The introduction of the new high-yield corn variety, INIA 608 â ALLIMASARA, in Peru represents a significant collaboration between CIMMYT and the National Institute of Agricultural Innovation (INIA). This variety, developed through advanced crossbreeding techniques at the El Porvenir Agricultural Experimental Station, showcases CIMMYT’s pivotal role in enhancing agricultural productivity globally. By boosting yield capacities significantly up to 40% per hectare, this initiative not only supports the livelihoods of local farmers but also advances sustainable agricultural practices in challenging environmental conditions.
A team of women researchers that are part of the Latin American Maize Network participated in the training given by CIMMYT in the framework of the TechMaiz project. (Photo: Francisco AlarcĂłn and Fernando Garcilazo/CIMMYT)
Female scientists from four different Latin American countries have come together to work on TechMaiz, a project supported by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), and continue the organizationâs commitment to inclusivity and inclusion.
The scientists spent four days in November at CIMMYTâs headquarters in Mexico to contribute to the training plan, which focused on genetic improvement, soil conservation, seed storage, analysis of the nutritional quality of grain and innovation management in the hub model of maize cultivation.
This training allowed the researchers from Ecuador, Colombia, Guatemala and Peru to discuss the use of new technological tools for sustainable intensification of production systems of small and medium farmers, as well as the challenges on the road to moving from efficiency to resilience.
The scientists involved in this training within the framework of the TechMaiz project were:
Liliana Atencio S. – A Colombian who works at the Colombian Agricultural Research Corporation (AGROSAVIA). She is an agricultural engineer with a masterâs degree in agronomic science. This includes an emphasis on plant physiology and she has additional experience in transient and forage crop improvement programs.
Ana Pincay – An Ecuadorian working at the Santa Catalina Experimental Station of the National Institute of Agricultural Research (INIAP) as an agricultural researcher. Sheâs also a biotechnology engineer.
Alicia Medina –Â A Peruvian who is based at the National Institute of Agrarian Innovation (INIA) as a researcher. She is an agricultural engineer and has a masterâs degree in development planning.
MarĂa Gabriela AlbĂĄn – She has several responsibilities, including co-investigator, coordinates the academic-financial part and is a professor of the agronomy engineering career at the San Francisco de Quito University (USFQ) in Ecuador. She is an agribusiness engineer with a masterâs degree in agricultural sciences with an emphasis on agricultural business development. AlbĂĄn also has a diploma in design, management, and evaluation of development projects.
Karen Agreda – An agronomist engineer in agri-production systems. She has a postgraduate degree in alternative fruit and vegetable production and works as a specialized researcher in the validation and technology of transference program at the Institute of Agricultural Science and Technology (ICTA) in Guatemala.
Visiting a research plot under the guidance of Nele Verhulst, Cropping Systems Agronomist with CIMMYT’s Sustainable Agrifood Systems (SAS) program. (Photo: Francisco AlarcĂłn and Fernando Garcilazo/CIMMYT)
Weaving bonds of trust to generate changes
Following a period of continuous interaction, the researchers identified not only a number of shared challenges in their respective countries, but also how much complementary and concrete opportunities for teamwork are created when bonds of trust and teamwork are strengthened.
âIn addition to strengthening knowledge, thereâs also the relationship between researchers and institutions, understanding the role of each member of the team is important and allows us to make greater progress,” said Atencio. “For example, Alicia works on improvement, Ana on the use of bio-inputs, and Karen on transfers and linking. We all see that there are opportunities in agriculture for innovation by using tools such as e-agrology. The result of this is that generational change is becoming more and more urgent.â
Proposing more ambitious projects, but also clearer and more precise ones, is part of the learning the researchers plan to take with them. The scientists are determined to share this information with their teams and colleagues, along with integrative approaches that are designed to strengthen the human talent of each institution.
âIn Ecuador, we practice the agriculture of conservation, but we didnât know the concept of not removing the soil,â Picay said. âIt is always a good decision to invest in training, as it refreshes the thought, opens the mind and triggers actions.â
The TechMaĂz project will continue in 2023 with its third year of implementation, promoting national meetings to promote and disseminate the use of sustainable technologies for maize production. CIMMYT training for members of the Latin American Maize Network is also expected to continue.
In Mexico there is an indigenous poem that says, “We are grains of maize from the same cob; we are one root of the same path.” So, it is not surprising that the path of Alicia Medina Hoyos, a researcher with the National Maize Research Program at El Instituto Nacional de InnovaciĂłn Agraria (INIA), began life in a rural community in Cupisnique, Cajamarca, Peru, at 1,800 meters above sea level.
At an early age, she realized the importance of maize as a feature of identity. This prompted her to dedicate her life to contribute to food security through research on starchy maize, soft maize types used for human consumption with 80% starch in their composition.
Medina studied Agronomy at the National University of Cajamarca, where her thesis brought her into contact with Luis Narro, a Peruvian researcher linked to the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), which she has been associated with ever since.
“This permanent contact has been key to strengthening my capacities to actively participate in the co-creation of better opportunities for producers in Peru and Latin America,” said Medina. Her connection with CIMMYT has helped her to maintain an enriching exchange of knowledge and experiences with researchers such as Terry Molnar, a specialist in native maize, as well as with the more than 130 colleagues who make up the Latin American Maize Network.
