Latin America is a particularly rich source of neglected crops, which have been replaced by a small number of modern varieties that have come to dominate global commodity markets. However, CIMMYT has utilized various methodologies and developed new initiatives to highlight the value of neglected crops and create market opportunities for smallholders.
What are the crucial practices, to help enhance the contribution to local communities and the preservation of their cultural heritage?
In plant breeding, efforts to increase the rate of genetic gains and enhance crop resilience to the effects of climate change are often limited by the inaccessibility and costs of phenotyping methods. The recent rapid development of sensors, image-processing technology and data analysis has provided new opportunities for multiple scales phenotyping methods and systems. Among these, satellite imagery may represent one of the best ways to remotely monitor trials and nurseries planted in multiple locations, while standardizing protocols and reducing costs.
This is because relevant data collected as part of crop phenotyping can be generated from satellite images. For instance, the sensors onboard the SkySat satellite constellation of Planet Labs have four spectral bandsâblue, green, red, and infraredâwhich can be used to calculate the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), which is a measure of vegetation and its greenness, and various canopy traits like ground cover, leaf area index and chlorosis. It can also be used to monitor plot establishment and phenological parameters.
High-resolution RGB orthomosaic of wheat experiments, assessing the effect of plot size and spacing in the spectral signature, collected from SkySat satellite images. (Photo: Gilberto Thompson)
The use of satellite-based phenotyping in breeding trials has typically been restricted by low resolution, high cost and long intervals between fly-overs. However, the advent of a new generation of high-resolution satellitesâsuch as the SkySat constellationânow offers multispectral images at a 0.5m resolution with close to daily acquisition attempts on any place on Earth. This could be a game changer in terms of the scale at which yield trials can be conducted, enabling more precise variety placement and thereby increasing genetic diversity across farmerâs fields and reducing the probability of disease epidemics. It could also revolutionize the capacity for research in realistic field conditions, since traits can be measured throughout the cycle in a highly standardized way, over multiple sites at low cost. For example, an image which covers 25 km2 can monitor an entire research station at a cost of about US$300.
To test the suitability of this technology, a team of researchers from CIMMYT set out to evaluate the reliability of SkySat NDVI estimates for maize and wheat breeding plots of different sizes and spacing, as well as testing its capacity for detecting seasonal changes and genotypic differences.
Both their initial findings, recently published in Frontiers in Plant Science, and more recently acquired data, show that the SkySat satellites can be used to monitor plots commonly used in wheat and maize nurseries. While wheat yield plots usually are 1.2m wide, maize plots tend to consist of at least two rows, resulting in a width of 1.5m. Plot length ranges from 2-4m. The authors also discuss on other factors to be considered when extracting and interpreting satellite data from yield trials, such as plot spacing.
Through the successful collection of six satellite images in Central Mexico during the rainy season and parallel monitoring of a maize trial in Zimbabwe, the researchers demonstrate the flexibility of this tool. Beyond the improvement of spatial resolution, the researchers suggest that the next challenge will be the development and fine-tuning of operational procedures that ensure high quality, standardized data, allowing them to harness the benefits of the modern breeding triangle, which calls for the integration of phenomics, enviromics and genomics, to accelerate breeding gains.
This research was supported by the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research, the CGIAR Research Program on Maize, the CGIAR Research Program on Wheat, and the One CGIAR Initiatives on Digital Innovation, F2R-CWANA, and Accelerated Breeding.
Scientists from CIMMYT, founded in Mexico in 1966, have pursued decades of participatory research with Mexicoâs smallholder maize farmers to improve their local varieties for traits like yield and insect resistance, while preserving their special grain quality, as well as testing and promoting zero-tillage and other resource-conserving farming practices.
Smallholder farm operations account for more than 80% of all farms worldwide and produce roughly 35% of the worldâs food, according to FAO census data and follow-up studies.
An estimated two-thirds of the Mexicoâs farmers are smallholders, typically working challenging agroecologies scattered across the countryâs mountainous terrain and applying generations-old subsistence practices to grow low-yielding local maize varieties.
Ancient milpa multicropping systems can lift up the present and future
The milpa intercrop â in which maize is grown together with beans, squash, or other vegetable crops â has a millennial history in the Americas and can furnish a vital supply of food and nutrients for marginalized, resource-poor communities.
One hectare of a milpa comprising maize, common beans, and potatoes can provide the annual carbohydrate needs of more than 13 adults, enough protein for nearly 10 adults, and adequate supplies of many vitamins and minerals, according to a CIMMYT-led study in the western highlands of Guatemala, an isolated and impoverished region, reported in Nature Scientific Reports in 2021.
But milpas are typically grown on much smaller areas than a hectare, so households cannot depend on this intercrop alone to satisfy their needs. A solution? Customized milpas that merge farmersâ age-old wisdom and practices with science-based innovation.
An example is planting fruit trees â guava, avocado, mango, peaches, or lime among others â among milpa crops in lines perpendicular to hill slopes. The practice was tested and promoted in the Los Tuxtlas region of the state of Veracruz by Mexicoâs National Institute of Forestry, Agriculture, and Livestock Research (INIFAP) and the Colegio de Postgraduados (ColPos) and has been refined by farmers in other areas through CIMMYT-led innovation networks.
Planted milpa crops in lines perpendicular to the slope on a steep hillside in Chiapas, Mexico. (Photo: Peter Lowe/CIMMYT)
In Los Tuxtlas the practice provided added income and nutrition, dramatically reduced erosion, improved land and water-use efficiency by around 50%, and boosted soil health and fertility.
