Why A Mother's High-fat Diet Contributes To Obesity In Her Children

New research published online in The FASEB Journal suggests that pregnant women should think twice about high-fat foods. In a study from the University of Cincinnati and the Medical College of Georgia, scientists found that female mice fed high fat diets were more likely to have oversized offspring (a risk factor for overweight and obesity) because fat causes the placenta to go into "overdrive" by providing too many nutrients to the fetus. This information also suggests that the reverse may be true as well—high fat diets may help prevent undersized babies. "Our model may one day lead to dietary recommendations for mothers who are entering pregnancy overweight or obese," said Helen N. Jones, Ph.D., first author of the study. "We hope this research will ultimately help reduce the number of babies suffering from birth injuries, decrease C-section rates, and lower the risk of babies becoming overweight or obese later in life." To reach their conclusion, the researchers fed one group of mice a normal diet and another group a higher fat diet for eight weeks. Then the mice were mated. At the end of each mouse's pregnancy the offspring were delivered by c-section and weighed along with their placentas. The scientists then took blood from the mothers and measured the ability of the placenta to transport nutrients to the babies. "It's no secret that big women tend to have big babies," said Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal, "but now we know that there's more at play than genetics. Cutting back on fatty foods during pregnancy might decrease the chance of having a baby that becomes overweight in the future." According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about one-third of adult men and women, and 16.3 percent of children and youth in the United States are obese. Obesity increases the risk of many diseases and health conditions, including: hypertension, osteoarthritis (breakdown of cartilage and its underlying bone in a joint), dyslipidemia (high total cholesterol, high levels of triglycerides), type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, gallbladder disease, sleep apnea and respiratory problems, and some cancers. 1 October 2008 Adapted from materials provided by Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS. (Source: ScienceDaily; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

South Korea pays for gyms for obese children

South Korea plans to help obese children pay for health club membership and other activities that can help them lose weight, an official said on Wednesday. Health ministry official Chun Myung-sook said the rate of childhood obesity had tripled over the past three years due to a changing diet higher in fatty foods and a more sedentary lifestyle. Under the government plan, elementary school students whose body mass index indicates obesity will be able to receive up to 40,000 won ($33.58) a month to help them bring their weight down. "Kids won't be able to waste the money on eating sweets. We will give them electronic vouchers that can only be used in designated places," Chun said. Costs to the government and the economy related to childhood obesity were 2 trillion won in 2006, the ministry said, making the voucher program cost effective. (Reporting by Kim Junghyun and Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Jonathan Hopfner) 1 October 2008 (Source: Thomson Reuters; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

EU ministers throw weight behind school fruit plan

EU agriculture ministers gave broad political support on Tuesday to a scheme offering millions of schoolchildren free fresh fruit and vegetables from next year as a way to promote healthy eating and tackle child obesity. The scheme, proposed by EU Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel, earmarks 90 million euros ($128.8 million) a year in funding, with each EU country matching the amount of cash that it receives from Brussels. The EU plan would be voluntary. "This will help to reverse the decline in consumption of fruit and vegetables and contribute to fighting the problem with child obesity, which can be described as an epidemic," Fischer Boel told the bloc's farm ministers at a regular meeting. Many of the EU's 27 countries, notably Denmark, wanted to see even more money ploughed into the scheme, but a handful -- like Britain, Sweden, the Netherlands and Czech Republic -- were more reticent about the amount of EU cash involved and pointed to the benefits of nationally-funded plans, officials said. "There isn't much opposition, just ironing out some details," one EU official told reporters. Fischer Boel's plan, likely to be agreed by ministers next month, would give special status to economically poorer regions, with 75 percent of the cost financed by EU money. Countries would be able to top up the cash spent on their national plans. Many EU countries already have fairly successful subsidised fruit and vegetable programmes in schools but others, such as in central and eastern Europe, lack such schemes. The EU plan would apply from the 2009/10 school year. One of its main aims is to halt the EU's alarming trend in obesity, especially among children. An estimated 22 million children in the EU are overweight. More than 5 million of these are obese and this figure is due to rise by 400,000 every year. Another topic of debate was whether the school fruit and vegetables should primarily be locally grown or imported. Most countries' ministers said they preferred to use EU produce although this point will remain open for next month's debate. "There was general consensus that this should be sourced from EU production," another official said. "In the north of Europe, fruit and vegetable production is seasonal so there would probably be a preference for southern European products." Fischer Boel, stressing that the scheme had to comply with World Trade Organisation rules, said there seemed to be no WTO obstacle to limiting the choice to EU produce. "However, I can see no reason why we should not allow, for example, our children to eat bananas from ACP (African, Caribbean and Pacific) countries if this choice is justifiable for health and educational reasons," she told the ministers. Source: Jeremy Smith 30 September 2008 (Source: Reuters; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Study finds link between genes, obesity and colon cancer

The discovery of a genetic link between obesity and colon cancer may pave the way for more effective screening tests for the disease, according to a study published Tuesday. Researchers found that people who inherit a variation of a gene called ADIPOQ, which results in the formation of a fat hormone called adiponectin, are 30 percent less likely to develop colon cancer. People identified without this gene variant, or who have excessive blood levels of the fat hormone, would therefore benefit from early colon examinations, said Boris Pasche, professor at the University of Alabama Comprehensive Cancer Center and lead author of the study. "Our hope is that we can significantly improve the screening and early detection for this disease, and open new avenues for better understanding the genetic and lifestyle factors that influence colon cancer risk," said Pasche. A third of people with colon cancer have a family history of the disease, he said. Scientists have already proven a link between obesity and genetics, and that colon cancer is influenced by genetics. The latest study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, is the first to prove a three-way connection between genetics, obesity and colon cancer risk. The study showed that test subjects who did not have the genetic variation could reduce their risk through physical exercise and dieting to lose weight. Colon cancer is the third deadliest cancer in the United States. Nearly 150,000 Americans are diagnosed each year, and 50,000 of those diagnosed die from the disease, according to estimates from the American Cancer Society. 30 September 2008 (Source: AFP; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

White working-class pupils eat most junk food, claims children's minister

White working-class children eat more junk food than any other group of young people, according to a Government minister. Kevin Brennan, the Children's Minister, claimed poor white families live on "pizza, chips and takeaways", putting them at the greatest risk of becoming overweight and suffering health problems. By contrast, he said, pupils in ethnically diverse areas eat an "incredibly rich array" of foods, including exotic fruits. His comments follow a series of reports that have showed how white working-class children are becoming a new underclass in England. However, some commentators said there was "not a shred" of evidence that white children eat less healthy food than any other group. Mr Brennan was speaking at a fringe event at the Labour Party conference in Manchester called Nanny Knows Best?, which asked whether the Government should do more to "enforce healthier lifestyle choices". During the meeting on Sunday night, hosted by the Social Market Foundation think-tank, Mr Brennan described how on ministerial visits to schools where most pupils lived on "white working-class estates", he had discovered that they preferred processed, salty and fatty meals. He claimed the "food culture" is stronger in multicultural areas of England, where children are often introduced to a variety of traditional dishes made from fresh meats and vegetables at an early age and are taught to cook by relatives, as well as dining with relatives. Mr Brennan also claimed that many poor families do not enjoy meals around a dinner table simply because they do not have enough living space to have one. He said that the Government must do more to make sure children from all backgrounds have the same access to healthy food. "This is a cultural challenge," he claimed. "Food preferences are set at a very early age." He called for more secondary schools to introduce "stay on site" policies to encourage pupils to eat more healthy lunches, by stopping them from going to chip shops or fast-food joints. Mr Brennan also disclosed that the Government is to launch a new campaign to "nudge families towards healthier lifestyles", which will be led by the Department of Health and supported by the food industry. This could include making sure families in poor areas can get to shops that sell fresh food, and improving labelling on food packets. Latest figures suggest that England has the fastest rising rate of childhood obesity in Europe, with one in three school-age children now overweight or obese. Earlier this year, official figures showed poor white teenagers are less likely to go to university than those from other ethnic groups, even if they got the same A-level results. A comprehensive report by the Office for National Statistics found that white working-class boys are the most "persistent low achievers" in schools and are more likely to play truant than those from ethnic minorities. However Dr Colin Waine, chairman of the National Obesity Forum, said it was "very simplistic" to suggest that poor white pupils had a worse diet than black or Asian schoolchildren. He said: "I would argue that the diets of large section of children of nearly all ethnic groups are quite poor. "If he talked to people in the frontline, health visitors and school nurses, he would get a much more accurate view." Dr Waine added: "It's no good attaching a blame culture to these children, we've got to work with them." Source: Martin Beckford, Social Affairs Correspondent 30 September 2008 (Source: telegraph.co.uk; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

EU parliament backs 30 minutes’ exercise a day for all children to tackle obesity

The European parliament has highlighted the costs of obesity to individuals and society by overwhelmingly endorsing a comprehensive strategy to tackle a problem it warns has reached epidemic proportions. World Health Organization data show that worldwide more than a billion people are overweight and 300 million obese. In Europe, almost 22 million children are overweight, and a further 1.3 million will be so by 2010. Obesity already accounts for some 6% of health related expenditure, without counting indirect costs. Alessandro Foglietta, the member of the European parliament who authored the report on tackling obesity, which the parliament strongly endorsed, said that priority targets should be young people, people with learning disabilities, and elderly people. "If you are obese as a child, you are likely to be obese as an adult," the Italian MEP said. "I believe that the key to protecting our children is to start in institutions that involve . . . Source: Rory Watson 29 September 2008 (Source: BMJ; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Men set to overtake women in obesity stakes, official figures show

Men are on course to overtake women in obesity rates for the first time, official figures suggest. The proportion of adults in England who are an unhealthy size has soared over the past 15 years with one in four now seriously overweight. There have always been more obese women than men but the gap between the genders has now been cancelled out. In addition, the number of overweight women has fallen in recent years while the number of morbidly obese men is rising sharply. This comes as a new report by the Office for National Statistics uncovers wide discrepancies in men and women's health and working lives. Health experts believe the narrowing obesity gap shows how schemes to tackle the country's weight problem are having less effect on men, with women more likely to go on diets or join a gym. They warn that the country's obesity epidemic, caused by an increase in consumption of junk food and a decline in exercise levels, will lead to increased levels of heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Tam Fry of the National Obesity Forum said: "Men are notoriously bad at looking after their health and women are much more motivated. One would expect the signs of a decrease in women. "But things are not getting better and if anything they are going to get much worse, unless dramatic steps are taken. We've been building up to this obesity problem for 25 years of more and it takes a huge amount of time to slow down and turn around." The figures, taken from the NHS's Health Survey for England, are based on the Body Mass Index, calculated by dividing weight by height squared. A BMI of 25 to 29 is classed as overweight, while over 30 is obese and anyone with a score over 40 is morbidly obese and in danger of causing serious damage to their health. The statistics show that the proportion of obese men rose from 13 per cent in 1993 to 24 per cent in 2006. The number of morbidly obese men has risen from 0.2 per cent of the male population to 1.5 per cent over the same period, while 43 per cent are now overweight. By contrast, the proportion of obese women over 16 rose from 16 per cent in 2003 to 24 per cent in 2004 and fell by a fraction the following year. The number of overweight women has fallen from 34 per cent to 32 per cent since 2004. The ONS's annual Focus on Gender report also showed the death rate from alcohol has doubled for men to 18.3 per 100,000 over the past 15 years, and risen from 5 to 8.8 for women. Women can expect to live to 70.3 (and men to 67.9) but will spend their last six years in poor health or disability, it is claimed. The report also shows that the proportion of unmarried men and women living together has doubled between 1986 and 2006, with 13 per cent of those aged 16 to 59 now cohabiting. Seven million people also live alone, two-thirds of them women. There are three times as many women aged over 90 in the UK. Girls continue to outperform boys at all ages, from national tests for seven-year-olds to degree level, but men continue to earn more than women. The gender pay gap, now at its narrowest value since records began, now stands at 12.6 per cent. The number of men and women in employment is now almost equal, with more than two-thirds of mothers now in work. However half of women are in part-time jobs compared with just one in six men. Source: Martin Beckford, Social Affairs Correspondent 26 Sepember 2008 (Source: telegraph.co.uk; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

MEP Foglietta's recipe to fight obesity

Obesity is becoming a plague in Europe. Nearly 27% of men and 38% of women are overweight or obese. With 22 million overweight children and a further 1.3 million seen by 2010, how can we reverse this trend? We asked Italian UEN member Alessandro Foglietta, parliament's draftsman on nutrition, overweight and obesity-related health problems, for his thoughts ahead of a vote on the EU's health white paper Thursday. What is the EP doing to make the public aware of the risks of being overweight? It is very difficult to get control of the situation. Obesity and being overweight are not seen as real problems...obesity, in particular, is seen as something affecting other people. In reality it affects many of us, particularly children and can have serious consequences like heart problems and diabetes. We think it is important to provide consumers with comprehensive information on labels, to let them choose between good, better and less good nutrition. We need better food labelling so we know what we are eating, including how many calories. I am thinking of very visible and colourful signs with information about calories and quality that would attract the interest of consumers and children. We suggest member states encourage quality and nutritional standards in school and kindergarten, providing, for instance, fresh fruit and vegetables in school vending machines.

How important is the parent's role?

The role of parents is essential, children are very vulnerable, they don't think about calories but taste. Parents must make them aware. As parents, it is not ok to let our children eat what they want just because it's easy, less expensive or less problematic, that will have a huge negative impact in the long run. You have to remember that often the less you pay the worse you eat.

What about the more vulnerable in society?

We need to look after high-risk categories like, elderly people, those with reduced mobility, pregnant women and all those who are more fragile. For instance, as mayor of a little town in Italy, I got an agreement with a local gym to give a discount to the elderly to help motivate them to do sport. As the World Health Organisation says, 30 minutes walking a day it is very important for our health. We don't pretend to have all the answers, but at least we can provide some tips to combat this problem. REF.: 20080922STO37699 25 September 2008 (Source: European Parliament; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

All primary school pupils could get free meals in anti-obesity campaign

Every primary school pupil in England could receive free school meals under a scheme set to form a central plank of Labour's election manifesto. If introduced across the country, the £1bn programme would include almost four million children and save families more than £300 per child per year. In a speech to the Labour Party conference, Ed Balls, the Schools Secretary, announced a £40m two-year pilot programme, which will test whether the scheme should be introduced at all schools. "We want a healthy lunch at school not just for some, but for every child," said Mr Balls. "We want to make sure children, particularly from disadvantaged backgrounds, are getting a free hot meal every school day." Under the pilot, free school meals are to be given to all pupils aged four to 11 in two areas over two years, to measure the impact of healthy eating on health, behaviour and academic results. Meanwhile, a third area will relax the current free school meal eligibility rules to allow more poorerchildren to benefit. The scheme – which was announced yesterday by Mr Balls and Alan Johnson, the Health Secretary – could be extended across the rest of England if the expected health and education benefits are confirmed. But critics of the proposal said that Labour might not still be in power then. Ministers have so far been reluctant to commit to expanding the free meals scheme because of the cost. They want to see a scientific study to confirm the potential health benefits before deciding whether to back the plan. The scheme would form part of the Government's attempt to tackle obesity, which costs the NHS £4.2bn a year. A government source said: "A lot of people say the benefits could outweigh the costs but we need information before we can start thinking about that." But Mr Balls told BBC Radio 4's The World At One: "I think the benefits will prove to be substantial. If we can also show that providing free lunches makes a real difference, then we'll act." Mr Johnson has also been enthusiastic about the idea after seeing the results of a free-meals scheme in Hull. He said the pilot aimed to build on local initiatives which appeared to show that children who eat a healthy lunch are more likely to be better behaved, better able to learn and more likely to see their general health improve. One in six primary pupils, or nearly 660,000 children, is currently entitled to free meals, but 20 per cent do not take up theoption, with child poverty campaigners complaining that many parents are too proud to claim. Source: Sarah Cassidy and Ben Russell 25 September 2008 (Source: The Independent; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Health bill will have to wait

Labour is fending off accusations it has caved in to pressure from junk food companies and advertisers, after it put the controversial Public Health Bill so far down its legislation list that it won't pass before the election. The bill updates public health legislation that is more than 50 years old - and introduces new measures that allow for action to be taken against suspected causes of obesity. It opens the door to regulation being used to promote healthy eating and to hit advertising of unhealthy foods to children. But as Parliament prepares to wind up for the election, Labour has prioritised other legislation ahead of the health bill and now it will not be passed by the current House. An upset Sue Kedgley, the Green Party's health spokeswoman, said she found it extraordinary "that the Government has put political expediency - the fear of upsetting the food industry and the advertising lobby - ahead of the public health and wellbeing of New Zealanders". Her sentiments were echoed by Obesity Action Coalition executive director Leigh Sturgiss, who said the decision was "more than disappointing". "I just think Labour did lose the will to put it through," she said. "They're doing all the Treaty (of Waitangi) settlements, which is good - but let's save some lives." The Public Health Bill was reported back to Parliament by a select committee in June and has sat on the Government's order paper since then. It fell behind other legislation but Health Minister David Cunliffe yesterday rejected suggestions Labour gave in to lobbying pressure. Mr Cunliffe said it was a very large bill and would have taken considerable time to get through the House. When the decision was made about which legislation to prioritise in the final sitting week of Parliament, other bills were put above it. Those include a number of Treaty settlements and several pieces of financial sector legislation. "It is easier to pass a bunch of smaller bills than it is a very small number of very large bills," Mr Cunliffe told the Herald. "The Government must make a collective decision about the batting order." He said Labour was committed to passing the legislation at a later date. The future of the non-communicable diseases parts of the bill is now uncertain because National intends to remove them if it wins power at the election. While Labour had enough political support to pass the bill, National would have opposed the measures it labelled "nanny state", and yesterday its health spokesman, Tony Ryall, confirmed changes would be made by a John Key-led government. "This was a bill that would have allowed the Government to set up a code of practice about what would be in your kid's school lunch box," Mr Ryall said. "I think the nanny state provisions need to be removed - although there's no doubt the public health act after 50 years does need to be modernised." Mr Ryall said he believed Labour had pulled back on the bill because it had realised the public would be "appalled" at some provisions and didn't want to debate them during an election campaign. Among legislation staying on the Government's order paper are several law and order bills. The major Immigration Bill is going to have to be passed by the next Parliament. ON BACKBURNERWhat else won't go through:

* Immigration Bill (a wide-ranging rewrite of immigration laws which strengthens border protection and streamlines deportation processes).

* Protected Disclosures Amendment Bill (makes it easier for people to whistleblow about wrongdoing in workplaces).

* Criminal Proceeds (Recovery) Bill (provides framework for confiscation of property from people who have engaged in or profited from criminal activity).