It has also provided opportunities to showcase Peruvian agricultural research. In 2022, Peru hosted the XXIV Latin American Maize Meeting, an event jointly organized by CIMMYT and INIA every two years. Medina explained, “The event is a great opportunity to show Cajamarca, producers, organizations, to highlight the best we have, and to promote purple maize.”
Award-winning research
On International Women’s Day in 2019, Medina received an award from the College of Engineers of Peru for the effort, dedicated work, and contribution of engineering to the service of society.
When asked what it meant to receive this award, Medina said, “Research in starchy maize and, in recent years, in purple maize, has taken me to Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia and Japan, and has given me the satisfaction of receiving awards that motivate me to continue putting research at the service of producers.”
This is without losing sight of the other valuable awards that Medina has received: the Personage of the Bicentennial, awarded in 2021 by the Provincial Municipality of ContumazĂĄ, Peru; the compass that Chile gave her in 2021 as recipient of the Strait of Magellan Award for Innovation and Exploration with Global Impact; and the SUMMUM Research Award given by the Summum Awards Advisory Committee in 2019.
Purple maize holds many health benefits due to its high content of anthocyanins and antioxidants. (Photo: Alicia Medina Hoyos/INIA)
Why is purple maize so important?
Purple maize comes from a breed called kulli. The team of researchers led by Medina â who obtained the variety â brought a population of purple maize from Huaraz, Peru, and crossed it with another from Cajamarca. Ten years of breeding gave rise to the INIA 601 maize, characterized by its high yield and high content of anthocyanins and antioxidants that are beneficial to health, cancer prevention, and lowering high blood pressure and cholesterol.
“In 2011 I had the opportunity to go to Japan, followed by working with a team of Japanese experts in Cajamarca,â explained Medina. âThere, we started a project that gave more importance to purple maize, not for its production but for its color and therefore anthocyanin content. We saw the characteristic of the color in the husk. In 2013, we determined the amount of anthocyanin in this variety and it turned out that it was higher in the husk than in the cob. That gave us the option to market both parts.”
Medina explains how teamwork with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) laid the foundations so that today, 500 Peruvian producers “who see that there are profits, are convinced, by listening to their testimonies, in dissemination and training events” grow the maize in 12 of the 13 provinces that make up Cajamarca and market a kilo of cob and purple maize bract at $5 USD each.
There is currently high demand for the product in grain, grain flour, whole, dried, chopped and chopped dried forms; transnational companies based in Lima acquire the purple maize to extract the pigment and anthocyanin, and export it to the United States, Japan and Spain. “In fact, there are companies that produce whiskey with purple maize flour from Cajamarca,” Medina added.
In October 2021, a new agricultural campaign began in the Peruvian fields and Medina continues to promote agriculture based on the dream of seeing purple maize become a flagship product of the country, while becoming the engine of agribusiness in the region of Cajamarca, so that producers benefit in a better way, have more income and see the real magnitude of the grain they grow every day.
Cover photo: Medina assesses purple maize in Peru, which she introduced to the country. (Photo: Alicia Medina Hoyos/INIA)
Smallholdings represent over 80% of the worldâs farms, mostly located in the Global South, and supply 50% of global food. Enhanced agronomy management has a great potential to increase productivity, sustainability, efficiency and competitiveness of these smallholdings, which is characterized by low and variable yields and profitability, smallholder farming challenges include water scarcity, climate change, low resource use efficiencies and declining soil health. These result in negative impacts on food and nutrition security, equitable livelihoods and ecosystem health.âŻÂ
Smallholder farmers seasonally make critical agronomic decisions regarding crop choice, planting dates and pest, disease, weed, soil fertility and water management, often based on suboptimal practices and information. Traditional agronomic research enhances our understanding of basic processes, but with limited connection to stakeholder demand and often based on outdated approaches. The development, deployment and uptake of interventions is hampered by social, economic and institutional constraints, further confounded by adherence to conventional supply-driven innovation strategies.
Objective
This Initiative aims to deliver an increase in productivity and quality per unit of input (agronomic gain) for millions of smallholder farming households in prioritized farming systems by 2030, with an emphasis on women and young farmers, showing a measurable impact on food and nutrition security, income, resource use, soil health, climate resilience and climate change mitigation.âŻÂ
Activities
This objective will be achieved through:
Facilitating the delivery of agronomy-at-scale solutions, including development and technical/user-experience validation and the co-creation and deployment of gender- and youth-responsive solutions to smallholder farmers via scaling partners.Â
Enabling the creation of value from big data and advanced analytics through the assembly and governance of data and tools; application of existing analytics and solutions for specific use cases; supply of information on climate impacts, inclusivity and sustainability of agronomic solutions; and national agricultural research system capacity strengthening.Â
Driving the next generation of agronomy-at-scale innovationsâŻby addressing key knowledge gaps and facilitating innovation in agronomy research through engagement with partners.Â
Nurturing internal efficiencies for an agile and demand-driven agronomy research and development community through internal organization and external partnerships for prioritization, demand mapping and foresight.Â
Effective plant health management is critical for improving the productivity, profitability, sustainability and resilience of agrifood systems. Yet, farming communities, especially in low- and middle-income countries, struggle to contain existing and emerging plant pests and diseases. Each year, these threats cause on average 10â40% losses to major food crops, costing the global economy around US$220 billion. The highest losses are associated with food-deficit regions with fast-growing populations.Â
Increasing international trade and travel, coupled with weak phytosanitary systems, are accelerating the global spread of pests and diseases. The situation is exacerbated by climate change, with agricultural intensification and diversification driving the emergence of new threats. These burdens fall disproportionately on poorly resourced communities, especially women and youth in rural areas.Â
Diagnostic capacity, global-scale surveillance data, risk prediction/forecasting and rapid response and management systems for major pests and diseases are still lacking. Inadequate information and knowledge of and access to climate-smart control options leave smallholders and marginalized communities ill-equipped to respond to biotic threats. Environmental and health effects of toxic pesticides, exposure to mycotoxins and acute unintentional pesticide poisoning are major concerns.
