Food Institute Fellow Isabelle Moody: “Wasted food is also a food justice issue”

Wasted food

The George Washington University (GW) launched the Food Institute Student Fellowship to encourage GW students to research new aspects of the sustainable food movement and participate in local food work in Washington, D.C. Sustainability Collaborative Student Fellows conduct research on food justice and local agricultural systems, farm at the GroW Community Garden, and help plan GW’s Local Foods Impact Conference and Urban Agriculture Symposium.

Niger to Boost Poultry Farming With Mobile Kits

Poultry Farming

Niger State government is set to boost poultry production through the introduction of mobile kits. The mobile poultry is part of the youth empowerment scheme with agriculture entrepreneurship as the driving force.

Which Country is the Most Sustainable?

Sustainable

The Food Sustainability Index (FSI), developed by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) with the Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition (BCFN) Foundation, ranks countries on food system sustainability based off of three pillars: food loss and waste, sustainable agriculture, and nutritional challenges.

Govt Goes for Indicative Prices in Farm-Input

Farm input

The government says it has suspended the issuance of agro-input vouchers in the next farming season. In its place, it will introduce a procedure, whereby it will place orders for agricultural inputs and set indicative prices that will reduce fertilizer costs by 30 per cent.

MicroGen Biotech: Tackling Pollutants in Soil

MicroGen Biotech

Irish biotech company MicroGen Biotech is developing products that use microbes—the broad range of single-celled organisms that are found all around us—to increase crop yield, improve food safety, and promote soil health. Using a platform technology called the “Constructed Functional Microbiome,” MicroGen aims to regenerate depleted or polluted agricultural land. This technology identifies a set of microbes that, once introduced into the soil, can reduce pollutants found in crops while improving yields and overall soil quality.

Namibia: Northern Communal Farmers Sit With Surplus Grain

Grains

Despite government's plea for communal farmers to produce more to counter food insecurity in Namibia, many farmers are now sitting with surplus grain, as the State is unable to buy all the surplus due to the economic crunch experienced by all sectors.

Danielle Nierenberg on the Real Reason for Our Disconnect with Food

Danielle Nierenberg

Over the past year, several high-profile merger proposals have threatened to push the agriculture world into the hands of just a few huge corporations. But what—and who—exactly is “Big Agriculture”? Food Tank President Danielle Nierenberg answers this and discusses challenges facing the global food system on this week’s episode of the International Food Policy Research Institute’s Nourishing Millions podcast. 

Clanwilliam Wild Flower Show Fails to Bloom Over Cape Drought

Wild Flower

The worst rainfall in the Cederberg Mountains in more than half a century has forced organisers of the popular Clanwilliam Wild Flower Show to cancel the annual event.

PERL calls civil societies to engage government on better agric inputs delivery

Cross section

The meeting to rationally engage government on matters relating to agricultural inputs subsidy expenditures has been held by Nigerian civil society at the instance of Engaged Citizen Pillar (EPI) of the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) Partnership to Engage, Reform and Learn (PERL) last week Tuesday in Abuja.

Trump’s Regulatory Rollback Could Reshape the Food System

U.S. President Donald Trump

Since U.S. President Donald Trump was on the campaign trail, he has consistently vowed to significantly reduce federal regulations and spending. Some of the cutbacks he’s proposed since taking office could have far-reaching effects on federal food policy. In late May, Trump released his administration’s 2018 budget proposal, “A New Foundation for American Greatness.” This plan decreases funding for programs traditionally part of the Farm Bill, which could lead to some major food policy fights as legislators work on next fall’s bill.