Strengthening the potato value chain in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq
The Kurdistan Region of Iraq’s (KRI) favourable climate and soil fertility offer ideal conditions for potato production, while cultivation and post-harvest activities provide important sources of employment and income in rural areas. Land and labour are also in abundance so there is the potential to significantly increase production. However, due…
CABI study shows households in Zimbabwe affected by fall armyworm are 12% more likely to experience hunger
CABI has led the first study to explore the income and food security effects of the fall armyworm invasion on a country – revealing that in Zimbabwe smallholder maize-growing households blighted by the pest are 12% more likely to experience hunger. Dr Justice Tambo, lead researcher of the study published…
Fighting the desert locust through emergency communication campaigns
The desert locust remains a key threat to food security across Eastern Africa unless mitigation measures are put in place to track and combat them. As part of an emergency response to the risk posed by this pest, CABI and partners joined efforts to develop actionable farmer-friendly desert locust content…
CABI signs agreement with COLEACP to help strengthen global food security
CABI and COLEACP have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work together on key areas of interest concerning sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures around the world. The agreement, which ultimately aims to benefit food security among countries within the African Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states, will enable a strategic focus…
Fighting the yellow-legged Asian hornet in Switzerland
The yellow-legged Asian hornet, Vespa velutina nigrithorax, was first detected in central Europe in 2004 and has since established in many countries on the continent. This hornet is a predator of honey bees and other insects, threatening honey production, pollination services and biodiversity. With Switzerland facing the imminent invasion by…
The UK Crop Microbiome CryoBank
Plant microbiomes are the microbial communities essential to the whole ecological area of a plant’s ‘phytobiome’ – a term used to describe a plant’s specific ecological area. Having a healthy phytobiome is critical to crop health, improved crop yields and quality food. However, crop microbiomes are relatively under-researched. The UK…