Objective
This Initiative aims to protect agriculture-based economies of low- and middle-income countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America from devastating crop pest incursions and disease outbreaks by developing, validating and deploying inclusive innovations, and by leveraging and building viable networks across an array of national, regional and global institutions.
Activities
This objective will be achieved by:
Bridging knowledge gaps and networks for plant health threat identification and characterization, focusing on strengthening the diagnostic and surveillance capacity of national plant protection organizations and national agricultural research and extension systems, and facilitating knowledge exchange on pests and diseases.Â
Building capability of relevant national stakeholders for risk assessment, and data management and guiding preparedness for rapid response, focusing on controlling the introduction and spread of pests and diseases by developing and enhancing tools, standards and policies.Â
Improving integrated pest and disease management, focusing on designing and deploying approaches against prioritized plant health threats in targeted crops and cropping systems.Â
Designing and deploying tools and processes for protecting food chains from contamination, specifically, through innovations for reducing mycotoxin contamination to protect health, increase food/feed safety, enhance trade, diversify end-use and boost income.Â
Promoting gender-equitable and socially inclusive scaling of plant health innovations to achieve impacts through multistakeholder partnerships, inter-disciplinary research, effective communications and capacity development.
Representatives from CGIAR leadership, CGIAR Centers, government and other stakeholders stand for a group photo during the launch of the AgriLAC Resiliente Initiative in Guatemala City. (Photo: CGIAR)
Latin America and the Caribbean possess the largest reserve of arable land on the planet, 30% of renewable water, 46% of tropical forests and 30% of biodiversity. These resources represent an important contribution to the world’s food supply and other ecosystem services. However, climate change and natural disasters, exacerbated by COVID-19, have deteriorated economic and food security, destabilizing communities and causing unprecedented migration, impacting not only the region but the entire world.
Against this regional backdrop, AgriLAC Resiliente was created. This CGIAR Initiative seeks to increase the resilience, sustainability and competitiveness of the region’s agrifood systems and actors. It aims to equip them to meet urgent food security needs, mitigate climate hazards, stabilize communities vulnerable to conflict and reduce forced migration.
Guatemala was selected to present this Initiative, which will also impact farmers in Colombia, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Peru, and will be supported by national governments, the private sector, civil society, and regional and global donors and partners.
At a workshop on June 27â28, 2022, in Guatemala City, partners consolidated their collaboration by presenting the Initiative and developing a regional roadmap. Workshop participants included representatives from the government of Guatemala, NGOs, international cooperation programs, the private sector, producer associations, and other key stakeholders from the host country. Also at the workshop were the leaders from CGIAR research Centers involved in the Initiative, such as the Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the International Potato Center (CIP) and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
JoaquĂn Lozano, CGIAR Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean, presents during the launch of the AgriLAC Resiliente Initiative. (Photo: CGIAR)
Impact through partnerships
“Partnerships are the basis for a future of food security for all through the transformation of food systems in the context of a climate crisis. AgriLACâs goal of a coordinated strategy and regional presence will facilitate strong joint action with partners, donors, and producers, and ensure that CGIAR science continues to be leveraged so that it has the greatest possible impact,” said JoaquĂn Lozano, CGIAR Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean.
This Initiative is one of many CGIAR Initiatives in Latin America and consists of five research components: Climate and nutrition that seeks to use collaborative innovations for climate resilient and nutritious agrifood systems; Digital agriculture through the use of digital and inclusive tools for the creation of actionable knowledge; Low-emission competitiveness focused on agroecosystems, landscapes and value chains that are low in sustainable emissions; Innovation and scaling with the Innova-Hubs network for agrifood innovations and scaling; and finally, Science for timely decision making and establishment of policies, institutions, and investments for resilient, competitive and low-emission agrifood systems.
“We know the important role that smallholder farmers, both women and men, will play in the appropriation of the support tools that the Initiative will offer, which will allow them to make better decisions for the benefit of their communities. That is why one of the greatest impacts we expect from the project will be the contribution to gender equality, the creation of opportunities for youth, and the promotion of social inclusion,” said Carolina GonzĂĄlez, leader of the Initiative, from the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT.
Bram Govaerts, Director General of CIMMYT, said: “In Guatemala, we have had the opportunity to work side by side with farmers who today, more than ever, face the vicious circle of conflict, poverty and climate change. Through this Initiative, we hope to continue making progress in the transformation of agrifood systems in Central America, helping to make agriculture a dignified and satisfying job and a source of prosperity for the region’s producers.â
“I realize the importance of implementing strategic actions designed to improve the livelihoods of farmers. The environmental impact of development without sustainable planning puts at risk the wellbeing of humanity. The Initiatives of this workshop contribute to reducing the vulnerability of both productive systems and farmers and their families. This is an ideal scenario to strengthen alliances that allow for greater impact and respond to the needs of the country and the region,” said Jose Angel Lopez, Guatemalaâs Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Food.
