up their cultural attachment to native maize, said Flavio Aragon, a genetic resources researcher at the Mexican National Institute for Forestry, Agriculture and Livestock Research (INIFAP) who collaborates with Willcox.
CIMMYT and INIFAP launched the four-year participatory plant breeding project to understand marginalized communitiesâ unique makeup and needs â including maize type, local climates, farming practices, diseases and culture â and include farmers in breeding maize to suit these needs.
âOur aim is to get the most out of the unique traits in the native maize found in the farmerâs fields. To preserve and use it to build resistance and strength without losing the authenticity,â said Aragon.
âWhen we involve farmers in the process of selection, they are watching what we are doing and they are learning techniques,â he said. âNot only about the process of genetic selection in breeding but also sustainable farming practices and this makes it easier for farmers to adopt the maize that they have worked alongside breeders to improve through the project.â
Suarez said he appreciates the help, “We are learning how to improve our maize and identify diseases. I hope more farmers in the community join in and grow with us,â he said.
When disease strikes
Chatino men stand in a maize field in Santiago Yaitepec, Oaxaca, Mexico. Tar spot complex threatened harvests, but work in participatory breeding with CIMMYT has helped local communities to improve their native maize without loosing preferred traits. (Photo: Matthew O’Leary)
Changes in weather patterns due to climate change are making it hard for farmers to know when to plant their crops to avoid serious disease. Now, a fungal disease known as tar spot complex, or TSC, is increasingly taking hold of maize crops, destroying harvests and threatening local food security, said Willcox. TSC resistance is one key trait farmers want to include in the participatory breeding.
Named for the black spots that cover infected plants, TSC causes leaves to die prematurely, weakening the plant and preventing the ears from developing fully, cutting yields by up to 50 percent or more in extreme cases.
Caused by a combination of three fungal infections, the disease occurs most often in cool and humid areas across southern Mexico, Central America and into South America. The disease is beginning to spread, possibly due to climate change, evolving pathogens and introduction of susceptible maize varieties.
âOur maize used to grow very well here, but then this disease came and now our maize doesnât grow as well,â said Suarez. âFor this reason we started to look for maize that we could exchange with our neighbors.â
A traditional breeding method for indigenous farmers is to see what works in fields of neighboring farmers and test it in their own, Willcox said.
Taking the search to the next level, Willcox turned to the CIMMYT Maize Germplasm Bank, which holds over 7000 native maize seed types collected from indigenous farmers. She tested nearly a thousand accessions in search of TSC resistance. A tedious task that saw her rate the different varieties on how they handled the disease in the field. However, the effort paid off with her team discovering two varieties that stood up to the disease. One variety, Oaxaca 280, originated from just a few hours north of where the Suarez family lives.
Farmer Modesto Suarez (left) and neighbors were originally cautious to plant Oaxaca 280 in their fields, but were pleased with the results. (Photo: Matthew OâLeary)
After testing Oaxaca 280 in their fields the farmers were impressed with the results and have now begun to include the variety in their breeding.
âOaxaca 280 is a landrace â something from Mexico â and crossing this with the communityâs maize gives 100 percent unimproved material that is from Oaxaca very close to their own,â said Willcox. âIt is really a farmer to farmer exchange of resistance from another area of Oaxaca to this landrace here.â
âThe goal is to make it as close as it can be to what the farmer currently has and to conserve the characteristics valued by farmers while improving specific problems that the farmers request help with, so that it is still similar to their native varieties and they accept it,â Aragon said.
Expanding for impact
Willcox and colleagues throughout Mexico seek to expand the participatory breeding project nationwide in a bid to preserve maize biodiversity and support rural communities.
âIf you take away their native maize you take away a huge portion of the culture that holds these communities together,â said Willcox. Participatory breeding in marginalized communities preserves maize diversity and builds rural opportunities in areas that are hotbeds for migration to the United States.
âA lack of opportunities leads to migration out of Mexico to find work in other places, a strong agricultural sector means strong rural opportunities,â she said.
To further economic opportunities in the communities, these researchers have been connecting farmers with restaurant owners in Mexico City and the United States to export surplus grain and support livelihoods. A taste for high-quality Mexican food has created a small but growing market for the native maize varieties.
The next generation: The granddaughter of Felipa Martinez and Modesto Suarez stands in her grandparent’s maize field. (Photo: Matthew O’Leary)
Native maize hold the building blocks for climate-smart crops
Native maize varieties show remarkable diversity and climate resilience that grow in a range from arid to humid environments, said Willcox. The genetic traits found in this diversity are the building blocks that can be used to develop varieties suitable for the changing crop environments predicted for 2050.
âThere is a lot of reasoning that goes into the way that these farmers farm the land, the way they decide on what they select for,â said Willcox. âThis has been going on for years and has been passed down through generations. For this reason, they have maize of such high quality with resistance to local challenges, genetic traits that now can be used to create strong varieties to help farmers in Mexico and around the world.â
It is key to analyze the genetic variability of native maize, and support the family farmers who conserve it in their fields, she added. This biodiversity still sown and selected throughout diverse microclimates of Mexico holds the traits we need to protect our food supplies.
To watch a video on CIMMYT’s work in this community, please click here.
This work has been conducted as part of the CIMMYT-led MasAgro project in collaboration with INIFAP, and supported by Mexicoâs Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA) and the CGIAR Research Program MAIZE.Â
Over two billion people across the world suffer from hidden hunger, the consumption of a sufficient number of calories, but still lacking essential nutrients such as vitamin A, iron or zinc. This can cause severe damage to health, blindness, or even death.
At the 4th annual Latin American Cereals Conference (LACC) in Mexico City from 11 to 14 March, presenters discussed global malnutrition and how biofortification of staple crops can be used to improve nutrition for farming families and consumers.
Wolfgang Pfeiffer of HarvestPlus presents on malnutrition and stunting. Photo: Jennifer Johnson/CIMMYT.