In the state of Puebla and other parts of South and southwestern Mexico, milpa-fruit tree intercrops have worked well on steep hillsides. In the state of Oaxaca, for example, versions of the practice have notably improved farming by indigenous communities in the Mixe and Mazateca regions, supported by outreach of the Mexican Agency for the Sustainable Development of Hillsides (AMDSL), a partner in a CIMMYT research hub in the region.
Research by AMDSL and CIMMYT on smallholder plots in two Oaxaca municipalities where farmers have been combining milpas with peach and avocado production and conservation agriculture practices for more than a decade found that cropping diversification, together with use of zero tillage and keeping crop residues on the soil rather than removing or burning them, raised total yearly crop outputs by as much as 1.7 tons per hectare and reduced farmersâ risk of catastrophic crop losses due to droughts or other climate extremes.
Blue maize pleases diners and delivers profits
Farmersâ local maize varieties yield less than hybrids but are still grown because they provide ideal grain quality for traditional foods, as well as marketable stalks and leaves to feed farm animals and maize husks for wrapping tamales, to name a few products.
Building on longstanding partnerships with INIFAP and the Autonomous University of Chapingo (UACh) to improve local varieties and preserve maize genetic diversity in Mexico, CIMMYT breeders have recently developed improved blue maize hybrids and open-pollinated varieties.
Sought by restauranteurs worldwide for its flavor and beauty, blue maize grain normally comes from native varieties grown by smallholder farmers on small plots with low yields and variable quality.
The new CIMMYT varieties are derived from traditional Guatemalan, Mexican, and Peruvian landraces and feature higher yields, more consistent grain quality, and enhanced resistance to common maize diseases, offering smallholders and other Mexican farmers a profitable product for the countryâs booming restaurant industry and for export chains.
Selection of corn varieties for the state of Morelos, Mexico. (Photo: ACCIMMYT)
Parental inbred lines of the new hybrids have been distributed to private and public partners, who are developing their own hybrids and OPVs in Mexico. CIMMYT continues to test the new hybrids under various farming systems to ensure they produce stable yields when grown in farmersâ fields.
Data driven extension
Using cutting-edge data systems, CIMMYT has leveraged information from nearly 200,000 plots representing more than 26,000 hectares across diverse agroecologies to offer Mexican farmers â including smallholders â site-specific recommendations that make their farming systems more productive, resilient, and sustainable. The initiative was supported by MasAgro, an integrated development partnership of Mexico and CIMMYT during 2010-21 and funded by Mexicoâs Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER).
Small-scale farmers in Mexico often adopt conservation agriculture innovations gradually and piecemeal, to fit their diverse agroecological and socioeconomic contexts and risk appetites, according to studies and the on-farm experience of CIMMYT.
Research and extension efforts need to consider this in work with smallholders, said Santiago Lopez-Ridaura, a CIMMYT specialist in agricultural systems and climate change adaptation.
“Farmer practices typically involve heavy tillage before seeding, growing maize as a monocrop, and removing crop residues after harvest for use as forage,â explained Lopez-Ridaura. âFull-on conservation agriculture (CA) is a radical shift, requiring farmers to reduce or eliminate tillage, keep a permanent cover of crop residues on the soil, and diversify the crops they grow. It can support more intense yet environmentally friendly farming, reducing erosion, improving soil fertility and water filtration, boosting crop yields, and saving farmers money. However, it also requires purchasing or contracting specialized sowing implements and fencing fields or agreeing with neighbors to keep livestock from eating all the residues, to name just a few changes.â
Conserving crop residues favors production systems and provides various benefits. (Photo: Simon Fonteyne/CIMMYT)
Lopez-Ridaura and colleagues published a 2021 analysis involving farmers who grew maize and sorghum and keep a few livestock on small landholdings (less than 4 hectares), with limited mechanization and irrigation, in the state of Guanajuato, Central Mexico.
They found that scenarios involving hybrid maize plus a legume crop with zero-tillage or keeping a residue mulch on the soil provided an average net profit of some US $1,600 (MXP 29,000) per year, in addition to ecological benefits, added forage, and more stable output under climate stress.
âUsing a modeling framework from Australiaâs Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) that combines bioeconomic simulation, risk analysis, adoption theory, and impact assessment, we not only confirmed the worth of conservation agriculture but found that disaggregating CA into smaller component packages and including a more productive crop and variety were likely to increase farmersâ adoption, in riskier settings.â
Advancing more sustainable farming in Mexico
Conservation agriculture can generate substantial economic and environmental benefits under marginal conditions, particularly by enhancing climate change resilience, increasing soil organic matter, and retaining soil moisture. In Central Mexico dryland maize yields rose by 38-48%, after 10 years of implementing CA.
CIMMYT’s multi-crop, multi-use zero tillage seeder at work on a long-term conservation agriculture (CA) trial plot, left, at the center’s headquarters at El BatĂĄn, Mexico. (Photo credit: CIMMYT)
CIMMYT has studied and promoted zero-tillage for maize and other resource-conserving practices in Mexico for more than three decades, but efforts to spread sustainable farming and use of improved maize and wheat varieties redoubled thanks to MasAgro, a research initiative led by the Center and supported by the government of Mexico during 2010-21. Testimonials such abound of Mexican smallholder farmers who have adopted and benefited from CA practices through CIMMYT and national partners’ efforts in MasAgro and other initiatives.