Bram Govaerts, Director General of CIMMYT (right), presents during the launch of the AgriLAC Resiliente Initiative. (Photo: CGIAR)
National and regional strategies
AgriLAC Resiliente will also be presented in Honduras, where national partners will learn more about the Initiative and its role in achieving a resilient, sustainable, and competitive Latin America and the Caribbean, that will enable it to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
Under the general coordination of CGIAR, other Initiatives are also underway in Guatemala that will synergize with the global research themes toward the transformation of more resilient agrifood systems.
“We are committed to providing a structure that responds to national and regional priorities, needs, and demands. The support of partners, donors and producers will be key to building sustainable and more efficient agrifood systems,” Lozano said.
About CGIAR
CGIAR is a global research partnership for a food-secure future, dedicated to transforming food, land, and water systems in a climate crisis. Its research is carried out by 13 CGIAR Centers/Alliances in close collaboration with hundreds of partners, including national and regional research institutes, civil society organizations, academia, development organizations and the private sector. www.cgiar.org
We would like to thank all Funders who support this research through their contributions to the CGIAR Trust Fund.
About the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT
The Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) delivers research-based solutions that address the global crises of malnutrition, climate change, biodiversity loss, and environmental degradation. The Alliance focuses on the nexus of agriculture, nutrition and environment. We work with local, national, and multinational partners across Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean, and with the public and private sectors and civil society. With novel partnerships, the Alliance generates evidence and mainstreams innovations to transform food systems and landscapes so that they sustain the planet, drive prosperity, and nourish people in a climate crisis.
The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) is an international nonprofit agricultural research and training organization that empowers farmers through science and innovation to nourish the world in the midst of a climate crisis. Applying high-quality science and strong partnerships, CIMMYT works toward a world with healthier, more prosperous people, freedom from global food crises, and more resilient agrifood systems. CIMMYT’s research brings higher productivity and better profits to farmers, mitigates the effects of the climate crisis, and reduces the environmental impact of agriculture.
The International Potato Center (CIP) was founded in 1971 as a research-for-development organization with a focus on potato, sweetpotato and andean roots and tubers. It delivers innovative science-based solutions to enhance access to affordable nutritious food, foster inclusive sustainable business and employment growth, and drive the climate resilience of root and tuber agrifood systems. Headquartered in Lima, Peru, CIP has a research presence in more than 20 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries. IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 50 countries. Global, regional, and national food systems face major challenges and require fundamental transformations. IFPRI is focused on responding to these challenges through a multidisciplinary approach to reshape food systems so they work for all people sustainably.
With the participation of more than 30 researchers from four CGIAR Centers located in the Americas, a planning workshop for a new CGIAR Research Initiative, AgriLAC Resiliente, was held on April 4â6, 2022. Its purpose was to define the implementation of activities to improve the livelihoods of producers in Latin America, with the support of national governments, the private sector, civil society, and CGIARâs regional and global funders, and partners.
âThis workshop is the first face-to-face planning meeting aimed at defining, in a joined-up manner and map in hand, how the teams across Centers in the region will complement each other, taking advantage of the path that each Center has taken in Latin America, but this time based on the advantage of reaching the territories not as four independent Centers, but as one CGIAR team,â says Deissy MartĂnez BarĂłn, leader of the Initiative from the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT.
AgriLAC Resiliente is an Initiative co-designed to transform food systems in Latin America and the Caribbean. It aims to increase resilience, ecosystem services and the competitiveness of agrifood innovation systems in the region. Through this Initiative, CGIAR is committed to providing a regional structure that enhances its effectiveness and responds better to national and regional priorities, needs and demands.
This Initiative is one of a number that the CGIAR has in Latin America and the Caribbean and consists of five research components:
Climate and nutrition that seeks to use collaborative innovations for climate-resilient and nutritious agrifood systems;
Digital agriculture through the use of digital and inclusive tools for the creation of actionable knowledge;
Competitiveness with low emissions, focused on agroecosystems, landscapes and value chains, low in sustainable emissions;
Innovation and scaling with the Innova-Hubs network for agrifood innovations and their scaling up;
Science for timely decision making and the establishment of policies, institutions and investments in resilient, competitive and low-emission agrifood systems.
The regional character of these CGIAR Initiatives and of the teams of researchers who make them a reality in the territories with the producers, was prominent in the minds of the leadership that also participated in this workshop. Martin Kropff, Global Director, Resilient Agrifood Systems, CGIAR; JoaquĂn Lozano, Regional Director, Latin America and the Caribbean, CGIAR; Ăscar Ortiz, Acting Director General of the International Potato Center; JesĂșs Quintana, Manager for the Americas of the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT; and Bram Govaerts, Director General of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), all stated the importance of CGIAR being central to every discussion in which the teams are co-constructing a greater consensus on what AgriLAC Resliente is, what it wants to achieve, the approach it will use, and the goals it aims to achieve through synergies among its five components.
Acting as an integrated organization is also an opportunity for CGIAR to leverage co-developed solutions and solve local challenges in the global South related to climate change and agrifood systems transformation. âBuilding the new CGIAR involves tons of collaboration and coordination. In this AgriLAC Resiliente workshop, we have had a dialogue full of energy focused on achieving real impactâ highlighted Bram Govaerts. He continued, âthis is an occasion to strengthen teamwork around this CGIAR Initiative in which the Integrated Agrifood System Initiative approach will be applied in the Latin American region, which is a very interconnected regionâ he pointed out.
