At Sligoville School in Jamaica, headteacher Claudette Power stronglybelieves in the power of the land as a teaching tool. Like her, most of her staff are experienced gardeners and each class man- ages a plot, growing a variety of organic herbs and vegetables, and rearing chickens, rabbits and goats. Some of the food is cooked in the canteen and some is sold in the community or given to the children to take home. In Macuata, Fiji, children at Lutukina Primary School are growing organic cabbage, lettuce, radish, eggplant, carrots, French beans and tomatoes and eat- ing the home-grown vegetables in their school lunches. Garden-based learning (GBL) is an increasingly popular concept worldwide to promote what educators call ecological literacy. While in the North GBL is widely conceived as a tool for helping children to develop an environmental conscience, in developing countries, school farms and gardens generally have a more practical purpose. They aim to equip young people with skills in environmentally sus- tainable farming and, in the most successful cases, teach them how to process their out- put to the best effect, put their produce on the market and get good returns. In the past, school farms and gardens have received a bad press. Widely promoted for African pupils in pre-Independence times, school farming still suffers from negative colonial connotations — often, farms were thinly disguised forms of child labour, meted out to children as a form of paternalistic cor- rection rather than offered as an opportunity for learning. But in many ACP countries, SPORE 127 • PAGE 1 In this issue This edition is all about betting on the future. Forced to choose between the promises heralded — and the risks posed — by GMOs, ACP countries must decide whether or not to opt for GM crops. Could GMOs, for example, help solve the problem of stem borers which devastate cereal crops? That is one of research’s big questions. Another type of wager is embodied by school farms in the South, which are betting on the younger generation: will today’s green-fingered students turn into tomorrow’s young entrepreneurs, proud of their profession? As for the Windward Islands, Viewpoint shows how they have already won their bet on shifting to organic and fair trade bananas. These are just some of the topics that Spore offers in this issue, along with the usual In Brief articles, plenty of useful addresses and a selection of new publications — to help you take up your own challenges. School farms Cultivating young minds The land can be a powerful teaching tool for the new generation. School farms offer a promising approach for introducing young people to the benefits of farming, helping to equip them with a source of nutrition and household food security for the future and stem the rural exodus. Information for agricultural development in ACP countries Issue 127 FEBRUARY 2007 School farms Cultivating young minds 1 Cereals Tracking a cereal killer 3 GMOs Generally Mistrusted Organisms? 4 IN BRIEF 6 LINKS 10 PUBLICATIONS 11 BETWEEN US 14 VIEWPOINT Bananas Fair trade offers a safety net 16 Website: spore.cta.int Ph ot o: © IC RA F/ SI 03 GBL is now enjoying a revival, increasingly valued as a practical means of showing the benefits of farming to young people, while teaching important lessons about nutrition and making a contribution to household food security. School farms are not as widely available as many would like, partly because GBL is still seen as a marginal rather than mainstream educational activity. However, the scenario is gradually changing. School gardens form a key element of Niger’s new educational policy and in Sierra Leone 80% of all schools now run gardening classes. Plotting a school farm A school plot will generally grow vegetables, flowers and sometimes medicinal plants, though some may also have small livestock and fish. Sizes vary greatly, from a very small patch of land to a whole field, and will dictate what kind of crops can be grown, and whether trees can be included. The most produc- tive gardens are based on crops that are relatively easy to grow and whose patterns fit into the school term. GBL can be used to reach a broad spectrum of age ranges. For younger children, the focus is generally on teaching healthy diets and environmental awareness. For older pupils, the empha- sis may be more on the income-generating potential of growing fruit, vegetables and other crops. In Zimbabwe, the Schools and Colleges Permaculture Programme (SCOPE) has introduced the concept of organic farming into the curriculum of more than 50 schools (see Spore 93). Meanwhile, at Nadi College in Fiji, pupils trained in hydroponics have been able to generate significant cash income from their produce. In western Kenya, the Gimomoi Youth Polytechnic has recently incorporated agro- forestry into its timetable. Young people take part in on-farm research, and raise tree seedlings for sale. Said head teacher Joel Amakoye, “Our project on agroforestry is creating a positive attitude towards environ- mental protection. This is coupled with monetary returns for the Polytechnic through the sale of tree seedlings.” In countries affected by conflict, where children have often been brought up in refugee camps, school farms and gardens can play an important role in teaching farming skills. They can also help HIV/AIDS orphans, who are in urgent need of a secure income for the future. “As parents die early, they are leaving a knowledge gap,” said Khumbi Chinonge, who heads the Sithobela school for AIDS orphans in Swaziland. To date, FAO has set up 34 Junior Farmer Field and Life Schools for orphaned children in Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, Swaziland and Zambia, offering hands-on lessons in farming techniques, nutrition and medicinal plants. The schools also help to recover tra- ditional knowledge about indigenous crops and biodiversity. Harvesting hope An important by-product of any school gar- den project is the opportunity it offers to build bridges among students, staff, families and community-based organisations. Some enterprising ventures harness outside help from local resource points including horti- cultural experts, marketing services and local IT firms. In Burkina Faso, women commu- nity workers have helped schools set up gar- dens to grow foods such as carrots and orange sweet potatoes, rich in vitamin A. Children have taken the produce home to their parents, many of whom have begun growing the vegetables in their own plots. At the Ulimasao Marist Centre for Special Learning on Savai’I, Fiji youngsters between 14 and 25 maintain a plantation. They work together with a local organisation, Women In Business, which offers training in the production and marketing of organic crops, including some aimed at overseas niche markets. A joint FAO/International Institute for Educational Planning programme has drawn up a list of best practices for organising an effective GBL project. It is important that the farm or garden be adapted to the setting, using technology that is appropriate and sustainable. There must also be clear rules and transparency over produce and profits. “Families and the community must see that the school is helping children learn useful skills, and not exploiting them for the school’s profit or (worse) for the benefit of teachers,” warns the FAO manual, Setting Up and Running a School Garden, a step-by- step guide full of advice, from choosing a plot to attracting community help and funding. Getting connected Some school farms teach young people to plan, plant, harvest, and prepare a meal or snack from the garden. Others also have a post-harvesting component, with practical advice on processing to make value-added products, such as sun-dried mango slices. The most ambitious schemes give training in marketing and pricing, teaching pupils how to draw up a business plan, do book-keeping and promote their products. In Ethiopia, pupils from the Selam Technical and Vocational College manage large garden plots, oversee the processing of significant harvests and prepare the products for con- sumption in two restaurants open to the public. In Barbados, the 4-H Movement offers young people opportunities to partici- pate in agricultural diversification projects, especially non-sugar enterprises. Whatever the scale of the venture, com- munication is an important factor, and can help spur youngsters on to better results. With funding from IT companies, five radio stations in Ghana are using community airtime to promote communication between school farm clubs. The aim is to equip each club with a satellite phone which they can use to phone in to their farming pro- gramme, to ask questions of programme guests or other listeners. The Growing Connection (TGC), an initiative which helps young people to grow high-value produce, uses the internet and ICTs to connect young gardeners to each other and to vital sources of information and advice. “We build low-cost vegetable gardens in developing countries, then hook the kids together via internet so they can swap tech- nologies and recipes,” said Robert Patterson, founder of TGC, which has set up school farms in several countries including Ghana, Kenya, the Dominican Republic, Senegal and most recently Jamaica. “They get the experience of using low-cost innovations in a farming environment and an incentive to be involved with sustainable agriculture.” Setting Up and Running a School Garden FAO, 2005, 198 pp. ISBN 92-5-105408-8 US$30 • €23 www.fao.org/docrep/009/a0218e/a0218e00.htm SPORE 127 • PAGE 2 Young orphans from Mozambique proudly display their produce Ph ot o: C D je dd ah © F AO Ph ot o: B iz za rri © F AO School farms • Maize, millet, sorghum and rice:none of these main African cerealcrops is safe from the ravages of stem borers. The scenario of the standard attack usually goes something like this: the borers, which generally belong to the Lepidoptera or Diptera orders, lay their eggs between the stems and the leaf sheaths. After hatching, the larvae feed on the tender young shoots at the apex of the plant before subsequently boring the stem, making their way down its length, devouring it from the inside as they go. The bud at the tip turns black and becomes dry. The plant withers and its grain yield drops sharply. In sub-Saharan Africa, stem borers are one of the most serious threats to small-scale cereal producers. In the absence of reliable global figures, local studies give some idea of the scale of the damage. In Kenya, the acci- dental introduction of Chilo partellus from India in the 1930s has led to a 73% reduc- tion in maize yields. In South Africa, the fall in output has been put at 50% for both sorghum and maize. For farmers and researchers alike, reducing the numbers of these pests is therefore a priority. But the task is made more difficult by the tremen- dous biological diversity of the insects and the fact that their behaviour varies depending on climatic and environmental conditions. Of the 20 or so stem borers threatening economically important cereal crops in tropical Africa, the most common are Eldana saccharina, which also attacks sugarcane in most ACP countries, Chilo partellus (Pyralidae family), Sesamia calamistis and Busseola fusca (Noctuidae family). The long struggle There is no universal solution to the prob- lem of stem borers, but various treatments and preventive methods exist, which can sometimes be used in combination. Farmers have to assess case-by-case whether it is worth applying treatment, taking into account the cost and the estimated level of losses. The use of chemical pesticides is rarely cost-effective for small-scale producers and, in any case, it can be problematic, since the borers are located inside the stems, beyond the reach of insecticides. Tests car- ried out in northern Cameroon between 2004 and 2005 on sorghum attacked by Sesamia did however