âA stunted child will never live up to its full potential,â said Wolfgang Pfeiffer, director of research and development at HarvestPlus, as he showed a slide comparing the brain of a healthy infant versus a stunted one.
Hidden hunger and stunting, or impaired development, are typically associated with poverty and diets high in staple crops such as rice or maize. Biofortification of essential nutrients into these staple crops has the potential to reduce malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies around the world.
âMaize is a staple crop for over 900 million poor consumers, including 120-140 million poor families. Around 73% of farmland dedicated to maize production worldwide is located in the developing world,â said B.M. Prasanna, director of the CGIAR Research Program on Maize (MAIZE) at LACC.
The important role of maize in global diets and the rich genetic diversity of the crop has allowed for important breakthroughs in biofortifcation. The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) has over 40 years of experience in maize breeding for biofortification, beginning with quality protein maize (QPM), which has enhanced levels of lysine and tryptophan, essential amino acids, which can help reduce malnutrition in children.
B.M. Prasanna discusses the history of maize biofortification at the LACC conference. Photo: Mike Listman/CIMMYT.
âOver 50 QPM varieties have been adopted in Latin America and the Caribbean and sub-Saharan Africa, and three new QPM hybrids were released in India in 2017 using marker assisted breeding,â said Prasanna.
In more recent years, CIMMYT has worked with MAIZE and HarvestPlus to develop provitamin A maize to reduce vitamin A deficiency, the leading cause of preventable blindness in children, affecting 5.2 million preschool-age children globally, according to the World Health Organization. This partnership launched their first zinc-enriched maize varieties in Honduras in 2017 and Colombia in 2018, with releases of new varieties planned in Guatemala and Nicaragua later this year. Zinc deficiency can lead to impaired growth and development, respiratory infections, diarrheal disease and a general weakening of the immune system.
âThere is a huge deficiency of vitamin A, iron and zinc around the world,â said Natalia Palacios, maize nutritional quality specialist at CIMMYT. âThe beauty of maize is its huge genetic diversity that has allowed us to develop these biofortified varieties using conventional breeding methods. The best way to take advantage of maize nutritional benefits is through biofortification, processing and functional food,â she said.
Natalia Palacios discusses the development of biofortified varieties such as provitamin A and zinc-enriched maize. Photo: Mike Listman/CIMMYT.
The effects of these varieties are already beginning to show. Recent studies have shown that vitamin A maize improves vitamin A status and night vision of 4-8 year old rural children in Zambia.
âBiofortified crops are in testing in over 60 countries, 7.5 million households are growing biofortified crops, and over 35 million household members are consuming them,â said Pfeiffer. âIt is critical to involve farmers in the development of biofortified crop varieties before they are released, through participatory variety selection.â
Overall, the conference presenters agreed that ending hidden hunger will require cooperation and partnerships from multiple sectors and disciplines. âPartnerships with seed companies are crucial for biofortified maize to make an impact. This is not just about technological advances and developing new products, this is about enabling policies, stimulating demand, and increasing awareness about the benefits of these varieties,â said Prasanna.
Left to right: Miguel Lengua, director general of Maxi Semillas S.A.S; Bram Govaerts, Latin America regional director at CIMMYT; Martin Kropff, CIMMYT director general; Howdy Bouis, interim HarvestPlus CEO; and Felix San Vicente, CIMMYT maize breeder; at the launch of new biofortified zinc maize. (Photo: Jennifer Johnson/CIMMYT)
Cali, Colombia (CIMMYT) — A new zinc-enriched maize variety was released in Colombia on February 23 to help combat malnutrition in South America.
Zinc is an essential mineral that plays an important role in human development but is not naturally produced by humans. Zinc deficiency can lead to impaired growth and development, respiratory infections, diarrheal disease and a general weakening of the immune system. In Colombia, an average of 22 percent of the population is affected by zinc deficiency. However, in certain regions, such as the pacific coast and Amazonia, up to 65 percent of the population is deficient in zinc.
CIMMYT Director General Martin Kropff speaks at the launch of zinc-enriched maize. (Photo: Jennifer Johnson/CIMMYT)
âThe support that CIMMYT and CIAT have received from HarvestPlus has been fundamental in allowing our researchers to develop crops with enhanced vitamin and mineral content,â said Martin Kropff, CIMMYT director general. âThe improved maize that we present today is an important example of the impact we can have when we work together in partnership.â
The minimum daily requirement for zinc is 15mg, but not everyone has access to foods with naturally occurring quantities of zinc, which makes this zinc-enriched maize variety a boost for nutrition in a region where maize is a staple food.
BIO-MZN01 contains 36 percent more zinc on average than other maize varieties, meaning that arepas (a common maize-based Colombian dish) made of this new variety offer consumers up to five times more zinc than those made with traditional varieties. Additionally, BIO-MZN01 can yield up to 6 to 8 tons per hectare(t/ha), nearly double the national average in Colombia of 3.7 t/ha and is tolerant to several maize diseases that are common in the region, including rust, turcicum leaf blight, and gray leaf spot. Another advantage is it can be grown between 0 and 1400 meters above sea level during both cropping seasons in the country.
The official launch of BIO-MZN01 was held at CIAT in Palmira, Colombia, and was attended by local farmers, seed companies, and government officials as well as CIMMYT, HarvestPlus and CIAT staff. As part of the launch, visitors and staff were invited into the field to see the variety firsthand and learn more about its properties and the history of its development.
New zinc-biofortified maize variety BIO-MZn01. (Photo: CIMMYT)
âThe conservation and utilization of genetic diversity have been crucial for the development of this new biofortified variety, as well as other CIMMYT varieties with improved nutrition or resistance to climate change,â said Natalia Palacios, maize nutritional quality specialist at CIMMYT. âThis has been an inter-institutional and interdisciplinary effort at all levels of the maize value chain.â
Other products of the CIMMYT/HarvestPlus partnership include zinc-enriched wheat and biofortified provitamin A maize, which helps to prevent blindness in children.
