Agricultural crop adaptation not on agenda at Durban climate change talkshop

by Peter Guest

As policymakers head to Durban for another round of high-level sparring on emissions reduction, it is unlikely there will be much talk of yams or sorghum, or of soil acidity and tillage.

Finding a way to meld the macro-level diplomacy of the Conference of the Parties summit with the practical, micro-level solutions needed to protect agricultural communities and their crops from the effects of climate change is, many experts say, crucial to translating consensus and goodwill into meaningful action.

Farmers face new and extreme climatic conditions, and must adapt their practices and crops to allow for sudden, temporary shifts in weather patterns.

This needs a focus on the crops themselves, experts say, and action in the near term to make sure that, whether mitigation efforts curtail the worst effects of anthropogenic climate change or not, there are plant varieties capable of withstanding the shifting weather.

As Cary Fowler, executive director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, says: "I don't think that people have begun to grapple with the enormity of the problem… agricultural crop adaptation really isn't even on the agenda. All our efforts at the macro-level are clearly going to fail as the crops die in the field."


Mari Tefre/ Svalbard Global Seed Vault on the 
Arctic island of Spitsbergen

Mr. Fowler is the architect of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, an underground facility on the Arctic island of Spitsbergen, funded by the Norwegian government. The vault is designed to house a gene bank, containing seed samples from around the world, to prevent the diversity of crop types from being lost.

These different varieties could contain traits that will be critical to solving many of the challenging new conditions that farmers face. Breeding useful characteristics—such as drought or flood tolerance—into crops is an ancient science, but it takes time.

Without sufficient focus on these micro-level issues, however, there is a danger, Mr. Fowler believes, that real crops in real fields don't get adapted. "I'm sorry to say but we're really going to have to get our hands dirty," he says. "This is getting us out of the realm of policy and big intergovernmental meetings, we're going to have to… figure out what it's going to take to help the crops adapt."

The entire pipeline, from finding and indexing traits, to storing them, making them available to researchers and getting them into the breeding system needs to be developed. "I guess what we find alarming is the assumption that that's just going to happen by itself, without planning and without investment," Mr. Fowler says. "That doesn't happen overnight. It's a 10-year process."

The 20th-century heralded the transformative effects of new varieties and is a century often hailed as an exemplar for development actors looking to boost Africa's agricultural output. The Green Revolution in South Asia in the 1970s, for example, was in part driven by a major investment in new, high-yielding varieties of rice, developed with funding from the Rockefeller Foundation—as well as through significant expenditure on infrastructure and fertilizers.

Hailed in some quarters as a 21st-century iteration of the Rockefeller Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is funding research into crop science innovations that could simultaneously improve productivity and protect against climatic shifts. Lawrence Kent, who heads the foundation's research and development program on agricultural development, says that he must first establish what crops are most important to people. "That leads us towards the staple crops, like maize and sorghum, cassava, rice, even some of the tubers and legumes. We try to focus our research on those crops," he says.

The practical challenges are not dissimilar from the perennial question of how to improve food security in the developing world. There has always been a pipeline of improvements that could be made. What has changed today is the urgency with which that pipeline has to flow. "Now, because of climate change and the additional, accelerated levels of threats that are coming on the abiotic side—things like drought and flooding and higher levels of heat—it becomes even more important to accelerate the crop improvement process," Mr. Kent says.

The Gates Foundation's programs have already led to innovations that may have profound affects. The Stress Tolerant Rice for Africa and South Asia, or Strasa project, which works on developing rice that can resist droughts, prolonged flooding and mineral contamination has been adopted by large numbers of farmers in India, and should be rolled out to Africa over the next few years.

A program at the Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maiz y Trigo in Mexico, has led to the development of more than 80 drought-tolerant varieties of maize, which could allow farmers to boost harvests by 30% in drought conditions.

However, experts warn that time is short. Bruce Campbell, a veteran South African climate and agricultural expert who now heads the climate change, agriculture and food security program at the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, doubts that any one innovation will emerge. It will take hard graft and a lot of ground-level research.

"If you think about African agricultural systems, they are so diverse that even a fantastic rice breakthrough is not going to do anything for the granite sands of Zimbabwe," he says. "I think there have to be lots of breakthroughs, but it's not going to be this big silver bullet that takes off everywhere."

Even so, Mr. Campbell remains optimistic. "I think if you put all of [the developments] together, in two decades time we could be seeing an entirely different scenario in Africa, potentially."