show that three spray- ings of acetamiprid or seven of neem, a natural pesticide, reduced borer attacks by 40% and increased grain yields by 440 and 350 kg/ha, respectively. Biological control holds out the greatest hope, especially when it involves the release of Cotesia flavipes wasps. Such releases have achieved significant results with maize in Kenya where, since 1991, they have led to a one-third reduction of total stem borer den- sity and a 47.3% drop in yield losses. These wasps, imported from Pakistan, lay their eggs in the borer larvae and have now prolif- erated outside the area where they were first released. Studies conducted in 2004 by the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) put the net economic benefit for the region as a whole at more than €138 million over a 20-year period. Since 2005, further releases have successfully been carried out in 10 countries of eastern and southern Africa. Another avenue being explored is the development of cereal varieties that are resis- tant to borers. ICIPE is working with several national and international agricultural research centres to produce hybrid varieties of maize and sorghum, which are both resis- tant to insects and give higher yields. In Kenya, the Insect Resistant Maize for Africa (IRMA) programme is investigating the transgenic option (Spore 115 and page 5 in this issue), working to develop varieties with resistance conferred by the transfer of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) genes. Push and pull More affordable for small-scale farmers, bio- logically intensive integrated pest manage- ment is a combined strategy of using resistant varieties, intercropping, careful choice of sowing time and the destruction of crop residues to keep pest populations and economic losses below a certain level. The Push-Pull method, tested for the past 12 years or so by ICIPE in Kenya, is one of the most promising cultural control tech- niques. It involves intercropping cereal crops with plants that repel borers (for example Desmodium) while at the same time planting the edges of fields with wild grasses on which borers will lay their eggs. Encouraging results have been achieved in Kenya with napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) and Sudan grass (Sorghum vulgare sudanense) and with vetiver in South Africa — all plants which the females of certain stem borers pre- fer to maize. Whether acting as a lure or as a trap, these plants have the added bonus of possessing fertilising and anti-erosion prop- erties, as well as being useful for forage. In October 2005, an international confer- ence on gramineous lepidoptera borers in Africa, jointly organised by ICIPE and the French development research institute IRD, brought together some 50 African special- ists. Recent progress in the knowledge of borer species and their behaviour should lead to a refining of methods used for bio- logical and cultural control, and more effec- tive results, say experts. Once they are better equipped to make correct identification of the borers, both farmers and technicians will be able to react and launch control strategies earlier, with greater chances of success. See Links, page 10 SPORE 127 • PAGE 3 Cereals Tracking a cereal killer Stem borers cause significant damage to cereal crops. Various methods exist for tackling these insects, but much remains to be done if small-scale farmers are to make use of them. Ph ot os : © S yfi a Int er na tio na l; © P us h-P ull .n et Borers such as Chilo partellus cause a sharp drop in maize yields Applied to plants, the acronym GMO— genetically modified organism —refers to a species whose genetic com- position has been modified by the introduc- tion of one or more genes from another species. These GM plants or transgenic plants are currently enjoying a massive boom. According to statistics from the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications, an association which groups together a range of interna- tional organisations, government agencies and the main multinational companies pro- ducing transgenic seeds, the total surface area sown with GM crops in the world has seen an annual increase of between 10 and 20% over the past 5 years. By the end of 2006, they had covered 102 million ha in 21 countries. Today, 57% of soya, 25% of maize, 13% of cotton and 5% of rape grown worldwide are of GM origin. Four countries account for the bulk of these GM crops: USA (53% of all GM crops are grown here), followed by Argentina, Brazil and Canada. Next in the league table are India and China. In Africa, only South Africa, where 70% of cotton, 25% of soya and 15% of all maize produced is transgenic, grows GM crops on a large scale. Eight African countries are still at the field trial stage: Burkina Faso, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Senegal, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Is this rapid expansion the result of a growing interest on the part of producers for more productive seeds which can boost their revenues, or is it the fruit of a ‘Great Marketing Operation’ by the companies which sell these seeds, as one French news- paper recently branded it? It is hard to say, for these small seeds continue to stir up heated debate. Some believe that plants grown from GM seeds could be harmful to the health or the environment. Others argue that they produce more yields and enable smaller quantities of chemical products to be used on the land. These issues divide sup- porters and detractors of genetic modifica- tion into two bitterly opposed camps, to such a degree that it is extremely difficult to find objective answers. Launched in the 1990s in North America, GMOs started being grown in the South towards the end of the decade. But only very recently have the results of GM crop cultiva- tion over a period of several years become available. In developing countries, but also in the USA, as a well-documented recent report from Friends of the Earth reveals, these findings do much to temper the early enthusiasm. Take the case of cotton, one of the first plants to have benefited from genetic tech- nology. Wherever it is grown, cotton is vulnerable to pests, especially caterpillars, which cause heavy losses and compromise the quality of the fibre. The many insecticide treatments available are not always successful in eradicating the pest, even though cotton accounts for one-quarter of all pesticides applied worldwide. The Bt cotton saga Bt cotton was developed with the aim of reducing these costly and damaging treat- ments. Its name comes from the Bacillus thuringiensis bacteria, which produces pro- teins that are toxic to certain species of insect and whose genes have been introduced into the cells of the plant. In China, 5 million cotton growers have begun growing this new variety, whose seeds cost three times as much as the ordinary type. In so doing, they hope to lower their pesticide costs and substantially increase their output. For the first few years, that is precisely what happened, but according to a study conducted by Chinese and American scientists, after 7 or 8 years of cultivation, the producers find they need to carry out 20 treatments per cycle (as opposed to 5 or 6 for conventional cotton varieties), since other insects that are insensitive to Bt cotton, and can only be controlled by traditional pesticides, have since proliferated. The same problem has emerged in India, where the ‘American seeds’ sold by Monsanto have worsened poverty levels in entire villages. The media has reported that a number of cotton producers have committed suicide after being forced to sell their land in order to pay back loans taken out to buy seeds. SPORE 127 • PAGE 4 Developing a GM variety Before it is offered to farmers, a GM plant passes through various stages aimed at ensuring it will be effective, but also harm- less both to the environment and to human health. The plant is created in a laboratory, where in vitro tests are conducted on pests and the toxicity of proteins generated by the gene introduced into the plant. Afterwards, the variety undergoes field tri- als to study its behaviour and its interaction with the environment. These tests should, in principle, be authorised by the govern- ment of the host country and are the sub- ject of rigorous protocols to avoid or limit contamination of other plants. Putting the seeds on the market is the final phase, and this also requires authorisation. Due to the precautionary principle clearly enshrined in the Cartagena Protocol, coun- tries have the right to refuse the admission of GMOs into their territory, either for field trials, crop cultivation or in food products. Ph ot o: J -L H of s © C IRA D Transgenic NuOpal cotton, which is pest resistant, in South Africa enerally istrusted In the hope of improving their output, some ACP countries, especially in Africa, are opening up to genetically modified organisms (GMOs). But the results of early experiences show that GMOs do not necessarily provide the benefits that producers in the South are seeking. In South Africa, small-scale farmers in KwaZulu Natal who have been growing GM crops since 2002 are also more heavily indebted than ever before, according to a 5-year socio-economic study carried out by Biowatch South Africa. They are required to provide Monsanto with an undertaking not to reuse the seeds from one year to the next, nor to make it available to other producers and only to use pesticides made by the company. Research with an interest Nevertheless, in June 2006 several African countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mali and Togo) decided to grow Bt cotton. Burkina Faso is due to start planting its first commercial GM crops in 2007. According to the direc- tor of the country’s agricultural research institute INERA, trials have shown an 80% reduction in the use of pesticides and a 30 to 40% increase in output. Most of the GM crops currently grown in the world were developed to resist products sold by agrochemical companies, especially weed-killers (see Box), and reduce labour costs as a result. But labour shortage is not a major problem in Africa, where weed-killers are in any case little used. By contrast, research into transgenic varieties that are adapted to the continent’s specific climatic conditions and to the producers’ technical and socio-economic circumstances, is virtually non-existent. The national research institutes do not have sufficient resources to carry it out. The spread of GM crops in ACP coun- tries, and especially in Africa, is mainly the result of intense lobbying. The agrochemical multinationals are multiplying conferences in an effort to convince governments to open their fields to these new varieties, which are proffered as weapons to spearhead a second green revolution that will end famine and increase incomes for small-scale producers. These firms have also become important donors for national research institutes look- ing for funding (see Spore 119). In Burkina Faso, INERA has a contract to collaborate with Monsanto and Syngenta, the two com- panies which dominate the GM market. The Institute of Rural Economy in Mali is following a similar path. The Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, with the support of the Syngenta and Rockefeller Foundations, is working, amongst other ini- tiatives, on pest-resistant transgenic maize as part of the Insect Resistant Maize for Africa programme piloted by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center. In September 2006, the Bill and Melinda Gates and Rockefeller Foundations launched a new ‘Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa’, with funding worth US$150 million (almost €114 million). One of the goals is to promote more productive seeds. African scientists working in these programmes bring influence to bear on their own govern- ments, applying pressure to develop