Tag Archive | "R&D"

New World Bank Research on Carbon Capture in the Soil

November 27, 2009 No comments yet

The World Bank recently released some interesting research into carbon capture in soil. The report looked at exactly how much carbon is in soil, and the repercussions that happen as a result.
Cesar Izaurralde, a soil scientist at the U.S. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, is quoted in a Reuters news piece as saying that farm management and carbon capture go

Benefits of Satellite Technology on Crop Yields Explored

November 19, 2009 1 comment

Some farmers are looking to the skies for help in boosting their crop yields. In an article appearing in The Economist this week, the spotlight is shone on farmers using satellite-based intelligence to find out how to best manage farm production to get the best yield.
Precise prescriptions for growing crops can be obtained quickly, and

Dearth of Agriculture Research Funding Hits Farm Productivity

November 9, 2009 No comments yet

Last week The Associated Press shined a light on the global fall in agricultural research funding. In the article, the impacts of this fall are outlined.
Philip Pardey, professor of science and technology policy at the University of Minnesota, talks about the decline:
The ultimate consequences of the productivity slowdown are that we’re going to move away

New Research Maps Critical Drought-tolerant Molecular Structure

October 27, 2009 2 comments

New research coming out of the Scripps Research Institute and the University of California, San Diego, has determined the molecular structure for a drought-tolerant plant hormone called abscisic acid.
In drought conditions, plants begin to produce more of this hormone, which creates a number of changes to their physical structure. Their seeds lie dormant in the

Researchers Develop Genetic Map of Cowpea, Enable New Varieties

October 25, 2009 No comments yet

A team of scientists at the University of California, Riverside have successfully developed a genetic map of the cowpea. This development will enable further research into new and more resilient varieties of this staple crop, which is grown throughout many regions of the developing world.
Mapping the cowpea is notoriously time-consuming and difficult. But now production

Farming First’s Lindiwe Sibanda and Ajay Vashee Discuss Agricultural Development Support with Voice of America

October 20, 2009 No comments yet

In a recent interview aired on Voice of America, Farming First’s Dr. Lindiwe Majele Sibanda and Ajay Vashee spoke about the decline in agricultural development support over the past generation and how that has impacted the global food crisis, particularly in Africa.  Dr. Sibanda said:
“As a result of diminished resources and lack of funds for


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