Looking to lower his farm costs without losing output, wheat and oil crop farmer Alfonso Romo of Valle de Mayo, state of Sonora, began practicing CA in 2010. âWe’ve learned a lot and this year (2022) we obtained the same yields as we used to get through conventional practices but, following more sustainable farming methods, with a 30 and even 40% savings in fertilizer.”
With CA practices he adopted in 2018 through MasAgro, maize farmer Rafael Jacobo of Salvatierra, state of Guanajuato, obtained a good crop despite the late dispersal of irrigation water. Seeing his success and that of other nearby farmers, neighbor Jorge Luis Rosillo began using CA techniques and has noticed yearly improvements in his soil and yields. “I did everything the technicians recommended: keeping the residues on the soil and renewing only the sowing line on soil bedsâŠ. There are lots of advantages but above all the (cost) savings in land preparation.”
The Milpa Sustentable project in the Yucatan Peninsula is recognized by the UN as a world example of sustainable development. (Photo: CIMMYT)
Farmers in the Milpa Sustentable project in the YucatĂĄn Peninsula have improved maize yields using locally adapted CA methods, in collaboration with the Autonomous University of YucatĂĄn. Former project participant Viridiana Sei said she particularly liked the respectful knowledge sharing between farmers and project technicians.
CA practices have allowed more than 320 women farmers in the Mixteca Region of the state of Oaxaca to provide more and better forage for the farm animals they depend on, despite drought conditions, through the Crop and Livestock Conservation Agriculture (CLCA) project supported by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). According to farmer MarĂa MartĂnez Cruz, “… it hasn’t rained much and everything’s dry, but our verdant oat crop is allowing us to keep our farm animals fed.”
With CLCA support and facing Mexico’s increasingly fickle rainy season, farmer Mario GuzmĂĄn Manuel of San Francisco ChindĂșa village in Oaxaca began using CA and says he’ll never go back to the old practices. “We used to do as many as two harrow plowings to break up the soil, but if we leave the residues from the previous crop, they hold in the soil moisture more effectively. People hang onto the old ways, preferring to burn crop residues, but we should understand that this practice only deprives the soil of its capacity to produce.”
Leveraging the leadership, science, and partnerships of the Mexico-based CIMMYT and the funding and research capacity of Mexicoâs Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development (SADER) during 2010-21, the program known as âMasAgroâ has helped up to 500,000 participating farmers to adopt improved maize and wheat varieties and resource-conserving practices on more than 1 million hectares of farmland in 30 states of Mexico.
As a result of MasAgro research hubs operating across Mexicoâs multiple and diverse agroecologies to promote the sustainable intensification of maize and wheat farming systems â including improved varieties and resource-conserving, climate-smart practices â yields of project participants for maize were 20% higher and for wheat 3% higher than local averages. Similarly, average net incomes for participating maize farmers were 23% greater and 4% greater for wheat farmers, compared to local averages.
The MasAgro biodiversity component gathered and analyzed one of the worldâs largest-ever samplings of maize and wheat genetic diversity, including CIMMYTâs own vast seed bank collections, to help identify and characterize new genes of interest for breeding. As one result, more than 2 billion genetic data points and over 870,000 data entries from associated field trials are freely available to the scientific community, via the projectâs online repository.
MasAgro has involved national and local research organizations, universities, companies, and non-government organizations working through more than 40 research platforms and 1,000 demonstration modules, while building the capacity of thousands of farmers and hundreds of technical and extension experts who serve them.
State-level partners sign on to MasAgro
Through MasAgro, CIMMYT entered into research and development partnerships with 12 Mexican states. An example is the mountainous, central Mexican state of Guanajuato, home to the El BajĂo region, one of Mexicoâs most productive farm areas but which also suffers from soil degradation, water scarcity, and climate change effects â challenges faced by farmers throughout Mexico. The governor of Guanajuato visited CIMMYT headquarters in Mexico in June 2023 to review progress and agree on follow-up activities.
MasAgro generated more sustainable production and irrigation systems in Guanajuato, Mexico. (Photo: ACCIMMYT)
CIMMYT has worked with Guanajuato state and local experts and farmers themselves to test and promote innovations through 7 research platforms reaching nearly 150,000 hectares. As of 2020, new crop varieties and resource-conserving, climate-smart management practices had helped underpin increases of 14% in irrigated wheat production and, under rainfed farming systems, improved outputs of 28% for beans, 150% for local maize varieties and 190% for hybrid maize, over state averages.
An integral soil fertility initiative has included the analysis and mapping of more than 100,000 hectares of farmland, helping Guanajuato farmers to cut costs, use fertilizer more effectively, and reduce the burning of crop residues and associated air pollution.
Service centers for the rental and repair of conservation agriculture machinery are helping to spread practices such as zero tillage and residue mulches. Supported by CIMMYT advisors, Guanajuato farmers are entering into equitable and ecologically friendly production agreements with companies such as Nestle, Kelloggâs, and Heineken, among other profitable and responsible public-private arrangements.
Acclaim and interest abroad for MasAgro
MasAgro has received numerous awards and mentions as a model for sustainable agricultural development. A few examples:
Dignitaries applaud MasAgro launch at CIMMYT. (Photo: Xochiquetzal Fonseca/CIMMYT)
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) mentioned the program as an example of successful extension.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) cited MasAgro for promoting productive and sustainable agriculture.
