We Nibbled yesterday a UN press release saying that a Biosphere Reserve had been created in Ethiopia to protect wild coffee. But actually it turns out that it is no less than TWO reserves that have just been selected by UNESCO, Kafa and Yayu. Many thanks to Tadesse Woldemariam Gole for the tip.
Agrobiodiversity and food on the airwaves
Our follower and occasional contributor André kindly alerted us to what he calls a European Union mega-conference on biodiversity, going on all this week in Brussels. There may be some agricultural biodiversity in there somewhere. The whole thing is being streamed. And next week Michael Pollan is at the RSA, and you can listen to a feed of that too. I know which one I’ll be following.
Nibbles: Agrobiodiversity, Mexican food, Benin chickens, Tylosema chemistry, Wild coffee
- Do my eyes deceive me? Exhortation not to forget farms during biodiversity festivities.
- Edible Geography does Mexico City. Oh to be in DF on the 9th.
- What do Benin farmers want out of their chickens? Clue: it wont be easy.
- Is marama bean the next big thing? Probably not, but check it out anyway.
- New Biosphere Reserve protects wild coffee.
- Uber-blogger Tom Barnett tackles sweet potato breeding. Sweet potato wins.
Vegetable seeds safe after fire
Bad news from our friends at AVRDC. The much-needed and still incomplete extension to their genebank has been badly damaged by fire. Fortunately, there were no injuries, and the seeds in the old coldrooms (below) are safe. But it will now be several more months before the new genebank can finally be commissioned. Anyway, commiserations to AVRDC’s genetic resources unit. But I know they’ll bounce back stronger than ever.
Nibbles: Rice panicles, Cassava brown streak, NTFP
- Gene controlling rice architecture may hold promise for increased yield. Unless, of course, it doesn’t.
- Attempts to control a deadly cassava virus in central Africa. I hope someone is conserving those susceptible varieties. They may be useless now, but who knows what the future will bring? And more questions.
- And following the Kibale post, more on non-timber forest products and their trade.