Mapping millet genetics

In the semi-arid tropics of Asia and Africa, conditions can be difficult for crops. Plants need to have short growing seasons, survive on poor soils and tolerate environmental stresses.

Ornament with eagle talons from Neanderthal Period

Eagle talons are regarded as the first materials used to make jewellery by Neanderthals, a practice which spread around Southern Europe about 120,000 and 40,000 years ago.

Impact of water droplets on leaves quickly triggers stress responses in plants

In contrast to humans, plants cannot feel pain. However, so-called mechanical stimulation -- rain, wind and physical impact from humans and animals -- contributes to the activation of a plant's defence system at a biochemical level. This in turn triggers a stress hormone that, among other things, can lead to the strengthening of a plant's immune system.

Lifestyle is a threat to gut bacteria: Ötzi proves it, study shows

The intestinal microbiome is a delicate ecosystem made up of billions and billions of microorganisms, bacteria in particular, that support our immune system, protect us from viruses and pathogens, and help us absorb nutrients and produce energy.

Using probiotics to protect honey bees against fatal disease

Probiotics, beneficial microorganisms best known for promoting gut health in humans, are now being used by Western University and Lawson Health Research Institute scientists to save honey bee colonies from collapse. A new study published in the Nature journal ISME J demonstrates how probiotics could potentially stave off a common bacterial hive infestation called American Foulbrood.

Harnessing tomato jumping genes could help speed-breed drought-resistant crops

Once dismissed as 'junk DNA' that served no purpose, a family of 'jumping genes' found in tomatoes has the potential to accelerate crop breeding for traits such as improved drought resistance.

Editorial- Reducing costs in farming

Apart from the pain many farmers go through in land clearing and cultivations for crops planting, the end results of the labour, most times, do not justify the means as production cost would have eroded the profit margin expected to be made, thereby making the occupation very unattractive to many, especially the youths.

FG reaffirms commitment towards regulating antimicrobials use

The Permanent Secretary Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Dr. Mohammed Bello Umar

The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment towards strengthening policies on the regulation of the use of antimicrobial in Nigeria. The Permanent Secretary Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Dr. Mohammed Bello Umar made this disclosure in a press release made available through the office of  director Information.          

Following in Darwin's footsteps: understanding the plant evolution of florist's gloxinia

More than 150 years ago, Charles Darwin's fascination with genetics and domestication catapulted the scientific world into new territory as scientists started to ask: How did a species evolve to be this way?

Farmers’ scribe laments politicisation, lack of direction by policy makers

·        Calls for adoption of China, Russia’s models of food processing, preservation

A scribe, Federation of Agricultural Commodity Associations of Nigeria (FACAN), Prince Peter Bakare has lamented the politicisation and lack of progress in the agriculture sector in the country. He expressed his mind in an exclusive interview he had with Foodfarmnews in Abuja.

Bacteria made to mimic cells, form communities

Rice University scientists have found a way to engineer a new kind of cell differentiation in bacteria, inspired by a naturally occurring process in stem cells.

New way to test for drug resistant infections

Scientists have developed a method to test whether an infection is resistant to common antibiotics.

Climate change could drive British crop farming north and west

Unchecked climate change could drive Britain's crop growing north and west, leaving the east and south east unable to support crop growing, new research suggests.

Climate change: Coalition promises $650 m to African farmers

A coalition of donors, aid institutions and philanthropy has promised to invest more than US $650 million in the CGIAR (formerly the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research) System Organization to help 300 million smallholder farmers in developing countries towards awareness to  impacts of climate change, which already are eroding crop and livestock productions in places like sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

Sorghum grain yield could be doubled

Plant scientists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) and USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS), in their search for solutions to global food production challenges, have doubled the amount of grains that a sorghum plant can yield.

New possibilities for gene therapies with spin of the Sleeping Beauty transposase

Scientists have developed a new variant of the Sleeping Beauty transposase. It has dramatically improved biochemical features, including enhanced stability and intrinsic cell penetrating properties.

Did an extraterrestrial impact trigger the extinction of ice-age animals?

A controversial theory that suggests an extraterrestrial body crashing to Earth almost 13,000 years ago caused the extinction of many large animals and a probable population decline in early humans is gaining traction from research sites around the world.

Food Security: Oyo Government, society partner to combat weeds on water ways

The Oyo Government has expressed interest to establish a synergy with the Weed Science Society of Nigeria to combat the challenges of weeds on food security occasioned by impacts on water ways and other decaying antiquated infrastructures in the state.

AFDB intensifies technologies transfer to reduce poverty,

·       Injects Vitamin A cassava in Benin Republic...