The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) lauded MasAgro for promoting climate-resilient agriculture.
During the 2018 G20 summit in Argentina, MasAgro was considered a model for coordinating agricultural research, development, innovation, technology transfer, and public-private partnerships.
Bram Govaerts, now Director General of CIMMYT, received the 2014 Norman Borlaug Field Award for his work at the time as leader of MasAgroâs farmer outreach component.
MasAgro research hubs were recently used as a guide by USAID for efforts in Sudan and Eastern Africa. They have also been replicated in Guatemala and Honduras.
Moving out and beyond
In Central America and Mexico, the inter-connected crises of weak agri-food systems, climate change, conflict, and migration have worsened, while small-scale farmers and marginalized sectors remain mired in poverty.
Capitalizing on its experience in MasAgro, CIMMYT is a major partner in the recently launched CGIAR initiative, AgriLAC Resiliente, which aims to build the resilience, sustainability, and competitiveness of agrifood systems and actors in Latin America and the Caribbean, helping them to meet urgent food security needs, mitigate climate hazards, stabilize vulnerable communities, and reduce forced migration. The effort will focus on farmers in Colombia, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Peru.
Farmer Marilu Meza Morales harvests her maize in ComitĂĄn, Mexico. (Photo: Peter Lowe/CIMMYT)
As described in a 2021 science journal article, CIMMYT also helped create the integrated agri-food system initiative (IASI), a methodology that was developed and validated through case studies in Mexico and Colombia, and leverages situation analysis, model predictions, and scenarios to synchronize public and private action toward sustainable, equitable, and inclusive agri-food systems.
âCIMMYTâs integrated development approach to maize system transformation in Mexico and Colombia laid the foundations for the IASI methodology by overcoming government transitions, annual budget constraints, and win-or-lose rivalries between stakeholders, in favor of equity, profitability, resilience and sustainability,â said Govaerts.
The 2021 Global Agricultural Productivity (GAP) report âStrengthening the Climate for Sustainable Agricultural Growthâ endorsed IASI, saying it ââŠis designed to generate strategies, actions and quantitative, Sustainable-Development-Goals-aligned targets that have a significant likelihood of supportive public and private investment.â
The Coalition on Sustainable Productivity Growth for Food Security and Resource Conservation (SPG Coalition) brings together researchers, non-governmental organizations, and private sector partners to advance a world with greater access to nutritious food and affordable diets. The Coalition recognizes that increasing the productivity of natural resources through climate adaptation and mitigation is instrumental to reaching this goal.
In a recent report, the SPG Coalition provides a path forward for NGOs, research institutions, and government agencies to strengthen agrifood and climate policies. The report contains real-life, evidence-based examples to further the sustainable production and conservation of natural resources, detailing the potential impacts on social, economic, and environmental conditions.
CIMMYT features prominently in the report as a leading organization focused on 4 main areas: climate-smart agriculture, nutrient-use efficiency (NUE), and pest and fertilizer management.
Nutrient-use efficiency and fertilizer management
While chemical fertilizers increase crop yields, excessive or improper use of fertilizers contributes to greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and increases labor costs for smallholders. Efficient NUE is central to nutrient management and climate change mitigation and adaptation.
Women using spreader for fertilizer application. (Photo: Wasim Iftikar/CSISA)
In India, CIMMYT, along with the Borlaug Institute for South Asia (BISA), CGIAR Research Centers, and regional partners, tested digital tools like the Nutrient Expert (NE) decision support tool which measures proper fertilizer use for optimized yields and provides nutrient recommendations based on local soil conditions.
The majority of smallholders who applied the NE tool reported higher yields while emitting less GHG emissions by 12-20% in wheat and by around 2.5% in rice as compared with conventional fertilization practices. Farmers also recorded double economic gains: increased yields and reduced fertilizer costs. Wider government scaling of NE could enhance regional food security and mitigate GHG emissions.
The Feed the Future Nepal Seed and Fertilizer (NSAF) project, led by CIMMYT and USAID, advocates for climate-smart agriculture by linking smallholders with improved seed, providing capacity-building programs, and promoting efficient fertilizer use. With a vast network established with the support from the Government of Nepal, NSAF successfully provides smallholders with expanded market access and nutritious and climate-resilient crop varieties.
Climate-smart maize breedingÂ
Since its arrival to sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in 2016, fall armyworm (FAW) has devastated maize harvests for countless smallholders on the continent. Economic uncertainty caused by unstable yields and climate stressors like drought coupled with this endemic pest risk aggravating food insecurity.
Fall armyworm. (Photo: Jennifer Johnson/CIMMYT)
CIMMYT and NARES Partner Institutions in Eastern and Southern Africa are spearheading a robust pest management project to develop, screen, and introduce genetically resistant elite maize hybrids across SSA. South Sudan, Zambia, Kenya, and Malawi have already deployed resistant maize varieties, and eight other countries in the region are projected to release their own in 2023. These countries are also conducting National Performance Trials (NPTs) to increase awareness of host plant resistance for the sustainable control of FAW and to sensitize policymakers on accelerating the delivery of FAW-tolerant maize varieties.
The establishment of FAW screening facilities in Africa permits more rapid detection and breeding of maize varieties with native genetic resistance to FAW, facilitating increased deployment of these varieties across Africa. The sustainable control of FAW demands a rapid-response effort, overseen by research organizations and governments, to further develop and validate genetic resistance to fall armyworms. Achieving greater impact for maize smallholders is critical to ensuring improved income and food security in Africa. It is also paramount for biodiversity conservation and removing labor burden on farmers applying additional synthetic pesticides to prevent further losses by the pest.