* Corrections Amendment Bill (No 2) (clamps down on contraband in prisons, allows for information sharing about highest-risk offenders). Source: Paula Oliver 25 September 2008 (Source: nzherald.co.nz; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Obese children get free help

Primary school children in Oxfordshire are being offered a free diet and exercise programme in a bid to combat obesity. 24 September 2008 (Source: BBC News; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

'Obesity crisis' ahead for Ireland

IRELAND IS on the cusp of an obesity crisis, according to nutrition expert Prof Sylvia Rowe. Prof Rowe delivered the keynote speech at the Positive Approaches to Obesity conference in Croke Park, Dublin yesterday organised by the Nutrition and Health Foundation. “Based on your statistics, it’s a coming crisis. You are just on the cusp of a public health issue that’s really escalating,” she said. Prof Rowe is a strategic consultant on food issues and policy with Edelman, Washington DC. Minister of State at the Department of Health Mary Wallace said tackling obesity was a priority and she had written to other Government departments on the issue. Prof Niall Moyna of Dublin City University told the conference the marketing budgets of fast food outlets dwarfed those of organisations promoting health eating. “But it isn’t all about the food industry . . . We have engineered activity out of our lives and it’s becoming an enormous problem. Physical activity is important. Our genes require it.” The conference was attended by representatives of McDonalds, Mars Foods and Pepsi Cola. Source: Mary Minihan 24 September 2008 (Source: The Irish Times; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Biking To Beat Obesity

The American Medical Association says obesity is the fastest-growing health problem in the United States. Doctors generally recommend physical exercise, such as riding a bike, as one of several steps patients can take to battle excessive weight. VOA's Babak Bordbar has more on the steps being taken to persuade Americans to ride their bikes more often. Brian Allen narrates. The use of automobiles worldwide is on the rise. This has had a major impact on health and lifestyles across the globe. Barry Popkin is the Director of the Interdisciplinary Center of Obesity at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. He has conducted global research on the effects of diet and environmental factors on health. "In the last 50 to 60 years, in the post world war era, in both the U.S. and the other high-income countries, we've had a slow shift in the way we live so we've become more sedentary, our diets have become much richer and sweeter and we have, in the process, become much more heavy," Popkin said. Gary Gardner, a Senior Researcher at Worldwatch Institute, says this is having a dire effect on people. "Obesity in the United States is at epidemic levels," Gardner said. "Something like 60 percent, something like two-thirds of Americans, adult Americans, today are overweight or obese and the trend is upward." While the statistics are not encouraging, Popkin offers a solution. "We need to realize that being physically active has benefits to us beyond the issues of weight. Being physically active is very important for our development and our aging and those who are active in childhood and adulthood," Popkin said. "Women are much less likely to have osteoporosis if they're physically active and move more when they're young. And, for both men and women, cardiovascular health. Several cancers are related to inactivity," Popkin added. "In other words, if you increase your physical activity throughout adulthood, you'll reduce your risk of several cancers and you'll certainly reduce your risk of being diabetic, getting hypertension and having cardiovascular disease in general." This problem is not isolated to adults. According to the Centers for Disease Control 26 percent of children 15 and under are clinically obese or overweight. The study also found that only two percent of children were biking or walking to school, down from 60 percent 40 years ago. As a result of this report, Congressman James Oberstar, Chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure in the U.S. House of Representatives, created the Safe Routes to School initiative to encourage young people to walk and bike to school. "We're raising a whole generation of young people who are mobility challenged and furthermore the incidence of type two diabetes, that is acquired diabetes, among young people 15 and under had doubled in less than five years and it seemed to me that the way to attack this health crisis epidemic of obesity was to get children biking and walking to school again," Oberstar said. Despite the current statistics on obesity and inactivity, Congressman Oberstar is optimistic about the future. "We're changing the habits of an entire generation of Americans and we're going to continue those investments out into the future," he said. Gardner believes bikes are part of the answer. "Bicycles can make a difference in terms of obesity," Gardner said. "Just by riding 20, 30 minutes a day, that's the kind of exercise that can make a difference between a person becoming overweight and not becoming overweight." Both Gardner and Oberstar agree the issue is a serious one, and getting people to use bicycles instead of cars may be the solution. Source: Babak Bordbar 23 September 2008 (Source: voanews.com; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Music could aid obesity fight

Music could be used in the fight against obesity, a leading exercise scientist claimed today. Dr Costas Karageorghis, head of music in sport research at Brunel University, said the right tunes could improve people's health by making exercise seem easier and more fun. He has selected songs to be played along the course of next month's Run to the Beat half-marathon in London, with the aim of improving runners' performance. The race will take place around the O2 arena on 5 October. More than 30 live bands will play on 17 stages on the course. Dr Karageorghis said that participants were more likely to achieve personal bests because of the music. "Music reduces the perception of effort by blocking out messages associated with fatigue," he said "It can make the activity seem less hard and more pleasurable. "In the long term music enhances adherence to physical activity and is a way of addressing the obesity epidemic." He said the "perceived exertion" people felt when exercising fell by 10 per cent when they listened to appropriate music. Dr Karageorghis, who has been researching the effect of music on performance for 20 years, has studied the positive effect of songs on mature physiotherapy patients at a London hospital. He said: "I am looking at rolling it out to several NHS trusts over the next few years." Source: Anna Davis 23 September 2008 (Source: www.thisislondon.co.uk; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Obesity more harmful to heart than smoking: study

Heart attacks are hitting the overweight more than a decade sooner than "normal" weight people, researchers are reporting. A study of more than 111,000 people is one of the first to put real numbers to the risk of obesity and suggests "excess adiposity" - fat tissue - is more dangerous to the heart than smoking. "The leading theory in cardiology right now is that the fat tissue is actually producing factors that precipitate heart attacks," says lead author Dr. Peter McCullough, consultant cardiologist and chief of nutrition and prevention medicine at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan. The theory is that cholesterol builds up in the coronary arteries and inflammatory or other chemicals produced by fat cells trigger the plaque to suddenly rupture, causing a blood clot to form and unleashing an acute heart attack. But until now, earlier studies "simply just didn't have enough patients of different body sizes having their first heart attack to really evaluate" whether obesity is associated with premature heart attacks, McCullough says. His team analyzed data from a nationwide U.S. registry of people hospitalized for heart attack and unstable angina, or chest pain, from 2001 to 2007. A total of 111,847 men and women who had experienced a first heart attack were included in the final analysis. They were grouped according to their body mass index, or BMI, a measure of body fat based on height and weight. Researchers found that, the heavier the person, the younger the age of a first heart attack. The most obese people had their heart attacks on average when they were 59. That compares to about 75 for the leanest group (average body weight 47 kilograms, or about 103 pounds, meaning they were actually considered underweight), and 71 for people of "normal" weight, where the average weight is 65 kilograms, or about 142 pounds. The most obese group had a BMI of 40 or more and weighed on average 127 kilograms, or 280 pounds. "It's not uncommon in daily life to see people at that size," McCullough says. "I'm sure there are people in your office and people you see all the time at that body weight." Source: Sharon Kirkey , Canwest News Service 22 September 2008 (Source: canada.com; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Obesity 'raises miscarriage risk'

Women who have had a miscarriage could be at greater risk of miscarrying again if they are obese, research suggests. A team from London's St Mary's Hospital followed the progress of 696 women whose miscarriages were classed as "unexplained" by a specialist clinic. The team told a conference in Canada the risk of a further miscarriage was raised by 73% if the woman was obese. However, an obesity specialist said it was potentially dangerous to try to lose weight when already pregnant. Although the links between being obese and having problems conceiving and complications during pregnancy are well known, this study claims to be the first to look specifically at "recurrent" miscarriage, for which there is often no obvious cause. Of the 696 women whose cases were followed, more than half were of "normal" weight, 30% were overweight, and 15% were obese, meaning they had a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or above. The older the woman, the higher chance she had of having another miscarriage, but, when the figures were adjusted to account for this, obesity emerged as another possible factor. While there was no difference in the miscarriage rates for overweight, normal and underweight women, the risk of further miscarriage increased sharply for obese women.

Foetal malformation

Winnie Lo, a clinical nurse specialist at St Mary's, who presented the research at the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology's international meeting in Montreal, said: "This is the first study to look directly at the link between BMI and recurrent miscarriage. "It shows that obese women who experience recurrent miscarriage are at greater risk of subsequent pregnancy loss. "All women with recurrent miscarriage should be weighed at their first consultation. "Those who are found to be obese should be counselled regarding the benefits of weight loss." Dr Nick Finer, an endocrinologist with an interest in obesity from Addenbrooke's Hospital near Cambridge, said that the findings were "unsurprising". "We already know that the chances of fertility are less with increasing BMI, the risks of foetal malformation increase, alongside the risks of other adverse pregnancy outcomes." He said that, while the reason why obesity might cause such problems was not clear, it was possible that it increased inflammation, harming the chances of a successful pregnancy. However, he warned that crash diets during pregnancy would never be recommended as a means of increasing the chances of success. "There are good reasons to try to lose weight before getting pregnant, but it is recommended that women do not try to do this once pregnancy is established, as it could cause problems." 21 September 2008 (Source: BBC News; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Obesity may diminish a man's fertility

Being obese may dim a man's chances of becoming a father, even if he is otherwise healthy, a new study suggests. Researchers found that among 87 healthy men ages 19 to 48, those who were obese were less likely to have ever fathered a child. More importantly, they showed hormonal differences that point to a reduced reproductive capacity, the researchers report in the journal Fertility and Sterility. Compared with their thinner counterparts, obese men had lower levels of testosterone in their blood, as well as lower levels of luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) -- both essential to reproduction. According to the researchers, these relatively low levels of LH and FSH are suggestive of a "partial" hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. This is a condition in which the testes do not function properly due to signaling problems in the hypothalamus or pituitary gland, two brain structures involved in hormone secretion. The findings suggest that obesity alone is an "infertility factor" in otherwise healthy men, write Dr. Eric M. Pauli and his colleagues at the Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine in Hershey. Of the 87 men in the study, 68 percent had had a child. Pauli's team found that the average body mass index, or BMI, was lower among these men compared with those who'd never fathered a child; in the former group, the average BMI was 28, which falls into the range for "overweight," while the average BMI for childless men was nearly 32, which falls into the "obese" range. When the researchers assessed the men for several reproductive hormones, they found that the more obese a man was, the lower was his LH and FSH levels. On the other hand, increasing obesity correlated with increasing estrogen levels. Excess body fat, Pauli's team explains, may increase the conversion of testosterone to estrogen in a man's blood. Such hormone alterations could, in turn, signal the brain to suppress FSH and LH production. Past studies have linked obesity with a dampened libido and increased risk of erectile dysfunction, the researchers note. Those effects, they say, along with the hormonal alterations seen in this study, could act together to decrease an obese man's fertility. 20 September 2008 (Source: Fertility and Sterility, August 2008; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Kids With Obese Friends And Family More Likely To Misperceive Weight

Kids and teens surrounded by overweight peers or parents are more likely to be oblivious to their own extra pounds than kids from thin entourages, according to a new study by researchers from the Université de Montréal, McGill University, Concordia University and the Ste. Justine Hospital Research Centre. "When children's parents and schoolmates are overweight or obese, their own overweight status may seem normal by comparison. The higher the BMI of their friends and family, the more kids are likely to underestimate their weight – a trend consistent for both sexes, regardless of the socioeconomic levels of their school or family," said lead author Katerina Maximova, a PhD student in the Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Occupational Health at McGill University. "Peers and parents have an enormous impact on kids' weight perception and when they live in environments in which people they see on a daily basis, such as parents and schoolmates, are overweight or obese, they may develop inaccurate perceptions of what constitutes appropriate weight status. So it is important that we help them correct their misperceptions and help them recognize that they may be at risk." Published in a summer edition of the International Journal of Obesity, the original study was part of the Quebec Health and Social Survey that investigated children from three different age groups – 9, 13 and 16 years old – from 178 schools across Quebec. Researchers analyzed the body mass index (BMI) of 3,665 children and adolescents and found about 14 percent of students were overweight (BMI of 25 and over), 9 percent were obese (BMI of 30 and over), but only 1.6 percent of kids perceived themselves as having excess weight. To analyze weight misperceptions, investigators used the Stunkard Figure Rating Scale, which features images of seven sex-specific silhouettes that are underweight to obese. Participants selected figures they perceived as corresponding to their appearance and researchers found that younger participants were most vulnerable to under-evaluating their weight. "If you are surrounded by overweight people, you may be more vulnerable to distorted perceptions about your own weight," says Tracie Barnett, from the Université de Montréal Department of Social and Preventive Medicine and Ste-Justine Hospital Research Centre. "I think this speaks to the importance of children's every day settings like school, home and neighborhood, and how these environments can influence our health in many ways. Obesity rates have nearly tripled in Canada over the past two decades and helping children to maintain or achieve healthy weight remains a substantial challenge. Since children are influenced by their surroundings, health promotion programs targeting healthy weight should take this into account." Compared to youth with healthy BMI's, overweight or obese kids were more likely to significantly underestimate their weight, which is the crux of the public health issue. "Accurately perceiving oneself as overweight or obese is an important cue to take action," says Jennifer J. McGrath, a psychology professor and director of the Pediatric Public Health Psychology Lab at Concordia University. "That's why obesity prevention programs should be created to help youth correct their weight misperceptions. If youth recognize themselves as being overweight or obese, they are more likely to adopt healthy lifestyles and it is important that healthy lifestyle behaviors are adopted early in life when kids are more malleable and habits are being established." "Do you see what I see? Weight status misperception and exposure to obesity among children and adolescents," from the International Journal of Obesity, was authored by Katerina Maximova and Gilles Paradis of McGill University, Jennifer J. McGrath of Concordia University, Tracie Barnett, Jennifer O'Loughlin and Marie Lambert of the Université de Montréal and Ste. Justine Hospital Research Centre. This study was funded by the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services and by Health Canada.

Journal reference: Maximova et al. Do you see what I see? Weight status misperception and exposure to obesity among children and adolescents. International Journal of Obesity, 2008; 32 (6): 1008 DOI: 10.1038/ijo.2008.15 19 September 2008 Adapted from materials provided by University of Montreal, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS. (Source: ScienceDaily; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Researchers find "baby" fat cells

Baby fat cells formed at or before birth live inside the blood vessels that nourish fat deposits and lay waiting to form new fat cells, U.S. researchers reported on Thursday. They said their findings could help researchers trying to find better ways to control the obesity and diabetes epidemics, and perhaps help people grow new fat deposits after surgery. Eating excess calories may activate the cells, which leave their hiding places inside the walls of the blood vessels, the team at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas reported. These immature cells, called progenitor cells, appear to be formed at or before birth, said Dr. Jonathan Graff, who led the study published in the journal Science. "These cells become fat cells. Being able to manipulate them or alter them offers an important potential for obesity and diabetes," Graff said in a telephone interview. It may be possible to remove immature cells from a patient's own fat and use them to grow natural grafts, for example, for a woman after breast cancer surgery, Graff said. Cosmetic purposes might include plumping out lips or wrinkles. "It's easily accessible," Graff said. "It's chock-a-block full of these stem cells. It's the ideal source for reconstruction." Such cells may be useful for the field of regenerative medicine, Graff said. Source: Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor 19 September 2008 (Source: reuters uk; Rachel Leach - HOPE network and network Co-Ordinators)

Fullness products in focus

The concept of fullness, how full you feel and remain feeling after eating, is an area of growing interest in the modern food industry. An initiative is now being explored to map the extent of the need to conduct a broad study on measuring the feeling of fullness endowed by different foods. A research project would set out to discover what kinds of meal promote a feeling of fullness, study the effects of e.g. protein and fibre, and examine the implications of the glycaemic index (GI) in relation to the phenomenon.

Step towards a healthy diet

“Health and well-being no longer means striving simply for a low energy diet by removing unhealthy components,” said Seppo Heiskanen, Director of the Finnish Food and Drink Industries’ Federation (ETL) R&D and Food Legislation unit at a seminar arranged on Thursday 7th February. The trend since the 1990s has been to make food healthier by reducing fat, salt and sugar. So successful has the industry been in its efforts that light varieties have become the principal products in many categories.

The importance of meat

Merja Leino, Group Vice President, Quality & Product Safety at Atria, comments that the development of cold cuts for sandwiches has been quite staggering, so much so that in the 1990s low fat cold cuts quickly became a larger product group than the more traditional items. “Salt content has been reduced, too,” says Dr Leino. “Ten to fifteen years ago sausages commonly contained 2 per cent salt.” Atria Group Plc is a forward-looking, strongly internationalising food-processing company that is Finland's largest meat processor by turnover (2006) and one of the industry’s leading players in the Nordic countries, Russia and the Baltic countries.

Healthy harder to define

Many foods resist unambiguous categorisation into healthy or unhealthy. Cheese for example may contain a fair amount of fat but has a lot of calcium, too. Attention tends to be focused regarding meat products on e.g. the quantity of energy and saturated fat. But meat also contains a good deal of easily absorbed iron, and proteins which give a feeling of fullness. Many types of bread are high in carbohydrates and contain salt, but there’s also fibre to promote bowel movement and the feeling of fullness. One type of food can be compared more readily with another in terms of dietary factors, if the food’s fullness effect is known. “That would also give us a brand new perspective on weight management,” says Mr Heiskanen. The Finnish Innovation Fund (Sitra) is funding the initial phase of the fullness study, and future financing will be sought from the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (Tekes) pending the agency’s requirements being met. “Companies will have to indicate a genuine interest and be prepared to make a significant contribution to funding,” Mr Heiskanen explains. 20.02.2008 (Source: Finfood)

International quality standards driving Finnish food exports

Uotilan Leipomo Oy is the first Finnish bakery producing natural bread to implement the British Retail Consortium’s BRC Global Standard – Food. “We chose the BRC standard as the most widely approved system to support our export business. In countries such as Sweden and Denmark, all the largest wholesalers and retail chains require their suppliers to have a BRC certificate,” says Sari Moilanen, Quality and Development Manager, Uotilan Leipomo Oy. The bakery occupies a healthy niche supplying specialist outlets in the UK with its natural loaves of additive free Nordic bread. Fazer Group and Moilas Leipomo Oy also employ the BRC standard in their export operations.

Setting standards for ten years

The British Retail Consortium compiled the BRC Global Standard – Food in 1998 and has overseen three revisions, most recently in January 2005 to promote best practice and consumer safety. While relatively few Finnish companies have sought and been granted the right to use the standard, interest is growing among food exporters or companies planning to export. Another increasingly popular international certificate is the ISO 22000 standard, created in 2005 by the International Organization for Standardization headquartered in Switzerland. 700 companies in 60 countries currently apply ISO 22000 to guarantee the safety of their food production chain. 13.02.2008 (Source: Finfood)

Snellman implements ISO quality certificate

Meat processor Oy Snellman Ab was granted ISO 22000 certification at the beginning of 2008 in recognition of its successful food safety quality management programme. The audit was conducted by Inspecta Sertifiointi Oy.

Consistent international performance

Other Finnish companies holding the certificate include Lagerblad Foods Oy, Linkosuo Oy, Beofood Oy, Vaissi Oy and Paulig subsidiary OSCAR A/S. The voluntary ISO 22000 certificate is an international standard focusing on food safety and strengthening in-house statutory control systems. The standard sets out to harmonise the many different international schemes and act as a tool to improve food safety along the production chain. 13.02.2008 (Source: Finfood)

Kesko reports strong international growth

Finnish retail specialist Kesko Corporation targeted the greater part of its growth in 2007 beyond Finland. Turnover from international operations rose to around € 2.2 billion, up 20 per cent overall with Russia posting 45 per cent growth. The company is expanding business in the Nordic, Baltic and Russian regions, seeking further investment targets in Russia. “Kesko is focusing growth abroad and the figures for Finland remain satisfactory,” reported Matti Halmesmäki, President and CEO of Kesko Corporation.

Investment and growth

Kesko Food expects to see turnover continue to grow in Finland this year, while significant investments such as the renovation of several hypermarkets and upgrading information systems is likely to see operating profit remain stable. The new IS platform will enhance logistics and day-to-day operations, raising preparedness for rising food prices and labour costs.