One of the main results of this workshop is an opportunity to carry out the integration of the CGIAR teams in the implementation of the AgriLAC Resiliente Initiative, with applied science and the decisive role of the partners at each point of the region, as mechanisms for change.
In 2022, the research teams will begin to lay the groundwork for implementing the Initiativeâs integrative approach to strengthen the innovations to be co-developed with partners and collaborators in the Latin American region, that encompass the interconnected nature of the global South.
GENNOVATE is a global comparative research initiative which addresses the question of how gender norms influence men, women and youth to adopt innovation in agriculture and natural resource management.
Carried out in conjunction with 11 CGIAR research programs worldwide and across 125 rural communities in 26 countries, this qualitative comparative study aims to provide authoritative research to advance gender-transformative approaches and catalyze change in international agricultural and natural resource management research for development.
In discussion groups and individual interviews, roughly 6,000 rural study participants of different socioeconomic backgrounds and age groups are reflecting on and comparing local womenâs and menâs expected roles and behaviors â or gender normsâ and how these social rules affect their ability to access, adopt, adapt and benefit from innovations in agricultural and natural resource management.
The initiativeâs research process strives to give rural women and men a voice by providing authoritative, contextually grounded evidence on how gender interacts with agricultural innovations. It also aims to strengthen CGIAR research program capacities to know the target beneficiaries, design for them, and be accountable to them.
Central to the qualitative field study is an exploration of womenâs and menâs agency at the core of which is the capacity to make important decisions pertaining to oneâs life. For rural women and men, these decisions relate to agriculture and natural resource management, as well as to other significant events in the private (household) and public (community) spheres.
OBJECTIVES
What are the most important new agricultural practices and technologies for the men and for the women in a given village?
What qualities make a woman or a man a good farmer?
Do young people in this village follow local customs of women doing certain agricultural activities and men others?
Are there differences between a woman who is innovative and a man who is innovative?
Martin Kropff is CIMMYT director general and Juergen Voegele is senior director World Bankâs Agriculture Global Practice.
(Photo: J. Cumes/CIMMYT)
What do a chapati, a matza, or couscous have in common? The answer is wheat, which is a source for one-fifth of the calories and protein consumed globally.
Yet, stable, assured funding for public research for this important food grain remains elusive.
For 45 years, world-class scientists from two research centers of CGIAR â the worldâs only global research system that focuses on the crops of most importance to poor farmers in developing countries â have battled the odds to provide wheat and nourish the worldâs growing population. Their innovations have helped to boost wheat yields, fight debilitating pests and ward off diseases, improving the lives of nearly 80 million poor farmers.
Wheat plays a big role in feeding the human family. Over 1.2 billion resource-poor consumers depend on wheat as a staple food.
Small Investment, big gains: Research for free public goods shows the way
A new report by the CGIAR Research Program on Wheat shows that for an annual investment of roughly $30 million, the benefits gained from wheat research are in the range of $2.2 billion to $3.1 billion each year, from 1994 to 2014. Put another way, for every $1 invested in wheat breeding, $73 to $103 were returned in direct benefits, helping producers and consumers alike. Surely these healthy numbers — which are conservative because they do not include benefits from traits other than yield — would whet the appetite of any hard-nosed economist or bean counter looking for a convincing return on investment.
Science products like improved wheat lines from CIMMYT, the Mexico-based International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center, and ICARDA, the International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas â both members of CGIAR â are freely available to all and keep the global wheat research enterprise humming. Each year CIMMYT alone distributes half a million packets of corn and wheat seed from its research to 346 partners in public and private breeding programs spread across 79 countries where these crops are mainstays of peopleâs diets.
Today, the rapid spread of wheat varieties adapted to diverse ecologies is one of agricultural scienceâs unsung success stories. Almost half the worldâs wheat land is sown to varieties that come from research by CGIAR scientists and their global network of partners. Even as wheat-free diets are on the rise in industrialized countries â whether due to personal preference, or medical necessity such as celiac disease â it is increasingly clear that wheat will remain an important grain in the diets of millions of people living in emerging economies.
(Photo: P. Lowe/CIMMYT)
Food in a changing climate: The future is here
So what could possibly be wrong with the scenario painted above? After all, CIMMYT has been around for five decades, and public funding has kept the wheels of discovery science turning and delivering improved varieties of the food crops that farmers demand and consumers need.
The big outlier, our known unknown, is climate change. For every one degree Celsius increase in growing season temperatures, wheat production decreases by a whopping 6 percent.
To beat the heat, CIMMYT scientists are working to reshape the wheat plant for temperature extremes and other environmental factors. New goals include dramatically enhancing wheatâs use of sunlight and better understanding the internal signals whereby plants coordinate their activities and responses to dry conditions and high temperatures.
Food demand is projected to rise by 20 percent globally over the next 15 years with the largest increases in sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia and East Asia where the map of hunger, poverty and malnutrition has an overlay of environmental stress and extreme resource degradation.
Climate change is already playing havoc with the global food system.
In 2009, one-fifth of Mexicoâs corn production was lost due to drought. In 2011, extreme weather events such as cyclones destroyed one-third of Sri Lankaâs rice crop, and badly damaged rice paddies in Madagascar, one of the worldâs poorest countries. Two successive seasons of poor rainfall from El Niño have decimated Africaâs corn harvest and left millions facing hunger this year.
