FARM NEWS - AFRICA DAILY

Amazon unveils grocery delivery via Whole Foods chain

Feb 08, 2018 (AFP)

While Amazon has previously offered limited grocery delivery, the new Prime Now service offers a wider selection of fresh items with service in one or two hours...

Sweet route to greater yields

Feb 08, 2018 (SPX)

They knew that the rice gene affected the performance of a natural chemical in maize, trehalose 6-phosphate (T6P), which influences the distribution of sucrose ...

Nigeria grapples with mob justice in farmer-herder clashes

Feb 07, 2018 (AFP)

Their only crime was to have "light skin and look like Fulanis", said a police officer, referring to the herders blamed for deadly violence against farmers in r...

UTIA research examines long-term economic impact of cover crops

Feb 06, 2018 (SPX)

Cotton is a major crop grown in the southeast and after harvesting there is very little residual biomass. Without a crop covering the ground, there is an increa...

More rice, please: 13 rice genomes reveal ways to keep up with ever-growing population

Feb 05, 2018 (SPX)

A vast new genetic resource created by a team led by Doreen Ware, Ph.D., of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, will ac...

Australia toughens foreign investment rules amid China concerns

Feb 01, 2018 (AFP)

Foreign investors now need to demonstrate when purchasing farmland worth more than Aus$15 million (US$12 million) that the property has previously been widely m...

Vines from Napa, Bordeaux tough against heat, drought

Feb 01, 2018 (AFP)

However, the crops may be vulnerable to climate change as the planet warms, leading to more frequent heat waves and less rain, warned a study published Wednesda...

Learn to value your food, says Brazil's top chef

Jan 31, 2018 (AFP)

In an interview with AFP, the French-trained chef who draws inspiration from the Amazon rainforest urged his homeland to start valuing its hidden culinary riche...

New Year canines stashed away in Muslim Malaysia

Jan 26, 2018 (AFP)

Dogs are considered unclean in Islam, and a more conservative form of the faith has been gaining traction among Malaysian Muslims, causing tensions with the cou...

Dairy sector trembles at EU powdered milk mountain

Jan 25, 2018 (AFP)

The European Union, through its member states, bought up hundreds of millions of tonnes of powder from 2015 onwards in a bid to stabilise milk prices that were ...

Ancient rice heralds a new future for rice production

Jan 25, 2018 (SPX)

Valuable traits from the wild rice - such as drought tolerance and pest and disease resistance - can be bred into commercial rice strains, said Professor Robert...

Root discovery may lead to crops that need less fertilizer

Jan 25, 2018 (SPX)

Because root growth confers a metabolic cost to the plant, bean plants growing in phosphorus-depleted soils that send out longer, thinner roots have an advantag...

Researchers reveal how microbes cope in phosphorus-deficient tropical soil

Jan 25, 2018 (SPX)

Phosphorus is a critical nutrient for global biological processes, such as collecting the sun's energy during photosynthesis and degrading plant debris and soil...

New 'Buck' naked barley: Food, feed, brew

Jan 19, 2018 (SPX)

Most barley grains are covered rather than naked. Covered varieties have a hull - or outer layer - firmly attached to the grain. The hull on 'Buck' - as in "Buc...

Setback for Romanian farmer's bid to graze sheep near NATO base

Jan 17, 2018 (AFP)

The case brought by Dumitru Bleja, 63, has turned into an unusual power struggle between US military commanders and the stubborn local shepherd. Bleja in 2007 b...

New process could slash energy needs of fertilizer, nitrogen-based chemicals

Jan 17, 2018 (SPX)

Manufacturers currently make fertilizer, pharmaceuticals and other industrial chemicals by pulling nitrogen from the air and combining it with hydrogen. Nitroge...

In sweet corn, workhorses win

Jan 17, 2018 (SPX)

"Experts say the ideal cultivar would have exceptional yield regardless of the weather, and across a large area, but it's unknown if such cultivars are commerci...

Robotic weeders: to a farm near you?

Jan 11, 2018 (SPX)

The need for robotic weeders stems from two issues. One is a lack of herbicides available for use in specialty crops. Another is the fact that hand-weeding has ...

Research outlines the interconnected benefits of urban agriculture

Jan 11, 2018 (SPX)

The urban agriculture phenomenon has grown over the years for many reasons, each specific to the plot of land or rooftop it covers. While most of the benefits f...

Wearable sensors for plants enable measurements of water use in crops

Jan 09, 2018 (SPX)

This was no technical, precise, poster talk. This was a researcher interested in working with new, low-cost, easily produced, graphene-based, sensors-on-tape th...