âWe have been working with CIMMYT since HarvestPlus began,â said Marilia Nutti, the regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean at HarvestPlus. âThe greatest advantage of working with CIMMYT is their quality researchâCIMMYT has all of the knowledge of maize and wheat, and maize is a big part of the diet in Latin America. Meanwhile, HarvestPlus and CIAT already had the partnerships on the ground in Colombia to ensure that this improved zinc maize could get to farmers and consumers. This has truly been a win-win partnership to improve nutrition.â
A farmer examines a zinc-enriched maize plant. (Photo: CIMMYT)
The scientific work conducted at CIMMYT, HarvestPlus and CIAT reaches the hands of farmers through local seed companies such as Maxi Semillas S.A.S., a partner of CIMMYT Colombia for the past 40 years that will be commercializing the new variety. âThese varieties are the product of an incredibly long and costly investigation that we do not have the resources to conduct ourselves. In turn we work to ensure that the variety can reach the hands of the farmers and consumers that need it most,â said Miguel Lengua, director general of Maxi Semillas S.A.S.
The variety will be sold at a similar price to currently available maize varieties in Colombia, and certified seed will be available beginning in August.
BIO-MZN01 will also form part of a new initiative in Colombia called âSemillas para la Paz,â or Seeds for Peace, which seeks to provide improved seed varieties as an alternative to illicit crops. The program, organized by the Colombian government and the Colombian Agricultural Research Corporation (CORPOICA), will promote the cultivation of nine different crops, including maize and beans. Over 20 tons of this new zinc-enriched maize variety will be produced by Maxi Semillas for this program, along with an iron-enriched biofortified bean variety developed by CIAT with HarvestPlus.
Nairobi, Kenya (CIMMYT)Â â A new comprehensive integrated pest management (IPM)-based technical guide produced by international experts will help scientists, extension agents and farmers to tackle the fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda), which has rapidly spread across the African continent in the last two years, decimating maize crops in its path.
Native to North America, the fall armyworm has recently emerged as a major threat in Africa, where it has been identified in over 30 countries since it was first confirmed on the continent in January 2016. The pest can potentially feed on 80 different crop species but has a preference for maize, which poses a significant threat to the food security, income and livelihoods of over 300 million African smallholder farm families that consume maize as a staple crop.
âThe potential impact of the fall armyworm as a major food security and economic risk for African nations cannot be overstated,â said Martin Kropff, director general at CIMMYT.
If proper control measures are not implemented, the fall armyworm could cause extensive maize yield losses of up to $6.2 billion per year in just 12 countries in Africa where its presence has been confirmed, according to the Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International (CABI).
âThe fall armyworm poses an enormous and wide-scale risk to the livelihoods of several million African smallholders, and requires urgent deployment of an IPM strategy and quick response from all stakeholders,â said B.M. Prasanna, director of MAIZE and the Global Maize Program at CIMMYT. âThe Fall Armyworm Integrated Pest Management Guide provides comprehensive details on the best management practices to help smallholder farmers effectively and safely control the pest while simultaneously protecting people, animals and the environment.â
Erratic rainfall and increasing temperatures are already causing crops to fail, threatening African farmersâ ability to ensure household food security, he said. Africa is the region most vulnerable to climate variability and change, according to the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Small-scale family farmers, who provide the majority of food production in Africa, are set to be among the worst affected. Rusinamhodziâs work includes educating African farmers about the impacts of climate change and working with them to tailor sustainable agriculture solutions to increase their food production in the face of increasingly variable weather.
The worldâs population is projected to reach 9.8 billion by 2050, with 2.1 billion people set to live in sub-Saharan Africa alone. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization estimates farmers will need to increase production by at least 70 percent to meet demand. However, climate change is bringing numerous risks to traditional farming systems challenging the ability to increase production, said Rusinamhodzi.
Graphic created by Gerardo Mejia. Data sourced from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Rusinamhodzi believes increasing farmersâ awareness of climate risks and working with them to implement sustainable solutions is key to ensuring they can buffer climate shocks, such as drought and erratic rainfall.
âThe onset of rainfall is starting late and the seasonal dry spells or outright droughts are becoming commonplace,â said Rusinamhodzi. âFarmers need more knowledge and resources on altering planting dates and densities, crop varieties and species, fertilizer regimes and crop rotations to sustainably intensify food production.â
Growing up in Zimbabwe â a country that is now experiencing the impacts of climate change first hand â Rusinamhodzi understands the importance of small-scale agriculture and the damage erratic weather can have on household food security.
He studied soil science and agronomy and began his career as a research associate at the International Center for Tropical Agriculture in Zimbabwe learning how to use conservation agriculture as a sustainable entry point to increase food production.
Conservation agriculture is based on the principles of minimal soil disturbance, permanent soil cover and the use of crop rotation to simultaneously maintain and boost yields, increase profits and protect the environment. It improves soil function and quality, which can improve resilience to climate variability.
It is a sustainable intensification practice, which is aimed at enhancing the productivity of labor, land and capital. Sustainable intensification practices offer the potential to simultaneously address a number of pressing development objectives, unlocking agricultureâs potential to adapt farming systems to climate change and sustainable manage land, soil, nutrient and water resources, while improving food and nutrition.
Tailoring sustainable agriculture to farmers
Smallholder farming systems in Africa are diverse in character and content, although maize is usually the major crop. Within each system, farmers are also diverse in terms of resources and production processes. Biophysically, conditions â such as soil and rainfall â change significantly within short distances.
Given the varying circumstances, conservation agriculture cannot be promoted as rigid or one-size fits all solution as defined by the three principles, said Rusinamhodzi.
The systems agronomist studied for his doctoral at Wageningen University with a special focus on targeting appropriate crop intensification options to selected farming systems in southern Africa. Now, with CIMMYT he works with African farming communities to adapt conservation agriculture to farmersâ specific circumstances to boost their food production.
