science – B4FA http://theb4fa.org Biosciences For Farming in Africa Wed, 04 Dec 2019 12:08:10 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 GMOs have a place in African agriculture http://theb4fa.org/gmos-have-a-place-in-african-agriculture/ http://theb4fa.org/gmos-have-a-place-in-african-agriculture/#respond Wed, 04 Dec 2019 12:07:44 +0000 http://theb4fa.org/?p=18300 The founding director of West Africa Centre for Crop Improvement (WACCI) at the University of Ghana, has called on African governments to open the doors for the cultivation and use of genetically modified crops to address the food and nutrition insecurity challenges on the continent.

Professor Eric Danquah said the challenges ...

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]]> http://theb4fa.org/gmos-have-a-place-in-african-agriculture/feed/ 0 Turn your anger at science denial into political action http://theb4fa.org/turn-your-anger-at-science-denial-into-political-action/ http://theb4fa.org/turn-your-anger-at-science-denial-into-political-action/#respond Tue, 03 Dec 2019 08:03:59 +0000 http://theb4fa.org/?p=18283 Rejection of science is rampant, but scientists can do better at countering doubt and there are grounds for optimism every day, says Naomi Oreskes, author of Why Trust Science?

A historian of science at Harvard University, Naomi Oreskes is best known for exposing the tactics of science deniers. Her first book Merchants ...

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]]> http://theb4fa.org/turn-your-anger-at-science-denial-into-political-action/feed/ 0 COP25: ‘Signals of hope’ multiplying in face of global climate crisis, insists UN chief Guterres http://theb4fa.org/cop25-signals-of-hope-multiplying-in-face-of-global-climate-crisis-insists-un-chief-guterres/ http://theb4fa.org/cop25-signals-of-hope-multiplying-in-face-of-global-climate-crisis-insists-un-chief-guterres/#respond Mon, 02 Dec 2019 10:59:47 +0000 http://theb4fa.org/?p=18280 “My message here today is one of hope not of despair” said UN chief António Guterres addressing journalists at a press conference in the Spanish capital on Sunday, after revealing the key takeaways from the World Meteorological Organization’s State of the Climate report, due to be published during COP25. 

“The last five years have been the ...

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]]> http://theb4fa.org/cop25-signals-of-hope-multiplying-in-face-of-global-climate-crisis-insists-un-chief-guterres/feed/ 0 E. coli bacteria engineered to eat carbon dioxide http://theb4fa.org/e-coli-bacteria-engineered-to-eat-carbon-dioxide/ http://theb4fa.org/e-coli-bacteria-engineered-to-eat-carbon-dioxide/#respond Sat, 30 Nov 2019 12:33:51 +0000 http://theb4fa.org/?p=18263 E. coli is on a diet. Researchers have created a strain of the lab workhorse bacterium — full name Escherichia coli — that grows by consuming carbon dioxide instead of sugars or other organic molecules.

The achievement is a milestone, say scientists, because it drastically alters the inner workings of one of biology’s most ...

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]]> http://theb4fa.org/e-coli-bacteria-engineered-to-eat-carbon-dioxide/feed/ 0 Endoparasitoid wasp can reduce fall armyworm leaf consumption rate by up to 89% http://theb4fa.org/endoparasitoid-wasp-can-reduce-fall-armyworm-leaf-consumption-rate-by-up-to-89/ http://theb4fa.org/endoparasitoid-wasp-can-reduce-fall-armyworm-leaf-consumption-rate-by-up-to-89/#respond Sat, 30 Nov 2019 12:28:32 +0000 http://theb4fa.org/?p=18261 In a recently published study led by CABI, researchers assessed, under lab conditions, the effect of the endoparasitoid wasp, Coccygidium luteum on the leaf rate consumption of its host – fall armyworm larvae. 

Published in Insects, the paper found that the leaf consumption rate of parasitized fall armyworm larvae gradually declined compared to unparasitized larvae with ...