legisla- tion and allow GM research in their home countries. In many ACP States, organisations repre- senting producers, consumers and environ- mentalists are rallying to protest against the often discreet arrival of GM crops in the fields. All complain of the inadequacy of information available to producers and con- sumers and the lack of effective regulations to protect their country against the risk of GM plants — uncontrolled dissemination of these varieties in the environment and loss of independence for producers. In Cameroon, Mali and South Africa, associa- tions are organising meetings to offer infor- mation on GMOs and demonstrations to express their fears. Grouped under the Coalition for the Protection of African Genetic Heritage in West Africa and the African Biodiversity Network in East Africa, opponents of GM signed a common declaration in September 2005 in Nairobi, Kenya. In it, they rejected “any attempts to introduce GMOs in Africa in the guise of food aid, research pro- grammes and commercial planting.” They denounced “the patenting of life that comes with GMOs”, and demanded, amongst other things, “the protection of the rights of Africa’s farmers and communities to use, share and conserve their genetic resources.” Patenting life Private companies do indeed patent all the transgenic seed that they make. For them, it is a commercial business, like any other, which requires a guarantee of a return on their investment. For their part, the associa- tions are calling for a revision of article 27:3b) relating to biological inventions in the World Trade Organization’s Trade- Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement. The Cartagena Protocol, drawn up to pre- vent biotechnology risks and otherwise known as the ‘biosafety protocol’, entered into force in 2003 and has been ratified by the majority of ACP countries. But the con- vention has admitted the precautionary principle at the international level, allowing each country to decide whether or not to authorise GMOs on its territory. In 1998, the African Union proposed a model law to enable countries to develop a framework of national biosafety laws. In 2002, it proposed a second law to regulate the import and sale of GMOs. A number of African countries have introduced legislation. Some, such as that of Ghana, are accommodating in their approach to transgenic plants, while others, like Benin and Mali, are more restrictive. However, the united regional front that existed in the early days has disintegrated, and the continent no longer has a strong common position. In 2005, following publication of the first results of the commercial cultivation of transgenic plants, South Africa — a pioneer in the introduction of GMOs into Africa — adopted a moratorium on new GM crops. More recently, it refused to allow a project involving enriched genetically modified sorghum on its territory. See Links, page 10 SPORE 127 • PAGE 5 GMOs for all tastes • Tolerant to weed-killers, they simplify the farmer’s work with the soil. Each GM variety is only resistant to one weed-killer, the one made by the company that pro- duces it. • Resistant to pests, they allow farmers to reduce and even eliminate the use of chemical pesticides. • Rich in nutrients, they have health benefits: for example, ’golden rice’, enriched with vitamin A, is reported to reduce the risk of blindness. • Used as vaccines, or to make them, they fall somewhere between agriculture and medicine: a transgenic maize variety developed in a laboratory in Mexico could be used to vaccinate the chickens which eat it against Newcastle disease. • GMOs Ph ot o: © K To ur é rganisms? ■ Discovered in Kenya in 2003, the fruit fly Bactrocera invadens, previously unknown in Africa, is seriously threatening fruit pro- duction, and especially the mango sector. This Asian species has rapidly spread throughout the continent where it has no natural enemies and is causing serious damage. Its presence was reported in both the Comoros and Ghana in 2005. Attracted by the perfume, the female Bactrocera lays her eggs in ripe fruits. The larvae feed on the pulp. Mangoes attacked by the pest are unfit for sale on either local or regional markets and are banned from export to the EU. Any infected fruit must be scrupulously removed. Failure to do so entails the destruction of the entire batch on arrival in the EU and a minimum charge of €31,000 per container for the exporter. Given the scale of the economic threat, the main actors in the fruit and vegetable sector met with the agricultural administrations of nine West African countries on 1st December 2006 in Conakry, Guinea. At the gathering, jointly organised by the Conference of West and Central African Ministers of Agriculture (CMA- CWA) and CTA, participants called for a common regional strat- egy involving all public and pri- vate stakeholders, to reduce the impact of these pests. A range of control strategies is available for tackling fruit flies, including localised or widespread pesticide treatment, depending on the extent to which the pest has spread. Releases of sterile males and parasitic wasps, both fairly complex strategies, are unlikely to be used in the foresee- able future. The battle against Bactrocera invadens will be long and difficult, for almost nothing is known so far about the pest’s ecology and behaviour. But pro- ducers can take some valuable precautionary measures, using strategies deployed against other fruit flies (Ceratitis spp.): these include collecting and destroying fallen and infected fruit, putting them in black airtight bags and placing them in the sun so the larvae die from the heat, and monitoring other host plants (avocado, citrus, Cucurbitaceae) growing nearby. Scientists from the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) are developing a research programme against this formidable foe. ✍ IITA-Bénin BP 08-0932, Cotonou Bénin Fax: +229 21 35 05 56 Email: IITA-Benin@cgiar.org ✍ Prof Bruno Schiffers Cellule formation du PIP Faculté universitaire des sciences agronomiques Passage des Déportés 2 5030 Gembloux Belgium Email: schiffers.b@fsagx.ac.be In brief • SPORE 127 • PAGE 6 ■ Agriculture’s contribution to national development is seriously underestimated. This is especially true at a time when traditional farming is diversifying into what the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) has termed New Agri- culture — a wide-ranging sector which includes agribusiness, agri- tourism, agro-energy and biotechnology. That was one of the key messages to emerge from the 6th Caribbean Week of Agriculture, held at Nassau, Bahamas, in October 2006. According to Dr Chelston Braithwaite, Director General of IICA, “Input supply, transport, storage, agribusiness, contribu- tion to exports, agro-industry, services and the food industry are all part of an expanded agricul- ture sector.” This growing trend makes it crucial to introduce major changes, including better financing for agricultural research and training and a shift in government policy, so that agriculture and rural develop- ment becomes the responsibility of government cabinets, rather than just ministries of agricul- ture. Events during the busy week, supported by CTA amongst oth- ers, included workshops on youth, biotechnology, fisheries and the media, and the launch of a Caribbean Agricultural Reporters Network (CARN) in an effort to secure wider coverage of rural Caribbean issues. A workshop on Sustaining Agriculture and Marine Resources for the Future looked at the promising potential offered by the biofuels sector at a time when Caribbean sugar producers face a serious challenge due to loss of preferen- tial access under the EU’s Sugar Protocol. A trade show, with around 30 stands displaying agricultural products and services from the region, attracted wide public interest. New agriculture Exotic fly threatens African mangoAccessing EU markets ■ A series of training initiatives is being launched to help developing countries meet EU requirements on food safety, animal feed and health and plant health. The courses, which are being organised in both Europe and developing countries, are part of the EU’s Better Training for Safer Food programme. The scheme aims to provide staff involved in the food industry with a better understanding of EU standards and to help developing countries gain improved access to EU markets. http://ec.europa.eu/food/training/ index_en.htm Rift Valley Fever strikes again ■ A fresh outbreak of Rift Valley Fever (RVF) has claimed more than 61 human lives and is expected to cause widespread deaths and abortions among Kenyan livestock. Scientists are trying to prevent the spread of the haemorrhagic fever, which attacks herdsmen and their livestock, and began in December 2006. A biosafety laboratory from the Kenya Medical Research Institute in Nairobi has been transferred to Garissa hospital, at the centre of the outbreak, to fast-track detection of the virus. The last RVF outbreak, in 1997–1998, killed an estimated 200 people and caused serious damage to livestock. Response mechanisms set up during previous outbreaks have aided the recent response, say Kenyan Health Ministry officials. Croc skins ■ Crocodile farming is booming in Zambia. Average annual output is 44 t of meat and 26,000 skins, exported mainly to South Africa and the Far East, respectively. By 2009, the Zambia Crocodile Farmers Association hopes to export more than 50 t of meat and 50,000 skins per year. The meticulous and highly regulated collection of eggs and reproductive adults from the wild means that eggs can now be laid and hatched in captivity — good news for the conservation of biodiversity. Cashew portal ■ This new website launched by PAMRAD, a rural development NGO operating in Benin, is dedicated to the cashew nut. Here you will find practical links, latest events and about 100 documents (mainly in French) on the production, processing, and quality standards of the cashew nut, as well as information on the marketing of its by-products. Website: http://anacardium.info Ph ot o: © S yfi a Int er na tio na l The Bactrocera invadens fly (shown here six times its actual size) pierces fruits and makes them unfit for sale Photo: G Goergen © IITA • In brief A brighter future for grape growers ■ The Tanganyika Vineyards Company is assisting a Ministry of Agriculture training scheme in Tanzania’s Dodoma region aimed at helping small-scale farmers to produce better quality grapes and produce bigger yields. The company is distributing quality vine seeds, obtained from various countries. Grape production in the region has declined in recent years due to problems with quality and marketing. ✍ Agriculture Department Dodoma Regional Commissioners Office PO Box 914 Dodoma Tanzania Fax:+255 026 2320046 Innovating ideas ■ For anyone wanting to know more about EU research and innovation, the Community Research & Development Information Service (CORDIS) presents, in English and French, close to 70,000 projects, programmes and networks, as well as details of the most important events and achievements. The latest development is a portal on the ICT research programme. A monthly newsletter (in English/French) can be downloaded, or sent free of charge as a printed version. Website: http://cordis.europa.eu/ en/home.html Dromedaries and camels ■ This CIRAD portal dedicated to the biology and rearing of camelids is meant for stakeholders in the sector. However, a number of sections (games, news events, scientific developments, publications, links) make this mainly French site an instructive and appealing source for a much wider public. Website: http://camelides.cirad.fr Farming behind bars ■ A prison farm at Musita Mayunge in eastern Uganda is rehabilitating prisoners, teaching agricultural and craft skills to help inmates earn a livelihood when they leave. Fruit and vegetables grown on the farm are used to improve