Rusinamhodziâs focus in the region is to design cropping systems around maize-legume intercropping and conservation agriculture. Intercropping has the added advantage of producing two crops from the same piece of land in a single season; different species such as maize and legumes can increase facilitation and help overcome the negative effects of prolonged dry spells and poor soil quality.
Farmer Elphas Chinyanga inspecting his conservation agriculture plots in Zimbabwe. Photo: Peter Lowe/ CIMMYT
âThe key is to understand the farmers, their resources including the biophysical circumstances and their production systems, and assist in adapting conservation agriculture to local needs,â he said.
Working with CIMMYTâs Sustainable Intensification Program, Rusinamhodzi seeks to understand production constraints and opportunities for increased productivity starting with locally available resources.
Using crop simulation modeling and experimentation, he estimates how the farming system will perform under different conditions and works to formulate a set of options to help farmers. The options can include agroforestry, intercropping, improved varieties resistant to heat and drought, fertilizers and manures along with the principles of conservation agriculture to obtain the best results.
The models are an innovative way assess the success or trade-off farmers could have when adding new processes to their farming system. However, the application of these tools are still limited due to the large amounts of data needed for calibration and the complexity, he added.
Information gathered is shared with farmers in order to offer researched options on how to sustainably boost their food production under their conditions, Rusinamhodzi said.
âMy ultimate goal is to increase farmersâ decision space so that they make choices from an informed position,â he said.
Rusinamhodzi also trains farmers, national governments, non-profit organizations, seed companies and graduate students on the concepts and application of sustainable intensification including advanced analysis to understand system productivity, soil quality, water and nutrient use efficiency and crop pest and disease dynamics.
Index insurance is one of the top 10 innovations for climate-proof farming. Photo: P. Lowe/ CIMMYT
What stands between a smallholder farmer and a bag of climate-adapted seeds? In many cases, itâs the hesitation to take a risk. Farmers may want to use improved varieties, invest in new tools, or diversify what they grow, but they need reassurance that their investments and hard work will not be squandered.
Climate change already threatens crops and livestock; one unfortunately-timed dry spell or flash flood can mean losing everything. Today, innovative insurance products are tipping the balance in farmersâ favor. Thatâs why insurance is featured as one of 10 innovations for climate action in agriculture, in a new report released ahead of next weekâs UN Climate Talks. These innovations are drawn from decades of agricultural research for development by CGIAR and its partners and showcase an array of integrated solutions that can transform the food system.
Index insurance is making a difference to farmers at the frontlines of climate change. It is an essential building block for adapting our global food system and helping farmers thrive in a changing climate. Taken together with other innovations like stress-tolerant crop varieties, climate-informed advisories for farmers, and creative business and financial models, index insurance shows tremendous promise.
The concept is simple. To start with, farmers who are covered can recoup their losses if (for example) rainfall or average yield falls above or below a pre-specified threshold or âindexâ. This is a leap forward compared to the costly and slow process of manually verifying the damage and loss in each farmerâs field. In India, scientists from the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), have worked out the water level thresholds that could spell disaster for rice farmers if exceeded. Combining 35 years of observed rainfall and other data, with high-resolution satellite images of actual flooding, scientists and insurers can accurately gauge the extent of flooding and crop loss to quickly determine who gets payouts.
The core feature of index insurance is to offer a lifeline to farmers, so they can shield themselves from the very worst effects of climate change. But thatâs not all. Together with my team, weâre investigating how insurance can help farmers adopt new and improved varieties. Scientists are very good at developing technologies but farmers are not always willing to make the leap. This is one of the most important challenges that we grapple with. What weâve found has amazed us: buying insurance can help farmers overcome uncertainty and give them the confidence to invest in new innovations and approaches. This is critical for climate change adaptation. Weâre also finding that creditors are more willing to lend to insured farmers and that insurance can stimulate entrepreneurship and innovation. Ultimately, insurance can help break poverty traps, by encouraging a transformation in farming.
Insurers at the cutting edge are making it easy for farmers to get coverage. In Kenya, insurance is being bundled into bags of maize seeds, in a scheme led by ACRE Africa. Farmers pay a small premium when buying the seeds and each bag contains a scratch card with a code, which farmers text to ACRE at the time of planting. This initiates coverage against drought for the next 21 days; participating farms are monitored using satellite imagery. If there are enough days without rain, a farmer gets paid instantly via their mobile phone.
ACRE makes it easy for Kenyan farmers to get insurance. Source
Farmers everywhere are businesspeople who seek to increase yields and profits while minimizing risk and losses. As such, insurance has widespread appeal. Weâve seen successful initiatives grow rapidly in India, China, Zambia, Kenya and Mexico, which points to significant potential in other countries and contexts. The farmers most likely to benefit from index insurance are emergent and commercial farmers, as they are more likely than subsistence smallholder farmers to purchase insurance on a continual basis.
Itâs time for more investment in index insurance and other innovations that can help farmers adapt to climate change. Countries have overwhelmingly prioritized climate actions in the agriculture sector, and sustained support is now needed to help them meet the goals set out in the Paris Climate Agreement.
Leading nutritionist Julie Miller Jones promotes the benefits of whole grains. (Photo: CIMMYT)
People who eat the most whole grain foods have a lower risk of almost all chronic diseases and are less likely to gain weight as they age, according to Julie Miller Jones, Distinguished Scholar and Professor Emerita at St. Catherine University, U.S.A.
âAll kinds of epidemiological research shows that whole grain intake reduces obesity and the risk of diabetes, coronary heart and cardiovascular diseases, stroke, cancers, and death from all causes,â said Miller Jones, speaking to representatives of food processing companies and associations and scientists at the first âMaize and Wheat Quality and Nutrition Dayâ held near Mexico City on September 14.