Kesko in figures

Turnover for 2007 rose 9 per cent, excluding business acquisitions and disposals, to stand at € 9.5 billion. Operating profit excluding non-recurring items was up 16 per cent at € 325 million, with Kesko Food and Rautakesko showing particular improvement. Kesko Food posted turnover up 7 per cent to € 3.8 billion (2006: € 3.6 billion) with operating profit excluding non-recurring items rising by € 22.8 million to € 151.4 million. 13.02.2008 (Source: Finfood)

Finnish coeliac expertise under spotlight

The market survey conducted by Sitra and Finpro on behalf of Finnish companies catering for the coeliac product markets shows clear potential for Finnish specialised products in the UK. The UK has a strong “free from” boom, which shows particularly in a rapid increase in the demand for gluten-free products. The markets have quadrupled in five years and grocery retail chains, restaurants and pharmacies have taken keen interest in them. To gauge the market potential for coeliac products in the UK, Sitra’s Coeliac Cluster and Finpro collected market data, which helps Finnish companies specialising in coeliac-related competence to try out their potential in the UK. As part of the Sitra-Finpro project, a networking event, in which Finnish researchers and enterprises introduce the latest innovations to British experts and retail chains, will be held in London on 6 February 2008. The strong turnout for the event tells of the good reputation of Finnish functional food production in Europe. Finland is also known as a major producer of lactose-free products. Extensive market research conducted in autumn 2007 analysed the structure and operators of the UK gluten-free product markets as well as the distribution channels, competitive situation and trends. On the basis of the research, targeted test marketing actions were taken through retail chains, specialist product distributors, catering distributors and the pharmaceutical sector. “There is a clear ‘free from’ boom in the UK. The growth in the past five years has been 400%, which is amazing. We have also received very positive feedback on Finnish competence in the coeliac sector,” says Annaleena Soult, Senior Consultant from Finpro, who is also in charge of the project.

Gluten-free for shops and restaurants – home tests for pharmacies

The project also involves Coeliac UK, the coeliac charity, which this year will focus a special campaign on improving the availability of gluten-free products in restaurants and catering. The wide availability of alternative products in Finland for customers with dietary restrictions has been praised internationally and the achievements of the Finnish Coeliac Society in this respect have attracted wide interest. Finnish gluten-free innovations – beer, cereal products and chocolate – could also be success stories in the UK. Pure oats are also among the approved coeliac products in the UK, so Finland’s pure oat products can be expected to have market potential. The diagnostics and treatment of coeliac disease are of a high standard in Finland, while in many countries the disease is fairly poorly known. One reason for this may be in the difficulty of making the diagnosis. A home test developed by Finnish scientists and enterprises has made its diagnosis dramatically easier. The UK is among the 20 countries where the home test is available to consumers. The Ani Biotech home test kit is available from chemists and the test can be done at home. The test will reveal in a couple of minutes, whether a person’s stomach and skin problems are due to coeliac disease. Those suffering from the disease are intolerant to the gluten in wheat, rye and barley. Coeliac disease is life-long and suffered by approximately 1 per cent of the population.

The Finnish Ambassador hosts a meeting of coeliac experts

The networking event hosted by Jaakko Laajava, the Ambassador of Finland to the UK, for some one hundred coeliac experts will feature a number of notable speakers, among them Professor Markku Mäki, a coeliac specialist from the University of Tampere, Marjo Jokinen product specialist from the Finnish Coeliac Society, and Norma McGough, the Head of Diet & Health from Coeliac UK. Enterprises involved in the Coeliac Cluster will be presenting their products, and the event will be participated in by leading scientists, managers of large grocery retail chains and pharmacies and the media. Sitra’s Food and Nutrition Programme ERA aims at increasing the internationalisation of the food industry by such means as increasing co-operation between companies and scientists. The Coeliac Cluster involved about a dozen enterprises in the field. The cluster is researching the markets for Finnish gluten-free products in selected countries and is implementing various marketing projects. “The model currently being applied in the UK, which involves market research, a networking event and test marketing, is really viable and provides companies that have developed coeliac products with real opportunities to expand their markets,” says Markku Mikola, Project Manager from Sitra’s Coeliac Cluster. Further information Finpro Annaleena Soult, Senior Consultant annaleena.soult@finpro.fi, tel. +336 1714 2331 Sitra's Food and Nutrition Programme ERA Markku Mikola, Project Manager markku.mikola@sitra.fi, tel. +358 40 771 8030 Sitra’s Food and Nutrition Programme ERA communications Seija Kurunmäki, Communication Specialist seija.kurunmaki@kuule.fi, tel. +358 400 460 894 06.02.2008 (Source: Finfood)

Helsinki’s international gourmet profile

Helsinki is an exciting gourmet city attracting visitors from far and wide to its restaurants. Michelin stars and a stream of new restaurants combine with Finnish chefs shining in competition and showing their eagerness to gather international expertise working abroad.

German food fans fond of Finnish fare

“Helsinki’s restaurant culture is well known on the international stage,” notes Jari Hämäläinen, Competitions Director for the Finnish Chef Association. “Germans in particular and also the Dutch are showing an interest in Finnish food,” says Jyrki Yli-Uotila, Chairman of Eurotoques Finlande. German chefs have already visited Finland looking for export opportunities, taking a particular interest in Finnish fish such as perch, pikeperch and whitefish, as well as in berries of which the most highly regarded are Arctic raspberry, raspberry, cranberry and sea buckthorn. Lingonberry and cloudberry have yet to make a real impact though other wild natural products are certainly attracting attention.

Scandinavian cuisine doing well where business is done

Scandinavian cuisine is considered high-end gastronomy and is currently enjoying success in the largest business cities in e.g. Canada, Singapore and the US. “Scandinavian restaurants in the Far East are always packed,” says Mr Hämäläinen happily. And though there aren’t a great number of new restaurants serving Scandinavian food opening abroad, Scandinavian chefs are still highly sought after, Jari continues. The Nordic style of cooking is so harmonious across the region that you can immediately spot portrayals of Nordic food when for instance browsing through magazines. Dishes are typically assembled from separate simple components, each in turn put together from a number of ingredients. Simplicity, purity and lightness are evident trends, Jari concludes. Traditional cooking methods are also being combined with a new kind of technological approach known as molecular gastronomy. 05.02.2008 (Source: Finfood news)

Finland looks to the Denmark’s beer revolution

Niels Hald, Director of the Danish Brewers’ Association, believes that the other Nordic countries will follow Denmark in seeing a rising appreciation of beer. Speaking at the Olutkäräjät beer event arranged in Helsinki on 22nd January 2008, Mr Hald suggested that developing and marketing their own style of beer is the Nordic countries’ trump card in growing beer exports.

Beer is back in fashion

Specialist beer sales are booming in Denmark with interest increasing in both domestic and foreign special brews. There are currently more than 100 breweries in Denmark, compared to the 20 or so running at the beginning of the new millennium, with two new ones opening every month. At the same time, the number of beer import operations has multiplied. Large breweries are also developing special beers and according to Mr Hald the trend is benefitting breweries both large and small. “Denmark is well served with imaginatively stocked pubs to indulge Danes’ interest in beer as a drink in itself. Hundreds of new pubs have opened in the last year alone and our beer enthusiasts’ association has in excess of 11,000 members, more than any other Danish consumer association,” says Mr Hald.

Finnish brewery industry responds to the challenge

Sales of special beers are rising in Finland, too, although their share of total consumption is still small. But the Finnish brewery industry, microbreweries, retailers, restaurant businesses and beer enthusiasts are ready to take up the challenge of developing a beer culture to rival the Danish revolution. Seppo Salkoharju, Managing Director of Hartwa-Trade, the wine and alcoholic beverage importer and a subsidiary of Hartwall (which is part of the Scottish and Newcastle Group), stressed that product development and marketing should be more consumer oriented. According to a study, European trends suggest that consumers are considering factors such as health and how natural the beverage is when making their buying decision. Credentials that suggest a genuine product, such as a “real ale”, and the beer’s pedigree and narrative are valued. “Alcoholic beverages are nowadays consumed in smaller quantities but more often. Consumer sectors are changing their preferences and values, and successful players need to understand the special characteristics involved,” Mr Salkoharju argued. Beer is an important item for consumer goods retailers, and popular on the Finnish table both on weekdays and at weekends. Beer is strongly linked to festive holidays, says Marko Käkelä, a K-Citymarket retailer. “Finns appreciate locally produced food and are adopting a similar attitude towards microbrewery beers. Package design is an important tool for small breweries, as long as we don’t forget what’s inside,” says Anssi Pyysing, Managing Director of Teerenpeli-Yhtiöt. Arranged for the second time, Olutkäräjät gathered a total of around 100 industry professionals and beer enthusiasts to discuss the present situation and what the future holds in store for Finnish beer culture and brewing. Further information: Heikki Kähkönen, Vice Chairman, Olutliitto, mobile tel. +358 45 1382 282 Pekka Kääriäinen, Chairman, Suomen Pienpanimoliitto, mobile tel. +358 50 559 4013 Katri Tuulensuu, Communications Manager, Federation of the Brewing and Soft Drinks Industry, tel. +358 9 1488 7601, mobile +358 40 777 1938 (Source: Finfood)

Safe Finnish grain highlighted at the Grüne Woche fair

Finnish exhibitors have been positively surprised by the successful impact of Finnish foods at the Grüne Woche fair in Berlin. This year, Finland focused especially on presenting its grain industry. Finnish exhibitors were located in the Nordic pavilion together with those from e.g. Norway and the Baltic States. “Finnish grain and especially organic varieties have huge potential markets here,” Pekka Väisänen, Communications Manager for the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, reported from Germany. The Ministry arranged a grain industry seminar on Thursday to bring out the special characteristics of Finnish grain, such as its low chemical residues.

A well attended fair

“There is an enormous number of people here at the fair and we will certainly reach the goal of bringing 20,000 visitors to our exhibition area,” says Mr Väisänen. Father Christmas and the NunnaUuni pie ovens have proved to be the main attractions of the Finnish exhibition. Visitors have shown a particular interest in mushroom and berry products, as well as products intended for people suffering from celiac disease, which were presented to Mariann Fischer-Boel, EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, on the opening day. A total of 400,000 visitors, mainly consumers, were expected to attend the fair. “They have come as young as 20 and as old as 80, but at an average age of 50 you can see here that the German population is greying,” said Mr Väisänen. The International Green Week fair was staged in Berlin from 18th–27th January. 30.01.2008 (Source: Finfood News Service)

Presenting new Finnish food themes to tourists

Attempts are being made to increase food tourism to Finland and businesses in the provinces are particularly interested in presenting new Finnish food themes to tourists. “There is clearly a common will to promote regional foods made from contemporary ingredients. Traditions are a good thing, and the idea is to raise the profile of small food businesses operating in the provinces,” says Mirja Hellstedt, Manager, Education and Development from Finfood. “The provinces now offer, for example, their own wines, cheeses, beers from microbreweries, and a variety of berry and vegetable products.”

Adding more flavour to Finland

Finfood has extended the Taste of Finland restaurant concept, adding Taste of Finland Province, and designed a new brochure for foreign and domestic tourists which in addition to introducing the restaurants, acquaints readers with the history of Finnish cuisine and includes a small Finnish–English food glossary. Taste of Finland dates back to the year 2000 when the HelsinkiMenu was launched as part of the Capital of Culture year. The idea was greeted with great enthusiasm and became a permanent fixture, prompting its expansion with menus to cover other cities and towns. Taste of Finland Province restaurants were added in 2007. The town and city menus are found in Hanko, Helsinki, Joensuu, Jyväskylä, Oulu, Rovaniemi, Tampere and Turku, and for the provinces in Häme, Kainuu, Ostrobothnia, and Päijät-Häme going under the title VellamoMenu. 30.01.2008 (Source: Finfood News Service)

The Volga area presents Finnish companies with an historic opportunity

“The next five years will be the best time to invest in the Volga area,” suggest Grigori Dudarev and Hannu Hernesniemi who headed a Russo-Finnish research group. “Competition is not yet fierce, economic growth is fast and costs are clearly lower than in the Moscow and St. Petersburg metropolitan areas.” Financed by the Finnish Ministry of Trade and Industry, the study indicates that the Volga area is developing into a new investment target for Finnish companies in Russia. Finnish investments have to date mainly been made in Northwest Russia and the Moscow area. The Volga area is well located to serve Russian and Central Asian markets. A high density population – 31 million people living in an area three times the size of Finland, large urban population centres and rapidly growing demand make the area an extremely attractive trade and investment proposition. It is also among the most industrialised in Russia.

Agriculture and food sector openings

Excellent opportunities exist for the development of a strong agriculture and food cluster. The growing income and consumption of local inhabitants provide openings for foreign players. An entirely new potential could be offered for manufacturing and trade serving agriculture, which would be linked to e.g. seed breeding, plant health products and animal feeds. There might also be demand for Finnish agricultural machinery and equipment. The food industry should perhaps reconsider some niches, such as malt barley processing, and oat flake and bio-energy production. There is an overtly increasing interest in the area on the part of Finnish companies and the first investments have been made – in paperboard and construction equipment. The Volga area is still unknown to foreign investors so Finns may hold an historic opportunity in their hands. 30.01.2008 (Source: Finfood News Service)

Valio Gefilus MAX relieves a stressed stomach

Valio's patented daily dose drink is the only one of its kind in the world

As many as one in five adults in the West suffers from a stressed stomach which manifests itself periodically as painful bloating, flatulence, abdominal discomfort and variable bowel movement. The underlying cause of irritable bowel syn-drome (IBS), a harmless but inconvenient ailment, is unknown. And there is no effective medication for it. Studies have shown Valio's patented combination of four functional bacteria to reduce abdominal symptoms in 76% of study subjects. The combination calms a stressed stomach, increases immunity and can be obtained from Valio Gefilus MAX daily dose drinks. One bottle (100 ml) per day is sufficient. The Gefilus MAX combination includes Lactobacillus GG lactic acid bacteria (LGG®) which enhances immunity, has the largest mass of scientific proof in the world demonstrating its effectiveness and is familiar from Valio Gefilus products. Gefilus MAX contains three other probiotic bacterial strains (lactobacilli, bifidobacterium and propionic acid bacterium) in a yoghurt-based daily dose drink that is ideal for the whole family. Valio Gefilus MAX has been developed and patented by Valio and there is no similar product anywhere else in the world. It was launched in Finland at the beginning of 2008.

Tested in two clinical studies

The effects of Valio Gefilus MAX daily dose drink have been verified in two clinical studies (Kajander et al. 2005 and Ka-jander et al. 2008). In the two separate studies, a daily dose of Valio Gefilus MAX relieved abdominal symptoms to a significantly greater extent than a placebo. Many research groups are studying the effective mechanisms of probiotics (bacteria with positive health effects) in relieving stressed stomach, and results suggest that probiotics may indeed relieve general stomach problems e.g. by balancing the intestinal microbiota, alleviating inflammation and affecting the sensitivity and pain recep-tors of the digestive tract.

Gefilus MAX will also be available in Sweden and the Baltic States

Valio Gefilus MAX will be launched in Sweden and the Baltic States as well as Finland in early 2008. Official approval has already been given in Sweden for the Gefilus MAX health claims "Helps to reduce IBS symptoms" and "Helps to relieve lower gastrointestinal discomfort". There is a greater public awareness of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in Sweden than in Finland.

Top product for licensing

Products containing LGG® and sold under Valio licence are available in more than 40 countries. Valio expects Gefilus MAX to conquer the world as a licensed product - both as a dairy product and possibly as a nutritional supplement. It is planned to start sales under licence later this year. Further information: International Operations and Innovations: Kajsa Kajander, Concept Manager, Valio Ltd, tel. +358 10 382 2087 Licensing: Kalle Leporanta, Export Manager, Valio Ltd, tel. +358 10 381 3112 Marketing: Kari Toikkanen, Product Manager, Valio Ltd, tel. +358 10 381 2488 25.01.2008 (Source: Finfood)

Taste of Finland restaurants present Finnish cuisine at its best

The Taste of Finland initiative embraces restaurants offering fine Finnish food and has expanded its territory, welcoming new members in the form of the JoensuuMenu group from Eastern Finland and all the Taste of Finland Province restaurants. Created by the Finfood – Finnish Food Information association, Taste of Finland offers the best in Finnish food to gourmets and everyone who loves good eating. Restaurants displaying the Fork of Plenty logo have mastered the art of preparing top Finnish cuisine and can be found all over the country. Each with its own unique style, the restaurants compile menus from Finnish ingredients and local flavours.

Menus to fit the seasons

“The Taste of Finland and Taste of Finland Province restaurants select their ingredients according to local availability and the time of year. There’s an increasing number of locally produced beverages from microbreweries and farm wineries to enjoy with your food. The Taste of Finland concept aims to see to it that Finnish ingredients get the recognition they deserve on the menus, and that Finnish gastronomic expertise gains visibility,” says Mirja Hellstedt, Manager, Education and Development from Finfood – Finnish Food Information.

From Helsinki to Finland

Taste of Finland dates back to the year 2000 when the HelsinkiMenu was launched as part of the Capital of Culture year. The idea was greeted with great enthusiasm and became a permanent fixture, prompting its expansion with menus to cover other cities and towns. Taste of Finland Province restaurants were added in 2007. The town and city menus are found in Hanko, Helsinki, Joensuu, Jyväskylä, Oulu, Rovaniemi, Tampere and Turku, and for the provinces in Häme, Kainuu, Ostrobothnia, and Päijät-Häme going under the title VellamoMenu.

Find the restaurants and more in the Taste of Finland brochure

The new Taste of Finland brochure introduces the Taste of Finland and Taste of Finland Province restaurants of 2008 to Finns and tourists alike. Travellers in search of tasty local Finnish food will find the brochure offers a history of Finnish cuisine and a useful Finnish–English food glossary alongside details of the restaurants themselves. Further information: Finfood – Finnish Food Information, Mirja Hellstedt, Manager, Education and Development, tel. +358 40 707 3223; mirja.hellstedt@finfood.fi www.finfood.fi/tasteoffinland 23.01.2008 (Source: Finfood)

Germany gets a feel for Finnish food

At the end of January, visitors to a German food and agriculture industry fair will have the opportunity to sample a range of Finnish flavours, and familiarise themselves with Finnish food producers. Built around the theme of tasty, clean and safe food, Finnish cuisine will be introduced at the Grüne Woche (International Green Week) fair in Berlin which runs from 18th–27th January. With more than ten Finnish companies on show, this is the first time Finland’s food industry has exerted a significant presence at the fair. The Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s Quality Chain project, the Central Union of Agricultural Producers and Forest Owners (MTK) and the Finnish Food Safety Authority Evira have come together with the companies in a joint effort to promote the Finnish food industry.

Identifying with Father Christmas!

Along with the food itself, visitors to the fair will be offered information about the Finnish national identity, lifestyle, design and gourmet expertise. The Finns will start the fair with a flourish, staging performances by the Eat&Joy messengers: multi-talented designer Harri Koskinen, clothes designer Paola Suhonen and chefs Hans Välimäki and Markus Maulavirta. The stand itself will be opened by Finland’s Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Sirkka-Liisa Anttila, ably assisted by Father Christmas himself! One important goal is to increase the interest of Central Europeans in Finland as a tourist destination. Partners include the City of Helsinki, parties from Lapland, Northern Karelia and Ostrobothnia, and all involved take real pride in Finnish expertise. This export project has a budget of € 200,000. “Now Finland is doing what it should be. Finns have been too humble for too long but now we are here standing proud,” said egg producer Ari Puuri at the project press conference.