the diet of prisoners, while the surplus is sold and the revenue ploughed back into the scheme. The prison farm covers 395 ha and has earned a reputation for producing some of the best furniture and agricultural products in the country. Its produce includes Matooke (cooking bananas), maize, sweet potatoes and fish from its three ponds. SPORE 127 • PAGE 7 ■ Good news for small-scale pro- ducers seeking to export organic pineapples to the EU. With the support of the Pesticides Initiative Programme (PIP), researchers from the Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD), France, and Gembloux Agricultural University, Belgium, have develo- ped a flower induction technique that is easier and cheaper for far- mers to use. It involves applying activated carbon soaked with ethylene to the heart of the pineapple plants, either in the form of granules or using powder dissolved in water, via a spray, depending on whether the weather is wet or dry. Trials in plantations in Cameroon and Togo show that a single application is enough to stimulate flowering in about 90% of plants treated outside the natural flowering season. The material needed for the enrich- ment of activated carbon is readily available and the process can easily be carried out by small farm workshops or local cooperatives. European regulations have, since August 2005, permitted the use of ethylene in organic cultiva- tion to stimulate pineapple flo- wering, so as to allow more uniform production and a more regular harvest. The classic flower induction technique using ethy- lene requires heavy and expensive equipment, so small-scale produ- cers have until now effectively been barred from accessing the European market for organic pineapples. ✍ Mr Gilles Delhove PIP/COLEACP Rue du Trône,98 1050 Brussels Belgium Fax: +32 2 514 06 32 Email: gilles.delhove@coleacp.org Website: www.coleacp.org ■ A new weapon has been developed in the long and difficult battle against the taro beetle (Papuana uninodis), a serious pest in several Pacific countries. The insect poses a threat to the region’s multi-mil- lion dollar taro (Colocasia escu- lenta) export industry. It lives in the soil and burrows inside the plant’s corm, leaving behind a maze of tunnels. The corm rots soon after beetle contact, destroying from 4 to 25% of the crop. Beetle-damaged taro cannot be exported or sold to supermarkets. Badly damaged taro cannot even be cooked for home consump- tion. Help for taro far- mers is now at hand in the form of what researchers say is a safe, effective pesticide treatment. Years of research pioneered by the Taro Beetle Management project has resulted in the development of two chemical treatments: imi- dacloprid and bifenthrin. A che- mical residue analysis carried out by the University of the South Pacific shows acceptable levels of pesticides in treated taro corms, indicating it is safe to eat. Hopes are that the treatment will save the crucial taro industry, which earned US$19 million (€15 million) in export revenue last year. ✍ Land Resources Division Secretariat of the Pacific Community Private Mail Bag Suva Fiji Fax: +679 337 0021 Email: SadaNL@spc.int Experts put bite on taro beetles Organic pineapple: more flowers, more fruits Floral induction of the pineapple plant is now possible for small-scale organic producers. Ph ot os : C K um ar © ta ro pe st. ne t Ph ot o: © S yfi a Int er na tio na l Powered by maize ■ The South African company Ethanol Africa has begun buil- ding Africa’s first cereal-based bioethanol factory (Spore 123) in Bothaville, to the southwest of Johannesburg, in the heart of the country’s maize-producing region. By the end of 2007, the factory is expected to reach a daily output of up to 500,000 l of ethanol, produced by fermenting 1,200 t of yellow maize, genetically modified to make it drought resistant. One-third of the total output, which will be aimed at both local consumers and export markets in western countries, will be guaranteed by small-scale pro- ducers. A group of South African businessmen and an association of 400 maize growers are behind the ambitious scheme. Between now and 2010, Ethanol Africa is planning to build seven more factories in South Africa, at a total cost of nearly €1 billion. The company also intends to invest in neigh- bouring countries (Angola, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia) producing biofuel made from maize, sugarcane or sorghum. The eight factories planned for South Africa should produce an annual 1.24 billion l of bioetha- nol, enough to satisfy 80% of the country’s needs. Ethanol Africa is looking ahead to the South African government’s stated intention of making it obligatory to use 10% of bioethanol in all fuels by 2008. ■ Farmers in Uganda’s Busoga region are reaping big rewards from a sugar outgrowers scheme. Many have shifted to growing sugarcane because of the assured regional market and good earnings. Grouped under the umbrella of the Busoga Sugarcane Growers Association, 4,000 far- mers are now growing the crop on an area of over 10,000 ha. Between them, they supply 50% of the sugarcane used by local company Kakira Sugar Works, which runs the scheme. The company advises farmers on crop growing techniques and offers help with ploughing the land and credit to pay for sugarcane seeds and fertilisers, with repayments scheduled to coincide with har- vesting and crop sales. “The far- mers get the services they want from us and pay later after harvesting”, said company mana- ger Eric Katarikawe. The scheme has proved a boon for small-scale farmers relying on coffee, banana and cassava as food and cash crops. Many of their traditional crops have been affected by disease or falling prices. Sugarcane is now the big- gest source of income in most parts of Busoga region. However, some African sugar exporting countries which are part of the Sugar Protocol bet- ween EU and ACP sugar expor- ters are likely to face serious difficulties as a result of price cuts ushered in by the EU sugar reform. Other indirect effects of the EU sugar reform could pose problems for African countries which do not export sugar, including Uganda. Trade experts predict that sugar, which cur- rently goes to the high-priced EU market, will be re-directed to the more attractive regional markets once EU prices fall. If this hap- pens on a large scale, national sugar prices could plummet. In brief • Sweet success for sugar farmers Green paint ■ The Ethiopian government and a British company, Vernique Biotech, have signed a deal to market an oleaginous plant which Ethiopian farmers have tradi- tionally dismissed as a weed. The shiny black seeds of the Vernonia galamensis contain vernonia oil, a non-polluting alternative to epoxy which is used in the manu- facture of paints and plastics. Epoxy is made from oil, and in common with other petrochemi- cal products, its constantly rising price offers opportunities for natural substitutes. Vernonia has the advantage of growing in the dry valleys of Ethiopia, where soils are too poor to grow food crops. Prized in tra- ditional medicine for its many properties, this drought resistant plant is part of Ethiopia’s natural heritage. By recognising the Ethiopians’ claim to this plant, the deal signed with the British firm is one of the first to embody the equity principles of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. In 2004, a Dutch company signed a similar agreement with Ethiopia to market teff (Eragrostis tef ), a local cereal. Vernique Biotech will pay royalties to the government and will give it a share of the profits over the next 10 years. Cultivation of vernonia began in 2004. One hectare yields 1 to 2 t of vernonia oil. The planta- tions, maintained by hundreds of farmers, are expected to be gra- dually extended to cover an area of several hundred hectares. In the long term, the company plans to market the oil for phar- maceutical purposes. ■ Producers in Uganda are using a simple technique to grow mushrooms (Spore 124). All it takes is a few large black plastic bags that are first filled with old wet cotton which is then inocula- ted with spawn. The bags are kept closed during the 3-week incubation period, so that the mycelium can take hold in the substrate and start growing. Cuts are then made in the bags, which are hung in a damp place until it is time for harvesting. The mush- rooms are ready for picking after 2 weeks. Mushroom cultivation is espec- ially popular with women, since it can be carried out at home and produces several harvests per year, providing them with a significant source of income. To find out more, look at the on-line Agrodok edition on small- scale mushroom cultivation as well as the multimedia resource from International Research Development Centre (IRDC) Canada, where you will find around 20 tips for food produc- tion and recycling. Websites: IRDC : www.idrc.ca/en/ev-95083- 201-1-DO_TOPIC.html Agrodok: www.anancy.net/uploads/ file_en/40-e-2005-mushrom_screen.pdf SPORE 127 • PAGE 8 Ph ot o: B iz za rri © F AO Mushrooms grow in a plastic bag filled with wet cotton. Ph ot o: T C ra w fo rd © IR DC Photo: M Reichii © JIRCAS Mushroom growing made easy Launch of Edulink ■ Edulink, the first ACP-EU cooperation programme for higher education, aims to foster research and innovation networks in ACP countries while improving cooperation between existing institutions and strengthening their administrative capacities. Its website, in English, French and Portuguese, brings together projects applying for funding under the programme. You will also find a newsletter, links to partner organisations and a calendar of events. Website: www.acp-edulink.eu Global gene banks ■ Collections of the world’s key food and forage crops are for the first time being made available to plant breeders, farmers and researchers. About 600,000 samples of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture are now housed at international agricultural research centres, with coordination by FAO. The gene bank, part of the 2004 International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, ensures open access to the Earth’s plant resources amid growing debate about the sharp decline in agricultural biodiversity. Today just four crops — rice, wheat, maize and potato — provide more than 60% of humans’ total dietary energy from plants. Paper from bagasse ■ Researchers at the French development research institute IRD and the national institute for agricultural research INRA have developed a biological process for converting bagasse (sugarcane residue) into paper pulp. Its principle is based on the distinctive metabolism of a filamentous fungus. Less harmful to the environment than the traditional treatments of delignification and paper pulp bleaching, it could also be used for other fibres. ✍ Richard Auria IRD UMR 180 IFR 86 de biotechnologie agro-industrielle CP 925 13288 Marseille cedex 09 France Email: rauria@esil.univ-mrs.fr Website: www.ird.fr/us/actualites/fiches/ 2006/fas252.pdf ■ ICTs are linking small-scale livestock and crop farmers in Africa to markets, helping them to sell their products more easily and get better prices. Ole Odungo is a Maasai herder in southern Kenya. When he wants to sell his cows he has a choice of three markets: Emali, 50 km away, Mombasa or Nairobi, res- pectively 350 and 150 km away, where prices may be different. Now, Odungo no longer relies on friends and middlemen to help him decide where to sell his cattle. Instead, he uses his cell- phone to call or to send SMS messages to get information on local prices. Based on the cost of transporting the animals by truck and the time it takes to get his cattle to the market — a calcula- tion that is automatically compu- ted for him using spatial information technology — he is able to decide where best to deliver his animals. Both services have been made available by the Livestock Information Network and