âThe SPG Coalition report emphasizes the power of partnership to enhance financial and food security for smallholder communities in the Global South. This is fully in line with the recently launched CIMMYT 2030 strategy. Itâs also an important reminder to assess our strong points and where more investment and collaboration is needed,â said Bram Govaerts, CIMMYT director general.
Bram Govaerts, CIMMYT director general, participates in the World Food Prize and Borlaug Dialogue. (Photo: CIMMYT)
The award honors the legacy of Robert Glenn Anderson (1924-81), eminent Canadian agricultural scientist and former CIMMYT wheat research director who helped ignite in India the âgreen revolution,â a rapid modernization of agriculture during the 1960s-70s and by which that nation went from grain shortages and hunger to becoming a leading grain exporter.
A bioscience engineer and soil scientist who is a PhD graduate from Belgiumâs Katholieke Universiteit Leuven and has worked in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, Govaerts will give the keynote address âAgrifood system for a food and nutrition secure world: From efficiency to resilience,â describing in part the relevance of CIMMYT and its partnersâ work.
âEarly warning and surveillance systems are key to building resilience in food insecure communities and regions,â said Govaerts. âSupporting this, in concert with national agricultural research systems and private partners, CIMMYT crop breeding programs yearly disseminate dozens of disease resistant, climate resilient varieties of maize, wheat, and dryland cereals, where they are most needed.â
âThe Centerâs science and partnerships have helped prevent the spread of deadly crop pests and diseases in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia,â he added, âand we have new âGlenn Andersonsâ who are doing exactly what is needed to strengthen global food security, with plant health innovations and systemic thinking.â
Borlaugâs wish: Take it to the farmer
Working with scientists, training specialists, extension agents, farmers, and communications and technology experts, a CIMMYT program led by Govaerts for over a decade in Mexico applied the admonition of Norman E. Borlaug, Nobel laureate and colleague of Anderson, to âtake it to the farmer,â combining the right seed with the right conservation agriculture production practices embedded in integrated markets, while recognizing and incorporating farmer knowledge.
âOngoing efforts of the Center and national and local partners are promoting the adoption of conservation agriculture-based sustainable intensification to transform food systems throughout the Global Southâ Govaerts explained. âThe training offered, and the advisory systems supported by CIMMYTâs work aim to empower women and disadvantaged social groups, while offering opportunities for fulfilling livelihoods to a new generation of farmers who will grow nutritious food for all.â
A CIMMYT scientist since 2007 as a Post-doctoral Fellow, Maize and Wheat based Cropping Systems Management, and current director general, in 2014 Govaerts received the World Food Prizeâs âNorman Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application from the World Food Prizeâ for the development and spread of sustainable agricultural systems. He is A.D. White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University and, in 2020, was elected a Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy (ASA) for outstanding contributions to the field of agronomy.
The Robert Glenn Anderson lecture series on the security of the world food supply was first given at joint meetings of the Canadian Phytopathological Society (CPS) and American Phytopathological Society (APS) in 1986 and an endowment fund was then established by the CPS. More recently, the Lecture has been given at the International Congresses of Plant Pathology (ICPP1998 to 2018).
As a Robert Glenn Anderson lecturer, Govaerts enters the hallowed company of other distinguished scientists who have been invited to give the address, including Norman E. Borlaug (1992); Per Pinstrup-Andersen, Emeritus Professor of Cornell University (2000), South African researcher Jennifer A. Thomson (2015); and late World Food Prize laureate and CIMMYT wheat director, Sanjaya Rajaram (2019).
For more information or interviews:
Ricardo Curiel Communications manager to the director general
CIMMYT r.curiel@cgiar.org
Nepal is an agricultural country, where the sector provides the major source of income for half the population. Despite this, the sad reality is that the country is not able to produce enough crops to meet its needs, and major grains like rice, maize, and cereals are mostly imported.
One factor influencing this is an aging population of farmers, alongside decreasing interest in agriculture among the countryâs youth. Many young people do not see agriculture as a viable option for employment, opting instead for work opportunities outside the country. However, there are still some youth who see agriculture as a profitable business, like Pradeep Morya.
âIt is better to work hard in your home country rather than going abroad and working tirelessly every minute and hour,â says Morya, a 24-year-old farmer from Banke, Nepal, who finds happiness in living close to his family and helping to support national food security. âI love being in the field,â he explains. âI have cultivated spring maize on one hectare. My day-to-day business is to provide care to the spring maize along with pumpkins and beans that I have added for additional income on a small plot of land.â
Morya grows spring maize, pumpkin, and beans (Photo: CIMMYT)
Working alongside his eldest brother, Morya has cultivated 30 kattha of land (equivalent to 0.36 hectares) using the spring maize varieties Pioneer 1899 and DK 9108. His brother, a member of Mahatarkari cooperative in Duduwa, western Nepal, has been providing him with the knowledge and expertise needed for maize cultivation.
Mahatarkari is one among 50 cooperatives working in partnership with the Nepal Seed and Fertilizer project (NSAF), which is implemented by CIMMYT. NSAF works with the cooperatives to provide technical knowledge and training to farmers, to hone their potential and support them in the adoption of modern technologies which can improve their livelihoods. After participating in programs organized by NSAF, Morya makes sure that the suggestions he receives â on soil preparation, weed management, harvesting, and more â are implemented in his field.