7,000 tasty Karelian pies

According to Pekka Väisänen, Communications Manager at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Finland already has a good image in Germany, whose consumers are partial to rye and pork. The participation of Finnish farmers in German Christmas markets is rising significantly. Some 7,000 traditional Karelian pies will be baked for visitors to the Finnish stand. Reindeer, corn-fed pork, eggs, and real rye and oat bread will also be on offer. A video depicting Finnish nature will be shown at the stand, along with another AV presentation courtesy of the Finnish food producers. Finnish food expertise has been packaged and presented under the Food from Finland (3F) banner. Alongside Cologne’s Anuga trade fair, Grüne Woche is the largest food fair in Europe gathering together almost half a million visitors each year. Most EU countries as well as many non-European ones are represented. Further information: Finnish pavillion 16.01.2008 (Source: Finfood)

Nordic intake of Vitamin D compares well with Europe

The frequent consumption of fish means that Finnish women’s vitamin D intake is significantly higher than that of women living in Spain, Ireland, Poland or Denmark, reports the European Optiford joint project. And the girls’ intake was slightly higher in Finland compared with those in the other four countries. Elderly women were worse off in Spain and Poland than the Nordic countries with regard to the vitamin. When it came to the girls, the Spaniards were best off in both the summer and winter. Vitamin D status is determined by intake and affected by exposure to the sun and the use of vitamin D products. The project studied vitamin D status and intake in 2002–2003 i.e. before it was permitted to add a larger quantity of vitamin D to liquid dairy products and spreads. A fish meal contains an approximately two-day ration of vitamin D while half a litre of milk or fermented milk with added vitamin D provides one third of the recommended daily intake.

No research proof on the benefits of excessive doses of vitamin D

In the United States in particular, there is discussion as to whether the recommended daily intake and the maximum permitted daily intake of vitamin D should be increased. Docent Christel Lamberg-Allardt and post-graduate student Heli Viljakainen from the University of Helsinki write in the Ravitsemuskatsaus journal that there are not as yet any research results that would support the benefit of large vitamin D doses. Vitamin D is stored in the body and in extremely large doses may result in symptoms of poisoning, and neither is the optimal vitamin D blood content known as yet.

Vitamin D supplements may be needed in winter

Vitamin D in food is found especially in fish and fish products, liquid dairy products and spreads. It is also produced by the action of sunlight on the skin. Living in a sunny country does not however guarantee a good vitamin D status if one gets little exposure to the sun. Eating according to nutritional recommendations does provide the sufficient vitamin D intake, of 7.5 micrograms per day, or 10 micrograms for under 2-year olds and over 60-year olds. An insufficient intake from food necessitates supplements in at least the winter. We should however be careful not to use simultaneously several products containing vitamin D. The maximum acceptable daily intake is 50 micrograms for adults and 25 micrograms for children. 16.01.2008 (Source: Finfood)

Finland leads Ribes gene pool conservation effort

Ribes Genetic Resources are to be studied in the Finnish-led international RIBESCO project whose primary objectives are to identify the most valuable elements in those resources, and set up a Northern European core collection to secure their preservation. Ribes is a genus of some 150 species of shrubs of two distinct groups, namely currants and gooseberries. The project is co-ordinated by MTT Agrifood Research Finland and promotes the characterisation and preservation of Ribes genetic resources (in particular black, red and white currant, and gooseberry). Finland is joined in the project by the other EU countries in the Baltic Sea region: Sweden, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Germany. The research institutes participating in the study currently maintain a population of around a thousand blackcurrant genotypes, more than 500 gooseberry and a total of 300 red and white currant.

Keeping the very best

The project is EU co-funded with a total budget of around one million euro. The information to be collected concerning the biological, chemical and in-production qualities of the shrub populations will on completion of the project be stored in a database for use by researchers and plant breeders worldwide. The most valuable genotypes will be included in the Northern European Ribes gene pool core collection being set up. Selection will be based on the quality of the shrubs, broad genetic variation and, for example, factors related to historical or other important cultural values. “Selections will be made at both national and international levels. Around ten per cent of the material originally collected will be placed in the core collection,” estimates Saila Karhu, Researcher at MTT. Further information: Saila Karhu, Researcher, MTT, tel. +358 2 477 2206, saila.karhu@mtt.fi 16.01.2008 (Sources: MTT and Finfood)

How to eat in an environmentally sound fashion

Altering our consumption habits is currently the easiest way to reduce the environmental effects of food production. While Finnish food industry processes create little environmental impact, the nature of the Finnish climate makes managing environmental effects at the start of the food production chain a challenging task. MTT Agrifood Research Finland has studied food production chains in its multi-year Foodchain projects based on lifecycle research. Products’ environmental effects have been estimated over the duration of their entire production chain, from raw materials to consumption.

Different foods incur a significantly different environmental loading

The environmental effects of products of animal origin are fairly extensive compared with those of plant-based products. There are however major disparities between the effects of producing different kinds of meat and different plant-based products. The environmental effects of producing chicken meat in particular have undergone detailed study in Finland. “The environmental effects of producing chicken and pork are significantly smaller than those of producing beef. Looking at plant-based products, rice production has a much greater impact than that of say potatoes. Beef and rice production contribute to speeding up climate change in particular,” notes Juha-Matti Katajajuuri, Senior Research Scientist at MTT. “Then again, the difficult conditions under which Finnish farming operates mean that pasturing cows has a positive effect on biodiversity and soil fertility.” “Replacing products of animal origin with fruit and vegetables significantly decreases the environmental impact of our eating habits,” Mr Katajajuuri adds.

Make more when you cook

Transportation and packaging contribute less to the total environmental effects of raw materials and finished food products than might be imagined. So rather than comparing and considering the distances travelled by raw materials and the finished products, consumers can ease the environmental impact of what they eat e.g. by cooking more food at a time, freezing the result and reheating in a microwave. We must also pay greater attention to our buying behaviour.

Consumers need more information to commit to greater responsibility

The projects run in MTT’s Responsible food production chains and choices research programme examine the degree and nature of responsibility attached to the food production chain and its end products. The goal is to generate consumer information that helps promote responsible consumption habits. “The Environmental effects of consumption choices in households project currently underway aims to provide consumers with the transparent and comprehensible background information and history they need to inform their buying decisions. The idea is to illustrate the environmental effects of food choices by comparing different types of food. Comparisons are drawn for example between vegetarian and mixed diets or based on the degree to which the products have been processed,” says Professor Sirpa Kurppa from MTT. The project will also study the importance of domestic versus imported food choices. From an environmental perspective, a domestic agricultural product is not always a better choice than a foreign one. Further information: Juha-Matti Katajajuuri, Senior Research Scientist, MTT, tel.+358 50 3599 772, juha-matti.katajajuuri@mtt.fi Sari Forsman-Hugg, Research Scientist, MTT, tel.+358 400 639 450, sari.forsman-hugg@mtt.fi Timo Jäske, Environmental Manager, Ruokakesko Oy, tel.+358 1053 28222, timo.jaske@kesko.fi Sirpa Kurppa, Professor, MTT, tel.+358 40 548 6968, sirpa.kurppa@mtt.fi 10.01.2008 (Source: Finfood)

Agriculture in a Changing Climate: the New International Research Frontier. September 3, 2008 - Parliament House, Canberra.

Climate change is now accepted as a fact by most members of the Australian community. This acceptance provides a new climate for governments, decision-makers and researchers to assess the impacts and the necessary solutions across many important sectors around the globe, in our region and in Australia. But many would argue that agriculture is the sector that is most affected by climate change and with a significant impact on climate change, and there are grave implications in developing countries and Australia not least of which relate to food security and economic prosperity. Between one quarter and one third of greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture, including deforestation. The Asia-Pacific region may contribute almost half of the agricultural emissions. So there is a real role for agriculture in terms of mitigating climate change but also a pressing need for agriculture to adapt to the new climate change environment in order to ensure improved food security. Therefore, it is timely that the Crawford Fund’s free annual conference should focus on climate change in 2008 in order to assist us to better understand the current position and what action is necessary, particularly in relation to the role of international agricultural research for development. The current global food crisis with escalating food prices and the risk of food shortages only adds to the urgency of the topic. The program for the 2008 Crawford Fund conference, titled "Agriculture in a Changing Climate: the New International Research Frontier", is almost finalised. Our key public awareness event will be held on Wednesday, 3 September, at Parliament House – please note it is a little later than usual due to changed sitting dates for Parliament. The conference will be about the impact of agriculture (including deforestation) on climate change, the potential impact of climate change on the distribution and productivity of agriculture, fisheries and forestry, and the need for ongoing and redirected international research to mitigate these effects. We have once again called on a group of outstanding international and national specialists who will consider the key issues across agriculture, scenarios for a range of key industries, and what international agricultural research has to offer. 20 June 2008 (Source: CGIAR, cifor)

Emergency Rice Initiative launched to help African countries severely hit by soaring prices

Concrete action plans developed to urgently stimulate rice production in 11 African countries as an immediate follow-up to the Rome World Food Summit In response to the current soaring rice prices, an Emergency Rice Initiative for Africa has just been launched to provide urgent assistance to rice-growing countries in the continent in four major areas: seed; fertilizer; best-bet technologies; and post-harvest and marketing. Launched jointly by the Africa Rice Center (WARDA), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), IFDC, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Emergency Rice Initiative will operate under the framework of the FAO Soaring Food Prices Initiative. “Our primary aim is to enhance the capacity of our member countries to significantly increase their rice production as of 2008 and 2009,” said Dr Papa Abdoulaye Seck, Director General of the Africa Rice Center, an association of African member countries and one of the 15 centers supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). Initially, 11 countries have been selected for the Emergency Rice Initiative: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo. It is expected that more countries will be brought in, depending on the funding availability. The immediate priority for the Initiative is to kick-start rice seed production during the current rainy season and the following off-season, so that sufficient quantities of seed of improved rice varieties for major ecologies are available for sowing in 2009 in the selected countries. To draw up concrete national action plans, a workshop was held, 9-12 June, at the Africa Rice Center in Cotonou, Benin. Participants included representatives from the selected countries and from the Africa Rice Center, FAO, IFDC, CRS, IFAD, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), African Development Bank (AfDB), Sasakawa-Global 2000 (SG 2000), farmers’ organization (ROPPA), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Banque ouest africaine pour le développement (BOAD) and Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). Participants analyzed the potential to produce additional rice per selected country, including the identification of targeted ecologies, number of farmers, and anticipated production gains per major region. They also explored sustainable mechanisms for seed production and distribution as well as for mineral fertilizer procurement and distribution. The Initiative will build on the successful experiences of CRS and IFDC in the use of voucher system to distribute seed and fertilizer to farmers. The Africa Rice Center – in collaboration with IRRI, FAO and other development partners, such as CRS and SG 2000 – was asked to play a key role in enhancing Africa’s rice research for development capacity and in facilitating access to rice information and knowledge so as to ensure that all the investments and efforts put into the Initiative can lead to sustainable rice sectors in the selected countries. The workshop highlighted that in order to achieve sustainable increases in rice production, greater importance should be given to the value chain approach to develop the competitiveness and the market desirability of rice production in Africa. The Emergency Rice Initiative has been designed to be country-driven and the national action plans will be finalized in the countries. “We are very happy that representatives of the donor community who are present expressed their willingness to support the implementation of the action plans,” said Mr Jean Prosper Koyo, FAO representative in Benin. Participants welcomed the strong commitment of all international, regional and national partners to the Initiative and appealed for sustained support to African agriculture. 20 June 2008 (Source: CGIAR)

Agriculture in a Changing Climate: the New International Research Frontier. September 3, 2008 - Parliament House, Canberra.

Climate change is now accepted as a fact by most members of the Australian community. This acceptance provides a new climate for governments, decision-makers and researchers to assess the impacts and the necessary solutions across many important sectors around the globe, in our region and in Australia. But many would argue that agriculture is the sector that is most affected by climate change and with a significant impact on climate change, and there are grave implications in developing countries and Australia not least of which relate to food security and economic prosperity. Between one quarter and one third of greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture, including deforestation. The Asia-Pacific region may contribute almost half of the agricultural emissions. So there is a real role for agriculture in terms of mitigating climate change but also a pressing need for agriculture to adapt to the new climate change environment in order to ensure improved food security. Therefore, it is timely that the Crawford Fund’s free annual conference should focus on climate change in 2008 in order to assist us to better understand the current position and what action is necessary, particularly in relation to the role of international agricultural research for development. The current global food crisis with escalating food prices and the risk of food shortages only adds to the urgency of the topic. The program for the 2008 Crawford Fund conference, titled "Agriculture in a Changing Climate: the New International Research Frontier", is almost finalised. Our key public awareness event will be held on Wednesday, 3 September, at Parliament House – please note it is a little later than usual due to changed sitting dates for Parliament. The conference will be about the impact of agriculture (including deforestation) on climate change, the potential impact of climate change on the distribution and productivity of agriculture, fisheries and forestry, and the need for ongoing and redirected international research to mitigate these effects. We have once again called on a group of outstanding international and national specialists who will consider the key issues across agriculture, scenarios for a range of key industries, and what international agricultural research has to offer. 20 June 2008 (Source: CGIAR, cifor)

Emergency Rice Initiative launched to help African countries severely hit by soaring prices

Concrete action plans developed to urgently stimulate rice production in 11 African countries as an immediate follow-up to the Rome World Food Summit In response to the current soaring rice prices, an Emergency Rice Initiative for Africa has just been launched to provide urgent assistance to rice-growing countries in the continent in four major areas: seed; fertilizer; best-bet technologies; and post-harvest and marketing. Launched jointly by the Africa Rice Center (WARDA), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), IFDC, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Emergency Rice Initiative will operate under the framework of the FAO Soaring Food Prices Initiative. “Our primary aim is to enhance the capacity of our member countries to significantly increase their rice production as of 2008 and 2009,” said Dr Papa Abdoulaye Seck, Director General of the Africa Rice Center, an association of African member countries and one of the 15 centers supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). Initially, 11 countries have been selected for the Emergency Rice Initiative: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo. It is expected that more countries will be brought in, depending on the funding availability. The immediate priority for the Initiative is to kick-start rice seed production during the current rainy season and the following off-season, so that sufficient quantities of seed of improved rice varieties for major ecologies are available for sowing in 2009 in the selected countries. To draw up concrete national action plans, a workshop was held, 9-12 June, at the Africa Rice Center in Cotonou, Benin. Participants included representatives from the selected countries and from the Africa Rice Center, FAO, IFDC, CRS, IFAD, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), African Development Bank (AfDB), Sasakawa-Global 2000 (SG 2000), farmers’ organization (ROPPA), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Banque ouest africaine pour le développement (BOAD) and Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). Participants analyzed the potential to produce additional rice per selected country, including the identification of targeted ecologies, number of farmers, and anticipated production gains per major region. They also explored sustainable mechanisms for seed production and distribution as well as for mineral fertilizer procurement and distribution. The Initiative will build on the successful experiences of CRS and IFDC in the use of voucher system to distribute seed and fertilizer to farmers. The Africa Rice Center – in collaboration with IRRI, FAO and other development partners, such as CRS and SG 2000 – was asked to play a key role in enhancing Africa’s rice research for development capacity and in facilitating access to rice information and knowledge so as to ensure that all the investments and efforts put into the Initiative can lead to sustainable rice sectors in the selected countries. The workshop highlighted that in order to achieve sustainable increases in rice production, greater importance should be given to the value chain approach to develop the competitiveness and the market desirability of rice production in Africa. The Emergency Rice Initiative has been designed to be country-driven and the national action plans will be finalized in the countries. “We are very happy that representatives of the donor community who are present expressed their willingness to support the implementation of the action plans,” said Mr Jean Prosper Koyo, FAO representative in Benin. Participants welcomed the strong commitment of all international, regional and national partners to the Initiative and appealed for sustained support to African agriculture. 17 June 2008 (Source: CGIAR)

Land degradation threatens dryland populations

The survival of more than 250 million people living in the drylands of the developing world is being threatened by a chronic problem – land degradation. Drylands cover about 41% of the earth’s surface. The poor people in the drylands depend mainly on rainfed agriculture and natural rangelands for their survival. Their livelihoods are at risk due to land degradation, which is exacerbated by increasing population growth that is putting considerable pressure on fragile land resources. However, science-based innovations can be mobilized to help arrest land degradation. The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) headquartered in Patancheru in southern India, addresses the problem of land degradation through sustainable land management (SLM) techniques. According to ICRISAT Director General Dr William D Dar, “Investing in SLM to control and prevent land degradation in the wider landscape is an essential and cost-effective way to deliver other global environmental benefits, such as maintenance of biodiversity, mitigation of climate change and protection of international waters”. ICRISAT is the executing agency and coordinator of the Desert Margins Program (DMP) funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF). DMP is a collaborative initiative among nine sub-Saharan African countries – Botswana, Burkina Faso, Kenya, Mali, Namibia, Niger, Senegal, South Africa and Zimbabwe, which are assisted by five Centers supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) and three advanced research institutes. The DMP focuses on better understanding land and biodiversity degradation and finding ways to counter them. ICRISAT, jointly with a sister CGIAR Center the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) based in Syria, is catalyzing a global research program called ‘Oasis’ to intensify the effort against dryland degradation and desertification. Oasis brings the best global science partnerships to bear across Africa, Asia and Latin America. To address the issue of poor soil fertility, some consider this a greater food-production constraint than drought in semi-arid Africa, ICRISAT has developed a “microdosing” technique that involves the application of small, affordable quantities of fertilizer with the seed at planting time or as a top dressing 3 or 4 weeks after emergence. This enhances fertilizer use efficiency and improves productivity. The Institute is also testing two market development strategies to address constraints such as difficult access to fertilizer and credit; insufficient flow of information and training to farmers; and inappropriate policies. In West Africa, the ‘Warrantage’ or inventory credit system aims to resolve the farmers’ capital constraint. Farmers place part of their harvest in a local storehouse in return for loans, which they use to pay debts and start various income-earning activities to tide over the long dry season. The stored grain is sold later in the year when prices are high, and the farmer is able to repay the loan. ICRISAT has also succeeded in getting private fertilizer companies to sell fertilizers in small packs that smallholder farmers can afford. The Institute has partnered with other organizations and has evolved a new consortium watershed management model to control land degradation and improve rural livelihoods. The approach is built on the principle of harnessing the strengths of the consortium partners for the benefit of all the stakeholders, and is based on a holistic systems approach called the Integrated Genetic and Natural Resource Management (IGNRM) strategy. The Drylands Eco-farm (DEF) is an innovative trees-crops-livestock system for rainfed crop production. Fast-growing, drought tolerant Australian Acacias and a high value tree crop (Zizyphus mauritania) are intercropped with annual crops. It also incorporates principles of crop rotation, mulch application, windbreaks and nitrogen fixing trees. Profits from the DEF are 3-5 times higher than profits from current cropping systems. The Institute is also undertaking Bioreclamation of Degraded Lands (BDL) project in barren, unproductive soils that are widespread in the West African Sahel. This combines simple effective techniques such as zaï holes, planting-basin cultivation, trenches and land scarification that concentrate limited water and nutrient resources close to the plant roots. In addition the planting of high-value crops that restore organic matter and soil texture earn a handsome profit for the poor from fruit and gum trees, hardy leafy vegetables and legumes. Besides developing and promoting these techniques to curb land degradation and improve the quality of agricultural soil, ICRISAT is putting great emphasis on strengthening the national capacities in studying climate, soil, vegetation and livestock trends and dynamics, standardization of methodologies to ensure data quality. It is also looking at building effective partnerships with national (NGOs, rural communities and CBOs), regional and international institutions and the private sector. 16 June 2008 (Source: CGIAR, icrisat)