Miller Jones emphasized that relatively modest amounts of grain in diets can deliver important health impacts. âWeâre talking about eating around three slices of bread, or a bowl of oatmeal with a sandwich, or oatmeal in the morning, with pasta at lunch and rice at night,â she explained.
Hosted by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), a publicly-funded organization that works with hundreds of partners throughout the developing world to increase the productivity and quality of maize and wheat cropping systems, the event highlighted the critical connections between farmers, crop breeding and the quality of maize (corn) and wheat food products.
âItâs great that CIMMYT hosted this meeting,â said one participant, noting the complementary roles of the food industry and CIMMYT. âCompanies like ours are only beginning to realize that improving our bottom line and sustainability doesnât start with the flour we receive, but rather ten steps before that, with breeding, quality analyses, agronomy and even extension work in the field.â
In addition to packaged commercial breads, small individual loaves prepared daily in neighborhood bakeries are standard fare in Mexico. Photo: Mike Listman/ CIMMYT
The participants were impressed with Miller Jonesâ presentation and the potential for partnering with CIMMYT, which conducts grain quality and nutritional analyses, development, selection and characterization of wheat and maize varieties for industrial and nutritional quality, as well as fostering the responsible sourcing of grain and linking farmers with markets.
âThis is the first time weâve brought together numerous essential actors in Mexicoâs maize and wheat quality and nutrition value chains, and we expect that it will give dividends in better quality, more nutritious cereal grains and food for better diets,â said Natalia Palacios, CIMMYT maize nutrition and quality specialist.
In addition to using more than 35 million tons of maize each year as human food and animal feed, Mexicoâs food processors annually handle more than 8 million tons of wheat grain.
âCIMMYT can serve as a shared platform for joint research with the food industry, outside of the competitive arena, and for messaging on healthy nutrition and diets,â suggested Carlos GuzmĂĄn, head of CIMMYTâs wheat chemistry and quality lab.
Humans and food grain crops: Shared history and future
Miller Jones said that DNA of cooked grain has been found in the dental remains of Paleolithic humans, showing that people have been eating grain for more than 100,000 years. She also emphasized the need for balanced diets that feature all food groups in healthy amounts.
âWe need to change our diets to healthy patterns that we can maintain for our entire lifetime, not something that you go on to go off,â she said, speaking recently in an online interview hosted by CIMMYT. âJust as nutrition experts have always recommended, unless youâre allergic to a particular food, a healthy diet should include products from all food groups, in the right amounts.â
Artificial inoculation of maize germplasm at the Naivasha MLN screening site, Kenya. (Photo: B.Wawa/CIMMYT)
The new maize lethal necrosis (MLN) online portal provides up-to-date information and surveillance tools to help researchers control and stop the spread of the deadly disease.
MLN was first reported in Kenya in 2011 and has since then been reported in several countries in eastern Africa, especially the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. The disease kills plants before they can grow, and the pathogens are transmitted by insects or contaminated seed. Serious damage to the regionâs maize production from MLN has impacted household food security.
The online portal, found at mln.cimmyt.org, details the spread of MLN, where the disease has been managed and controlled, and how to identify it in the field. It also provides key MLN publications, surveillance software, MLN incidence maps, information on the MLN Screening Facility, and MLN-tolerant hybrids that are either released or in pipeline.
One tool on the portal is the MLN surveillance and monitoring system that provides real-time data to identify the presence and spread of the disease across five endemic countries in eastern Africa, and three selected non-endemic countries in southern Africa. The system was developed by scientists collaborating with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), with support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
In 2016, MLN surveillance was successfully conducted in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe â three major seed producing countries in Africa â and the data is presented in the portal, detailing MLNâs status across 652 surveyed maize fields. Future data gathered in other affected countries will also be uploaded to the portal as surveillance teams conduct fieldwork using Global Positioning System online survey tools, to assess the spread and severity of the disease in these countries. Ongoing surveillance in endemic countries allows stakeholders to see real-time updates on the spread of MLN.
MLN susceptible hybrids compared to a CIMMYT-derived MLN-tolerant hybrid. Photo: CIMMYT
Since the disease was first reported, collaborative efforts have resulted in the establishment of a MLN Screening Facility at the Kenya Agricultural & Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) center at Naivasha in 2013. The facility, managed by CIMMYT, has so far screened nearly 100,000 maize germplasm entries — 56 percent from CIMMYT — against MLN under artificial inoculation over the last four years.
Nine CIMMYT-derived MLN-tolerant hybrids have been already released in three countries â seven in Kenya, one in Uganda and one in Tanzania. Eleven second generation hybrids are currently in national performance trials in these countries. Intensive efforts are currently being made by seed companies in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda to expand the delivery of MLN-tolerant maize seed to the smallholders.
The MLN portal enables researchers to comprehensively assess the situation with regard to MLN, helps strengthen the national disease monitoring and diagnostic systems by providing faster and accurate data, and offers access to CIMMYT-offered MLN phenotyping services.
The CIMMYT maize germplasm bank holds 28,000 samples of unique maize genetic diversity that could hold the key to develop new varieties farmers need. Photo: Xochiquetzal Fonseca/CIMMYT.
EL BATAN, Mexico (CIMMYT) – Biodiversity is the building block of health for all species and ecosystems, and the foundation of our food system. A lack of genetic diversity within any given species can increase its susceptibility to stress factors such as diseases, pests, heat or drought for lack of the genetic variation to respond. This can lead to devastating consequences that include crop failures and extinction of species and plant varieties. Conserving and utilizing biodiversity is crucial to ensure the food security, health and livelihoods of future generations.
The 13th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 13) to the Convention on Biological Diversity will be held in CancĂşn, Mexico, from December 5 to 17, 2016. Established in 1993 due to global concerns over threats to biodiversity and species extinctions, the Convention on Biological Diversity is an international, legally-binding treaty with three main objectives: the conservation of biological diversity; the sustainable use of the components of biological diversity; and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources.