Knowledge System (LINKS), launched to help livestock far- mers in Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania make more informed marketing decisions. An early warning feature enables Odungo to hook up to forecasts of drought conditions and to receive bulle- tins on what the forage situation is likely to be 30, 60, and 90 days into the future. In Malawi, meanwhile, small- holder farmers are linked up with buyers, thanks to a system that uses the Internet and mobile tele- phones to relay the latest infor- mation about the availability and prices of produce. Boards are dis- played in produce centres through- out the country, where buyers can post details of commodities in which they are interested, and farmers can see whether the prices offered by them are attrac- tive. If the figures add up, farmers and buyers can clinch their deal, either over the internet or in per- son, with the help of project staff, who are on hand to help the often semi-literate farmers in negotiations. Producers and buyers opera- ting further afield can use mobile phones to access the latest market information. For example, a far- mer wanting to know the price of tomatoes at Blantyre market types the keywords ‘tomatoes Blantyre’ and keys in a special number. The system uses both English and Chichewa, Malawi’s most widely spoken language. Since it began, the number of deals brokered at the project centres has risen steadily from about five deals per day to almost fifty. ✍ LINKS Global Livestock-CRSP PO Box 30709-00100 Nairobi, Kenya Fax: +254 20 4223001 Email: gatarwa.kariuki@cgiar.org Website: www.Imiske.net ✍ Malawi Agricultural Commodity Exchange Agason Trading Centre Building PO Box 32718 Chichiri, Blantyre 3 Malawi Tel/Fax: (265) 1 845 738 Email: ideaamiclimbe@malawi.net • In brief SPORE 127 • PAGE 9 The village pharmacy ■ For centuries, the neem tree (Azadirachta indica) has been dubbed ‘the village pharmacy’ in its native India, because of its powerful antiviral and antibacte- rial properties. Now, a 50 ha organic neem farm on the small island of Abaco in the Bahamas is helping local people to learn about the benefits of this extraor- dinarily versatile plant, and to plant neem trees in their own backyards. In 1994, businessman-turned- farmer Nick Miaoulis started growing neem from a batch of 8,000 seeds imported from India. He was convinced the tree could help contribute to the health care of his country. “The cultivation of neem trees in every home gar- den provides a pharmacy at your fingertips,” he said. Outlined in some of the ear- liest Sanskrit writings, the neem tree’s skin healing properties have proved effective in treating chro- nic skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, scabies, acne, herpes and dermatitis. The seeds, bark and leaves contain com- pounds with antiseptic, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal and immune enhancing proper- ties. Used as a natural pesticide (see Spore 116), neem can control more than 200 species of insects. Its timber is both termite- and worm-resistant. Although damaged by three hurricanes over the last decade, the Abaco neem farm now has 5,300 trees under cultivation. Nick’s company, Abaco Neem, harvests about 2 t of leaf a year and 1.5 t of fruit, converting them into a range of products including salves, oils, teas and shampoo. But Nick is also pasion- ate about using neem to teach health, nutrition and farming to youngsters. He organises farm visits and seminars and shows local people how to plant and nurture their own trees. “We’re already bringing school teachers and children to the farm. Hopefully, every graduating class will pro- duce a farmer for the purpose of creating food security,” he said. ✍ Abaco Neem PO Box AB 20317 Marsh Harbour Bahamas Fax: +242 367-4118 Email: info@abaconeem.com ICTs help small-scale producers clinch deals Ph ot o: N M ai ou lis Ph ot o: © LI N KS In the Bahamas, the versatile neem plant is grown in backyards Pesticides and harmonisation ■ Recent months have seen the creation of two new regional authorities for pesticides in Africa. The Pesticides Committee of the West-Africa humid zone (CPAOH) groups together Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea and Togo. The Central African Pesticides Committee (CPAC) groups Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and the Republic of Congo. The nine countries of the Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel already have a procedure for harmonising pesticide use. ✍ CPAOH Until a permanent headquarters is established, contact the head of plant protection services in member countries. ✍ Permanent Secretary for the CPAC Benoit B Bouato Conseil phytosanitaire interafricain Direction de l’information et de la documentation BP 4170 Yaoundé Cameroon Fax: +237 221 19 67 Email: bbouato@yahoo.fr Banana’s revenge ■ Ever since the Rwandan government placed a ban on the use of plastic bags, deemed too damaging to the environment, traditional baskets and hand-made environment- friendly bags have been selling fast. In order to keep up with the growing demand for these bags, made from the bark or the leaves of the banana tree, weavers’ associations are springing up everywhere in the villages. Don’t miss the bus! ■ Free training to farmers and community groups is on offer from Trinidad and Tobago’s Ministry of Agriculture. Training sessions are held in a 20-seater air-conditioned bus, which has been converted into a modern classroom, with facilities for multi-media presentations, displays and practical demonstrations. Already, a number of successful training visits have been completed, including one to teach women’s groups better growing and marketing techniques for ornamental plants. Other areas covered include rabbit rearing, seedling production and herbs and spices. ✍ Ministry of Agriculture Land and Marine Resources Extension Training and Information Division St Clair Circle St Clair Trinidad Fax: +868 622 8202 Email: dirextminfpmr@tstt.net.tt Website: www.agriculture.gov.tt SPORE 127 • PAGE 10 Links • Wading through the massof literature availableon GMOs, it is hard to find relatively objective data on this subject, which divides politi- cians and scientists as well as consumers. Here, we offer you information sources based on scientific research or serious investigations. An interesting report, The GM Debate – Who Decides?, looks at the use of GM crops in agricul- ture in developing countries and examines decision-making mech- anisms for its approval and how they could be improved. For a rapid overview of the controver- sial GM issue, you can read arti- cles on the SciDev.Net website, grouped under the Agri-biotech dossier. The very recent and well- documented report from Friends of the Earth details the results of a decade of GM crop cultivation around the world. A number of websites stress the benefits to be expected from GMOs. Among them are those of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) and the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) which seeks to improve access to biotechnolo- gies for African farmers. The website of AfricaBiotech, a joint project run by the US Tuskegee University and the African Biotechnology Stakeholders Forum (ABSF), offers a good selection of documents, together with links to information sources and organisations connected with the subject of biotechnology in Africa. The newest initiative is one launched by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which is pressing for New Hope for African Farmers. These web- sites present the research and pro- jects under way, as well as the criteria for obtaining funding. Various organisations have taken on the task of closely mon- itoring the environmental and economic impacts of GM crops. They especially take issue with the methods used by the seed companies to penetrate markets, and they highlight the potential risks posed by transgenic plants for farmers, consumers and the environment. The GRAIN network, which promotes sus- tainable local management of genetic biodiversity, gathers together the information avail- able on this topic from all five continents. For its part, Inf ’OGM keeps a very close watch on the risks linked to the diffusion of GMOs. As well as maintaining well-documented websites, both these organisa- tions also publish printed reports and information bulletins. The website of the African Centre for Biosafety, based in South Africa, offers a survey of the situation on the African continent, paying particular attention to legislation, which it details country by country. To find out more about biosafety and the Cartagena Protocol, the best source is of course the very comprehensive and regularly updated website of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Lastly, on the CTA portal Knowledge for Development, the biotechnology dossier gives direct access to a number of the above- mentioned websites, as well as a selection of articles on the sub- ject. You might also want to take another look at the article in Spore 88 which explains what a GMO is, and another in Spore 105 on biotechnology. GMOs: weighing up the pros and cons Unmasking the stem borer Do you want to learn howto recognise cereal stemborers, assess the damage they cause and find out how to control them? Then look no fur- ther than African Cereal Stem Borers, a very comprehensive book which, though published several years ago, is still a key source for this subject. You will find the latest results of research into lepidopteran borers in The cereal stem borers of sub-Saharan Africa and their antagonists, published in the wake of a conference held in October 2005 in Nairobi, Kenya. If you are looking for solutions suited to small-scale producers, the Inter- national Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) is the best contact, due to its integrated pest management approach. It has a website dedicated to stem borers. Finally, to find out more about the Push-Pull system, take a look at the special website set up for this method of controlling borers and striga. For further information: ICIPE PO Box 30772 00506 Nairobi Kenya For further information: AATF www.aatf-africa.org AfricaBiotech www.africabiotech.com African Centre for Biosafety www.biosafetyafrica.net Convention on Biological Diversity www.biodiv.org/biosafety/default.aspx CTA http://knowledge.cta.int/fr/content/vi ew/full/595 Friends of the Earth • Who Benefits From GM crops? An analysis of the global performance of GM crops (1996-2006) www.foei.org/publications/pdfs/gmcr ops2007execsummary.pdf Global Development New Hope for African Farmers www.gatesfoundation.org/GlobalDev elopment/Agriculture/RelatedInfo/Afri canFarmers.htm GRAIN Girona 25 ppal 08010 Barcelona Spain Fax: +34 93 301.13.81 www.grain.org Inf’OGM 2B, rue Jules Ferry 93100 Montreuil France www.infogm.org ISAAA www.isaaa.org SciDev.Net www.scidev.net • The GM Debate - Who Decides? An analysis of decision-making about genetically modified crops in developing countries By E Masood PANOS, 2005. 