China honors IRRI for contributions to food security and science

China has given one of its most prestigious scientific awards to the Philippines-based International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) for making an “important contribution to improve grain output, agricultural efficiency, and (the) income of farmers.” It is the first time the International Science and Technology Award of the People’s Republic of China has been given to an organization rather than an individual. It was presented by China State Councilor Liu Yandong to IRRI Director General Robert S. Zeigler at a special award ceremony in Beijing on Thursday, 5 June 2008. Higher-yielding rice varieties – which IRRI’s scientists helped develop – are grown across China, adding millions of tons to national yields and generating hundreds of millions of dollars in additional income for rice farmers. China’s self-sufficiency in rice is crucial for world food security, especially with international rice prices near record highs and rice production under unprecedented pressure. Since official relations were established in 1981 after initial visits in the late 1970s, IRRI has also helped train and educate hundreds of rice scientists and researchers from China and played a key role in the creation of the China National Rice Research Institute. Today, IRRI coordinates and works on a wide range of scientific projects across China. It’s the second time the Institute’s work in China has been recognized with this award. Dr. Gurdev Khush, formerly IRRI’s principal plant breeder and head of the Plant Breeding, Genetics, and Biochemistry Division, won the same award in 2001 for his contributions to Chinese food security. “The Institute is honored to receive such recognition from China,” Dr. Zeigler said. 11 June 2008 (Source: CGIAR)

CIAT-Led Institutional Knowledge Sharing Project of the CGIAR Delivers Promising Results

CIAT has been leading the Knowledge Sharing (KS) Project of the CGIAR on behalf of the ICT-KM Program since 2004. With a key objective to encourage open and inclusive sharing of knowledge, expertise, and experiences among CGIAR staff and research partners, the Program’s knowledge sharing work is aimed at supporting learning and change to improve the effectiveness and impact of CGIAR work. The first phase of this project (2004-2005) supported successfully four pilot initiatives, which incorporated KS principles and approaches into high-profile Center events and served as entry points for promoting change in the Centers' institutional culture. In the current second phase, the project focuses on scaling up project activities, with the aim of mainstreaming knowledge sharing principles and tools. Therefore, and among other interventions, the project developed a KS Workshop. A total of 40 people from CGIAR Centers, FAO, and Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) have joined a 4 week on-line event in April and 20 participants gathered at International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) campus in Addis Ababa in May for this unique opportunity to explore and experiment with knowledge-sharing principles and methods in an innovative 3-phase workshop. The workshop methodology has been based on action learning principles and offers a systemic approach to KS, facilitated by the consultants Nancy White and Lucie Lamoureux, Petr Kosina from International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), and Project leader Simone Staiger-Rivas. The KS Toolkit, developed as a wiki, was the center piece of the workshop around which most activities and discussions took place. Currently there are 58 different tools and methods that are outlined on the wiki covering face-to-face methodologies as well as virtual collaborative tools. Watching the KS Toolkit user statistics, it seems to become a very important resource for KS practitioners worldwide! It has only been unofficially launched 2 months ago and counts already almost 20,000 views in that period! Andrea Pape-Christiansen from International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) was one of our participants and stated: “It's what we the participants make of it—contacts and toolkit and links etc are all there to pick up and use—leaves one with a good feeling like the end of the course is just the beginning.” 9 June 2008 (Source: CGIAR)

Food Summit: Some Progress But More Needs to be Done

The UN food summit closes with a strong statement on agriculture, but fails to adequately address trade, biofuels, safety nets, and implementation The final declaration of the “Conference on World Food Security: Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy” strongly affirms the need for investing in agriculture, a very positive development. It is noteworthy that governments recognize the need to dramatically increase food production and to provide assistance to small-scale farmers in developing countries to boost their productivity. This focus on agriculture is very much needed and long overdue. However, the summit declaration is weak in four other areas: trade, biofuels, safety nets for vulnerable people, and accountability for implementation. Looking forward, strong action is needed in each of these areas. Trade: Export bans and other trade distorting measures only exacerbate the crisis. Unfortunately, the summit barely came to a consensus for recognizing the problem, let alone taking action. IFPRI research found that the elimination of export bans would stabilize grain price fluctuations, reduce price levels by as much as 30 percent, and enhance the efficiency of agricultural production. The G-8 summit and international meetings should take a stronger stance on this issue. Biofuels: Biofuels that use grains and oilseeds contribute significantly to food price inflation. IFPRI analysis shows that these types of biofuels accounted for 30 percent of the rise in grain prices between 2000 and 2007. Corn-based ethanol accounted for 40 percent of the increase in maize prices during this period. Nevertheless, the summit shied away from distinguishing between beneficial and risky types of biofuels. Ultimately, the declaration dodged the issue by calling for “in-depth studies.” Safety nets: Poor people are hit hardest by food price increases. Governments need to invest more in measures such as child nutrition, school feeding, and conditional cash and food transfer programs, to mitigate the price effects for people living on the edge. Safety nets like these help avoid the suffering of people who are unable to afford enough food, and they increase the long-term resilience of poor people to crises. A substantial body of research by IFPRI and other organizations has confirmed that well designed safety-net programs have high payoffs, both in terms of economic productivity and poverty reduction. Implementation: The declaration lacks clarity as to who is responsible for its implementation. Without these specifics, the outcome could be similar to the previous two food summits in 1996 and 2002: a lot of good intentions, but few results. Global hunger has barely declined since 1996, and is now getting worse in light of the current food crisis. Progress must be made on these issues to address the global food crisis. Throughout much of the world, the poorest people are being squeezed by high food prices. They need action now. Source: Joachim von Braun, Director General, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) 6 June 2008 (Source: CGIAR, ifpri)

US$20 million IFAD-supported project will help overcome water shortages and generate employment in Syria

A new US$58 million project in Syria will create employment opportunities and reduce water shortages for about 190,000 poor rural families living in the north-eastern provinces of Deir Ezur, Hassake and Raqqa. With a rapidly increasing population, the three provinces are suffering from diminishing water supplies, decreasing agricultural production and growing unemployment. IFAD’s North-eastern Regional Rural Development Project will be financed partly by a low-interest IFAD loan of US$20 million. The loan agreement was signed today by Samir AL-Kassir, Ambassador of the Syrian Arab Republic to Italy and Lennart Båge, President of IFAD. This investment will be matched by a loan of US$17 million from the OPEC Fund for International Development and a contribution of US$20 million from the Syrian Government. “The project will help small farmers to manage their resources sustainably and launch small businesses,” said Hamid Abdouli, IFAD’s country programme Manager for Syria. “We will address the severe water deficit and promote microfinance, microenterprise development, marketing, and partnerships with the private sector.” The project will help local communities form farmers’ and craftworkers’ marketing associations. It will also help small farmers to modernize old and inefficient irrigation systems and to establish sustainable water users’ associations. The project will provide credit and advice to help young entrepreneurs develop business plans. It will also help the Savings Bank of Syria establish a sustainable microfinance system for poor rural people. The interest earned from depositing IFAD’s loan in Syria’s Savings Bank will be used to cover the cost of technical assistance for the development of community-based associations. With this project, IFAD will have financed seven projects in Syria for a total of commitment of US$120 million. Release number IFAD/31/07, Rome, 14 June 2007 (Source IFAD)

US$57.7 million IFAD-supported small-scale irrigation programme will improve food security in Ethiopia

More than 60,000 poor farming families in Ethiopia will benefit from a US$57.7 million small-scale irrigation development programme that will enable them to cope better with unreliable rains and frequent droughts, and to increase their food security. The Participatory Small-scale Irrigation Development Programme will increase household incomes of people living on less than 30 US cents a day. The programme will be partly financed by a US$20 million loan and a US$20 million grant from IFAD. The financing agreement was signed today by Ato Grum Abay, Ethiopia’s Ambassador to Italy, and Lennart Båge, IFAD President. The Ethiopian Government will contribute US$14.2 million towards the programme while participating households will provide an additional US$3.5 million. The programme has three components: The small-scale irrigation component will improve catchments-area planning and develop irrigation schemes covering about 12,000 hectares. It will also reduce land degradation through better watershed management. An agricultural component will promote seed production and establish home vegetable gardens mainly for women. It will also strengthen support for agricultural services and improve farming practices. The institutional development component of the programme will empower rural communities by helping them to establish their own grassroots organizations. A legal framework for the country’s water-users associations will be created to improve water-user rights and to enhance the role of women as decision-makers. With this programme, IFAD has supported 13 programmes and projects in Ethiopia with a financial commitment of US$235.8 million. Release number IFAD/30/07, Rome, 13 June 2007 (Source IFAD)

New fund will stimulate business innovation in rural Africa

The Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund

IFAD today announced details of a new multi-donor challenge fund that will help poor rural people in Africa by supporting innovative new businesses. The announcement was made in Cape Town at the World Economic Forum on Africa. The African Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF) represents an important partnership between members of the international development community, including the African Development Bank, the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), IFAD and the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development, and The Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “The AECF builds upon our ongoing efforts to eradicate poverty in Africa,” said Lennart Båge, IFAD’s President. “This is a fine example of international donors working together to bring the best development ideas where they are needed most. “The fund will make a tangible and sustainable difference to the lives and livelihoods of poor rural people in Africa,” he said. Challenge funds, such as AECF, have a proven track record of stimulating pro-poor economic growth. The AECF will be the first challenge fund to be based in and designed for rural Africa. It will encourage the development of agricultural and financial markets in rural Africa by offering matching grants on a competitive basis of up to US$1.5 million to projects which meet its development goals. The fund is designed to encourage businesses to think of poor rural people as potential entrepreneurs, consumers and employees. Challenge funds have proven effective in stimulating business innovation. The grants provide a powerful incentive to encourage the private sector, which often has substantial expertise and financial resources, to risk branching out into areas they might not have otherwise considered. “The importance of fostering entrepreneurship and business development in rural Africa cannot be overstated,” said Båge. Poverty is predominantly rural in Africa, with more than 70 per cent of the continent’s poor people living in rural areas. AECF will run for seven years, starting in 2008. It has already secured most of the capital needed to start operations on schedule. Release number IFAD/29/07, Rome -13 June 2007 (Source IFAD)

US$11.5 million IFAD-supported project will improve livelihoods for poor rural people in Cambodia

A new US$11.5 million development project in Cambodia will work with 22,600 rural households in the border provinces of Kratie, Preah Vihear and Ratanakiri to improve agricultural and land management practices. Decades of war and internal strife have made Cambodia one of the world’s poorer countries. Cambodia’s gross national income was US$380 per capita in 2005. The three provinces that the project is targeting are among the poorest in the country. Many of the households have little or no land, and few livestock or other assets. “This is the first project financed by IFAD that targets the poor, ethnic population living in remote areas of the country,” said Youqiong Wang, IFAD’s country programme manager for Cambodia. “The project will not only boost incomes, it will also lay foundations for sustainable social and economic development in the future.” The Rural Livelihoods Improvement Project will be financed partly by a grant of US$9.5 million from IFAD. The grant agreement was signed today by Keat Chhon, Senior Minister at the Ministry of Economy and Finance of the Kingdom of Cambodia, and Lennart Båge, President of IFAD. The project will also receive funding from the Government of Cambodia and the United Nations Development Programme. Special attention will be given to indigenous and ethnic minority households, and households headed by women. Women-headed households with young children are often the poorest in the villages. Since women play a major role in the social and economic life of rural communities, entire households benefit when women’s economic position becomes more secure. Project activities will be geared towards the specific needs of each community. In Kratie, for instance, there is a major need to organize water-user groups to improve irrigation. The project will also look at introducing new crop varieties in the province, as well as improving on-farm water management and cultivation practices. With this project, IFAD will have financed five projects in Cambodia for a total commitment of US$48.3 million. Release number IFAD/28/07, Rome 28 May 2007 (Source IFAD)

UN rural poverty agency advocates at MERCOSUR for policies that support poor rural people

IFAD President to visit Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay

The President of IFAD, Lennart Båge, will travel to Argentina (21-22 May), Paraguay (23-24 May) and Uruguay (25 May) to meet with government officials and participate in the Seventh Specialized Meeting for Small-scale Agriculture being hosted in Asunción by the South Common Market (MERCOSUR). During his visit to the three countries, Båge will reiterate IFAD's support for the institutionalization of rural development policies as part of MERCOSUR’s agenda, and to encourage cooperation between MERCOSUR members and development organizations, such as IFAD. “As the UN agency dedicated to the eradication of rural poverty, IFAD is committed to ensuring that poor rural people can fully participate in MERCOSUR and benefit from it – politically, economically and socially,” Båge said. Båge will also visit two IFAD-funded projects, one in Argentina and one in Paraguay. In Argentina, he will meet with smallholder producers in the northwest province of Tucumán. In Paraguay, he will meet with a cooperative of fruit and vegetable producers near Asunción. Although some MERCOSUR countries are among the strongest economies in Latin America, poverty is still widespread in the region. The poorest and most vulnerable people are landless and smallholder farmers, rural women, youth and indigenous peoples. “Poverty persists in the region because poor rural farmers often do not have access to the technologies, knowledge and productive assets they need to take advantage of national and global market opportunities,” Båge said. “Poor people in rural areas also tend not to have a voice in policymaking, which further contributes to their social and economic exclusion,” said Båge. “Through our work with MERCOSUR, national governments and organizations of small farmers, we are working to change this situation.” IFAD is has provided two grants to MERCOSUR for a total commitment of US$1.9 million. The first was to help member countries align their agendas on rural poverty; the second was to support dialogue between governments and associations of small farmers on policy making.

28 years of working together to reduce rural poverty

IFAD has worked in the region since 1979 to enable poor rural people to overcome poverty. IFAD works with governments to provide funding and technical assistance for rural development programmes; at the subregional level to consolidate a rural development strategy within the framework of MERCOSUR; and directly with poor farmers to support small-scale farming and to help them build their organizations, giving them, collectively, a stronger voice in economic and political matters. To date, IFAD has financed 19 projects in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay for a total commitment of US$291.5 million. With cofinancing by partners, the total investment is US$786.1 million. IFAD has also provided US$14.9 million in grants to the four countries. In Argentina, two projects are ongoing in the northeast and northwest of the country. Another project is in its initial stage in Patagonia, and a national rural development programme will be established in 10 of the country’s central and eastern provinces. In Brazil, IFAD supports three projects in the semi-arid northeast region, where there is the greatest concentration of poor rural people. These projects provide technical and financial services to small farmers and landless people, and promote alternative income-generating activities. In Paraguay, IFAD supports a programme in the eastern region to improve the capacity of small farmers and their organizations to participate in development activities and policymaking processes. In Uruguay, IFAD supports small farmers and their organizations in their efforts to be more competitive in local and national markets. This project – Uruguay Rural – is the government’s main tool in fighting rural poverty. Rome, 17 May 2007 (Source IFAD)

IFAD-backed US$27 million project in Haiti will develop small-scale irrigation systems for poor rural farmers

A new US$27 million development project in Haiti will rehabilitate collective irrigation systems used by thousands of poor small farmers in the North-East and North-West provinces, two of the country’s poorest areas. IFAD will provide a loan of US$13 million for the Small-Scale Irrigation Development Project. The loan agreement was signed today by the Ambassador of Haiti to Italy, Yvon Siméon, and IFAD President, Lennart Båge. The Government of Haiti will contribute US$3.5 million to the project. The OPEC Fund for International Development will provide US$8 million and project participants will contribute US$2.5 million. The project will help about 18,000 families in remote rural areas improve their living conditions and food security. Small farmers will be able to grow an bigger range of irrigated crops and increase their agricultural production through more efficient water management. “Periods of economic decline and political and social turmoil during the past 20 years have made Haiti the poorest country in Latin American and the Caribbean,” said IFAD’s Country Programme Manager for Haiti, Jean-Jacques Gariglio. “Up to 80 per cent of the people in the project area live in extreme poverty and the primary goal is to reduce this significantly.” The project will build on the success of an earlier IFAD-supported project in Haiti, the Rehabilitation of Small-Scale Irrigation Schemes Project, which also focused on the development of irrigation systems and shaped the country’s policy on water management. Through this new project, IFAD will continue to work with water user’s associations to take on the management responsibilities of the irrigation schemes. The project will also help to establish a national water management programme for agriculture, and will continue to support private service providers. In addition to improving traditional crop production and introducing new crops, the project will develop income-generating activities that are not farm related for people who have little or no access to land or irrigation. Women and young people in particular will get access to training in literacy and nutrition and assistance with small business development. With this project, IFAD has financed seven projects in Haiti with approved loans totalling US$84.3 million. Release number IFAD/27/07, Rome, 15 May 2007 (Source IFAD)

US$39.9 million IFAD-supported development programme will boost productivity of old tea plantations

A new US$39.9 million development programme in Sri Lanka will improve economic and social conditions for almost 40,000 people in the mid-country region of Kandy, Kegalle and Matale districts, and in the Moneragala district. The Smallholder Plantations Entrepreneurship Development Programme will be financed partly by a loan of US$22.5 million from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The loan agreement was signed today by E. Rodney M. Perera, Ambassador of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka to Italy, and Matthew Wyatt, IFAD’s Assistant President, External Affairs. “The people targeted by the programme are among the very poorest in Sri Lanka,” said Sana Jatta, IFAD’s programme manager for Sri Lanka. “The programme will not only give poor people the tools to pull themselves out of poverty, it will also empower them through strengthened grassroots institutions that will eventually transform into farmers’ companies. This will give farmers increased bargaining power with private tea and rubber companies and public institutions.” The Government of Sri Lanka will contribute US$3.8 million to finance the programme, which addresses the needs of tea estate settlers and small farmers growing tea on non-viable estates in the mid-country, as well as poor food crop farmers in the upland areas of Moneragala district who want to cultivate rubber. Additional financing of US$5.5 million will be provided by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The Wellassa Rubber Company, a consortium of private rubber companies operating in Sri Lanka, will contribute US$5.2 million. The initiative has a number of important goals. It will improve access rights to land by poor people, using longer-term leases under outgrower schemes, whereby small farmers are directly linked to specialized factories for plantation crops that will process and market products so that both the farmer and the processor benefit. This will be combined with crop diversification and better access to markets and services for plantation crops, including tea, rubber and spices. Rural financial services will also be provided as part of the programme. Farmers will form small self-help groups to accumulate and manage savings, arrange credit and other services and make collective decisions about investment and other matters at community level. These groups will federate on demand, which will increase their bargaining position when dealing with private companies, banks and public services. The groups will eventually function as private companies that build assets and investments. The two decades of conflict between the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and the Government continues to have an adverse impact on rural communities throughout Sri Lanka, including areas covered by the new programme. “By increasing equitable access to resources, services, technologies and markets, IFAD hopes the programme will contribute to conflict prevention and peace building in Sri Lanka,” Wyatt said. With this project, IFAD has financed IFAD had financed 14 projects in Sri Lanka for a total commitment of US$191.7 million. Release number IFAD/26/07, Rome, 8 May 2007 (Source IFAD)

IFAD’s Executive Board approved more than US$122 million in loans and grants to fight rural poverty in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Near East