Mexicoâs Secretariat of Agriculture (SAGARPA) has invited scientists from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) working with the MasAgro Biodiversidad (known in English as Seeds of Discovery, or SeeD) initiative to present at COP 13 on their work to facilitate the use of maize genetic diversity, particularly through a collection of tools and resources known as the âMaize Molecular Atlas.â The presentations will focus on how resources that have been developed can aid in the understanding of germplasm stored in genebanks and collections to enable better use.
As the region of origin and as a center of diversity for maize, Mexico and Mesoamerica are home to much of the cropâs genetic variation. Thousands of samples of maize from this and other important regions are preserved in the CIMMYT germplasm bank, in trust, for the benefit of humanity. The bank’s 28,000 maize seed samples hold diversity to develop new varieties for farmers to respond to challenges such as heat, disease and drought stress. However, information on the genetic makeup and physical traits of these varieties is often limited, making the identification of the most relevant samples difficult.
Native maize varieties, known as landraces, contain a broad amount of genetic diversity that could protect food security for future generations.
SeeD works to better characterize and utilize novel genetic diversity in germplasm banks to accelerate the development of new maize and wheat varieties for the benefit of farmers. The initiative has generated massive amounts of information on the genetic diversity of maize and wheat, as well as cutting-edge software tools to aid in its use and visualization. This information and tools are freely available as global public goods for breeders, researchers, germplasm bank managers, extension agents and others, but are even more powerful when they are integrated with different types and sets of data.
Developed by the SeeD initiative, the maize molecular atlas represents an unparalleled resource for those interested in maize genetic diversity.
âYou can think of the maize molecular atlas like a satellite navigation system in your car,â said Sarah Hearne, a CIMMYT scientist who leads the projectâs maize component. âInformation that used to be housed separately, such as maps, traffic or the locations of police officers, gas stations, restaurants and hotels, are now brought together. Itâs the same with the atlas. Having access to all of these data at once in an interlinked manner allows people to make better decisions, faster,â she said.
SeeDâs maize molecular atlas includes three main types of resources: data, such as maize landrace passport data (where it came from, when it was collected, etc.), geographic information system (GIS) -derived data (what the environment was like where maize was collected; rainfall, soils, etc.), genotypic data (genetic fingerprints of maize varieties) and available phenotypic data (information on how plants grow in different conditions); knowledge, (derived from data-marker trait associations; what bits of the genome do what); and tools, including data collection software (KDSmart), data storage and query tools (Germinate) and visualization tools (CurlyWhirly).
All of these resources are available through the SeeD website, where, when used together, they can increase the effective and efficient identification and utilization of maize genetic resources.
Interestingly, one of the first benefits of this initiative was for Mexican farmers. The efforts to better characterize the collection led to the identification of landraces that were resistant to Tar Spot, a disease that is devastating many farmersâ fields in Mexico and Central America. These landraces were immediately shared with farming communities while also being utilized in breeding programs. Smallholders in particular grow crops in diverse environmental conditions. They need diverse varieties. The understanding and use of biodiversity by researchers, breeders and farmers will be crucial to ensure the use of more and genetically diverse crops.
âWith the atlas we now have the ability, with fewer resources, to interlink and query across different data types in one searchable resource,â Hearne said. This will allow breeders and researchers world-wide to hone in on the genetic and physical plant traits they are looking for, to more quickly identify and use novel genetic diversity to create improved varieties adapted to their specific needs. So far about 250 researchers and students from Mexico have participated in workshops and activities to begin using the new tools. With Mexico being a very important center of diversity for many species, agricultural and beyond, the same tools could be used for other species, here and abroad.
Hearne is looking forward to sharing information about MasAgro Biodiversidad and CIMMYTâs progress at COP 13, and is hopeful about the impacts the maize molecular atlas will have on biodiversity conservation.
âConservation isnât just preservation, itâs use. The molecular maize atlas enables us to better utilize the genetic resources we have, but also to better understand what diversity we may still need for our collection,â she said. âIf you donât know what you have, you donât know what you need to preserve or look for. The work of the maize molecular atlas helps to address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by raising awareness of the importance of these resources for sustainable food production while enabling researchers world-wide to use the information for assessing their own collections and generate more diverse varieties.â
SeeD is a multi-project initiative comprising: MasAgro Biodiversidad, a joint initiative of CIMMYT and the Mexican Ministry of Agriculture (SAGARPA) through the MasAgro (Sustainable Modernization of Traditional Agriculture) project; the CGIAR Research Programs on Maize (MAIZE CRP) and Wheat (WHEAT CRP); and a computation infrastructure and data analysis project supported by the UKâs Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC). Learn more about the Seeds of Discovery project here.Â
Over the last week, MAIZE and WHEAT CRP investigators from the global cross-CRP study on gender in agricultural innovation met at El BatĂĄn from 26 Feb to 1 March to take stock of progress so far and plan the next steps in the implementation of this unique research initiative.
From left to right: Patti Petesch, Diana Lopez, Paula Kantor, Vongai Kandiwa, Dina Najjar, Lone Badstue, Anuprita Shukla and Amare Tegbaru. Photo: Xochiquetzal Fonseca/CIMMYT
The study will draw on interviews and focus groups with men and women engaged in small-scale farming around the world, to hear in their words how they practice and innovate in agriculture, and what factors, especially gender relations, they feel have influenced their success and failures. Through rigorous analysis both of the broader patterns in the data and delving deep into the case studies, the aim is to develop strategic research publications as well as practical observations and tools to integrate gender-sensitivity into agricultural research and development.
The appetite for more knowledge about the role of gender was clear at Gender and Development Specialist Paula Kantorâs well-attended brown bag lunch on Friday, introducing the GIZ-funded project on gender constraints to wheat R4D in Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Pakistan.
As CIMMYT Gender Specialist Lone Badstue opened the workshop, she reflected on how quickly gender research has advanced since the CRPs were set up in 2011. From less than one full-time gender-specialist on staff, there are now the equivalent of eight full-time staff working with the CRPs on gender and 20 large projects with gender-integration.