Wall Street Journal

IFDC Training Program: Fertilizer Value Chain, August 22-26, 2011

What: IFDC Training Program: Fertilizer Value Chain, Supply System Management and Servicing Farmers’ Needs

About: To improve the knowledge, understanding and skills of those involved in the fertilizer value chain, in fertilizer supply management and in servicing the needs of small farmers

When:  August 22-26, 2011

Where: Royal Benja Hotel, Bangkok, Thailand

Program Fee: US $1,500 (by July 22, 2011) or $1,700 (after July 22, 2011)

For more information:  www.ifdc.org

Crop World 2011, 31 October-2 November

About: Bringing together expert strategists, global thought leaders, government advisers and prominent scientists, CropWorld Global 2011 will provide a international platform for the cropping industry to debate the critical issues surrounding sustainable crop production from 'field to fork'. Across an extensive conference programme and exhibition, key focus topics will include: The latest in R&D advancements & crop innovations, natural resource management, funding, regulation and legislation and the projects currently being undertaken in growth markets.


Where: London



When: 31 October to 2 November 2011



Website: http://www.cropworld-global.com/

International Rice Exhibition, November 3-5 2011

Rice International Conference & Exhibition (RICE) – Dubai 2011, bringing together the major players in the rice industry to promote rice and related products. This is one of the first and largest industry events in the region to promote Rice and related products.

• Unique strategic platform for prospective buyers and sellers to
• conduct direct business and strategic partnerships to reach the
• region's largest market
• RICE Dubai 2011 is targeted to attract various regional and global
• leading companies who seek to expand their client base and
• venture into emerging markets
• More than 60 countries participation helps to identify new market
• opportunities, gain market intelligence and find new channels
• to market products
• 160 exhibitors attracting 10,000 trade visitors under one roof.
• Re-establish relationship with major market players
• Ideal platform for consumers to make the best deal for their
• requirements through a variety of suppliers from different parts
• of the world
• Major rice producers have the opportunity to use UAE's
• competitive advantage of strategic locations, shipping
• infrastructure, storage facilities, trade promoting environment
• and financing options as well as facilitate expansion opportunities
• in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region
• Witness new trends in the industry with new product launches and
• avail special offers and promotions

http://www.riceexhibition.com/

Third International Conf. on Sustainable Animal Agriculture, 26-29 July 2011

The 3rd International Conference on Sustainable Animal Agriculture for Developing Countries (SAADC 2011)

When: 26 to 29 July 2011


Where: Nakhon Ratchasima, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand


About: This conference aims to provide an opportunity for animal scienctists, veterinarians and those from
related disciplines to discuss and debate research issues on animal science, veterinary, aquaculture and animal biotechnology topics.

Website: http://www.saadc2011.com/home.php

Enquiries: saadc2011@sut.ac.th

Sponsored by: Suranaree University of Technology

New Holland Agriculture sponsors climate action campaign

New Holland Agriculture will sponsor the Climate Action campaign and official reception at the 17th United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which will bring together in Durban, South Africa, heads of state, government officials and environmental ministers from around the world to discuss the follow-up to the Kyoto Protocol

New Holland Agriculture will be a Gold Sponsor of the Climate Action Networking Reception, hosted by Climate Action in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the South African government in Durban on December 2, 2011. The reception will be the premier destination for senior officials from UNEP, non-governmental organisations and heads of government during the 17th United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP17), which will take place from the 28th of November to the 9th of December.

As part of the sponsorship, New Holland will appear in the Climate Action campaign, which will run on the organisation’s website www.climateactionprogramme.org and in its e-newsletter up to and during the COP17 conference.

AgDevCo hosts 'Socially responsible investment opportunities in African agriculture' event

AgDevCo hosted its event Socially Responsible Investment Opportunities in African Agriculture on the 24th June 2011 in London.

There were more than 100 delegates, from investors, private foundations, donor agencies and NGOs involved in promoting socially responsible investment in African agriculture.

You can download the event documents by clicking on the links: Programme, Presentations, MicroEnsure Brochure and AgDevCo’s Portfolio of Investments.

www.agdevco.com

Agricultural Economics Assoc. of South Africa annual meeting, Sept 28-30 2011

The 2011 Annual Conference of the Agricultural Economics Association of South Africa

A Special Conference to Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of AEASA

Venue: Diep-in-die-Berg Conference Centre, Hans Strijdom Drive, Pretoria-East, Gauteng

Date: 28 to 30 September 2011 (arrival and welcome reception on evening of 27th)

Conference theme: AEASA 1961-2011: a foundation for the next 50 years

Key features of the conference:

* Addresses by key figures of our discipline such as Professors Kassier, Groenewald, Nieuwoudt and Machethe.

*Dedicated sessions on the role of agricultural economists in agribusiness, industry and government

* Simon Brand memorial address by Prof Colin Thirtle, Professor Emeritus, Imperial College, UK.

* Special celebratory gala dinner on Thursday, 29th September 2011.
 
* Post-conference tours to interesting food processing and distribution facilities in Gauteng on Friday afternoon, 30 September 2011.

A full draft conference programme, registration forms and call for papers will be issued soon.


http://www.aeasa.org.za/