- Bioversity DG “jubilant” at Nagoya Protocol.
- A video plug for the biofortification conference.
- Native potatoes on foodie agenda.
- A date palm festival. In the US.
- The success of species introductions.
- Italian acorn cakes deconstructed. I’m told the people able to recognize these sweet acorns are few and old.
- Calling times on biological names. Whoa!
- Saving heirloom mielies.
- What the heck is happening with phosphorus anyway?
- Panamanian farmers don’t like to grow (some) native trees on their farms because of slow growth rates.
- Eating medieval weeds.
- Latest from Pavlovsk. I have no idea what’s going on anymore.
- Lactase persistence due to cold.
- Genetics says plague came from China.
Nibbles: Apple Diversity, Sorghum, Ugandan organics, Cows, CABI, Giant pumpkin, Nutrigenomics, SOTW2
- Apple diversity on display at Terra Madre.
- A drought-resistant sorghum for Karamoja. Read the script of a radio programme.
- CIAT advises Ugandan farmers: produce what you can sell, don’t sell what you can produce. Hmmmn.
- Local cow breeds and Protected Designation of Origin cheeses. There’s a conclusion here struggling to emerge, but I can’t recognize it. Help me.
- CABI pushes for crop diversification. Get in line!
- Where giant pumpkins come from.
- Nutritionists should get to grips with human diversity.
- 2nd State of the World’s PGRFA launched by FAO to much fanfare. And usual incorrect figures on genetic erosion. Oh I give up.
Terra Madre 2010
Terra Madre 2010 is deep into its third day. I know some of our readers are there. That’s you I’m pointing at, Danny. Anyone want to give us an update?
Hey, Michelle, how about planting some of Obama’s heritage?
An article on an NBC website explains that Michelle Obama’s White House Garden contains lots of varieties from Thomas Jefferson’s gardens at Monticello, in nearby Virginia. Jefferson’s memory has accreted a whole lot of factoids, but it is undeniable that he was keenly interested in agricultural biodiversity and tried all sorts of things out at Monticello, many of them new to the new country. He also most famously said:
“The greatest service which can be rendered any country is to add a useful plant to its [agri]culture.”
Michelle’s example is surely inspiring different behaviour to do with gardening and eating, not to mention edible diversity. So just think what a message it would send if she grew some of the local traditional vegetables of hubby Barack’s native Kenya? These crops were long neglected by rural and urban dwellers alike because they were perceived as backward? They are slowly making a comeback, thanks in part to celebrity endorsements. An endorsement by the Obamas would top them all.
Call us! We can help.
Nibbles: Studentship, Cowpeas, Chocolate, Quinoa, Rice in Madagascar, Jackfruit, Wheat breeding, Indian diversity
- PhD student from East Africa wanted to study greenhouse gases, biochar and other cool stuff.
- Weevils eat half the cowpea harvest. Solution in the bag.
- Ecuadorian chocolate experts visit the World Bank. Did they bring samples?
- Lots of ecdysteroids in quinoa. Not clear to me if this is good or bad.
- Yes, Malagasy rice is different.
- Evaluating a Dang Rasimi jackfruit. Looks pretty good to me.
- Crop wild relatives in genebanks help with drought tolerance in wheat.
- Meta-paper on livelihoods diversity in rice-wheat-livestock systems Indo-Gangetic Plains has no room for varietal diversity in rice-wheat.