African Development Bank (AfDB) led by Nigerian Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina has reiterated its readiness to intensify the use of improved technologies in the shelves of research institutes in the African continent by farmers, saying this would reduce poverty rate with Pro vitamin A cassava variety already being introduced to Benin republic farmers. This was contained in statement issued to Feed Africa group last week.

Antimicrobial resistance is drastically rising

The world is experiencing unprecedented economic growth in low- and middle-income countries. An increasing number of people in India, China, Latin America and Africa have become wealthier, and this is reflected in their consumption of meat and dairy products. In Africa, meat consumption has risen by more than half; in Asia and Latin America it is up by two-thirds.

The world is getting wetter, yet water may become less available for North America and Eurasia

With climate change, plants of the future will consume more water than in the present day, leading to less water available for people living in North America and Eurasia, according to a Dartmouth-led study in Nature Geoscience. The research suggests a drier future despite anticipated precipitation increases for places like the United States and Europe, populous regions already facing water stresses.

Harnessing tomato jumping genes could help speed-breed drought-resistant crops

Once dismissed as 'junk DNA' that served no purpose, a family of 'jumping genes' found in tomatoes has the potential to accelerate crop breeding for traits such as improved drought resistance.

You don't have to go cold turkey on red meat to see health benefits

A new study has found that halving the amount red and processed (RPM) meat in the diet can have a significant impact on health, reducing the amount of LDL 'bad' cholesterol in the blood which cuts the risk of developing heart disease.

Palm oil: Less fertilizer and no herbicide but same yield?

Environmentally friendlier palm oil production could be achieved with less fertilizer and no herbicide, while maintaining profits. These are the encouraging preliminary results of the first two years of a large-scale oil palm management experiment by an international team of researchers led by the University of Göttingen. The research was published in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change.

Nigeria needs plant variety law for robust seeds sector

·       Expert says no enough companies

An economically efficient seeds industry in Nigeria may continue to be a mirage unless a Plant Variety Protection (PVP) law is put in place. This view was deduced during a three-day training held at National Agricultural Seeds Council (NASC), Sheda, Abuja.

Rice millers condemn senators’ stance on borders as unpatriotic

The Rice Millers Association of Nigeria (RIMAN) has described the criticism by some of the senators at the National Assembly against the land borders closure of the Federal Government (FG) as an act of insincerity to the nation’s development saying the measure was already yielding good dividend to agricultural productivity of rice and other produce. This was contained in a press statement made available to Food farm News, in Abuja.

We told them not to export yams- Quarantine official

 * NAQS official ignorant of presence of gamma irradiation facilities in Nigeria

The Nigerian Agricultural Quarantine services (NAQS) has said that the authority at the Tin- Can seaport did not listen to its expert advice not to export yam to United Kingdom (UK) without giving a proper treatment against nematode, with certification of clearance before departure. An official of the agency, Mr. Abdullahi Ibrahim revealed this during a colloquium session held at the National Organic Agriculture Business Summit held recently in Lagos.

Early rice farmers unwittingly selected for weedy imposters

Early rice growers unwittingly gave barnyard grass a big hand, helping to give root to a rice imitator that is now considered one of the world's worst agricultural weeds.

Agric Experts demand for conditioning centres

Agricultural experts in Nigeria have posited that the establishment of private driven conditioning centres cum effective data for production, processing and marketing at a glance saying these are the panacea to food security challenges in the country..

Minister denies hunger among Nigerians, says most overweight

Despite reports that Nigeria has more people living in poverty than most countries the minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Alhaji Sabo Nanono has ruled out hunger issues affecting Nigerians, claiming that Nigeria is food sufficient, adding that most people in the country are currently battling with overweight or obesity.

Rice yields plummet and arsenic rises in future climate-soil scenarios

Rice is the largest global staple crop, consumed by more than half the world's population -- but new experiments from Stanford University suggest that with climate change, production in major rice-growing regions with endemic soil arsenic will undergo a dramatic decline and jeopardize critical food supplies.

Helping hands from within: Live-in bacteria protect plants against infections

Micro-organisms living inside plant roots team up to boost the plant's growth and tolerance to stress. An international research team led by the Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW) and Wageningen UR reports its discovery in today's issue of the   scientific journal Science.

Implanted memories teach birds a song

A father holds up his newborn, their faces only inches apart, and slowly repeats the syllables "da" and "dee." After months of hearing these sounds, the baby begins to babble and gradually "da da da" is refined to the word "Daddy."

Nigeria can only compete with US in organic farming, say experts

A university lecturer from Washington State University, United States of America (USA), Dr. Cornelius Adewale has advised Nigeria to intensify more on organic agriculture as a way of creating wealth.