Returning to the family farm
A few years back, the situation was different. Like many youths in the country, Morya also went abroad to try his luck on the international job market. He worked hard for two years in Malaysia but was forced to return to Nepal during the COVID-19 pandemic.
âI had imagined my shining future abroad. However, when I reached there, the reality was different,â recalls Morya. âI returned to my own country just before the lockdown in April 2021 with some small savings. Upon my arrival in Nepal, I was clueless about my future. I dropped my education after grade five. With no educational qualifications and skills in hand, it was difficult to get a decent job.â
Agriculture has provided Morya with a sustainable source of income in his home country. (Photo: CIMMYT)
Since the country was in lockdown, Morya chose to stay at home and support his family on the farm. It was here that his eldest brother guided him into farming, and Morya soon learned the knowledge needed to run the farm and began earning money from it. This attracted him towards farming as a longer-term career option, and he has now discovered a prosperous future in agriculture.
âAgriculture needs continuous effort,â he says. âWith the support of technology, it is easy and efficient to work. I work every day so that I can reap crops on a large scale to make a profit. I manage weeds, irrigation, and control pests.â
âI also have livestock. I get adequate fodder for my cows and buffalo from weeds and from the spring maize. I sell milk in the market. In addition to this, I also make sure to produce off-season vegetables so that I receive a decent price for additional income.â With the support of his family, Morya has recently purchased an e-rickshaw, which he uses to transport and sell his produce.
To further support his endeavors, Morya has also been participating in Nepalâs Maize Commercialization Network and using the Geo Krishi mobile app to learn about current market prices. âBefore knowing about the commercialization of crops, it was hard to receive good amounts from buyers,â he explains. âNow, I make a call to the local retailers and buyers to learn the best value of my grain. Sometimes I also explore the market. Then, I analyze the rate and sell my maize.â He uses a similar system for his off-season vegetables, selling either in the local market or directly to consumers for a premium price. âI make a saving of around 1500 Nepalese rupees (approximately US$ 11) per day,â he says.
A prosperous life
With the profits from his agricultural business, Morya has been able to fulfill his dream of purchasing a bike, as well as contributing to the construction of a new eight-room house, where his family is now living comfortably. âI love to roam on my bike with my friends in the evening. I also take my mother for a ride,â says Morya with a bright smile. âNow, I have a dream to live a prosperous life with my family.â
Morya fulfilled his dream of buying a bike. (Photo: CIMMYT)
Thanks to the support provided by the NSAF project with generous funding from USAID, young people like Morya can pursue a better life for themselves and their families. Agricultural training programs have not only helped young people fulfill their basic needs, but also to achieve their dreams. It is hoped that ongoing efforts to empower farmers through science and innovation will continue helping young farmers like Morya break the chain of unemployment, for both their own benefit and that of Nepal.
Maize ears of the newly released set of CIMMYT maize lines. (Photo: CIMMYT)
CIMMYT is pleased to announce the release of a set of 32 new CIMMYT maize lines (CMLs). These maize lines have been developed by CIMMYTâs Global Maize Program by a multi-disciplinary team of scientists in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and Asia. The lines have diverse trait combinations and are suitable for the tropical/subtropical maize production environments targeted by CIMMYT and partner institutions.
CMLs are freely available to both public and private sector breeders worldwide under the standard material transfer agreement (SMTA).
CIMMYT seeks to develop improved maize inbred lines for different product profiles, with superior yield performance, multiple stress tolerance, and enhanced nutritional quality. CMLs are released after intensive evaluation in hybrid combinations under various abiotic and biotic stresses, besides optimum (non-stress) conditions in the target population of environments. Suitability as either female (seed) or male (pollen) parent is also evaluated. As done in the last announcement of CMLs in 2021, to increase the utilization of the CMLs in the maize breeding programs of the partner institutions, all the new CMLs are tested for their heterotic behavior and assigned to specific heterotic groups of CIMMYT: A and B.
The release of a CML does not guarantee high combining ability or per se performance in all the environments; rather, it indicates that the line is promising or useful as a parent for pedigree breeding or as a potential parent of hybrid combinations for specific mega-environments. The description of the lines includes heterotic group classification, along with information on their specific strengths and their general combining ability with some of the widely used CMLs or CIMMYT coded lines under different environments.
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The primary focus of this project is on providing technical support to maize and associated crops growers, to develop, validate and implement a working methodology based on a technological menu that responds to the needs of their agri-food systems, aligned with the 2021-2024 government program of the Iguala municipality in Mexicoâs Guerrero state.
The project aims to align with the Sustainable Development Goals: SDG 2 – Zero Hunger; SDG 3 – Good Health and Well-Being for People; SDG 12 – Responsible Consumption and Production; SDG 13 – Climate Action; SGD 17 – Partnerships for the Goals.
Direct project scopes:
Technical accompaniment to 40 producers and their impact on at least 80 ha. of maize and associated crops for the adoption of sustainable practices and their linkage to the innovation network, to increase productivity and profitability of the productive process of small, medium and large producers with a focus on sustainable agriculture.
Follow-up during the period of technical attention of 2 modules and 40 areas of impact, to consolidate, maintain and increase the infrastructure where innovations that respond to the needs of producers in the municipality are adapted.
Development of training events for the development of capacities of 30 producers and key actors linked to the innovation network in the municipality.