The Executive Board of IFAD approved US$63.5 million in loans and US$59.2 million in grants to fight rural poverty in eight developing countries: Burundi, Cambodia, Comoros, Ethiopia, Kenya, Paraguay, Sierra Leone and Syria. The Board met at IFAD’s headquarters in Rome on 17-18 April. The grants include US$9.5 million to seven international centres that conduct agricultural research, and provide training and technical assistance in areas related to agriculture and rural development. Loans to countries in Eastern and Southern Africa totalled US$43.4 million. Grants to the region totalled US$39.1 million. One grant of just under US$14 million will fund a project in Burundi to rebuild the country’s livestock sector, which was severely damaged by the 12-year civil war. The project will enable poor rural people to raise livestock productivity and improve the value of their products by increasing their access to better technology, veterinary services, infrastructure and markets. The project will introduce farmers’ field schools to help farmers improve their skills through training and participatory research. A US$4.7 million grant from IFAD will combat land and marine degradation in the poorest areas of Comoros. The programme will encourage better natural resource management by local communities, especially in watershed and coastal areas, where land degradation has affected agricultural production and artisanal fisheries. About 90,000 people will benefit. Members of the Comorian diaspora will also participate by allowing their remittances to be transferred through a programme-supported financing facility and used in community projects. In Ethiopia, a US$20 million loan and a US$20 million grant from IFAD will develop approaches for small-scale, irrigated agriculture that can be managed and sustained by farmers themselves. Building on indigenous knowledge of traditional irrigation schemes, the programme will help about 62,000 people in drought-prone areas improve their nutrition and boost their incomes. In Kenya, an IFAD loan of US$23.4 million and a grant of US$500,000 will fund a programme to improve the supply and quality of horticultural products and boost the benefits of horticultural production for poor rural households. Horticulture is the country’s most widely practised economic activity. Kenya produces a wide range of horticultural products, including vegetables, fruits, cut flowers, herbs and spices. In the Western and Central Africa region, a US$9.9 million grant will develop rural financial services in seven districts of Sierra Leone. More than 34,000 households will benefit from better access to credit and loan facilities and increased opportunities for employment in small business. The programme will target small farmers and microentrepreneurs, especially women. In the Asia and the Pacific region, a US$9.5 million grant will fund a project in Cambodia to enhance poor rural people’s access to advanced crop and livestock technology. About 22,600 households will participate in the project. In the Latin America and the Caribbean region, a US$680,000 grant will create better networks to enable small-scale producers in Paraguay to gain access to financial services. A loan of US$20.1 million was approved in the Near East and North Africa region to fund a project in Syria that will address the increasing stress on natural resources caused by the demands of a growing population. The project will improve irrigation efficiency and promote small businesses, such as sheep and goat rearing, rural transport services and small-scale trading. It will also help the government to establish a microfinance bank.The Executive Board approved four grants to international centres supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR):

- US$1.5 million to the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas

- US$1 million to the World Agroforestry Centre US$1.4 million to the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics

- US$1.5 million to the International Rice Research Institute Three additional grants were approved to non-CGIAR international centres:

- US$1.1 million to the International Development Research Centre

- US$1.5 million to World Soil Information

- US$1.5 million to the Executive Secretariat of the Andrés Bello Agreement

A new debt sustainability framework, approved by the Board for immediate implementation, will reduce the impact of unsustainable debt on poor countries most at risk for debt distress. Under this new model, countries deemed least able to sustain debt will receive 100 per cent grant assistance from IFAD, while those with medium debt sustainability will receive 50 per cent grant assistance and 50 per cent loan assistance. “This new framework means that a poor country’s opportunity to reduce poverty will no longer be linked to its debt situation” said Gary Howe, IFAD’s Senior Director, Strategic Planning and Budget, and Human Resources. “This is of particular importance for development in Africa.” The Board approved a new knowledge management strategy for IFAD. “The new strategy will shape the way in which IFAD learns from its own projects, programmes and, particularly, from poor rural people,” said Matthew Wyatt, IFAD’s Assistant President, External Affairs. “It will provide IFAD with the framework and tools needed to be effective at a time when dramatic transformations are changing the face of world agriculture and of rural poverty.” IFAD’s Executive Board consists of 18 elected members and 18 alternate members. The Board meets three times a year, in April, September and December. Release number IFAD/25/07, Rome, 20 April 2007 (Source IFAD)

IFAD launches global initiative to improve remittances services for poor rural people

US$10 million fund to finance innovative projects around the world, with support from European Commission, Luxembourg, IDB, CGAP and UNCDF The United Nation’s International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) today announced the launching of a global initiative to improve remittances services that allow foreign workers to send money back to their families in rural areas around the world. With financial support from the European Commission, the government of Luxembourg, the United Nations Capital Development Fund, the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor and the Inter-American Development Bank, the Rome-headquartered IFAD will establish a US$10 million Financing Facility for Remittances to fund innovative money transfers to Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. “Remittances are a vital lifeline for rural families around the world,” said Pedro de Vasconcelos, coordinator of IFAD’s new remittances program. “These transfers go directly to improve the living standards of millions and millions of poor households.” According to estimates by different multilateral agencies, worldwide remittances could represent more than US$250 billion a year, far surpassing overseas development assistance to poor countries. While competition has driven down the cost of these services between major cities, they are still more expensive when sent to rural areas lacking formal financial services. IFAD’s fund will promote access to cheaper remittances by assisting financial institutions in rural areas interested in providing cost-effective services either directly or as agents of banks or money transfer companies. Priority will be given to proposals linking remittances with other financial services such as savings, insurance and loans. “The positive impact of remittances increases dramatically when they are tied to other financial services,” said Donald F. Terry, manager of the IDB’s Multilateral Investment Fund, a pioneer in the study of remittances to Latin America and the Caribbean. “The challenge is to find mechanisms that will turn remittances from a poverty reduction plan to a development tool, benefiting millions of poor families and their communities.” IFAD plans to select a first round of grant recipients later this year after a call for proposals and a competitive review process. Projects may receive grants of up to US$260,000. Release number IFAD/23/07, Guatemala City, 18, March 2007 (Source IFAD)

New US$24.3 million IFAD-supported project will boost incomes for poor rural people in central Ecuador

A new development project in central Ecuador will enable 36,000 poor rural households, including indigenous peoples, women and small entrepreneurs, to expand their income-generating activities and to better manage natural resources and cultural assets. The US$24.3 million Development of the Central Corridor Project will be financed partly by a loan of US$14.8 million from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The loan agreement was signed at IFAD headquarters today by the Ambassador for the Republic of Ecuador, Emilio Izquierdo Miño, and the IFAD President, Lennart Båge. The Government of Ecuador will contribute US$6.2 million to finance the project and local participants will contribute US$3.3 million. Local communities and civil-society organizations will plan development initiatives in cooperation with local government officials. Participants will identify ways to diversify their income and strengthen their skills and experience to improve their livelihoods. The project will also focus on training and enabling women to be involved in income-generating activities. Poor rural people in central Ecuador tend to have limited access to financial services and rely heavily on informal credit and their own labour. Handicraft production and tourism are the main sources of income, but it is difficult to have products certified. The project will aim to improve marketing and presentation of local goods. The project will also introduce a competitive approach to natural resource management that has proved successful in other Andean countries. Locally-appointed juries will reward families and communities for improving their physical assets – for example, forests. The project will also create ways to reward farmers' groups, artisans and other cultural groups for their products and services. IFAD has provided financial support for six projects in Ecuador with a total investment of US$59.6 million. Release number IFAD/22/07, Rome, 16 March 2007 (Source IFAD)

New US$16.9 million IFAD-supported project in Burkina Faso to improve livelihoods of poor rural people

A new US$16.9 million project in Burkina Faso will help poor rural people to process and market different food commodities, increasing incomes of some 20,000 households. Of the total cost of the new Agricultural Commodity Chain Support Project project amount, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) will provide a loan of US$13.8 million. The loan agreement was signed at IFAD headquarters today by the Ambassador of Burkina Faso, Mamadou Sissoko, and IFAD President, Lennart Båge. The Government of Burkina Faso will contribute US$2.5 million to finance the project and local participants will contribute US$540,000. The project will focus on activities from production to processing of cowpea, sesame, goats and sheep, poultry and onions in the North, Central North, Boucle du Mouhoun and Sahel regions in the north of the country. The supply and value chains of these commodities – the range of activities necessary to bring them from production to market – hold significant opportunities for poor rural people to boost their incomes. Farmers, pastoralists, local entrepreneurs and others will learn how to process these commodities into more marketable products that can be sold at a higher price. The project will develop ways to support individuals and develop links between the people involved at various stages along each chain. It will also improve access to rural financial services. About 1,000 common economic interest groups, 800 farmer groups and 200 trader and processor groups will participate in the project’s activities. With this loan, IFAD will have funded 10 projects in Burkina Faso with a total investment of US$131 million. Release number IFAD/21/07, Rome, 15 March 2007 (Source IFAD)

European Commission and IFAD commit to increased investment in agriculture for rural poverty eradication

The European Commission (EC) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) have committed to stepping up investment in agriculture as a means of eradicating rural poverty in developing countries around the world. These commitments occur at a time when major donors, international institutions, and the private sector are focusing on agriculture and its role in meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Clear signs of this renewed interest are the recent commitment by African leaders to invest 10 per cent of their countries’ budgets in this sector, the choice of agriculture as the theme of the 2008 World Bank World Development Report and substantial increases in EC development assistance directed to rural areas. Today the President of IFAD, Lennart Båge, met in Brussels with senior officials from Europe Aid Co-operation Office and the Directorate General for Development of the European Commission. Båge reiterated that investment in agriculture is the key to meeting the MDGs given that 75 per cent of the world's poorest people, living on less than a dollar a day, live in rural areas and depend on agriculture and related activities for their livelihoods. At its annual Governing Council meeting in February this year, Båge stated that following the successful completion of the IFAD’s 7th Replenishment of its resources, the organisation will "plan a Programme of work of US$2 billion for about 100 programmes and projects—with a total investment cost of about US$4 billion". "On the basis of our preliminary assessment I can already anticipate" that provisional allocations for rural development, territorial planning, agriculture and food security under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF) exceed 13% of the EDF total country envelopes, reaching some Euro 1.5 billion therefore doubling the 9th EDF allocation,” Bernard Petit, Deputy Director General of the Directorate General for Development of the European Commission, said. Petit added that "the EC will continue to provide substantial development assistance to agriculture, food security and rural development also through the new EU Development Cooperation Instrument. Priority areas of support include food security (including information systems, innovation, policy development), agricultural research, sector governance, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, livestock disease control, natural resource management and risk reduction". "The new 2007-2013 EC Food Security Thematic Programme (FSTP) is already a concrete sign of the EC's steady commitment towards achieving MDG1 on hunger particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa. With an allocation of Euro 925 million in the coming four years the FSTP intends to improve the food security situation of the poorest and the most vulnerable through a set of better coordinated and increasingly coherent actions," said Koos Richelle, Director General of the EuropeAid Co-operation Office of the EC. Båge underscored the importance of expanding collaboration with the other two Rome-based UN agencies the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Food Programme. Both Petit and Richelle welcomed the ongoing UN reform exercise as an opportunity to bring coherence to the UN system. The outcome of the meetings between the President of IFAD and senior officials of the EC will serve as a common platform from which the two organizations can identify and develop joint programs and investment in the sector of agriculture, rural development and food security that have the highest impact on rural poverty reduction. Proposed areas of focus will include rural finance and remittances, natural resource management including land degradation and desertification, livestock management, pro-poor market access, and agricultural research. This platform is the latest in a series of collaborations between the EC and IFAD. Both institutions are in the process of finalising negotiations to provide joint financial support to the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) centres. This year an EC contribution of approximately Euro 45 million to the CGIAR global network is being considered and is likely to be channelled through IFAD. Over the past 29 years IFAD has committed approximately USD 200 million for over 105 CGIAR-led research initiatives. Evaluation studies provide strong evidence that these investments can be among the most effective contributors to rural poverty reduction impacting small-scale agriculture throughout the developing world. Since 2001 the European Commission has supported CGIAR initiatives to the tune of Euro 121 million. In 2005 EC contributed Euro 4 million to IFAD to fund the “Promoting Innovative Migrant Remittances Systems” programme to alleviate rural poverty through the development of innovative remittance services. Furthermore, in 2006 the EC provided a Euro 1.5 million grant to the International Land Coalition (ILC) - the global land alliance housed at IFAD for a project focusing on secure access to land and other natural resources. The 2nd European Forum on rural development organised in June this year by the EU German Presidency and the European Commission will take up agricultural-related issues. IFAD will contribute to these discussions through the Global Donor Platform on Rural Development to which IFAD and EC are both members. IFAD as an International Financial Institution and a specialized United Nations Agency is dedicated to eradicating rural poverty in developing countries. The EC promotes rural development, food security, and sustainable development in developing countries in order to contribute to poverty reduction. Release number IFAD/20/07, Brussels and Rome, 9 March 2007 (Source IFAD)

US$19.9 million IFAD-supported project will create jobs in rural Upper Egypt

A new development project will help create about 30,000 jobs, establish 44,000 small and micro enterprises and make financial services available to 200 small businesses in poor rural areas of Upper Egypt. The US$19.9 million Upper Egypt Rural Development Project will be partly financed by a loan of US$15.1 million and a grant of US$950,000 from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The loan and grant agreement was signed today by Ashraf Rashed, Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt, and Lennart Båge, President of IFAD. The Government of Egypt will contribute US$3.7 million to finance the project. Although agriculture has been a key economic sector for generations in Egypt, most of the country’s poor people live in rural areas. Project activities will focus on enabling small farmers and producers to set up marketing associations, improving people’s access to microfinance services and strengthening farmers’ access to markets. The Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation of Egypt and the Social Fund for Development (SDF) will manage the project. The SFD is an organization established by Egypt’s government and funded by several donors. Project participants will include small farmers, landless labourers, unemployed young people and women who head households. The project will offer special support to women to enable them to form community-based associations for livestock and handicraft production. One of the project’s main aims is to establish or strengthen about 100 community development associations, 125 farmers’ marketing associations and 75 craftworkers’ associations. Through these associations, poor rural people will gain better access to training and market information, develop the ability to form partnerships with commercial banks, and become more competitive. “The Upper Egypt region has the largest concentration of poor people in Egypt,” says IFAD’s country programme manager for Egypt, Abdelhamid Abdouli. “However, it has great potential for producing high-value crops and livestock products and the government has made the region a priority for development.” With this project, IFAD has financed nine projects in Egypt since 1980 with a total investment of US$190.1 million. Release number IFAD/19/07, Rome, 7 March 2007 (Source IFAD)

US$37.4 million IFAD-supported development project will boost employment for poor rural people in south-eastern provinces of Turkey

A new US$37.4 million development project in Turkey will boost employment and foster new and existing businesses in mountain and forest villages. The Diyarbakir, Batman and Siirt Development Project will be financed partly by a loan of US$24.1 million from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The loan agreement was signed today by the Republic of Turkey’s Director General of Foreign Economic Relations, the Undersecretariat of Treasury, Memduh Aslan Akcay, and Lennart Båge, President of IFAD. The Government of Turkey will contribute US$4.8 million to finance the project. Project participants will contribute US$7.8 million and the United Nations Development Programme will contribute a grant of US$750,000. The project will work with poor farm households with at least two people of active working age, rural poor women, seasonal workers and unemployed young people over the age of 16. Institutions in villages and strengthened community associations will play a crucial role in setting the development priorities of the project. Diyarbakir, Batman and Siirt are provinces in the south-east of Turkey. Lack of physical and social infrastructure compounds the poverty of the people living in these remote mountainous regions. And there are few employment opportunities. One of the project’s main aims is to create non-agricultural sources of income and employment. It will support new non-farming opportunities and expand existing profitable businesses by improving their access to markets. At the same time the project will prioritize education and training for farmers, support farming-related activities and work with local women and men to identify village development needs. The project will focus on young people in particular, enabling them to find employment outside their villages. With this project IFAD has financed seven initiatives in Turkey with a total investment of US$123.5 million. Release number IFAD/18/07, Rome, 5 March 2007 (Source IFAD)

New US$32.1 million IFAD-supported programme will boost Colombian rural microenterprises

About 32,000 families will take part in a new programme to fight rural poverty in the Caribbean and the Andean regions of Colombia. Participants will gain better access to financial resources and technical assistance so they can develop small-scale agricultural activities and microenterprises. The US$32.1 million Rural Microenterprise Assets Programme, partly financed by a US$20.0 million loan from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), will help them to improve their living conditions. The Government of Colombia will contribute US$10.0 million to finance the programme. Participants in the programme will provide the rest of the funding – US$2.1 million. The loan agreement was signed on 19 February at IFAD headquarters in Rome by Sabas Pretelt de la Vega, Ambassador of Colombia to Italy, and Lennart Båge, President of IFAD. In a country hit by high unemployment rates, the Rural Microenterprise Assets Programme will focus specifically on offering poor rural people better access to microcredit and providing training in business skills. The programme will pay particular attention to improving the living conditions of women, Afro-Colombians and indigenous peoples, who are the most underprivileged social groups, and have limited access to assets and resources. Programme activities will focus first on areas with a high density of poor families, starting with the Departments of Bolívar, Córdoba and Sucre in the Caribbean Region and the Departments of Boyacá and Santander in the Andean Region. Activities will then be extended to the rest of the country. IFAD is expected to open an office in Bogota in April this year. This will improve its ability to respond to the needs of the country’s poor rural people and to monitor the impacts of its programmes. The office will be responsible for programmes in Colombia and other Andean countries. Release number IFAD/17/07, Rome, 26 February 2007 (Source IFAD)

Self-employed rural people will benefit from IFAD-supported US$25.3 million development programme in Tanzania

More than 300,000 households will take part in a new programme to boost the business skills of self-employed people in rural areas of Tanzania. The programme will increase the cash incomes of small and micro entrepreneurs and improve their families’ food security. The US$25.3 million Rural Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Support Programme will be partly financed by a US$19.5 million loan from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The loan agreement was signed today at IFAD headquarters in Rome by Zakia Hamdani Meghji, Minister of Finance of the United Republic of Tanzania, and Lennart Båge, President of IFAD. The Government of Tanzania will contribute US$4.2 million to the programme. Irish Aid is expected to provide US$910,000, programme participants will contribute US$225,000 and IFAD will provide a grant of US$450,000. “The programme will focus on reaching small rural businesses, particularly those run by women and young people,” said Samuel Eremie, IFAD country programme manager for Tanzania. “Households with chronically ill or disabled members or those affected by HIV/AIDS will be specially targeted.” The programme, which is widely known by its Swahili acronym MUVI, will be active in six regions on the mainland: Iringa, Manyara, Mwanza, Pwani, Ruvuma and Tanga. The proportion of self-employed people is higher than the national average in these regions. The programme is designed to support the government’s National Strategy for Growth and Reduction of Poverty. Small farmers and fisherfolk who could profitably sell surplus produce to processors will participate. “MUVI will give them training, bring them information about market conditions and improve their access to markets,” said Eremie. Communication activities funded by the programme will use rural radio and other media to make market information available to farming families in the programme area and beyond. The programme will strengthen the provision of business development services in rural areas, and improve local government capacity to promote and support the development of small and micro enterprises. With this loan, IFAD will have provided funds for 13 programmes and projects in the United Republic of Tanzania since 1978, for a total of US$213.2 million. Release number IFAD/16/07, Rome, 22 February (Source IFAD)

Lack of investment in agriculture is driving massive migration from rural areas, experts said at IFAD Governing Council meeting