Organic farming: Nigeria must meet standards to ensure market, says country coordinator

The Ecological Organic Agriculture Initiative in Nigeria (EOA) Country Coordinator, Dr. Olugbenga Adeoluwa has said that Nigeria could not afford to fold her hands in the area of standard and certification of organic produce and products considering the market opportunities in the sub sector of agriculture.

The new fertilizer act will strengthen regulation says Agric Ministry

The Director of fertilizer department, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) Engr. Ohiara Jatto has commended President Mohammadu Buhari for his assent to National Fertilizer Quality Control Act saying it was now an effective legal document to enhance the sub sector against defaulters who are fond of selling fake input to farmers. He told Food Farm News in his officeTuesday this week.

Pesticides likely caused 'Havana syndrome' that affected Cuba-based diplomats

A new interdisciplinary study on the "Havana Syndrome" led by Dr. Alon Friedman M.D. of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) in Israel and Dalhousie University Brain Repair Center in Nova Scotia, Canada, points to overexposure to pesticides as a likely cause for neurological symptoms among Canadian diplomats residing in Havana, Cuba in 2016. This is the first study of its kind focused on Canadian diplomats.

Scientists find ways to improve cassava, a 'crop of inequality' featured at Goalkeepers

Today, as world leaders gather for the UN General Assembly, hundreds of emerging leaders focused on fighting global inequality came together at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's third annual

Industry bank threatens action against loan-defaulting bakers

The Bank of Industry (BOI) has promised to take action that would ensure the recovery of the loan given to Master and Caterers of Nigeria (AMBCN). The Regional Manager, North Central Region of the bank, Mr. Jack Kings, said this during a meeting held at Abuja.

Our farmers need support, says AFAN president

The president of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) Architect Kabir Ibrahim has said that members of his group need to be supported from the grassroots to federal level by government with effective agricultural policies towards ensuring food security. He made the statement in a chat with Food Farm News in his office at Abuja.

Data analysis, conditioning centres, panacea to food insecurity—Experts

 As a part of efforts to develop the agricultural sector by the private sector, experts in the sector have agreed that for agriculture to thrive in the country, data analysis and the establishment of conditioning centres were the panacea to food insecurity in the country. They aired their views at the 25th Nigeria Economic Summit held in Abuja.

Genome-edited bull passes on hornless trait to calves

For the past two years, researchers at the University of California, Davis, have been studying six offspring of a dairy bull, genome-edited to prevent it from growing horns. This technology has been proposed as an alternative to dehorning, a common management practice performed to protect other cattle and human handlers from injuries.

Economic impacts of colony collapse disorder

The work of a Montana State University professor examining the economic impacts of colony collapse disorder among commercial honeybees was published in the Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists last month.

RMRDC, NAQS promise support to organic farming

DG. RMRDC Prof. Ibrahim Hussaini Doko and DG. NAQS Dr. Vincent Isegbe 

The Raw Material Research Development Council (RMRDC) and National Agricultural Quarantine Services (NAQS) have promised to use their mandates to support and ensure the fast development of organic farming based on its economic potential ability to increase revenue and job creation in the country.

‘Stakeholders already working towards an Act for organic farming practice ... as an executive bill’

The Country Coordinator, Ecological Organic Agriculture initiative in Nigeria (EOA) Dr. Olugbenga Adeoluwa has disclosed in an interview with Food Farm News that efforts have commenced towards forwarding a bill for an Act to the National Assembly and that the bill would preferably be sent as an executive bill through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD). Excerpts...

Why some songbirds care for the 'wrong' kids

Interspecific feeding -- when an adult of one species feeds the young of another -- is rare among songbirds, and scientists could only speculate on why it occurs, but now, Penn State researchers have new insight into this behavior.

First maps of areas suitable for spotted lanternfly's establishment in US and world

Maps identifying the areas suitable for establishment of the spotted lanternfly (SLF) in the United States and other countries have been published in the Journal of Economic Entomology by Agricultural Research Service scientists.

Fruit flies live longer with combination drug treatment

A triple drug combination has been used to extend the lifespan of fruit flies by 48% in a new study led by UCL and the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing.

Transfer Anchor Borrowers Programme to agric ministry Sen. Adamu tells FG

The Senate Committee Chairman on Agriculture Senator Abdullahi Adamu has called on the Federal Government to transfer the management and operation of Anchor Borrowers Programme to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The communiqué issued at the end of 2019 NATIONAL ORGANIC AGRICULTURE BUSINESS SUMMIT

 We, the 90 participants gathered at the 2019 National Organic Agriculture Business Summit (4 th edition) held at Solab Hotels and Suites, Ikeja, Lagos State, Nigeria from October 16 – 18, 2019 representing organic agriculture stakeholders from all the geo-political zones of Nigeria and the United States of America (one participant ).