Operate a solid communication strategy through the institutional media and its outreach, to position the project’s activities and the promotion of sustainable agriculture by the municipal government.
Supporting farmers and local communities can better and more quickly preserve the YucatĂĄn peninsulaâs biodiversity in the mid and long term, as well as the agricultural heritage of its Indigenous peoples.
Bram Govaerts, renowned scientist and leader, has been appointed as CIMMYTâs Director General for the period 2023-2028 as of July 1, 2023, after holding the position on an interim basis for two years and steering the organization through the unprecedented global challenges of the pandemic and ongoing food insecurity.
Under Govaertsâ leadership, CIMMYT has expanded its research portfolio and strengthened its work in key regions. Govaerts has also started an effort to streamline internal processes and operations to speed up CIMMYTâs response capacity and impact across the world.
Bram with Zamseed staff holding pro-vitamin A orange maize (Photo: Katebe Mapipo/CIMMYT)
Govaerts holds a PhD in Bioscience Engineering â Soil Science, a masterâs degree in Soil Conservation and Tropical Agriculture, and a bachelorâs degree in Bioscience Engineering, all from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium. He has also received multiple awards during his career: the Development Cooperation Prize from the Belgian Federal Government in 2003, the Norman Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application in 2014, the Premio Tecnoagro, awarded by an organization of 2,500 Mexican farmers in 2018, and Fellow of The American Society of Agronomy (ASA). In addition to leading CIMMYT, Govaerts is an A.D. White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University.
âWith Bramâs appointment, I am excited and confident about CIMMYTâs future,â said Margaret Bath, Chair of CIMMYTâs Board of Trustees. âWe look forward to many great days ahead for CIMMYT staff across the globe, who lift smallholder farmers and their communities to achieve better and more sustainable livelihoods and to ensure that food security is delivered, and human potential maximized.â
Honoring a legacy of innovative development in Zambia and looking forward to meeting the nationâs goals for food security, Bram Govaerts, director general of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), along with CGIAR Board Chair Lindiwe Sibanda, visited facilities and met with southern Africa collaborators of the Southern Africa AID-I Rapid Delivery Hub on June 2 and 3, 2023.
Bram Govaerts visited field experiments with the head of science at Zamseed (Photo: Katebe Mapipo/CIMMYT)
âCIMMYTâs work in Zambia and the region is geared to help national governments build resilience to climate change, diversify maize-based farming systems and improve productivity and production to address reduce hunger and poverty,â said Govaerts.
Southern Africa AID-I Rapid Delivery Hub aims to provide critical support to over 3 million farming households in Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia via targeted interventions for demand driven seed scaling, improved soil health and fertilizer use efficiency, and rapid delivery of critical agricultural advisory services deep into rural communities.
CIMMYT research and innovation supports Zambiaâs medium-term goal of âSocio-Economic Transformation for Improved Livelihoodsâ and its 2030 Vision of becoming âA Prosperous Middle-Income Nation by 2030.â
Govaerts and Sibanda toured Afriseedâs factory in Lusaka and its wheat field trials in Ngwerere. They also attended a field demonstration of Purdue Improved Crop Storage bags in the nearby district of Chongwe organized by the Catholic Relief Services, a local partner promoting low-cost post-harvest technologies for small-scale farmers in Zambia.
The delegation visited private partner Zamseed, a company commercializing and releasing CIMMYT-bred, Fall Armyworm tolerant maize seeds.
Southern Africa AID-I Rapid Delivery Hub has enabled the release of nearly 10,000 metric tons of certified maize and legume seed, which have been harvested by Zambian seed companies and community-based seed organizations, directly benefiting a million semi-subsistence farmers.
Govaerts also hailed Zambiaâs commitment to creating a transparent seed system. âThanks to this conducive policy environment, Zambia is a major hub in sub-Saharan Africa for hybrid maize seed production and export in Africa.â
Kevin Kabunda opened a partner meeting in which Bram Govaerts met AID-I farmers and partners from seed companies, educational institutions, CGIAR centers, and micro-finance and tech companies. (Photo: Katebe Mapipo/CIMMYT)
Besides Southern Africa AID-I Rapid Delivery Hub, CIMMYT and the Zambia Agricultural Research Institute have been collaborating for over two decades along with public and private partners in Zambia through different investments designed to create sustainable interventions that strengthen food systems and directly reach small-scale farmers.
In December 2022, more than 40 scientists from African National Agricultural Research Institutes (NARI) and Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) seed companies received training on the design and implementation of modern maize breeding programs.
The training, explains Yoseph Beyene, project leader in the Accelerating Genetic Gains (AGG) â Maize project, was designed to improve maize breedersâ knowledge of the most advanced technologies and methodologies in order to increase genetic gains in their respective breeding programs. It was supported by AGG-Maize and the CGIAR Accelerated Breeding Initiative (ABI) and formed part of ongoing efforts to modernize NARI breeding programs under AGG-Maize.
Yoseph Beyene, Accelerating Genetic Gains-Maize Project leader, makes introductory remarks at the start of the Senior Breeders Training in Nairobi, Kenya. (Photo: Susan Otieno/CIMMYT)
Over the course of five days in Nairobi, Kenya, participants from 13 countries where AGG-Maize is implemented worked to develop their skills in the use of new technologies and approaches to improving genetic gains and breeding efficiencies. Topics covered included the prioritization of market segmentation and product profile development, application of quantitative genetics principles in maize breeding, seed production research, improved designs for regional on-farm trials, and much more.
