---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: IRIN <[email protected]>
Date: Wed, Oct 24, 2012 at 12:55 PM
Subject: FOOD: The state of African wheat research
To: Elisabeth Janaina <[email protected]>
[image: IRINnews logo] <http://www.irinnews.org/>
humanitarian news and analysis
a service of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
*FOOD: The state of African wheat research
<http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=96622>*
[image: lead photo]JOHANNESBURG, 24 October 2012 (IRIN) - Researchers in
Africa are identifying ways to improve domestic wheat production in the
face of sub-optimal conditions and stiff international competition.
For example, in Somalia - a country better known for conflict and famine
than agricultural research - postgraduate volunteers are exploring ways to
reduce the country’s wheat import bill, a subject discussed in one of
several research abstracts released at the recent Wheat for Food Security
in Africa conference in Addis
Ababa<http://conferences.cimmyt.org/en/press-room>.
Wheat imports, which cost Somalia US$30 million to $40 million annually,
consume "scarce hard currency earned from livestock exports and
remittances," reports Jeylani Abdullahi Osman, the author of the paper. The
volunteers, who studied agriculture abroad, have returned to Somalia to
develop wheat varieties suitable for the country’s increasingly high
temperatures. Wheat thrives in cool conditions, but is able to adapt to a
wide range of climates.
In 2005, the volunteers established the Afgoye Field Crop Research Farm
(AFCRF) in the Afgoye District of the Lower Shabelle Region. There, they
have been testing wheat varieties for tolerance to heat and water stress.
Osman reports they have identified several promising cultivars, but a lack
of technical and financial support have limited commercial production.
*Improving local wheat*
An abstract of a study published out of Cameroon notes that, while there is
growing demand for bread in the country, the protein content of the
imported wheat used for bread-making is less than 12 percent. High-quality
wheat has 14 to 15 percent protein.
[image: ''][Somali]... volunteers, who studied agriculture abroad, have
returned to Somalia to develop wheat varieties suitable for the country’s
increasingly high temperatures[image: ''] Lead author Michael Taylor,
from the Norwegian University of Life Sciences, now working with the
Divisional Delegation of Agriculture and Rural Development Fontem-Lebialem
in Cameroon, identifies varieties of wheat with high protein content that
could be grown in Cameroon.
Researchers from the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research report
that the older wheat varieties used for making bread flour are unable to
cope with new strains of stem rust - a virulent fungal disease that can
devastate crops within weeks. The authors identify new strategies to
robustly multiply newly released rust-resistant seeds for distribution.
*Standing up to competition*
Research teams from Zimbabwe and South Africa also have investigated how to
make their wheat production stand up to competition posed by cheap wheat
imports.
Zambia offers an important case study. The country, which recently became
self-sufficient in wheat production, is already facing the threat of
dropping yields, report researchers with Seed Co, a Zimbabwe- based
company. The researchers highlight several contributing factors, including
marketing challenges for small producers, the increasing cost of production
and lack of availability of suitable wheat varieties.
These and other abstracts, covering Algeria, Egypt, Sudan and Tunisia, are
available on request from the Mexico-based International Maize and Wheat
Improvement Center, known by its acronym CIMMYT.
jk/rz
Read report online <http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=96622>
------------------------------
[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United
Nations]
Feedback <http://www.irinnews.org/websitefeedback.aspx> | Terms &
Conditions <http://www.irinnews.org/copyright.aspx> | [image: RSS feeds] News
Feeds <http://www.irinnews.org/RSS.aspx> | About
IRIN<http://www.irinnews.org/about.aspx>
| Jobs <http://www.irinnews.org/jobs.aspx> |
Donors<http://www.irinnews.org/donors.aspx>
Copyright © IRIN 2012. All rights reserved. This material comes to you via
IRIN, the humanitarian news and analysis service of the UN Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. The opinions expressed do not
necessarily reflect those of the United Nations or its Member States. The
boundaries, names and designations used on maps on this site and links to
external sites do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the UN.
Republication is subject to terms and conditions as set out in the IRIN
copyright page <http://www.irinnews.org/copyright.aspx>.
IRIN on Twitter: Follw IRIN on Twitter <http://twitter.com/irinnews>
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"South Sudan Info - The Kob" group.
To post to this group, send email to [email protected].
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to
[email protected].
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