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]]> http://theb4fa.org/endoparasitoid-wasp-can-reduce-fall-armyworm-leaf-consumption-rate-by-up-to-89/feed/ 0 Pesticides endanger humans, animals, beneficial insects? Rethinking simplistic notions, understanding trade-offs in sustainability and health http://theb4fa.org/pesticides-endanger-humans-animals-beneficial-insects-rethinking-simplistic-notions-understanding-trade-offs-in-sustainability-and-health/ http://theb4fa.org/pesticides-endanger-humans-animals-beneficial-insects-rethinking-simplistic-notions-understanding-trade-offs-in-sustainability-and-health/#respond Thu, 28 Nov 2019 14:03:38 +0000 http://theb4fa.org/?p=18253 Pesticides tend to receive little else but bad press — bees are slain, lawsuits are filed, and proponents of everything from ‘raw water’ to ‘clean food’ cite the benefits of all that is ‘natural’.

Yet pesticides are vital to human health, nutrition, and global food security. Simply put, we cannot live ...

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]]> http://theb4fa.org/pesticides-endanger-humans-animals-beneficial-insects-rethinking-simplistic-notions-understanding-trade-offs-in-sustainability-and-health/feed/ 0 What must be done to get toxin out of Kenya’s food supply http://theb4fa.org/what-must-be-done-to-get-toxin-out-of-kenyas-food-supply/ http://theb4fa.org/what-must-be-done-to-get-toxin-out-of-kenyas-food-supply/#respond Wed, 27 Nov 2019 14:00:09 +0000 http://theb4fa.org/?p=18244 An exposé in Kenya has revealed that there are high amounts of a poisonous substance, known as aflatoxin, in many of Kenya’s popular maize flour brands. This is particularly worrying as maize flour is a staple food for most Kenyans. Part of the problem is in how maize is processed and distributed in ...

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]]> http://theb4fa.org/what-must-be-done-to-get-toxin-out-of-kenyas-food-supply/feed/ 0 Celebrating South-South Cooperation, innovative partnerships for tackling food insecurity and poverty http://theb4fa.org/celebrating-south-south-cooperation-innovative-partnerships-for-tackling-food-insecurity-and-poverty/ http://theb4fa.org/celebrating-south-south-cooperation-innovative-partnerships-for-tackling-food-insecurity-and-poverty/#respond Wed, 27 Nov 2019 13:51:21 +0000 http://theb4fa.org/?p=18238 Uganda event marks 10th Anniversary of the FAO-China South-South Cooperation (SSC) Programme

25 November, Kampala, Uganda – Through South-South Cooperation, countries across the global South are successfully exchanging technical expertise and building innovative partnerships, which if strengthened, can continue to play a crucial role in the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

This ...

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]]> http://theb4fa.org/celebrating-south-south-cooperation-innovative-partnerships-for-tackling-food-insecurity-and-poverty/feed/ 0 Agricultural universities need greater investment http://theb4fa.org/agricultural-universities-need-greater-investment/ http://theb4fa.org/agricultural-universities-need-greater-investment/#respond Mon, 25 Nov 2019 09:40:29 +0000 http://theb4fa.org/?p=18225 Urgent and considerable investment is needed if African agricultural and life sciences universities are to reach their potential, according to Professor Adipala Ekwamu, executive secretary of the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM).

Speaking to University World News ahead of the 15th RUFORUM Annual General Meeting (AGM) taking place at the University ...

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]]> http://theb4fa.org/agricultural-universities-need-greater-investment/feed/ 0 CRISPR, disease-sensing technologies could yield a ‘cornucopia’ of healthier, tastier foods http://theb4fa.org/crispr-disease-sensing-technologies-could-yield-a-cornucopia-of-healthier-tastier-foods/ http://theb4fa.org/crispr-disease-sensing-technologies-could-yield-a-cornucopia-of-healthier-tastier-foods/#respond Mon, 25 Nov 2019 09:35:50 +0000 http://theb4fa.org/?p=18222 Consumers may soon begin purchasing fun-sized fruits and vegetables, as well as processed foods that incorporate healthier ingredients …. And producers may be able to grow crops that are drought- and flood-tolerant, yield more per acre, and are easier to harvest and transport—and are tastier, more nutritious, and less allergenic, ...

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