Looking to the future, rising food demand â driven inexorably by population, rapid urbanization and increasing global wealth â shows no sign of abating. To meet food needs by increasing productivity, cereal yields â not wheat alone â would need to increase at 3 percent a year, a number that is 40 percent higher than the 2.1 percent gains achieved from 2000 to 2013. Alas, plant breeders do not have the luxury of complacency. New varieties take more than a decade to develop, test, and deploy through national certification and seed marketing or distribution systems.
CGIAR crop scientists are rushing to meet the challenges. In a taste of the future, a team of topnotch scientists at CGIARâs Lima-based International Potato Center and NASA will test growing potatoes under Martian conditions to demonstrate that hardy spuds can thrive in the harshest environments.
As the worldâs policy makers begin to grapple with the interconnected nature of food, energy, water and peace, every dollar invested in improving global food and nutrition security is an investment in the future of humanity.
To develop crops, livestock, fish and trees that are more productive and resilient and have a lower environmental signature, CGIAR is calling for an increase in its war chest to reach $1.35 billion by 2020. Is anybody listening?
Course participants learning about the experiences of Mexican farmers who practice CA. Photo: Gabriela RamĂrez
Nele Verhulst, Strategic Research Coordinator of the Global Conservation Agriculture Program (GCAP), led CIMMYTâs 21st International Training Course on Conservation Agriculture from 25 May-26 June 2015. A total of 132 people have taken the course since its inception. This year, participating researchers from Guatemala, Peru, Ecuador and Mexico were trained in sustainable technologies and conservation agriculture (CA).
Field tour in the central valleys of Mexico. Photo: Gabriela RamĂrez
GCAP International Training Course on Conservation Agriculture (CA) graduates hold certificates, which authorize them to teach and train others on CA practices, during the Courseâs closing ceremony. Photo: CIMMYT
A particular challenge of CA, according to Vazquez, is that âone sizeâ does not fill all, and precepts must be adapted to local settings, with involvement of all actors, including farmers. âThis implies that we will have to be extremely creative when listening to farmers and interpreting what they say, and even more so when asking them to adopt the technologies we have to offer,â said VĂĄsquez.
CIMMYT Director General Martin Kropff explained CIMMYTâs role as a research organization and highlighted the crucial part it plays as a capacity building NGO.
CIMMYT Director General Martin Kropff addresses course graduates during closing ceremony. Photo: CIMMYT
âThis role is indispensable for creating links with the different national systems, and for CIMMYT it is essential to share the knowledge it acquires. That is why we would like to propose a new project, CIMMYT Academy, which will bring together all the short-, medium- and long-term training activities available,â Kropff said.
Kropff concluded by reminding each participant of the role they have as CIMMYT ambassadors to their own countries and expressed his hope for continued collaboration in the future. Further reading on the course may be found here on Inside CIMMYT.
In March, CIMMYT celebrated International Womenâs Day and lauded the efforts of many. At CIMMYT, we are lucky to work with outstanding female colleagues. Perla ChĂĄvez Dulanto, associate scientist for the Global Wheat Programâs (GWP) physiology team, which is led by Matthew Reynolds, is one of those colleagues.
ChĂĄvez came to CIMMYT in 2012, inspired by the legacy of Dr. Norman Borlaug, who she describes as âa man who devoted his life and his science to help the poorest but was guided by his heart âa characteristic feature of great scientists and true human beings.â She was also motivated by the opportunity to be part of an interdisciplinary group working to improve food security and livelihoods. After earning a BSc in agricultural engineering at La Molina National Agricultural University in Lima, Peru, she worked for large-scale farm export enterprises and agribusiness, nongovernmental organizations and education-extension institutions. Yet ChĂĄvez, who is inspired by the landscapes she admired during her childhood, wanted to develop good crops for poor farmers.
âThough I was raised in Lima, my mother was from Chancay, a coastal city nearby and the largest provider of field crop commodities to Lima. From Chancay, you could see endless maize and potato crop fields with long rows almost reaching the beaches, listen to birds tweet and see whales or sea lions jumping into the water far beyond,â ChĂĄvez said. She knew she needed to learn about soil, physics, ecology, pathology and animal life. ChĂĄvez has had enough contact with farmers, both wealthy and poor, to realize there are large differences between their livelihoods. Peru produces wheat, barley and sorghum in mountainous areas. Wheat is important to smallholder and subsistence farmers but yields are only 2 to 3 tons per hectare due to the lack of improved materials and the prevalence of pests, disease damage and abiotic stresses like drought. ChĂĄvez said Peru and the Andean region could benefit from research, motivating her to continue with science.
She earned a masterâs degree in entomology with complementary studies in integrated pest management and horticulture at La Molina and the Wageningen Agricultural University (WAU), The Netherlands. She earned a Ph.D. from the University of the Balearic Islands, Spain, and conducted research for the International Potato Center (CIP) in Peru on a project using remote sensing to detect biotic and abiotic stresses in potatoes. ChĂĄvez worked at CIP for eight years, where she had the opportunity to travel across Peru.
ChĂĄvez brings this expertise to the wheat physiology group and she says she is lucky for the support of her GWP colleagues. During her tenure at CIMMYT she has organized two courses on plant physiology for national staff at Ciudad ObregĂłn, and edited and coordinated the English-Spanish translation of the manuals Fitomejoramiento FisiolĂłgico volumen I y volumen II. She has also supported Amor Yahyaoui and Pawan Singh during field days in Toluca and coordinated visits by students and children at Ciudad ObregĂłn.