At the workshop, the gender specialists shared their experiences of the 19 case studies conducted under MAIZE and WHEAT so far, before settling down to discuss data quality control and coding.
A tool developed by CIMMYT and the International Plant Nutrition Institute (IPNI) offering site-specific nutrient management (SSNM) advice to help farmers achieve higher yields more efficiently recently won an innovation award.
Nutrient ExpertTM decision support tools received the best innovation award in the information and communications technology category at the Bihar Innovation Forum II, which recognizes innovations to improve rural livelihoods in India. These tools were in development by CIMMYT and IPNI for five years and were launched in June 2013.
In South Asia, 90 percent of smallholder farmers do not have access to soil testing. The computer-based support tools aim to provide them with simple advice on how to get the most from fertilizer inputs. An IPNI study funded by the CGIAR Research Program on Maize (MAIZE CRP) Competitive Grant Initiative (CGI) found that farming practices and the resources available to farmers vary hugely in east India.
The cutting-edge value of Nutrient ExpertTM is that it offers specific information at the farm level, where it can provide the greatest benefits. Nutrient ExpertTM is especially relevant because it was developed through dialogue and participation with stakeholders, which also raises awareness and eventual adoption by users.
It is now used by the Indian National Agricultural Research System and is a key intervention used by the CRP on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) in its Climate Smart Villages. The Nutrient ExpertTM approach is also being applied to maize and wheat in other areas of Southeast Asia, China, Kenya and Zimbabwe.
âI can now identify with accuracy plants affected with maize lethal necrotic disease,â stated Regina Tende, PhD student attached to CIMMYT, after attending the CIMMYT-Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) âIdentification and Management of Maize Lethal Necrosisâ workshop in Narok, Kenya, during 30 June-3 July 2013. This was not the case a few weeks ago when Tende, who is also a senior research officer at KARI-Katumani, received leaf samples from a farmer for maize lethal necrosis (MLN) verification.
Tende is one of many scientists and technicians who experienced difficulty in differentiating MLN from other diseases or abiotic stresses with similar symptoms. According to Stephen Mugo, CIMMYT Global Maize Program (GMP) principal scientist and organizer of the workshop, this difficulty encouraged CIMMYT and KARI to organize this event to raise awareness about MLN among scientists, technicians, and skilled field staff; provide training on MLN diagnosis especially at field nurseries, trials, and seed production fields; train on MLN severity scoring to improve the quality of data generation in screening trials; and introduce MLN management in field screening sites to scientists, technicians, and skilled staff. The workshop brought together over 80 scientists and technicians from CIMMYT, KARI, and other national agricultural research systems (NARS) partners from Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, and Zimbabwe.
âIt is important that all the people on the ground, particularly the technicians who interact daily with the plants and supervise research activities at the stations, understand the disease, are able to systematically scout for it, and have the ability to spot it out from similar symptomatic diseases and conditions like nutrient deficiency,â stated GMP director B.M. Prasanna.
Proper and timely identification of the MLN disease, which is a pre-requisite for effective control, is not easy. CIMMYT maize breeder Biswanath Das explains: âFirst of all, the disease is caused by a combination of two viruses, Maize chlorotic mottle virus (MCMV) and Sugarcane mosaic virus (SCMV). Secondly, its symptoms âsevere mottling of leaves, dead heart, stunted growth (shortened internode distance), leaf necrosis, sterility, poor seed set, shriveled seedsâ are not always unique to MLN but could be due to other fungal diseases and abiotic conditions.â The training workshop was one of CIMMYT/KARI initiatives to combat the disease threatening all the gains made so far in maize breeding. âWith nearly 99% of the commercial maize varieties so far released in Kenya being susceptible to MLN, it is important that institutions like CIMMYT and KARI, in strong collaboration with the seed sector, develop and deploy MLN disease resistant varieties in an accelerated manner,â stated Prasanna. One of the key initiatives in this fight is the establishment of a centralized MLN screening facility under artificial inoculation for Eastern Africa at the KARI Livestock Research Farm in Naivasha. Plans are also underway to establish a network of MLN testing sites (under natural disease pressure) in the region to evaluate promising materials from artificial inoculation trials in Naivasha. The state of the art maize doubled haploid (DH) facility currently under construction in Kiboko will also play a crucial role in accelerating MLN resistant germplasm development. âThe DH technology, in combination with molecular markers, can help reduce by half the time taken for developing MLN resistant versions of existing elite susceptible lines,â stated Prasanna.
During his opening speech, Joseph Ngâetich, deputy director of Crop Protection, Ministry of Agriculture, noted that about 26,000 hectares of maize in Kenya were affected in 2012, resulting in an estimated loss of 56,730 tons, valued at approximately US$ 23.5 million. Seed producers also lost significant acreages of pre-basic seed in 2012: Agriseed lost 10 acres in Narok; Kenya Seed lost 75; and Monsanto 20 at Migtyo farm in Baringo, according to Dickson Ligeyo, KARI senior research officer and head of Maize Working Group in Kenya.
While this loss represents only 1.7%, Ligeyo assured everyone that Kenya is not taking any chances and has come up with a raft of measures and recommendations: farmers in areas where rainfall is all year round or maize is produced under irrigation are advised to plant maize only once a year; local quarantine has been enforced and farmers are to remove all infected materials from the fields and stop all movement of green maize from affected to non-affected areas; seed companies must ensure that seeds are treated with appropriate seed dressers at recommended rates, they must also promote good agricultural practices, crop diversification, and rotation with non-cereal crops.