The number of people migrating in search of a better life is on the rise worldwide, and the vast majority of them are from poor rural areas, experts reported at a round-table discussion at the Governing Council meeting of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). Lack of productivity in agriculture is the main reason for high levels of rural out-migration, said Aziz Khan, professor at the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University in New York City. “Poor rural people need to be able to make a living from agriculture – or we need to help them find alternative sources of income,” said Dr Khan. “Lack of infrastructure such as roads to reach the nearest market or the nearest hospital is also a major cause of migration,” said Rosemary Vargas-Lundius, a policy coordinator at IFAD. Rural development policies should focus on promoting initiatives that reduce constraints provoking out-migration and support investment by migrants in their place of origin, said Vargas-Lundius. “Establishing adequate agricultural pricing and marketing policies, providing access to financial markets and promoting decentralization may help create an environment that encourages migrants to invest back in their countries.” Over the past 50 years, about 800 million people have moved from rural areas to cities and to foreign countries. Although international migration has a higher profile, for every person who has migrated to a foreign country seven more people have migrated domestically, said Frédéric Sandron, research officer at the Institut de recherche pour le développement in Paris. One of the downsides of migration, experts say, is that it robs rural society of its most productive and skilled workers – usually young people. In some countries, it is rural women who are increasingly leaving home in search of employment – another aspect of migration that is changing the social and demographic face of rural life. The international community is not going to be able to halt the tides of rural migrants, said Dr Khan, but it can make migration “more organized and more effective.” One way to accomplish this, he suggested, is to link migrants’ remittances to formal banking systems, particularly locally based savings and loans associations. Recent research suggests that the money migrant workers send back to rural areas has overtaken agriculture as the main source of income. Many rural migrants are heading towards medium-sized cities with populations of 500,000 or less, reported Cecilia Tacoli, senior researcher at the International Institute for Environment and Development. “We need to remember the important role these medium-sized cities have in the rural economy,” said Tacoli. “Not only are they a source of income for migrants but they also represent an important market opportunity.” In Africa, for instance, approximately 80 per cent of the food consumed in medium-sized towns comes from nearby rural areas, she said. Panellists agreed that migration should be available as an option for rural people – but that it should not be the only means of survival for them. “In some Latin American countries, cultural aspects drive migration as much as economic ones,” said Benjamin Davies, an economist for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The Governing Council – IFAD’s highest decision-making authority – met on 14-15 February at the Palazzo dei Congressi in Rome. The annual meeting serves as a forum for discussing policy and budget issues relating to the global fight against rural poverty. Delegates from IFAD’s 165 Member States, including ministers of finance, agriculture and rural development, attend the annual meeting. Release number IFAD/15/07, Rome, 16 February 2007 (Source IFAD)

New US$22.83 million IFAD-supported programme to bolster agropastoral activities in Northern Mali

Over 20,000 people in the Kidal region of Mali will participate in a new programme to promote agropastoral activities and improve living conditions. The US$22.83 million Kidal Integrated Rural Development Programme will be partly financed by a US$11.34 million loan from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The loan agreement was signed today at IFAD headquarters in Rome by Ibrahim Bocar Daga, Ambassador of Mali to Italy and Lennart Båge, President of IFAD. The Government of Mali will contribute US$2.7 million to finance the programme. The balance of the funding will be provided by the West African Development Bank (US$5.03 million), the Belgian Survival Fund (US$3.5 million) and programme participants (US$26,000). “In 2005, the Government of Mali requested that IFAD be the lead agency for the development of Northern Mali,” says Nadine Gbossa, IFAD country programme manager for Mali. “This new programme confirms our commitment to meet this mandate. Over the last two years, IFAD has mobilized over US$45 million to help the people of Northern Mali overcome isolation, limited access to water, lack of basic infrastructure, and degraded natural resources.” There is potential to develop Kidal’s agropastoral activities and the programme is designed to boost incomes and living conditions for the region’s most vulnerable households, many of whom are nomadic herders. Particular attention will be given to improving the living conditions of rural women by enhancing their access to basic social services and infrastructure. “Ultimately, by investing in agropastoral activities and basic infrastructure, we hope that the programme will contribute to the development and the stability of the country’s northern regions,” says Gbossa. With this loan, IFAD will have provided funds for ten programmes in Mali since 1983, totalling US$128.9 million. Release number IFAD/14/07, Rome, 16 February (Source IFAD)

New US$29.85 million project for better water management in the Sudan’s Butana region

A US$29.85 million project for better water management in the Butana region of the Sudan will enhance the ability of about 80,000 poor rural households’ to cope with drought conditions. The Butana Integrated Rural Development Project will be backed by a loan of US$24.8 million from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The Government of the Sudan will contribute US$4.29 million and US$760,000 will be provided by the people living in the project area. The loan agreement was signed at IFAD headquarters today by Mohamed El Amin Kabashi Eisa, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry in the Republic of the Sudan, and Lennart Båge, President of IFAD. The project will assist rural people in five states that share natural resources in the Butana region. In particular, the project will boost their incomes from livestock production and other small businesses and at the same time ensure the sustainable management of natural resources. It will also improve animal nutrition, access to veterinary services and the organization of meat and dairy marketing. Smallholder farmers in the region are expected to benefit from higher meat and milk production, lower production costs, and improved market prices. The Butana region of the Sudan is comprised mainly of smallholders and has been prioritised by the country’s government to receive support as it is one of the poorer drought-affected areas of the country. Since starting operations in 1978, IFAD has provided financing for 15 projects and programmes in the Sudan, with loans and grants totalling US$211 million. Release number IFAD/13/07, Rome, 16 February 2007 (Source IFAD)

IFAD Member States say development effectiveness demands “true partnerships” as the 30th Governing Council draws to a close

The Governing Council of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) closed its 30th session today at the Palazzo dei Congressi. In his concluding statement, James Harvey of the United Kingdom, as Governing Council Chair, emphasized the importance of coordination and international cooperation – a message echoed by delegates throughout their statements at the meeting. “The common thread running through these statements was clear – a collective effort and true partnership is fundamental to the success of any endeavour.” Harvey highlighted the statement made by Tommaso Padoa Schioppa, Minister for Economy and Finance of the Republic of Italy, about the importance of an integrated and harmonized approach, as called for by the high-level panel for UN reform. “IFAD has consistently benefited from the generous support of its host country – support which was reconfirmed by Minister Padoa Schioppa’s confirmation of Italy’s contribution to the Seventh Replenishment of IFAD’s resources with EUR 41.5 million,” Harvey said. “Rural employment and livelihoods” was the theme of this year’s Governing Council meeting. Many of the world’s poorest countries are plagued by high rates of unemployment and underemployment, especially in rural areas. Higher incomes and better standards of living in some urban areas have encouraged a large number of poor rural people to migrate to nearby cities or other countries to find work. Those remaining in rural areas are facing new challenges that require renewed commitment to rural development. Three round-table discussions were held on topics related to the theme: migration and rural employment; rural employment promotion through the value chain approach; and, generating remunerative livelihood opportunities for rural youth. Kevin Cleaver, IFAD Assistant President for Programme Management called attention to the universal support for IFAD expressed in the statements made by IFAD Governors and the irony that “such strong support exists while aid to agriculture and rural development continues to stagnate.” The support from IFAD’s Governors, he continued, “enables IFAD to provide financial and technical support to a large number of projects in developing countries and provides legitimacy to the approach followed by IFAD in its projects.” In his opening address, IFAD President Lennart Båge reported on IFAD’s highly successful 2006 work programme and the organization’s plans to further improve performance in the future. “IFAD has, since its inception, supported hundreds of millions of poor rural people. But we could do more. The development impact of IFAD’s projects and programmes could and should be stronger,” said Båge. To do so, IFAD accelerated its reform process and is working on the implementation of an Action Plan for Development Effectiveness. “We are strengthening IFAD, to make it ready to meet the challenges ahead of us. We are determined to put agriculture and rural poverty back on the international agenda.” In his first message to the IFAD Governing Council, the newly appointed UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned that progress towards meeting the Millennium Development Goals has been uneven. He highlighted the critical role that IFAD has to play in turning that tide. “IFAD-supported projects not only contribute directly to reducing poverty in rural areas -- where three quarters of the world’s poorest people live -- but also generate lessons for all involved in the global effort to end poverty and hunger.” Prime Minister of the Republic of Mozambique, Luisa Dias Diogo, delivered the keynote address at yesterday’s opening ceremony. In it she called for an end to the appalling conditions in which many people in developing countries live. As co-chair of the high-level UN reform panel, Diogo also spoke about the importance of developing strong coherence and effectiveness across the UN system because “the UN plays an important role in our efforts to achieve sustainable development.” The Council considered the report on the Seventh Replenishment of IFAD’s Resources and approved IFAD’s audited financial statements for 2005 and the administrative budget of IFAD for 2007 in the amount of US$67.49 million. The United States of America abstained on the Fund’s administrative budget. The Council also approved an administrative budget for the Office of Evaluation of US$5.69 million. The Governing Council is IFAD’s highest decision-making authority. It convenes once a year, bringing together delegates from the organization’s 165 member countries. Release number IFAD/12/07, Rome, 15 February 2007 (Source IFAD)

Small farmers must diversify and innovate to compete against large competitors, say ‘value chain’ experts

Poor rural producers are not fully benefiting from new markets because their products do not have the added value needed to compete against more powerful retailers such as supermarkets, experts said in a round-table discussion at the Governing Council meeting of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). Supporting poor rural producers' access to "value chains" - the range of activities that are necessary to bring a product from production to consumption, including processing and marketing - can help farmers better promote their products. Panellists urged development practitioners to analyze value chains to help better understand farmers' challenges, identify relationships and see who has the power to govern the chain. Maria Oliva Lizarazo, director of the IFAD-supported Rural Microenterprise Development Programme in Colombia, described a successful project in that country in which farmers themselves had recognised the need to develop new ideas and markets - or they would not survive. Although adapting to engage in the current market was not part of the original project design, Lizarazo said farmers realised quickly that they had to have better quality produce and had to be more innovative to become competitive. “They went from being passive actors to active actors who also recognised that their own change would affect a whole chain of actors,” she said. Hans Posthumus, an enterprise development consultant, said the emergence of large supermarket chains and a shift in power from producers to retailers have changed the structure of the agribusiness sector worldwide and stand to threaten efforts to reduce poverty. Some 40 countries depend on a single commodity for more than 20 per cent of their exports, making them vulnerable to price shocks and changes in market demands. Other issues such as HIV/AIDS and migration also affect local markets. “More needs to be done to document trends and changes,” said Posthumus. “Although the development of value chains can improve access to new markets, there can be disadvantages for rural employment. For example, there may be an increase in casual and unskilled labour for which people are paid less.” Goran Damovski, supply chains integration officer for the IFAD-supported Agricultural Financial Services Project, described the work currently being done in a region where nine value chains are supported. His experience has shown that donor groups need to invest large amounts of time and money to make these initiatives successful. Increased collaboration between all the actors in the chain is crucial and all actors in the process from production to consumption need ongoing support. Christian Borgemeister of the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) said he has seen the benefits of interventions in East Africa where bee-keeping businesses in particular have been successful in marketing honey. ICIPE is one institution that focuses on providing training and skills for these farmers so that they can meet the health standards of export countries and define other niche markets in which they can compete. Release number IFAD/11/07, Rome, 15 February 2007 (Source IFAD)

"Youth crisis" perpetuates poverty in rural areas, warn experts at IFAD Governing Council Meeting

To alleviate the growing “youth crisis” in poor rural areas of the world, development policies need to target young people, said experts participating in a round-table discussion today the Governing Council meeting of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). Panellists stressed that policymakers – and to some degree development practitioners – have neglected young people as a social category in their poverty reduction programmes. Asha Juma, Minister for Labour, Youth Development, Women and Children in Zanzibar, spoke about the Tanzanian government’s efforts to increase employment opportunities in rural areas. “We have made good progress but there are still many challenges,” including prostitution, drug abuse and HIV/AIDS, said Juma. Paul Bennell of Knowledge and Skills for Development stressed that for young people in poor rural areas, the transition from childhood to adulthood is accelerated and that it is important to recognize the specific needs — educational, health, skills training – of people aged 15 to 24. Education – poor quality as well and low access to it — and the need for appropriate agricultural training was a major theme of the discussion. “Education must reach rural youth,” Bennell concluded. Samir Radwan, an expert on the Near East and North Africa region, pointed out that development policies in the past 30 years have been urban-biased. Rural areas, he added, are not benefiting from the growth generated by market economies because of the lack of infrastructure and lack of investment in agriculture in rural areas. Radwan said that IFAD should be credited for having raised the issue of rural youth and employment. Marcela Villarreal of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) explained that rising rates of unemployment and underemployment in rural areas are exacerbating the crisis. In many of the poorest countries young people represent some 50 per cent of the population, particularly in Africa. Thus, for IFAD and other agencies, governments and organizations working in development, they are a crucial group to reach. One such successful intervention by IFAD was a large scale irrigation project in the Maharashtra state of India, cofinanced by the World Bank, which increased agricultural production as well as generated youth employment opportunities. Another example that has been strongly supported by IFAD is the establishment of rural banks in Benin that provided much-needed finance for enterprise development among youth. Release number IFAD/10/07, Rome, 14 February 2007 (Source IFAD)

Indonesia urges international community not to forget the lessons of 2004 tsunami

New exhibit showcases the country’s major reconstruction efforts

The devastation wrought by the 2004 tsunami in Asia and the two years of reconstruction work that has ensued was the subject of a multimedia exhibit unveiled today at the Governing Council meeting of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) at the Palazzo dei Congressi. In a brief statement on the occasion, the Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to Italy, Susanto Sutoyo, said that aid and assistance from the international community helped his country to “put life back to normal” – but warned that such a tragedy could happen again. “We need to remain vigilant and make the most of the lessons learned from this tsunami,” said Sutoyo. “The tsunami stole people’s loved ones and possessions but it did not take away their spirit,” said IFAD President Lennart Båge. “I applaud the way countries in the region have been able to work together to rebuild lives and support their neighbours.” Approximately 57,000 permanent homes, 1,000 schools and 330 health care facilities have been rebuilt in Indonesia since the tragedy. New roadways, fishing vessels and coastal protection, including sea walls and dykes, have also been built. The exhibit features personal stories and artwork from Indonesian children who survived the tsunami, as well as video clips of various reconstruction works. The massive earthquake in the Indian Ocean and the subsequent series of tidal waves killed more than 200,000 people in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Somalia, Sri Lanka and Thailand. More than 167,000 people were pronounced dead or missing in Indonesia, and about half a million people were left homeless. The Indonesian province of Aceh suffered the worst physical damage; more than 40 per cent of its inhabitants reportedly lost their livelihoods after the tsunami. The exhibit was organized by the Government of Indonesia as a token of its appreciation for the assistance and cooperation provided to its country by the three Rome-based UN agencies, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Food Programme (WFP) and IFAD. The Governing Council is IFAD’s highest decision-making authority. Its annual meeting serves as a forum for discussing policy and budget issues that relate to the global fight against rural poverty. Delegates from IFAD’s 165 Member states, including ministers of finance, agriculture and rural development, attend the annual meeting. Release number IFAD/09/07, Rome, 14 February (Source IFAD)

IFAD Governing Council meets today in Rome

Unemployment among youth: A pressing challenge in the Near East and North Africa says Abdul Rahman Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah, Secretary-General of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf The Secretary-General of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC), Abdul Rahman Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah, told delegates at the opening ceremony of the 30th Governing Council of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) today that, “The challenge of high unemployment rates causes feelings of hopelessness, marginalization, and even revolt, all of which negatively impact social cohesion, stability and growth.” Al-Attiyah played a leading role in the establishment of IFAD in 1977 as Ambassador for the State of Qatar to the United Nations in Geneva. GCC countries have provided US$116.8 billion to date in official development assistance. IFAD alone has received more than US$614 million in contributions to its resources. “The role played by the Member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council during the establishment of IFAD reflected the region’s tradition and historical commitment to development assistance and to addressing the pressing needs of developing countries,” Al Attiyah said. The focus of this year’s Governing Council meeting is rural employment and livelihoods. Eight hundred million of the world’s 1.1 billion extremely poor people live in rural areas with sparse employment opportunities. Al-Attiyah noted, “For the GCC countries, [unemployment] is an issue of great importance as high rates of unemployment are prevalent, particularly among young people, and have become one of the most pressing challenges faced by countries in the Near East and North Africa.” Poverty in the Near East and North Africa region is concentrated in rural areas where some 60 to 70 per cent of the region’s poor people live. Latest estimates indicate that about 95 million rural people in the region live on less than US$2 a day and about 65 million live in absolute poverty, without the minimum requirements for basic survival. In August 1989, IFAD and the GCC signed a cooperation agreement to pursue shared development goals and cooperate on agricultural and rural development, nutrition and related research. IFAD’s Near East and North Africa Member states include 15 borrowing countries or territories: Algeria, Djibouti, Egypt, Gaza and the West Bank, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Somalia, the Sudan, the Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, Turkey and Yemen; and five non-borrowing countries: Kuwait, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates. As of December 2006, IFAD funded 105 programmes and projects in 15 countries in the region for a total investment of US$1.3 billion. The GCC was founded in May 1981 to enhance cooperation and coordination between the six states of the Arabian Gulf: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. All GCC Member states, with the exception of Bahrain, are founding members of IFAD and are generous contributors to IFAD resources. Two of IFAD’s four Presidents have been from Gulf countries: the first President, Abdelmuhsin M. Al-Sudeary (1977-1984), is a national of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; the third President, Fawzi Al-Sultan (1993-2001), is a national of the State of Kuwait. Rome, 14 February 2007 (Source IFAD)

OFID Director-General Suleiman J. Al-Herbish calls on G7 nations to accord same importance to MDGs as they do to global warming, energy security and debt relief

IFAD Governing Council meets today in Rome

Addressing delegates at the opening plenary of the 30th Governing Council of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Suleiman J. Al-Herbish, Director-General of the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) declared, “It would certainly help our cause if the G-7 nations accorded as much importance to the MDGs on their agenda as they do to issues like global warming, energy security and debt relief.” Al-Herbish emphasized that, “If the MDGs’ primary goal of halving the proportion of people living in poverty by 2015 is to be met, our continued focus on addressing the needs of the rural poor is an absolute necessity.” Al-Herbish’s speech focused on three challenges facing rural development in the poorest areas of the world: increasing the effectiveness of aid delivery to the rural sector; ensuring that liberalization and globalization do not further disenfranchise the rural poor; and adapting farming practices to overcome the obstacles presented by environmental influences. Of the last challenge, he underscored that it is the most difficult of the three to overcome. “Climate change has made a hard life even harder for the rural poor [for whom] the agricultural way of life – the only life they know – has to be preserved, and this means finding ways, not only to combat climate change, but to adapt to it as well.” The OPEC Fund for International Development is an intergovernmental development finance institution, established in 1976 by the then 13 member countries of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). At the end of last year, the total amount of development assistance provided by OFID exceeded $US8.6 billion. The Member states of OPEC were instrumental in the establishment of both IFAD and OFID in 1977 and 1976, respectively, paving the way for what today is a unique partnership that transcends mere financial cooperation. To date, IFAD and OFID have implemented over 60 programmes together. Today, the 12 Member countries of OFID are Algeria, Gabon, Indonesia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. Release number IFAD/07/07, Rome, 14 February 2007 (Source IFAD)