âI am happy to do collaborative research within GWP and CIMMYT as a whole, which involves breeders, pathologists, physiologists, conservation agriculture experts and more,â ChĂĄvez said. âIf we all work together we can move faster to discover and select genotypes with a very good combination of characteristics. Those genotypes â after several steps â can be released for farmers. We can make an impact on peopleâs lives.â ChĂĄvez will soon start a new stage in her life when she becomes a mother in May. She looks forward to sharing some of her other talents, such as drawing, painting and sculpture, with her baby boy.
The computer programming language âRâ can help crop researchers with data analysis and interpretation, students learned during a course on the tool this month. Held at the National University of Cajamarca in Peru from 11 to 15 November, the course promoted the use of âRâ in crop improvement.Â
Data analysis is crucial for comparing the performance of maize hybrids and evaluating experiments. Free of charge and useful for analyzing diverse types of data, the âRâ program has been around for about a decade but is relatively new and unknown in South America. It was developed by two statisticians in New Zealand. CIMMYT and the universityâs College of Engineers organized the event, which drew some 70 participants from experiment stations from Peruâs National Institute for Technological Innovation (INIA), universities and governmental organizations with research programs. Teachers included RamĂłn Giraldo Henao from the National University of Colombia, Felipe de Mendiburu from the La Molina National Agrarian University in Lima, Carlos Urrea Florez from Nebraska State University and Luis Narro LeĂłn from CIMMYT.
Mendiburu, who developed the application Agricolae for R, taught the participants how to use the program. The application is specifically designed for the planning and analysis of agricultural and plant breeding experiments. Giraldo presented on the various uses of âR,â including its applications in statistics, types of variables and measurement scales, measures of location and shape variability, probability, sampling distributions, hypothesis testing, regression, analysis of variance and contingency tables. Urrea described bean breeding with emphasis on the use of molecular markers to improve disease tolerance. Participants then used salt, detergent and alcohol to extract DNA from strawberries.
To bolster maize exports to the European Union (EU), Peru is taking measures to ensure its grain is free from mycotoxins, according to CIMMYT maize pathologist Henry Ngugi. âThey wanted to establish a testing mechanism because they are trading maize, for which they have to meet strict European Union (EU) standards. They have a project with CIMMYT, which brings them to meâ explained Ngugi, who at the request of SENASA, the Peruvian National Agrarian Health Service, led a training course on the subject in Mexico from 21 October to 1 November.
Toxic compounds released by fungal infections in common food grains, mycotoxins spoil 25 percent of global food production, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Beyond the economic losses they cause, mycotoxins are associated with cancer, stunted growth, birth defects and, on occasion, with mass casualties. Course participants were trained to set up an affordable laboratory with all necessary safety features, and on rapid and affordable methods of analysis for aflatoxins and fumonisins in food commodities. Aflatoxin B1 is the most potent carcinogen known in nature, and fumonisins have been linked to the neural tube defect in embryo formation.
The training emphasized the use of laboratory sessions to prepare trainees to perform the analyses themselves upon returning to their home countries. Although testing for mycotoxins is an established practice in the developed world, a lack of expertise can hinder the participation of other countries in trade. The World Bank believes that EU restrictions on mycotoxins cost Africa US $670 million in lost exports each year. The potential benefits to Peruvian maize farmers and exporters are clear, but Ngugi, an expert with more than 10 years of experience in Toxic compounds released by fungal infections in common food grains, mycotoxins spoil 25 percent of global food production, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Beyond the economic losses they cause, mycotoxins are associated with cancer, stunted growth, birth defects and, on occasion, with mass casualties. Course participants were trained to set up an affordable laboratory with all necessary safety features, and on rapid and affordable methods of analysis for aflatoxins and fumonisins in food commodities. Aflatoxin B1 is the most potent carcinogen known in nature, and fumonisins have been linked to the neural tube defect in embryo formation. The training emphasized the use of laboratory sessions to prepare trainees to perform the analyses themselves upon returning to their home countries.
Photo: Thomas Lumpkin/CIMMYT
Although testing for mycotoxins is an established practice in the developed world, a lack of expertise can hinder the participation of other countries in trade. The World Bank believes that EU restrictions on mycotoxins cost Africa US $670 million in lost exports each year. The potential benefits to Peruvian maize farmers and exporters are clear, but Ngugi, an expert with more than 10 years of experience in consuming contaminated grains in the last few years,â Ngugi said. âBecause of that, this issue does not draw as much attention, but in the long run it could have a lot of consequences.â
Many Latin American staples â such as maize, nuts, chili peppers and beans â are vulnerable to mycotoxin contamination. A 2004 study conducted by the United States Department of Health (USDA) in Guatemala found that half of maize samples collected from local markets would exceed World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for fumonisin consumption if eaten regularly. âWe know the problem exists,â Ngugi said. âBut we cannot attract donor funding because if you ask people, they donât have data.â
Training on the use of remote sensing from an unmanned aerial vehicle was given at INIAP-Peruâs Vista Florida experiment station on 1-5 June 2013. The course was organized by INIAP, the University of Barcelona, Spain, and CIMMYTâs regional office in Colombia. Remote sensing is used in precision agriculture and for phenotyping crops that are important for the region, such as maize, rice, and sugar cane.
