Women in agriculture–hungry countries are ‘gender unequal’ countries

Posted on 7 Mar 2011 by Susan MacMillan • Leave a comment

Women taking goods to market (photo credit: ILRI/Kebede). The New Agriculturist this month provides a snapshot of views about where we are in gender research for agricultural development. Journalist Olivia Schwier collected these viewpoints at a ‘Gender and Market-Oriented Agriculture’ workshop held 31 January—2 February 2011 in Addis Ababa. Lessons from case studies in gender work … Continue reading →

Animal Breeding / Asia / ILRI / India / Pigs / South Asia

Pig breeding takes off in India’s northeast, which produces 25% of the country’s pigs and consumes 50% of the country’s pork

Posted on 3 Mar 2011 by Susan MacMillan • 1 Comment

Pig breeding on a farm in Dimapur, Nagaland, India (photo credit: ILRI/Mann). The Telegraph in Calcutta ran a story this week on why pigs—and pig breeding—matters to the marginalized indigenous communities of India’s northeast. ‘For the 600-odd villagers of two districts of Mon lying on either side of the [Nagaland] border, pig breeding has now … Continue reading →

Africa / Asia / Biodiversity / Climate Change / Ethiopia / Fodder / Forages / Genebank / ILRI / Latin America / Seeds

ILRI forage germplasm stored in Addis genebank travels to the Arctic’s Svalbard Global Seed Vault

Posted on 2 Mar 2011 by Susan MacMillan • Leave a comment

‘The Svalbard Global Seed Vault celebrated its third anniversary with the arrival of seeds for rare lima beans, blight-resistant cantaloupe, and progenitors of antioxidant-rich red tomatoes from Peru and the Galapagos Islands. The arrival of these collections, including many drought- and flood-resistant varieties, comes at a time when natural and man-made risks to agriculture have … Continue reading →

Asia / Dairying / Food Safety / ILRI / India / Markets / South Asia

Adulteration of milk in northeast India addressed by innovative platform

Posted on 22 Feb 2011 by Susan MacMillan • Leave a comment

A consultant to the European Commission, Wyn Richards, this week expressed satisfaction at the methodology adopted in India ‘for sensitizing the stakeholders on hygienic handling and distribution of unadulterated milk’ in Guwahati, the capital of the state of Assam. The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) is providing technical support to this project. ‘Milk though is … Continue reading →

A4NH / Agri-Health / Agriculture / Animal Diseases / Animal Health / Capacity Strengthening / CapDev / Directorate / Disease Control / Emerging Diseases / Epidemiology / Food Safety / ILRI / Nutrition / Zoonotic Diseases

IFPRI agriculture, nutrition and health conference in Delhi: ‘At a glance’

Posted on 16 Feb 2011 by Susan MacMillan

The 1,000 participants that gathered in Delhi last week for an international conference organized by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) came from 65 countries and from the agricultural, health, nutrition, and related sectors and represented governments, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, research organizations and academia alike. Some 150 chairpersons, speakers and rapporteurs engaged themselves … Continue reading →

Animal Breeding / Drylands / DRYLANDSCRP / East Africa / ILRI / Indigenous Breeds / Kenya / Pastoralism / Sheep / Small Ruminants

Shepherds saving sheep

Posted on 16 Feb 2011 by Susan MacMillan • 1 Comment

The ‘hairless’ (non-wool-producing), native and worm-resistant red Maasai sheep of East Africa (photo credit: ILRI). An article this week in InterPress Service tells of Samburu pastoral herders working to bring back their native Red Maasai sheep because it does better than other, exotic, breeds, in the increasingly variable climate of northern Kenya. ‘. . . … Continue reading →

Africa / Animal Diseases / Animal Health / Asia / Directorate / Disease Control / Emerging Diseases / ILRI / Latin America / Zoonotic Diseases

Get local livestock keepers involved in disease surveillance–ILRI’s John McDermott

Posted on 13 Feb 2011 by Susan MacMillan • Leave a comment

Participants at a conference on ‘Leveraging Agriculture for Human Nutrition and Health’, which has just ended in New Delhi, heard that livestock intensification in developing countries, especially in Africa and Asia, may increase the incidence of epidemics that kill both humans and animals. ‘”The increase in density leads to increased contact between humans and animals—leading … Continue reading →

Africa / Animal Diseases / Animal Health / Directorate / Disease Control / Emerging Diseases / Epidemiology / ILRI / Nigeria / Zoonotic Diseases

ILRI report says Africa’s veterinary services inadequate to deal with new disease threats

Posted on 13 Feb 2011 by Susan MacMillan • Leave a comment

Nigeria’s Vanguard newspaper reports on warning given by scientists about the insufficient capacity of Africa’s current veterinary services to deal with new disease threats. ‘According to new assessments, reported yesterday at the International Conference on Leveraging Agriculture for Improving Nutrition & Health in New Delhi, India, “Wealthy countries are effectively dealing with livestock diseases, but … Continue reading →

Africa / Animal Diseases / Animal Health / Asia / Directorate / Disease Control / Emerging Diseases / Epidemiology / ILRI / Latin America / Zoonotic Diseases

Animals, not people, should serve as sentinels of infectious diseases of both–Delia Grace

Posted on 12 Feb 2011 by Susan MacMillan • Leave a comment

A girl shares the entrance to her house with a family of chickens in Oyo State, Nigeria (photo credit: ILRI/Mann). Researchers at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) argue in an opinion piece published yesterday on the Guardian‘s Poverty Matters Blog (11 February 2011) that the best way to reduce the threat of infectious diseases … Continue reading →

Africa / Agriculture / Animal Diseases / Animal Health / Asia / Directorate / Disease Control / Emerging Diseases / Epidemiology / ILRI / India / Latin America / Research / Zoonotic Diseases

Close the gaps between agriculture, health and nutrition–Indian Prime Minister