âThe training was an eye opener supported by detailed explanations on applications of diverse research methodologies in maize breeding,â said Isiah Aleri, a research assistant for the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centerâs (CIMMYT) Maize Program in Kenya. âI met teams who had different views on some breeding techniques, but later received guided explanations from trainers on why certain standards and requirements are set for effective decision making.â
Veronica Ogugo, a research associate in the same CIMMYT program, agreed saying: âIt was very educative and in-depth in all the areas that were covered by the different specialists. The best part was that each of the components complimented one another.â She added that the training also offered a good opportunity for interaction with other experts.
B.M. Prasanna, CIMMYT Global Maize Program director, speaks at the Senior Breeders Training in Nairobi, Kenya. (Photo: Susan Otieno/CIMMYT)
What and whom to breed for
In his opening remarks at the training, B.M. Prasanna, Global Maize Program director at CIMMYT, noted the need for efficient use of limited resources, and encouraged scientists to work smartly, for instance, by leveraging available germplasm across phenotyping networks from other regions to diversify germplasm base for increased genetic gains. He emphasized the importance of clearly determining market segments and developing product profiles that have clear objectives, as well as the key traits to be considered, such as tolerance to drought, heat, and pests and diseases like fall armyworm.
Prasanna highlighted zinc as an example of an important feature to focus on, pointing out the micronutrientâs vital role in mental well-being and its immune boosting properties, especially in children. âDifferent geographies have different ways of using maize,â he explained. âIn general, maize provides 15-56% of total calorie intake in the rain-fed tropics, hence its importance for improving not only smallholder farmer incomes but also food and nutrition security.â
He also outlined how important partnerships with national programs and seed companies are for achieving the fullest impact of CIMMYTâs work. âThe strong regional collaborative maize breeding and seed systems is fundamental for impact,â he said. âIt is also the reason for arguably the largest public sector maize germplasm testing network in the Global South, in rain-fed stress-prone tropical environments.â
The G20 MACS is composed of the ministries or governmental bodies responsible for agricultural research in each G20 state and leading research institutions, including CIMMYT as part of CGIAR, which strategically advise these decision makers. The G20 MACS addresses diverse global challenges in agriculture affecting the people and planet through joint agricultural research and innovation strategies and implementation of initiatives under new cooperation formats.
âCIMMYT is working for a world with resilient agri-food systems and protecting biodiversity with a multi-crop, multi-institutional, and multi-disciplinary approach,â said Govaerts during the recent MACS meeting. â70% of wheat and over 50% of maize varieties sown worldwide are derived from CIMMYT materials, and we are improving livelihoods in over 50 countries.â
In its efforts to ensure biodiversity, CGIAR genebanks hold over 770,000 accessions, of which 80% are immediately accessible. As an added measure of security, duplicates of 78% of the seeds reside at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault.
Because wheat provides 20% of the global population’s daily protein intake, protecting it from disease, pests, and the effects of climate change is paramount. And to keep pace with the growing population, yields must increase in sustainable manners. To meet those challenges, CIMMYT coordinates the International Wheat Improvement Network, which involves hundreds of partners and testing sites worldwide. The Network has established a global phenotyping network, with platforms hosted locally so that environments are optimal for specific trait phenotyping.
Battling pests
In efforts to combat the threat of wheat blast, CIMMYT has established a regional collaboration which includes testing centers (over 15,000 lines tested), surveillance networks, and the release of blast resistant varieties in India, Nepal, and Bangladesh. In addition, CIMMYT has trained 100 extension agents from 10 countries in wheat blast identification and surveillance protocols.
Examining Ug99 stem rust symptoms on wheat. (Photo: Petr Kosina/CIMMYT)
Fall armyworm, is a voracious pest in both Africa and Asia, has caused up to $13 billion per year in crop losses in sub-Saharan Africa since 2016, threatening the livelihoods of millions of farmers throughout the region. CIMMYT has developed hybrid maize varieties resistant to this pest by identifying and validating sources of native genetic resistance.
International Year of the Millet: 2023
Within its presence in CGIAR, CIMMYT is working in networks with African NARS and private sector partners to share resources and knowledge and innovating sustainable crop and crop-livestock systems. This will directly support the Millets And Other Ancient Grains International Research Initiative (MAHARISHI), inaugurated at the G20 MACS conference. The initiative facilitates research collaboration on climate-resilient and nutritious grains, including millets and other underutilized grains. CIMMYT is also initiating and supporting crop improvement programs for sorghum, millet, groundnut, pigeon pea, and chickpea, in a model that empowers the national research centers.
Malawian farmer in her groundnut plot under conservation agriculture. (Photo: T. Samson/CIMMYT)
This work dovetails with the recently announced Accelerated Innovation Delivery Initiative (AID-I), in which CIMMYT is catalyzing efforts to scale up existing and high potential innovations, technologies, and business models as opposed to starting new ones in Malawi, Tanzania, and Zambia.
Creating sustainable solutions
CIMMYT is also pioneering the development of a hub network which supports adaptive research and integrated development for sustainable agrifood systems. With particular attention paid to inclusivity, these hubs are changing the perception of womenâs roles in agriculture.
âCIMMYT is building towards future-proof solutions that foster empowerment through raising family income and food security, working with partners in the Global South for the benefit of the Global South,â said Govaerts.