The lectures focused on topics such as applying remote sensing in phenotyping; spectral and thermal remote sensing of stress from unmanned aircraft; image and data processing; use of software to process the gathered information; and thermal image analysis for diagnosing drought stress and controlling irrigation. In addition, Hildo MacLean showed how the OktokopterâXL works. Luis Narro demostrated how to use the new version of the GreenSeeker for making recommendations on N application in maize and, AntĂłn HernĂĄndez showed how the unmanned aircraft Sky Walker, which comes equipped with a flight programmer, an infrared camera, and a multispectral camera for collecting data, works. The aircraft used in the demonstration was donated to the Vista Florida station as part of the projectâs contributions.
Another essential part of the course was the intensive training on subjects such as platform management, flight programming, and downloading and processing information that was provided to a group of technicians from INIA and private seed companies. Also, Given that INIA technicians who are in charge of the platform need to become thoroughly familiar with it, three technicians from Vista Florida will go to Spain in September to take a course on processing and interpreting images.
The course organizers wish to express their appreciation to the Vista Florida Maize Program.
On 26-27 April 2013, the FONTAGRO âGeneration and validation
of drought tolerant maize varieties to stabilize and reduce mycotoxin damage resulting from climate changeâ project held its end-of-project meeting in La Ceiba, Honduras, along with the Central American Cooperative Program for the Improvement of Crops and Animals (PCCMCA) meeting (21-26 April). The event highlighted the advances to date, the projectâs products, and recommendations for follow-up to ensure that the products reach farmers.
Since 2009, the project generated 5,000 doubled haploid (DH) lines which are currently being evaluated by CIMMYT. The populations were developed from inbred lines identified for drought tolerance, ear rot resistance, and reduced mycotoxin accumulation. The project also identified a set of inbred lines with high levels of ear rot and mycotoxin resistance. The information has been shared with project partners and other breeders for wide use, and CIMMYT will distribute these lines to interested parties. CIMMYT maize breeder Luis Narro commented on the research on diseases, ear rots in particular. âEar rot is increasing in incidence and severity in South America. Evaluation of 18 commercial hybrids in Peru revealed ear rot incidences as high as 42% on susceptible hybrids in some locations,â he said. âEar rot tolerant hybrids identified in this project will play an important role in mitigating the detrimental effects posed by ear rots and mycotoxin contamination. These need to be promoted to reach farmers rapidly.â As far as mycotoxins are concerned, the team also identified promising hybrids from validation trials documenting the natural incidence of mycotoxins in Peru, Colombia, and Mexico. This study showed that fumonisins are the most prevalent mycotoxin in South America (compared to aflatoxin and deoxynivalenol).
âThe project has generated many products and validated some that are now being released in several countries,â said the project leader George Mahuku. Among those are four varieties released in Honduras (three white and one yellow); one white variety in Colombia; two varieties (one yellow, one white) and a yellow hybrid in Nicaragua, and three varieties (two yellow and one white) in Panama. Three hybrids outperforming the local commercial checks are under validation in Peru. Furthermore, two varieties showing the stability and rustic nature of CIMMYT-generated varieties were released in Colombia, Honduras, and Nicaragua. All the released cultivars are moderately tolerant to the tar spot complex disease which is becoming more common in Latin America.
CIMMYT maize breeder Felix San Vicente presented on the advances that have been made in breeding for drought tolerance and ear rot resistance. âWe need to establish and maintain a regional network to test our products in marginal areas,â he noted. âWe hope that we will be able to leverage funding from the CRP [MAIZE] to continue the validation and dissemination of these important and promising products in the region.â During the meeting, scientists presented 29 papers, 5 of which contained results from the FONTAGRO project. The papers of CIMMYT colleagues RomĂĄn Gordon and Oscar Cruz were awarded for their contributions to the maize section of the project: Gordon received the first prize for his paper âSelection of maize varieties for tolerance to water stress in Panama 2010-2012,â and Cruz received the second prize for his paper on âParticipatory validation of white and yellow maize varieties in two regions of Honduras.â
The project has generally been considered very successful. âWe now know which mycotoxins are important in the region and we have the products to potentially minimize the risk,â commented Mahuku. âWhat we need is to widely test and disseminate the products so that they reach as many farmers as possible. With a little infusion of resources, the dedication demonstrated by this group, and support from policy makers, I have no doubt that we will get there.â
To bolster maize exports to the European Union (EU), Peru is taking measures to ensure its grain is free from mycotoxins, according to CIMMYT maize pathologist Henry Ngugi. âThey wanted to establish a testing mechanism because they are trading maize, for which they have to meet strict European Union (EU) standards. They have a project with CIMMYT, which brings them to meâ explained Ngugi, who at the request of SENASA, the Peruvian National Agrarian Health Service, led a training course on the subject in Mexico from 21 October to 1 November.
Training on the use of remote sensing from an unmanned aerial vehicle was given at INIAP-Peruâs Vista Florida experiment station on 1-5 June 2013. The course was organized by INIAP, the University of Barcelona, Spain, and CIMMYTâs regional office in Colombia. Remote sensing is used in precision agriculture and for phenotyping crops that are important for the region, such as maize, rice, and sugar cane.
On 26-27 April 2013, the 
The project has generally been considered very successful. âWe now know which mycotoxins are important in the region and we have the products to potentially minimize the risk,â commented Mahuku. âWhat we need is to widely test and disseminate the products so that they reach as many farmers as possible. With a little infusion of resources, the dedication demonstrated by this group, and support from policy makers, I have no doubt that we will get there.â