42 pp. ISBN 1 87067071X GBP5 • €7.50 Panos London 9 White Lion Street London N1 9PD UK Fax: +44 (0)20 72780345 Email: info@panos.org.uk www.panos.org.uk Downloadable as PDF (1.08 Mb) from: www.panos.org.uk/PDF/reports/ gmdebate_report.pdf Email: icipe@icipe.org. http://stemborer.icipe.org • African Cereal Stem Borers. Economic Importance, Taxonomy, Natural Enemies and Control By A Polaszek CABI/CTA, 1998 ISBN 978 0851991757 CTA number 881 80 credit points Push-Pull.net www.push-pull.net • The cereal stem borers of Sub- Saharan Africa and their antagonists By P-A Calatayud, B Le Rü, F Schulthess & J-F Silvain IRD-ICIPE, 2006 ISBN 2 912703 08 5 €70 Ph ot o: © S YN G EN TA ■ Seed relief may be needed when farmers are affected by any one of a number of disasters, including drought, conflict, floods and plant disease. But the quality of seed aid, and the way in which it is delivered, needs to be improved if the results are to prove sustainable. This pack of briefs examines cases from Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe and looks at some of the interventions used to assist farmers — and crucially, how effective they turned out to be. An example from western Uganda explores the ability of seed vouchers and fairs to supply farmers with seeds of preferred crops and varieties, and the ben- efits of offering a wide range, even in a relief intervention. In northern Mozambique, the study presents the challenge of responding to crop breakdown of the staple cassava, which was devastated by a virus. Key chal- lenges here included the diffi- culty of moving plant cuttings quickly and of diversifying in areas of single crop monopoly. Meanwhile, cases from Ethiopia, Malawi and Zimbabwe examine the longer-term patterns and dif- ficulties associated with repeated seed aid. The briefs offer advice on how to sustain and strengthen seed systems both during disaster response and recovery periods. They also offer technical infor- mation on introducing new vari- eties, protecting agrobiodiversity, and exploiting market opportun- iities during periods of acute and chronic stress. Seed Aid for Seed Security Advice for Practitioners International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)/Catholic Relief Services (CRS)/CARE® Norway (CN), 2006. Set of 10 Briefs US$7 • €5.50 CIAT AA 6713, Recta Cali-Palmira, Cali Colombia Fax: +572 4450073 Email: ciat-library@cgiar.orgThe economic impact of bird flu is devastating for developing countries, as poultry rearers in some ACP countries are already discovering. Inadequate information about the disease, par- ticularly for consumers, exacerbates the problem. This handbook pro- vides clear guidelines on a wide range of issues linked to avian influenza, including how to detect the virus in birds and how to reduce the risk of transmission. Presented in a practical format, with information divided into short, easily digestible segments, the booklet also looks at the many forms of the HN virus and the his- tory of previous avian influenza outbreaks. A FAQ section answers questions on subjects that include vaccines and the number of human victims claimed so far by the disease. There is advice on active prevention of infection among poultry, as well as between poultry and other animals, and informa- tion on procedures for the control of contagious outbreaks. An appendix provides a list of websites to find out more about the virus and its possible repercussions. Bird Flu, Avian Influenza CIRAD and partners, including CTA. 2006. 48 pp. ISBN 2 87614 639 8 CTA number 1331 0 credit points Better seed supplies ■ FAO’s quality declared seed system has been widely used since it was first produced in 1993. It has proved especially useful for those working in the field of emergency seed supply and as a source of practical information on seed standards for a range of crop species. This revised version takes into account the impact of some recent international obligations on seed provision, and offers a clearer explanation of how quality declared seeds can accommodate local varieties. The list of crops includes 92 species. Quality declared seed system FAO Plant Production and Protection Paper No 185 FAO, 2006, 258 pp. ISBN 92 5 105510 6 US$40 • €30.50 FAO Sales and Marketing Group Viale delle Terme di Caracalla 00100 Rome Italy Fax: +39 6 5705 3360 Email: publications-sales@fao.org Disappearing breeds ■ More than 20% of documented livestock breeds are at risk of extinction, and at current rates, an average of one breed is lost per month. FAO estimates that industrial livestock operations are growing twice as fast as traditional mixed farming systems and six times as fast as traditional grazing systems. As a result, only a limited number of species and breeds now provide most of the world’s livestock production. This six-page brochure, distributed free by FAO, explains the importance of protecting animal biodiversity and highlights some of the most successful initiatives, in various regions, for conserving indigenous animal breeds. Protecting Animal Genetic Diversity for Food and Agriculture FAO, 2006. 6 pp. Free of charge Beate Scherf Animal Genetic Resources Group FAO Viale delle Terme di Caracalla 00153 Rome Italy Fax + 39 06 57053927 Email: DAD-IS@fao.org Downloadable as PDF file from: http://dad.fao.org/en/refer/library/ sow/Brochure3.pdf Fab tools ■ Fab@Home is an intriguing website dedicated to using fabbers — machines that can make a huge range of useful objects, right on your desktop. The website provides an open- source kit that lets you make your own simple fabber, download and print various designs, try out new materials, or upload and share your own projects. Website: www.fabathome.org ■ The human popu- lation in pastoral areas of eastern Africa has roughly doubled over the past 25 years, while the pastoralists’ total livestock population has remained constant or declined. This imbalance goes some of the way towards explaining the serious crisis that has emerged in the sec- tor in recent times. But there are other factors which exacerbate the situation. These include inad- equate land tenure and veterinary services and the effect of sub- sidised European exports of meat and milk on Africa. Also hamper- ing the successful development of pastoralism in the region are the increasingly stringent sanitary regulations applied to animal and meat exports from Africa. Using examples mainly drawn from Ethiopia and Kenya, this book offers a detailed analysis of pastoralists’ economic and land- use behaviour and examines current market structures and practices as a basis for interventions which might make livestock market- ing in the region easier and more effective. The overriding concern through- out the book is whether pastoral- ists in eastern Africa will be able to take advantage of the opportun- ities offered by the so-called Livestock Revolution. The annual demand for meat in sub-Saharan Africa and western Asia is pre- dicted to increase by 60% over the next 15 years. Pastoral Livestock Marketing in Eastern Africa Research and Policy Challenges Edited by P Little & J McPeak Practical Action Publishing, 2006, 288 pp. ISBN 1 85339 631 1 US$34.95 • €27 Practical Action Publishing Bourton Hall Bourton-on-Dunsmore Rugby Warwickshire CV23 9QZ UK Fax: +44 1926 634502 Email: publishingorders@practicalaction.org.uk Website: www.developmentbookshop.com SPORE 127 • PAGE 11 • Publications Publications Battling bird flu Sowing seeds for recovery Preparing for the livestock revolution Publications • ■ This year’s World Day of Action Against Child Labour, on 12 June, will be dedicated to the elimination of child labour in agriculture. With this in mind, the International Labour Organization (ILO) has produced a range of materials aimed at pol- icy-makers and trainers to help tackle this sensitive, but very real issue. Agriculture is the economic sector where over 70% of child labour is concentrated. According to ILO’s International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC), some 132 million children under 15 years-old work on farms and plantations world- wide, and many of them are killed, injured or have their health impaired as a result. This series of five guidebooks in CD format comes with a printed user guide to help policy-makers, employers’ organisations, trade unions, agricultural agencies and others plan and implement pro- grammes to tackle hazardous child labour in agriculture. A training resource pack avail- able separately is designed to help farmer trainers run courses for their fellow farmers, so they can improve safety on farms and in rural communities. It outlines some of the main risks to children involved with farm work, includ- ing injury from farm machinery, lifting heavy loads, pesticide con- tamination and bites from snakes and insects. Tackling Hazardous Child Labour in Agriculture Guidance on Policy and Practice By P Hurst et al. ILO, 2006. 20 pp. ISBN 978 92 2 118933 Free of charge Downloadable (2.24 Mb) as PDF from: www.ilo.org/iloroot/public/english/ standards/ipec/doc-view.cfm?id=2799 Training Resource Pack on Elimination of Hazardous Child Labour in Agriculture Grassroots By P Hurst et al. ILO, 2006. 282 pp. ISBN 92 2 117799 8 Free of charge Downloadable (1.59 Mb) as PDF from: www.ilo.org/iloroot/public/english/ standards/ipec/doc-view.cfm?id=1759 IPEC International Labour Organization 4 route des Morillons CH-1211 Geneva 22 Switzerland Fax: +41 22 799 8771 Email: ipec@ilo.org Website: www.ilo.org/childlabour ICTs for agriculture ■ This booklet is part of a series highlighting experiences using ICTs for development in a range of initiatives undertaken by the International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) and its partners. In this instance, the projects presented address a wide range of information- related problems encountered by small-scale farmers in developing countries. These include a lack of accurate data on prices and markets for agricultural products and inadequate access to information to solve problems in production and marketing processes. The booklet charts a range of successful interventions, many of them in ACP countries, showing that with the right support and training, ICTs can do much to boost farmers’ incomes. ICTs for Agricultural Livelihoods: Impact and lessons learned from IICD supported activities Edited by A Gerrard & K Morrow IICD, 2006. 76 pp. Free of charge IICD Ramweg 5 PO Box 11586 2502 AN The Hague The Netherlands Fax: +31 (0)70 311 7322 Email: information@iicd.org Downloadable as PDF from: www.iicd.org/articles/booklet- impact-agric/view?searchterm= impact%20booklet An inexorable march ■ This book from World Soil Information (ISRIC) charts the arrival and spread of Piper aduncum, one of the most prolific invasive species in the tropics. A shrub native to Central America, it arrived in Papua New Guinea in the mid-1930s and began its march across much of the humid lowlands and large tracts of the highlands. The uninvited shrub dries out the soil and absorbs huge quantities of nutrients, affecting the rich biodiversity of the island’s forests. Its small and abundant seeds and extraordinarily rapid growth rate mean that the invasion is now virtually unstoppable. Invasion of Piper aduncum in the shifting cultivation systems of Papua New Guinea By A E Hartemink ISRIC, 2006. 234 pp. ISBN 90 810628 1 6 €35 ISRIC PO Box 353 6700 AJ Wageningen The Netherlands Fax: +31 (0)317 471 700 Website: www.isric.org Email: soil.isric@wur.nl SPORE 127 • PAGE 12 Children at risk Ph ot o: O B ar riè re © IR D This ambitious but sur- prisingly compact hand- book offers an extraordinary array of useful advice aimed at agricultural advisers and develop- ment agencies working with farmers in the southern African region. Designed to be dipped into according to the particular needs of each case, the book cov- ers a wide range of topics, includ- ing climate, soils, vegetation and water, as well as concrete advice on how to grow crops and raise livestock in a given setting. Chapters explain how to assess the potential of land for crop production and how to cultivate a number of field, orchard and fodder crops, as well as vegetables, pasture grasses and timber-pro- ducing trees. Another section shows how to draw up yield pre- diction models for all of these. There are clear guidelines for the feeding and management of cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, poultry and wildlife as well as instruc- tions on how to construct a poul- try unit and design an irrigation scheme. Last, but by no means least, is a long list of rules of thumb to help deal with any number of different aspects of farming ranging from calculating how much fertiliser to apply to assessing how many bricks and cement it will take to build a farm outhouse. The Farming Handbook By B Smith University of Kwazulu-Natal/CTA, 2006. 