Agriculture

Agriculture

Corn grain mould used as pesticide

In the early 1960s more than 100,000 turkeys died in Britain of cancer of the liver. Eventually, researchers identified mouldy peanut flour from Brazil containing large amounts of aflatoxin as the cause of this mysterious 'turkey X' disease. Even today the toxin is regarded as one of the most virulent natural carcinogenic substances. The tasteless toxin is produced by the mould aspergillus flavus . It grows in hot, arid regions, in the south-west of the US and in many regions of Africa and Asia. In Third World countries, particularly, this dangerous paintbrush-shaped mould is ubiquitous. This...

Big gains from small creatures

Invasive plant species can be controlled in a safe and sustainable way says Professor Martin Hill, an entomologist at Rhodes University, South Africa. No pesticides, no manual labour, just weevils.

Big Issues For Small Farmers

Dennis Normile A casual conversation at a coffee break in South Africa is shaking up agricultural research throughout the developing world.

Hormones that "wake up" dormant tubers

IITA, iNew Only patience could make yams ready for planting, until IITA researchers found that the same chemical solution used to make poinsettia plants shrink can make yams grow. They have identified a hormone that can “wake up” dormant tubers and accelerate propagation cycles of this vital food source.

GM battle in danger of trampling Africa

Tewolde Egziabher Tewolde Egziabher argues that developing nations must put in place biosafety systems based on the precautionary principle, and develop the capacity - no matter how costly - to deal with the risks of genetically modified crops. The author of the text below is director general of Ethiopia's Environmental Protection Authority, and was chief African negotiator at the Cartagena Protocol. [ADDIS ABABA] As the world's attention was focused firmly on the Cancún World Trade Organisa

Cassava - a new image	Genes from green pepper rescue Africa's banana from deadly wilt disease
Making Kenyan maize safe from deadly aflatoxins	Acacia tree's promise to revive African soils
Biopesticide puts invasive locust under control	Controlling witchweed through biocontrol
Putting an evolutionary perspective on biological invasions	Common plant could bring wealth
New Hope for Improved Food Safety in Sub-Saharan Africa	First all-African produced genetically engineered maize is resistant to maize streak virus
African bees – a solution to North Americas bee problems?	Green muscle test beats locusts
Rosedale organic citrus farm - Organic Biotechnology in Action.	Environmentally friendly weapon against locusts proves effective
New study debunks misconceptions about biotech crop research in Africa	Corn grain mould used as pesticide

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