Nibbles – Page 427 – Agricultural Biodiversity Weblog

February 27, 2008February 28, 2008

Nibbles: Peas, corn, marama, peaches, bees

Follow along with the adventures of an amateur pea breeder. Mendel comments: “go for it, girl”.
And the corn (maize) genome is announced, apparently with recipes. Via.
Namibians domesticate nutritious wild legume. Mendel comments: “what’s wrong with peas?”
New Zealand (re)discovers square peaches. Mendel unavailable on this one.
Honeybee evolution summarized.

February 26, 2008February 26, 2008

Nibbles: Decoration, insects

(Agro)biodiversity used as personal decoration in the Omo Valley.
Eating bugs is good for you. No, really. FAO says so!

February 25, 2008February 26, 2008

Nibbles: golden rice, nutrition, organics, feral livestock

Pro golden rice PDF, via Eldis.
How to devise food-based dietary guidelines.
Is organic any better for you?
They shoot wild burros, don’t they?

February 24, 2008February 25, 2008

Nibbles: Genebanks, organic, fair, chocolate

American farming family gets tour of organic research farm and genebank in India, is impressed.
The International Agricultural Show is on, just outside Paris. Pres. Sarkozy available for comment.
A rapid run-through the history of chocolate, courtesy of Smithsonian.

February 22, 2008February 22, 2008

Nibbles: Carnival, Boars

Tangled Bank #99; apologies for the late link.
Participatory approach to wild boar problem — in Brighton, England!

1. Ancient farmers didn’t have to wait for the genetic diversity that made domestication possible. They selected from variation already present in wild plants, including the ancestors of rice and maize. Domestication was as much about spotting (or happening upon) useful differences as creating new ones.
2. English colonists in America called Indigenous dogs “wolves,” revealing as much about colonial perceptions as about the animals themselves. This history of Indigenous dogs shows how unfamiliar animals were classified through peculiarly European ideas about wildness.
3. Austria is bringing forgotten apple varieties back to life. Saving old varieties in genebanks is one thing: getting people to grow, sell and eat them is another, but it can be done. Or at least tried.
4. Jordan’s olive-oil heritage centres on traditional varieties such as Nabali and ancient Rumi trees, but most production is consumed locally, leaving exports limited and making provenance, cultivar and harvest date important indicators for buyers. Compare and contrast with Austrian apples.
5. Small island developing states have distinctive food cultures and ingredients, but face particular challenges in building sustainable and resilient food systems. FAO’s A Taste of SIDS explores the connections between island food, biodiversity and culinary heritage. Nice to see diversity within crops considered, though a few local variety names would have been nice.
Published on October 21, 2026