Throughout the workshop, participants learned about theoretical aspects of MLN, such as the disease dynamics, management of MLN trials and nurseries, and identification of germplasm for resistance to MLN. They also participated in practical sessions on artificial inoculation, and identification and scoring. Several CIMMYT scientists played an active role in organizing the workshop, including breeders Stephen Mugo, Biswanath Das, Yoseph Beyene, and Lewis Machida; entomologist Tadele Tefera; and seed systems specialist Mosisa Regasa. They were accompanied by KARI scientist Bramwel Wanjala, KEPHIS regulatory officer Florence Munguti, and NARS maize research leaders Claver Ngaboyisonga (Rwanda), Dickson Ligeyo (Kenya), Julius Serumaga (Uganda), and Kheri Kitenge (Tanzania). During his closing remarks, KARI Food Crops program officer Raphael Ngigi, on behalf of KARI director, urged participants to rigorously implement what they had learnt during the workshop in their respective countries or Kenya regions to help combat MLN at both research farms and farmersâ fields.
Commenting on the usefulness of the workshop, technical officer at KARI-Embu Fred Manyara stated: âI will no longer say I do not know or I am not sure, when confronted by a farmerâs question on MLN.â
The maize lethal necrosis (MLN) disease first appeared in Kenyaâs Rift Valley in 2011 and quickly spread to other parts of Kenya, as well as to Uganda and Tanzania. Caused by a synergistic interplay of maize chlorotic mottle virus (MCMV) and any of the cereal viruses in the family, Potyviridae, such as Sugarcane mosaic virus (SCMV), Maize dwarf mosaic virus (MDMV), or Wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV), MLN can cause total crop loss if not controlled effectively.
A regional workshop on MLN and the control strategies was organized by CIMMYT and KARI during February 12-14, 2013 in Nairobi, which was attended by some 70 scientists, seed company breeders and managers, and representatives of ministries of agriculture and regulatory authorities in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and the USA. The Workshop led to identification of important action points steps for effectively controlling the disease.
CIMMYT scientists have been working closely with virology experts from USDA-ARS and Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) to develop suitable protocols for testing the responses of maize germplasm against MLN, and to identify promising inbred lines and hybrids with resistance to MLN. During the 2012-2013 crop season, the CIMMYT-KARI team undertook extensive screening of inbred lines, pre-commercial and commercial hybrids in Naivasha and Narok in Kenya, under high natural disease pressure and artificial inoculation, respectively.
A trial featuring 119 commercial maize varieties (released in Kenya) under artificial inoculation during 2012-2013 revealed that as many as 117 varieties were susceptible to MLN. Another set of trials including 335 elite inbred lines, 366 pre-commercial hybrids and 7 commercial hybrids (as checks) under MLN artificial inoculation in Narok, and another set of trials comprising 350 elite inbred lines and 135 pre-commercial hybrids under natural disease pressure in Naivasha, led to identification of some promising CIMMYT inbred lines as well as pre-commercial hybrids showing resistance or moderate resistance. These results offer considerable hope to combat, through breeding efforts, the deadly MLN disease that has severely affected maize harvests and discouraged farmers from growing maize in eastern Africa.
Table 1
Notes on trial results
The details of the promising CIMMYT elite inbred lines and pre-commercial hybrids against MLN are presented in Table 1 and Table 2, respectively. The results presented in Table 1 are based on evaluation of CIMMYT inbred lines in four independent trials, two under artificial inoculation (Narok) and two under natural disease pressure (Naivasha) during 2012-2013. In each trial, entries were replicated (minimum two), and MLN severity scores (on a 1-5 scale basis) were recorded three or more times during the crop cycle, from the vegetative to the reproductive stage. The highest average MLN severity score (max. MLN score), recorded at any stage during the trial, is presented as representative of a given entry.
Table 2
The data must be critically assessed and cautiously used by stakeholders and partners. More weight should be given to data from artificially inoculated trials, since trials under natural disease pressure are more liable to âdisease escapesâ and identification of false positives. Caution must be exercised when using specific lines identified as potentially resistant (R) or moderately resistant (MR), especially when classification is based on data from only one trial (even under artificial inoculation). Please note that in such cases, the responses of the lines need to be validated by CIMMYT through further trials.
CIMMYT is working closely with both public and private sector partners to significantly expand the MLN evaluation network capacity in eastern Africa, and will continue the intensive efforts to identify/develop and deliver new sources of resistance to MLN.
For further information on:
MLN research-for-development efforts undertaken by CIMMYT, please contact: Dr BM Prasanna, Director, Global Maize Program, CIMMYT, Nairobi, Kenya; Email: b.m.prasanna@cgiar.org.
Availability of seed material of the promising lines and pre-commercial hybrids, please contact: Dr Mosisa Regasa (m.regasa@cgiar.org) if your institution is based in eastern Africa, or Dr James Gethi (j.gethi@cgiar.org) if your institution is based in southern Africa or outside eastern and southern Africa.
Food security is at the heart of Africaâs development agenda. However, climate change is threatening 
âI can now identify with accuracy plants affected with maize lethal necrotic disease,â stated Regina Tende, PhD student attached to CIMMYT, after attending the CIMMYT-Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (
During his opening speech, Joseph Ngâetich, deputy director of Crop Protection, Ministry of Agriculture, noted that about 26,000 hectares of maize in Kenya were affected in 2012, resulting in an estimated loss of 56,730 tons, valued at approximately US$ 23.5 million. Seed producers also lost significant acreages of pre-basic seed in 2012: Agriseed lost 10 acres in Narok; Kenya Seed lost 75; and Monsanto 20 at Migtyo farm in Baringo, according to Dickson Ligeyo, KARI senior research officer and head of Maize Working Group in Kenya.
The maize lethal necrosis (MLN) disease first appeared in Kenyaâs Rift Valley in 2011 and quickly spread to other parts of Kenya, as well as to Uganda and Tanzania. Caused by a synergistic interplay of maize chlorotic mottle virus (MCMV) and any of the cereal viruses in the family, Potyviridae, such as Sugarcane mosaic virus (SCMV), Maize dwarf mosaic virus (MDMV), or Wheat streak mosaic virus (WSMV), MLN can cause total crop loss if not controlled effectively.
Download table in pdf format