Commodity

October 24, 2011

Nibbles: Bourdeix, Early ag, Amaranthus in beer

Dr Roland Bourdeix is the new COGENT Coordinator.
Early American hunter-gatherers ate maize.
Dogfish Head crowdsources a new beer. And it’s got NUS. Rejoice.

October 21, 2011

Nibbles: Coffee pix, Afghanistan pix, #GROW, #GORTA

It’s been coffee week at Old Picture of the Day.
More pictures. Afghanistan’s silk industry this time.
It’s been #GROW Week too.
Jess at Gorta. Follow #gorta for live updates.

September 30, 2011September 30, 2011

Nice cuppa tea

The National Maritime Museum has a new gallery entitled ‘Trade Routes’ on the East India Company. There’s a couple of really nice associated videos on agrobiodiversity themes: tea and spices. No word on whether opium is in the offing.

Trade routes: tea from National Maritime Museum on Vimeo.

August 30, 2011August 30, 2011

Nibbles: Gossypium, Helianthus, Cacao, Berries, Heirlooms, Seminars

Cotton domestication deconstructed.
Sunflower domestication deconstructed too.
Chocolate smell deconstructed.
Exotic (North American) wild berries deconstructed.
“Heirloom” deconstructed.
XXIII Regional agrobiodiversity seminar and the X Regional traditional seed market. The region being Contestado, in Brazil. Deconstruction not available.

August 3, 2011August 3, 2011

Nibbles: Pastoralism, Carnival, Mustangs, Cassava, Tea, Biofuels

Pastoral mobiity “a trump card to be strengthened”.
Latest Berry go Round is up, although I can’t actually read it myself.
Wild horses in the US southwest.
Cassava notes: GMO cassava lower in cyanogens, higher in protein.
Climate change threatens Ugandan tea. Luigi’s MIL secretly pleased.
How to guarantee a food-insecure future in Kenya.

1. Why the modern food system prizes uniformity even though resilience depends on diversity. Spoiler alert: follow the money.
2. Historic crop varieties are finding renewed relevance as farmers contend with more volatile weather, emerging pests and changing markets. Let’s hope there’s money to conserve them.
3. India’s traditional wheat varieties contain diversity that could help breeders develop crops better able to withstand heat and drought. Let’s hope there’s money to conserve them.
4. India announces significant progress in conserving its wild rice genetic resources. Great that there was money to conserve them.
5. Community seed banks across Kenya are calling for formal recognition and sustained support, arguing that locally managed collections strengthen seed sovereignty, preserve traditional varieties and help farming communities adapt to climate change. Yes, but are they enough without national genebanks?
6. Researchers are racing to conserve wild coffee species whose genetic diversity may provide the resistance and resilience needed to secure tomorrow’s morning cup. Is the industry contributing, though ?
7. New history of the macadamia traces its remarkable journey from Australia’s native forests to a global crop, while underscoring why conserving the remaining wild populations is essential for the crop’s long-term future.
8. Researchers at the University of the South Pacific investigate how taro can withstand climate change, combining research with conservation to help protect one of the region’s most culturally and nutritionally important staple crops.
9. Chester Zoo collects seeds from highly threatened cacti, because why not?
Published on July 14, 2026