466 pp. ISBN 1 86914 090 7 CTA number 1327 40 credit points Tips for farmers ■ For many smallholder farmers seeking outlets for their products, declining government support and increasingly demanding requirements from supermarkets and importers combine to make marketing a daunting challenge. This manual offers practical help by presenting a range of examples in which smallholder farmers and communities in vari- ous parts of Africa have suc- ceeded in developing strategies to secure market access. It describes a wide range of experiences, including very small-scale initia- tives such as rural women in Mali who collect and process shea but- ter, and others in Tanzania who make herbal soap from jatropha (Jatropha curcas). Larger-scale success stories include Kenyan mango producers who have developed market linkages through farmer field schools and smallholders in Malawi who have been helped to access the paprika market. But big or small, the message is always the same — the recipe for success lies in investing in the improvement of existing products, developing new prod- ucts, establishing market linkages and building farmer organisation and capacity. With the help of clear illustrations, boxes and diagrams, this guide offers plenty of suggestions for achieving this winning formula. Chain Empowerment: Supporting African Farmers to Develop Markets Edited by L Aduke & P Mundy ISBN 9966 754 00 8 KIT/Faida/IIRR 2006. 212 pp. US$20 • €15.50 Publications & Communication Program International Institute of Rural Reconstruction YC James Yen Center Silang, Cavite 4118 Philippines Fax: +63 46 414 2420 Email: Publications@iirr.org Website: www.iirr.org/bookstore • Publications ■ The HIV/AIDS crisis has taken a heavy toll on women’s property rights and livelihoods in Africa as well as on human life itself. The target of psychological and physical harassment, dispos- sessed of their property and evicted from their homes, women and children are often left destitute. Much has been written about the problem, but often in dry academic terms which mask the human tragedy. Two collections of narratives and case studies from southern and East Africa do much to restore the balance, bringing home the immense human cost of discrim- inatory laws and practices. Through first-hand stories, both books highlight the social, policy and legislative changes that are needed to combat the pandemic effectively. They also provide hope through accounts of ordi- nary women, and men, who have organised support groups and developed innovative ways of defending the rights of HIV- affected women and children. Some of the stories are almost mind-numbingly harrowing. In Zimbabwe, a widow tells how her dead husband’s relatives demol- ished her house, burned down her granary and took all her live- stock. There are also inspiring examples, both of individual courage and collective support. Among them is the account of volunteers at Swazi Positive Living (SWAPOL), which uses agricultural cooperatives to help HIV-positive women, and those at the Village of Hope in Rwanda, which is acquiring plots for collective farming and advo- cating for women’s land and property rights. Reclaiming Our Lives HIV and AIDS, women’s land and property rights and livelihoods in southern and East Africa - Narratives and responses Edited by K Izumi HSRC Press/FAO, 2006. 144 pp. ISBN 0 7969 2136 9 R110 • €12 The Land and Property Rights of Women and Orphans in the Context of HIV and AIDS Case studies from Zimbabwe Edited by K Izumi HSRC Press/FAO, 2006. 96 pp. ISBN 0 7969 2135 0 R90 • €10 HSRC Press Private Bag X9182 Cape Town 8000 South Africa Fax: +27 21 461 0836 Website: hsrcpress.ac.za Email: publishing@hsrc.ac.za The HIV/AIDS land grab Farmers find a voice ■ Part of the Agricultural Innovation Systems Series from the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT), a consistently useful source of publications, this booklet looks at the role of farmers’ organisations in agricultural innovation. With case studies from Benin, Rwanda and Tanzania, it reveals the growing importance of such organisations in helping producers get their voices heard in areas such as agricultural research and development, market access and service provision. It also shows some of the obstacles that prevent farmers from playing a greater role in formal agricultural innovation systems. Farmers’ organizations and agricultural innovation: case studies from Benin, Rwanda and Tanzania Edited by W Heemskerk & B Wennink KIT, 2006. 112 pp. ISBN 90 6832 1684 €25 KIT Publishers PO Box 95001 1090 HA Amsterdam Email: publishers@kit.nl Downloadable from: www.kit.nl/smartsite.shtml?ch=FA B&id=8332&ItemID=1965 The power of local wisdom ■ Using numerous examples from communities in South Africa, the authors of this study argue that indigenous knowledge is an important but often neglected resource for agricultural development. The underlying theme is that rather than replacing what people know with new, unfamiliar and often expensive and unsustainable technologies, it makes sense to consider what people do know, and to build upon this knowledge. Indigenous Knowledge on the South African Landscape: Potentials for agricultural development By T Hart & I Vorster HSRC Press, 2006. 52 pp ISBN 0 7969 2162 8 R75 • €8 Downloadable as PDF file from: www.hsrcpress.ac.za/freedownloa d.asp?id=2176 For HSRC Press’ address, see opposite Mapping agriculture ■ This CD-ROM contains recent statistics on crop production, area harvested and yields for more than 130 countries in seven regions, including Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific. The interactive system allows users to view and analyse the statistics for an administrative district, for a single country or for an entire region, presenting the information in the form of maps. Agro-MAPS. A global spatial database of subnational agricultural land-use statistics FAO, 2006. CD-ROM ISBN 92 5 1055319 US$44 • €34 For FAO’s address, see page 11 SPORE 127 • PAGE 13 Market access for African farmers SPORE 127 • PAGE 14 Between us • There is no place like home when itcomes to making improvements, andCTA kicked off the New Year with a firm resolve to change a number of aspects in the way it delivers support to ACP countries. As CTA Director Dr Hansjörg Neun puts it in the soon to be published CTA Annual Report 2006, “CTA’s main challenge is to work in an environment that is rapidly evolving, with information and communica- tion technologies (ICTs) moving at a revolu- tionary speed. Therefore, changes need to be made within CTA to enable us to cope with these challenges.” CTA’s Strategic Plan 2007-2010, the blueprint for the next 4 years, pledges to increase the Centre’s outreach, efficiency and sustainability and to apply a more business- oriented approach to extend the range of its products and services to ACP countries. With ICTs developing at a sometimes bewil- dering rate, CTA will redouble its efforts to identify technologies with the most rele- vance for ACP users and help them to make the most of these tools. It is also committed to extending the range of its own IT instru- ments. One event to watch for is the CTA Observatory in September 2007. It will fea- ture the new generation of web2.0 tools, a topic which will receive full coverage in Spore. Connectivity and global risks Looking back over 2006, bird flu, climate change and population growth emerged as some of the major challenges and their repercussions are set to reverberate well into the future. The rapid spread of the H5N1 avian flu virus gave a stark warning about some of the potential hazards of today’s globally connected world. CTA responded by exploiting some of the benefits of global connectivity, swiftly disseminating informa- tion about the disease. Issues relating to cli- mate change feature prominently in CTA’s Strategic Plan and initiatives planned include help for ACP countries in investigat- ing adaptation strategies. Closely related to global warming, the world’s surging popula- tion is a complex issue, and CTA is commit- ted to identifying how poor people in ACP areas will be affected, and what can be done to assist them. The Annual Report records a number of key events for CTA in 2006. There was a seminar in Benin on the potential of ICTs in driving small and medium-sized enterprises, and another in Kenya to launch the first African chapter of the International Association of Agricultural Information specialists. The Centre contributed to several important meetings, including a conference in Uganda on ‘Women in Science for Food and Nutritional Security in Africa’, the World Congress on Communication for Development in Italy, and the ACP Heads of State summit in Sudan, which examined Economic Partnership Agreements and their implications for ACP regions. Assessing its internal workings, CTA ended the year chalking up several successes in its endeavour to improve efficiency. There have been changes in staff, management and evaluation procedures and cuts to travel expenses, while the extent of travel itself has been increased. On the external front, CTA boosted communication with ACP and EU partners in an effort to spur more interac- tion, and has pledged to give even greater impetus to such cooperation in the future. Challenging times, to be sure, but exciting ones too. CTA intends to do its level best to ensure that ACP countries are in a position to take advantage of the new opportunities. The Information Management ResourceKit, better known to Spore readers byits acronym IMARK, is the fruit of a wide-ranging partnership led by FAO and involving CTA, along with CIRAD, UNESCO and the francophone higher edu- cation and research agency AUF, amongst others. The four modules currently available, already featured in Spore, have been com- piled by top specialists in the field of agri- cultural information. In each case, IMARK designers have painstakingly adapted the sci- entific content for the lessons offered to learners, which are structured according to a precise framework. The next stage in the process is making the resources available to learners in electronic format. Last comes the translation or, rather, the adaptation of the modules into five languages. Available both on the internet and on CD-ROM, the modules can either be used by tutors for group training or individually for self-paced learning. Users also have access to an interactive space on the website where they can share information and experiences. IMARK has thought of everything! Website: www.imarkgroup.org/index_en.asp Changes and challenges Spore magazine Spore is the bi-monthly flagship publication of the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) – ACP-EU. CTA operates under the Cotonou Agreement between the countries of the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group and the European Union. © CTA 2007 – ISSN 1011 0054 Publisher: Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) – ACP-EC Cotonou Agreement. CTA, PO Box 380, 6700 AJ Wageningen, The Netherlands Tel: +31 317 467 100 Fax: +31 317 460 067; email: cta@cta.int Website: http://www.cta.int Editorial staff: Executive editor: Marie-Agnès Leplaideur Syfia International 20, rue du Carré-du-Roi 34000 Montpellier, France Fax: +33 4 67 52 70 31 Editor of English version: Clare Pedrick Via dello Spagna 18 06049 Spoleto (PG), Italy Editor of French version: Denise Williams Syfia International (see above for address) Contributors to this edition of Spore included: J. Bodichon, M. Chimwala, F. Le Meur, M. Malengrez, D. Manley, D. Msangya, L. Nalugwa, J.-V. Ngoubangoyi, K. Touré, E. de Solère Stintzy, A.-B. Twizeyimana, with the editorial support of CTA. Layout : Intactile DESIGN, France Design: B Favre Printer : Imprimerie Publicep, France Do not hesitate to send any comments to the blog that CTA’s Director Dr. Neun has launched on the Internet: http://neun.cta.int New look, same voice! Next Spore issue will feature your favourite articles in a new package, with more news, more photos and reports. Don’t miss it! Distance learning Reader services Write to Spore CTA — Spore redaction PO Box 380 6700 AJ Wageningen The Netherlands Fax: +31 317 460067 Email: spore@cta.int Subscribe to Spore ■ Subscriptions for the printed version are: • free to organisations and individuals in ACP (African, Caribbean and Pacific) and EU countries: CTA Spore subscriptions PO Box 173 6700 AJ Wageningen The Netherlands or spore@cta.int • for other individuals and organisations: €36 annually (6 issues) from commercial distributor (see below) ■ Subscribe to Spore Ennouncement Subscribe to the free Spore email summary (90 Kb) at: http://spore.cta.int or send a blank email to join-spore-en@lists.cta.int For text-only: join-spore-text-en@lists.cta.int ■ See Spore on a screen • Web distribution: spore.cta.int • Satellite distribution: capture Spore ’n More broadcasts on the Afristar channels of the First Voice International’s multimedia programmes. Further information available from: spore@cta.int Reproduce Spore • Articles in Spore can be freely reproduced for non-commercial use, if credited as coming from Spore. Please send a copy to the editors. • Reproduction for commercial use requires prior permission. Publications How to obtain them CTA publications mentioned in Spore are marked by the green leaf symbol, and these are available free-of-charge to subscribers to CTA’s Publications Distribution Service (PDS). Other readers can buy these titles from CTA’s commercial distributor. Only agricultural and rural development organisations and individuals resident in ACP countries can apply for PDS subscriptions. Each PDS subscriber is assigned a certain number of credit points annually for purchasing publications on CTA’s list. The list of CTA publications can be consulted on CTA’s electronic catalogue: www.cta.int ■ All other publications, indicated by an orange square, are available from the publishers listed, or through commercial booksellers. Commercial distributor SMI (Distribution Services) Ltd Units 17-18 Gunnels Wood Park Gunnels Wood Road Stevenage Hertfordshire SG1 4TP United Kingdom. Fax + 44 1438 748844 Email: Darren@earthprint.co.uk SPORE 127 • PAGE 15 • Between us Mailbox The risk posed by avian influenza conti- nues to be a source of serious concern for many ACP poultry farmers, as one letter from this edition’s postbag clearly shows. On a brighter note, there is good news from Cameroon, where farmers are grouping together to improve tomato growing techniques and work markets to their advantage. Priceless assets Endale Chane, assistant veterinarian at the animal health service unit in South Wollo, Ethiopia, was pleased to read in Spore 125 about the new FAO animal disease crisis centre. But he says more help is needed if developing countries are to head off the threat of bird flu. He welcomes the support now being given to help regional veterinary laboratories set up surveillance systems, but claims, “it is not enough if any outbreak were to occur.” The prospect of mass culling in his own coun- try would be devastating to farmers, he points out, not just for economic reasons but because it would mean losing an almost pri- celess asset — the local breed of poultry. “We the poorest countries…need more help to avoid the loss of our highly disease-resistant and drought-resistant chicken,” he writes. More about livestock Gideon Adams, from the Department of Animal Production and Beekeeping in Nigeria, writes to urge more mention of his native country in the pages of Spore. He would also like to see greater coverage of livestock issues. “This agricultural sector is not widely covered compared to the crop sector. Please can you make it 50-50?” he asks. We do our best to see that every ACP region gets its fair share of attention in Spore and are working on even better local coverage for the future. Readers’ suggestions about topics are always welcome. Supply and demand Kekia Collins Bakia, Bamenda branch manager of the NGO Support Service for Grassroot Initiatives of Development (SAILD) in northwestern Cameroon, is keen to share his experiences with Spore readers on local efforts to cultivate organic produce. He des- cribes an initiative launched by a local far- mers’ group, the North West Farmers Organization (NOWEFOR) to grow tomatoes as a way of increasing incomes and attracting young people to farming. With technical assistance from SAILD, the far- mers were soon producing such high yields that the market was flooded and prices tum- bled. They responded by staggering produc- tion among themselves to reduce supply. “Members of the production sector were grouped into six sub-groups and a planting calendar agreed upon to separate planting dates by 2 weeks among the sub-groups,” he explains. “This means that the farmers har- vested at different times and as such not all farmers took tomatoes to the local market at the same time.” Meanwhile, farmers identi- fied a buyer further afield in Douala who agreed to take regular consignments of the top quality, chemical-free tomatoes. Challenges remain. Chief among them is the need to increase output without sacrificing quality. But the experiment has been largely successful, with demand growing and incomes rising. “This experience shows that by pooling together farmers can access special market segments,” writes Kekia. Ph ot o: A V ita le © F AO Ph ot o: © S yfi a Int er na tio nn al @ SPORE 127 • PAGE 16 Viewpoint • Bananas Fair trade offers a safety net Unable to compete in the traditional marketplace, small-scale banana producers from the Windward Islands in the Caribbean have, since 2000, been supplying the fair trade sector. Today, some islands are growing almost 100% of their banana crop for this niche market. Marcella Harris explains how the shift came about. WINFA’s several thousand membersare scattered throughout theWindward Islands: Dominica, Grenada, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines. WINFA played an important role in coordinating the conversion to fair trade, bringing together the people of these different countries. We realised that there was a need to organise farmers together to take a stand and fight for a better livelihood for themselves, their families and their rural communities. Most of our members are banana producers. WINFA was founded in 1978 in response to the need for offering assistance to victims of natural disasters in the region — the erup- tion of a volcano on St Vincent and a hurri- cane, which devastated Dominica. We were looking for ways to offset the damage wrought by natural disasters on farmers, who also had to contend with changes in the economic sector. Organisation was the key. In the 1990s, market rules became more demanding and there was pressure for us to cut production costs. But that was not a real- istic option given the hilly and mountainous nature of our islands, which made large-scale plantations and all forms of mechanised pro- duction impossible. As a result of the WTO trade rules, many farmers were forced out of banana production. Our main task was to find alternatives for the 1,200 farmers who stayed on. We con- centrated our early efforts on diversifying banana production. But it wasn’t easy, after years of support for single-crop farming, to change things with a click of the finger. We struggled to protect our banana market while at the same time trying to diversify. We encouraged the farmers in this direction. WINFA firmly believes in diversifying with bananas. The fact is that most of the farmers also grow other crops in order to provide food for their families. Seeing the risks coming In the old days Dominica had been the lead- ing producer of limes for the British market supplying the British navy. But we were unable to stave off competition from Africa and Asia and we found ourselves abruptly excluded from the market. Banana was an alternative crop that was introduced. As for the banana sector, we realised that we risked losing our preferential access to the EU mar- ket, and as a result we began exploring the fair trade banana market, with help from the NGO Oxfam Great Britain. Before that, we had only heard of fair trade items that were exclusively processed products such as cof- fee, tea and honey, not fresh produce such as bananas. We spent a considerable amount of time, effort and energy preparing our producers. Naturally, they knew how to grow bananas, but we needed to ‘convert’ them to the demands of the fair trade market. We have a long tradition of producing bananas in an ‘ethical’ manner, without damaging the environment or risking the health of con- sumers or producers. The Caribbean islands are very lush and beautiful and in our coun- tries it comes naturally to take care of our environment. Don’t forget that our govern- ments were among the first to adopt policies to protect our forests. When we began producing and exporting fair trade bananas in Dominica back in 2000, there were just three groups of fair trade producers. But the demand was so great that we quickly decided to take a step that no other country anywhere in the world had yet attempted. Soon, 95% of banana production in Dominica was sold on the fair trade market. In Grenada, St Lucia and St Vincent, we are now close to 100%! There is increasing consumer demand for our high quality Windward Islands fair trade bananas. If we hadn’t developed this niche, the banana sector would probably have collapsed alto- gether. Now, we have more than 40 fair trade groups! If the markets were fairer, farmers every- where in the world would not be faced with problems of survival, as they are today. The same goes for communities. When all is said and done, the health of the agricultural sec- tor dictates the health of all other sectors of our economy. Fair spin-offs for communities If a farmer cannot sell his bananas or other agricultural produce then he cannot spend money in other sectors, or inject money into the rest of the economy. Fair trade affords farmers the opportunity to create a positive social environment for their communities. Indeed, in certain cases, producers use their social premium money to carry out social projects in their communities, such as repairing health centres or buying computers for schools. Fair trade groups set great store by investing the equitable price they receive in initiatives which will benefit the social welfare of the community as a whole. Fair trade has had a positive impact on communities, and farmers now command respect. In order to preserve these gains we need to undertake a major promotion cam- paign and we are working on that together with a number of partners in Great Britain and in the European market, such as the net- work of European NGOs, the European Banana Action Network (EUROBAN). WINFA’s work as a farmers’ organisation involves lobbying and trying to convince consumers to make conscious and ethical choices. At the moment, we need to find other markets, other spaces where we can develop. If there are opportunities for expanding into sectors beyond banana pro- duction, then we must explore them. We are already selling fair trade coconuts and we must keep coming up with new ideas and initiatives! Email: winfa@caribsurf.com Marcella Harris, who has been rearing livestock in Dominica for the past 15 years, is President of the Windward Islands Farmers’ Association (WINFA) in the Caribbean. Launched 29 years ago, the association has played a key role in helping small-scale banana producers in these countries convert to fair trade production. “Farmers now command respect“ The opinions expressed in Viewpoint are those of the authors, and do not necessarily reflect the views of CTA.