IFAD Governing Council meets in Rome

Mozambique Prime Minister calls for an end to the appalling conditions in which citizens of developing countries live Italian Minister of Finance and Economy says that large multinational companies are expanding while small producers are being penalized The Prime Minister of the Republic of Mozambique, Luisa Dias Diogo, delivered the keynote address at the 30th session of the Governing Council of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) today at the Palazzo dei Congressi. Other speakers included the Italian Minister of Economy and Finance, Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa; Secretary-General of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC), Abdul Rahman Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah; and the Director-General of the OPEC Fund for International Development, Suleiman J. Al-Herbish. IFAD President Lennart Båge made a statement at the opening plenary in which he reported on the record-breaking success of IFAD’s work programme in 2006, future targets and plans to put agriculture and rural development back on the international agenda. In his statement, the Italian Minister of Economy and Finance, Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa said, “In the past ten years… multinational companies have expanded their role in the transformation and distribution of agricultural products while disadvantaged, small producers in rural areas have been penalized by the lack of services and commercial outlets.” The Chairman of the plenary session read a statement by UN Secretary-General UN Ban Ki-moon. In his message, he discussed the importance of IFAD’s mandate to meeting the MDGs, noting, “IFAD-supported projects not only contribute directly to reducing poverty in rural areas -- where three quarters of the world’s poorest people live -- but also generate lessons for all involved in the global effort to end poverty and hunger.” Employment and rural livelihoods is the theme of IFAD’s 2006 Governing Council meeting, taking place on 14-15 February. Delegates from IFAD’s 165 Member states are expected to be in attendance. In her statement, Mozambique’s Prime Minister, Luisa Dias Diogo, said that the Millennium Development Goals are a powerful reminder that we must call for an end to the time when human beings in developing countries live in sub-human conditions. Diogo went on to say that IFAD and the African Development Bank – two of the most supportive multilateral financial agencies helping Africa— have played a key role in rural development programmes in Mozambique. Diogo also spoke about the ongoing UN reform process, citing the UN’s critical role in development as the key element that motivated Mozambique to participate. Diogo co-chaired the high-level United Nations reform panel on which IFAD President Båge also sat as an ex-officio member. In his statement, Båge told delegates that IFAD had increased its work programme in 2006 by more than 10 per cent over the last year and that it is expected to increase by an additional 10 per cent each year for the next three years. By 2009, IFAD plans to invest US$2 billion in about 100 programmes and projects, for a total investment of approximately US$4 billion. “With this, we will reach approximately 50 million more poor people,” said Båge. Of the 1.1 billion people in the world living in absolute poverty, three quarters of them – 800 million people – live in rural areas of developing countries. The Millennium Development Goals were established seven years ago with the target to halve the proportion of people suffering from extreme poverty by 2015. “We are now half way to reaching the deadline and I should be saying to you that we are on track,” Båge said. “I should be talking today about how we plan to reach the other half. But I cannot. Globally, we are on track. But in many regions of the world we are not. If we are serious about tackling poverty, it is in the rural areas that we have to tackle it.” Next year is the 30th anniversary of IFAD’s establishment – and the launch of the next round of negotiations for the replenishment of the agency’s resources. “This replenishment will set our course in the run up to 2015, a decisive factor in IFAD’s contribution to achieving the Millennium Development Goals on time,” Båge said. The Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), Jacques Diouf was represented by Tesfai Tecle, FAO Assistant Director-General. Tecle noted the importance of increasing investment in agriculture, especially in Africa. “But let us not forget that small farmers themselves are the largest investors in agriculture,” he added. The Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP) James T. Morris was represented by Sheila Sisulu, WFP Deputy Director and Officer-in-Charge. Sisulu discussed WFP’s commitment to working more closely with IFAD — as well as with other UN agencies – and building on the agencies’ shared accomplishments in 2006. “WFP and IFAD cooperated in nine countries, mainly in the fields of agricultural development and environmental protection,” Sisulu said. Release number IFAD/06/07, Rome, 14 February 2007 (Source IFAD)

New US$55 million programme to test new approaches to fighting rural poverty in western China

New approaches to reducing poverty and increasing poor people’s incomes will be introduced in rural villages of North and South Xinjiang provinces in China through a new US$55 million development programme. The Modular Rural Development Programme in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region will be backed by a US$25.1 million loan from IFAD. The loan agreement was signed today at IFAD headquarters by Ju Kuilin, Deputy Director General with the Ministry of Finance for the People’s Republic of China, and IFAD President, Lennart Båge. The rest of the programme’s financing will be provided by the government of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Although China has recently experienced strong economic growth, rural poverty still persists in several western provinces despite the work of previous development programmes. The high levels of rural poverty suggest that new ideas are needed. The programme will test a series of modules during a pilot phase in 10 counties of North and South Xinjiang. Through these modules, approximately 176,000 rural households will be introduced to innovative development tools in such areas as natural resources management, renewable energy, microfinance, credit and skills training for women, and organic farming and marketing. Villagers will then decide their own development priorities and activities and, as priorities may change from year to year, make necessary adjustments to their plans. If successful, these modules and participatory methods will be extended to other parts of the region. Since starting operations in 1978, IFAD has provided financing for 20 projects and programmes in China, with loans and grants totalling US$498.22 million. Release number IFAD/05/07, Rome, 13 February 2007 (Source IFAD)

ReliefWeb: Cassava for food and energy security

The tropical root crop cassava could help protect the food and energy security of poor countries now threatened by soaring food and oil prices, FAO said today. At a global conference held in Ghent, Belgium, cassava scientists called for a significant increase in investment in research and development needed to boost farmers' yields and explore promising industrial uses of cassava, including production of biofuels. 25 July 2008 (source IITA)

African Press Organization: Investing in cassava research and development could boost yields and industrial uses

The tropical root crop cassava could help protect the food and energy security of poor countries now threatened by soaring food and oil prices, FAO said today. At a global conference held in Ghent, Belgium, cassava scientists called for a significant increase in investment in research and development needed to boost farmers’ yields and explore promising industrial uses of cassava, including production of biofuels. 25 July 2008 (source IITA)

Nigerian Tribune: First Bank to host conference on food crisis

AS part of efforts at seeking solutions to the lingering global food crisis, First Bank of Nigeria Plc has concluded plans to sponsor an international conference with the theme: “World Food Challenge: Nigeria’s Economic Opportunity.” 18 July 2008 (source IITA)

The Guardian (UK): Banana Conference

Katy Taylor takes a look at the news sweeping Africa this week, including details of a conference on banana trade due to take place in Kenya later this year. 11 July 2008 (source IITA)

Cameroon RTV: Charity begins at home - African investors exhibit in Yaounde

As the saying goes, charity begins at home. There is no better way of expressing what is going on at the Yaoundé Conference Center. The colors of African investors are sparkling on all the corners of the Center and even outside its premises. Through the Africa International Economic Investment forum which will run till July 11, the African want to nurture healthy business relations among themselves first and then with the rest of the world. 10 July 2008 (source IITA)

Business Day: Nigeria aims to become self-sufficient in food again

Nigeria, self-sufficient in food not so long ago, currently spends an annual three billion dollars on imported products to feed itself, with the agricultural sector now seen as a victim of the 1960s oil boom. 08 July 2008 (source IITA)

Africasia: Nigeria aims to become self-sufficient in food again

Nigeria, self-sufficient in food not so long ago, currently spends an annual three billion dollars on imported products to feed itself, with the agricultural sector now seen as a victim of the 1960s oil boom. 08 July 2008 (source IITA)

The Times: Nigeria aims to feed itself again

Nigeria, self-sufficient in food not so long ago, currently spends an annual three billion dollars on imported products to feed itself, with the agricultural sector now seen as a victim of the 1960s oil boom. 08 July 2008 (source IITA)

iAfrica: All for self-sufficiency

Nigeria, self-sufficient in food not so long ago, currently spends an annual three billion dollars on imported products to feed itself, with the agricultural sector now seen as a victim of the 1960s oil boom. 08 July 2008 (source IITA)

Khaleej Times Online: This Africa Cinderella could save the world

Manioc, cassava, yucca, Ever heard of it? Don't be shy to say you haven't. Rice, wheat and soya grab today's headlines. Conferences are called, politicians opine. There is a general panic about one more major source of inflation. 07 July 2008 (source IITA)

The Tide Online: Group tasks FG on increased food production

Worried over the world food crisis the Federal and state governments have been called upon to take concrete measures to increase agricultural production as a means of ensuring self-sufficiency in food production in Nigeria. 05 July 2008 (source IITA)

New Agriculturist: Africa's banana jamboree

As a fruit, bananas could justifiably claim to be the best of the bunch. Packed with vitamins, minerals and energy-rich carbohydrate, bananas are the best-selling fruit in the world earning around US$5 billion each year. And yet, surprisingly perhaps, only about one-fifth of global banana production is traded. However, stakeholders due to gather at an international conference in Mombasa, Kenya, intend to develop a long-term strategy that will change the way bananas are produced and marketed, particularly in Africa. 04 July 2008 (source IITA)

afrol News:Hope for African banana farmers

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's commitment to grant US $74,000 to sponsor the planned pan-African banana conference in Kenya's coastal city of Mombasa is a blessing for African banana farmers. 04 July 2008 (source IITA)

The Statesman (India): Cassava, Africa’s Cinderella

Manioc, cassava, yucca - ever heard of it? Don’t be shy to say you haven’t. Rice, wheat and soya grab today’s headlines. Conferences are called, politicians opine. There is a general panic about one more major source of inflation. Food shortages have hit the urban areas of the Third World and in some countries provoked food riots. Developing countries “defend” their domestic market with export tariffs on grains. 04 July 2008 (source IITA)

Innovations Report (Germany): Fortified cassava could provide a day's nutrition in a single meal

Scientists have determined how to fortify the cassava plant, a staple root crop in many developing countries, with enough vitamins, minerals and protein to provide the poor and malnourished with a day’s worth of nutrition in a single meal. 03 July 2008 (source IITA)

Medical News Today: A day's nutrition in a single meal could be provided by fortified cassava

Scientists have determined how to fortify the cassava plant, a staple root crop in many developing countries, with enough vitamins, minerals and protein to provide the poor and malnourished with a day's worth of nutrition in a single meal. 01 July 2008 (source IITA)

Red Orbit News: Meal of fortified cassava could provide day's worth of nutrition

Scientists have determined how to fortify the cassava plant, a staple root crop in many developing countries, with enough vitamins, minerals and protein to provide the poor and malnourished with a day's worth of nutrition in a single meal. 01 July 2008 (source IITA)

EurekAlert: Fortified cassava could provide a day's nutrition in a single meal

Scientists have determined how to fortify the cassava plant, a staple root crop in many developing countries, with enough vitamins, minerals and protein to provide the poor and malnourished with a day's worth of nutrition in a single meal. 01 July 2008 (source IITA)

Science Daily News: Fortified cassava could provide a day's nutrition in a single meal

Scientists have determined how to fortify the cassava plant, a staple root crop in many developing countries, with enough vitamins, minerals and protein to provide the poor and malnourished with a day's worth of nutrition in a single meal. 30 June 2008 (source IITA)

NewsWise: Fortified cassava could provide a day's nutrition in a single meal

Scientists have determined how to fortify the cassava plant, a staple root crop in many developing countries, with enough vitamins, minerals and protein to provide the poor and malnourished with a day’s worth of nutrition in a single meal. 30 June 2008 (source IITA)

International plant gene pool becomes operational

A new multilateral system for the fair and equitable sharing plant genetic resources for food and agriculture has become operational. 29/10/2007 (source FAO)

Official FAO response to evaluation report

FAO today welcomed the report of the first Independent External Evaluation (IEE) in its 62-year history as a major milestone and proposed a number of early actions to start the process of implementing its recommendations. 29/10/2007 (source FAO)

Food security and trade in the Caribbean

Special assistance to Caribbean countries to promote food security and take advantage of trade liberalization is provided under an innovative FAO project funded by the Government of Italy. 26/10/2007 (source FAO)

Bird flu virus in Europe – a hidden danger

The avian influenza virus H5N1 could become entrenched in poultry and domestic ducks and geese in parts of Europe, FAO warned. 25/10/2007 (source FAO)

Diouf: It is time to implement the right to food

"The world has the means to implement the right to food. The time has come to take action," declared Dr. Jacques Diouf today at the United Nations in New York. 18/10/2007 (source FAO)

FAO welcomes final evaluation report

FAO today welcomed the final report of the Independent External Evaluation of the Organization, which diagnoses institutional performance and charts a way forward for FAO, as a “major milestone” in its history. 18/10/2007 (source FAO)

US announces boost for FAO’s bird flu programme

The United States will support FAO’s avian influenza control and prevention programme with an additional US$38 million. 17/10/2007 (source FAO)

FAO insists on food as a human right

FAO today called for a renewed commitment to guarantee the right to food for the world's hundreds of millions of hungry people. 16/10/2007 (source FAO)

More than 150 countries to mark World Food Day

More than 150 countries will observe World Food Day this year, organizing special events, conferences and contests on “The Right to Food”. 10/10/2007 (source FAO)

Teaching good eating habits to reduce malnutrition and diet-related diseases

Educating school children in healthy nutrition is one of the most effective strategies for overcoming malnutrition and chronic diet-related diseases. 09/10/2007 (source FAO)

Spread of bluetongue confirms animal diseases on the rise

The recent arrival of the bluetongue virus in the UK indicates again that animal diseases are advancing globally. 08/10/2007 (source FAO)

Q&A: Fish counters wade through oceans of data

In this Q&A interview, FAO chief of fisheries information and statistics Richard Grainger discusses why counting fish is important in the fight against hunger. 05/10/2007 (source FAO)

Wheat prices hit record-high levels

International wheat prices have increased sharply since June, hitting record highs in September in response to tightening world supplies, historically low levels of stocks and sustained demand. 05/10/2007 (source FAO)

Call for more strategic approach to mountain development

Over 60 representatives from governments, civil society and international organizations from mountain countries across the globe have called for a more coherent approach to sustainable agriculture and rural development in the world's highland areas. 04/10/2007 (source FAO)

African Swine Fever spreads from Georgia to Armenia

African Swine Fever remains deeply entrenched in Georgia and has recently also hit northern Armenia. 03/10/2007 (source FAO)

Converting wood waste into pellets to reduce greenhouse gases

Costa Rica’s pilot project to convert polluting wood residues into a profitable “green” energy source, presents new prospects for timber industries in developing countries, FAO said today. 01/10/2007 (source FAO)

Launch of an interactive web-based platform in support of agriculture and rural development

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization today announced the launch of a unique interactive web-based platform in support of agriculture and rural development. 28/09/2007 (source FAO)

FAO pledges support to flood-affected African countries

Dr Jacques Diouf pledged today that FAO will bring all its resources and experience to support flood-affected countries in Africa. 25/09/2007 (source FAO)

Wanted: greener fish

The US$400 billion seafood industry has no choice but to adapt to intensifying demand from retailers and consumers for "environmentally friendly" fish, according to FAO. 25/09/2007 (source FAO)

Severe drought drastically reduces crop production in Moldova

Severe drought has drastically reduced crop yields in Moldova, driving up food prices and reducing access to food for poor households, according to a new FAO/WFP report. 25/09/2007 (source FAO)

Harnessing the Web to speed rural development

An international conference on how to help rural communities harness new Internet technology for rural development and natural resource management opens tomorrow at FAO headquarters. 24/09/2007 (source FAO)

Dramatic changes in global meat production could increase risk of diseases

Global animal food production is undergoing a major transformation that could lead to a higher risk of diseases. 17/09/2007 (source FAO)

Time for new thinking on rebuilding Afghan agriculture

Efforts to rebuild the rural economy of Afghanistan must start with a better understanding of the country’s complex history and social background. 17/09/2007 (source FAO)

Photo exhibit sheds light on food in modern-day Russia

A new photographic exhibition at FAO headquarters takes viewers on a vivid tour of Russia’s vast food landscape. 12/09/2007 (source FAO)

Intelsat to support anti-hunger campaign by beaming TeleFood concerts worldwide

FAO's fight against hunger has found an ally in the world’s leading satellite services provider. 12/09/2007 (source FAO)

Global plan of action for animal genetic resources adopted

Delegates from 109 countries have adopted the first internationally agreed framework to halt the erosion of livestock diversity and support the sustainable use, development and conservation of animal genetic resources. 11/09/2007 (source FAO)

Living with climate change

In a workshop at FAO, organized under the framework of the UNFCCC, experts share knowledge and experiences regarding impacts, vulnerability and adaptation to climate change. 10/09/2007 (source FAO)

FAO member countries welcome draft evaluation report

At first meetings on the draft report of the Independent External Evaluation of FAOmember countries welcomed its independence, frankness and the scope of the analysis. 05/09/2007 (source FAO)

FAO sounds alarm on loss of livestock breeds

Calling the rate of livestock breed extinctions “alarming”, FAO today urged the international community to adopt a global plan of action to stem erosion of the world’s farm animal diversity and protect the global food supply. 04/09/2007 (source FAO)

Media reporting on FAO evaluation misleading, team leader says

Media reports covering the first working draft of the Independent External Evaluation of FAO were “highly selective and cited mainly negative observations,” according to team leader Leif Christoffersen of Norway. 31/08/2007 (source FAO)

US$ 13.85 million to meet food needs of Peru earthquake victims

In the wake of the earthquake which devastated Peru’s Southern coastal region some US$13.85 million is needed to help feed and restore the farming and fishing based livelihoods of the affected population. 28/08/2007 (source FAO)

Director-General welcomes evaluation of FAO

FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf today welcomed the Independent External Evaluation of FAO (IEE) as a significant and historic effort to improve the Organization’s work. 24/08/2007 (source FAO)

FAO helps South Lebanon farmers return to work

Smallholders in South Lebanon are being helped to return to work under an FAO recovery and rehabilitation programme. 08/08/2007 (source FAO)

Climate change likely to increase risk of hunger

Climate change is likely to undermine food production in the developing world, while industrialized countries could gain in production potential, according to FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf. 07/08/2007 (source FAO)

Cereals production doubles in Afghanistan

Afghanistan’s cereals production has doubled in the six years since the ouster of the Taliban regime, according to FAO’s latest production figures. 06/08/2007 (source FAO)

Record temperatures increase fire danger in the Mediterranean

Record summer temperatures and hot dry winds have made parts of the Mediterranean a tinder box with fire-fighters working around the clock to control blazes threatening people and vegetation. 30/07/2007 (source FAO)

Tapping local knowledge in Indonesia to battle avian influenza

Involving villagers in the fight against bird flu is important in Indonesia as the disease continues to kill millions of poultry and sporadically also humans. 26/07/2007 (source FAO)

Food insecurity worsens in Nepal

A series of natural disasters in 2006 and 2007 have severely impacted on crop production in Nepal, placing a significant number of people at risk of food insecurity, according to a new FAO/WFP report. 26/07/2007 (source FAO)

A swift response to the needs of Central African countries

As part of FAO’s reform process, Mr. Jacques Diouf, the Organization’s Directeur General, today officially inaugurated FAO’s Sub-regional Office for Central Africa in Libreville. 25/07/2007 (source FAO)

Benefits and limits of an important biotech tool

An interview with Shivaji Pandey, Chairperson of FAO's Working Group on Biotechnology, on marker-assisted selection. 24/07/2007 (source FAO)

Yemen receives pesticides from Mauritania to battle locust outbreaks

Yemen has received a pesticide donation from Mauritania to combat the worst locust outbreak in nearly 15 years. 23/07/2007 (source FAO)

FAO and WHO urge all countries to be more vigilant about food safety

FAO and WHO are urging all countries to strengthen their food safety systems and to be far more vigilant with food producers and traders. 19/07/2007 (source FAO)

Crop prospects mixed for low-income food-deficit countries in 2007

Slowdown in growth of cereal production in low-income food-deficit countries, coupled with prospects for continued high international prices, could result in a tighter food supply situation for these countries in the coming year. 17/07/2007 (source FAO)

Turkish Prime Minister receives Agricola Medal

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan receives FAO's Agricola Medal and a new FAO regional sub-office is inaugurated in Ankara. 11/07/2007 (source FAO)

Codex adopts new food safety and quality standards

The Codex Alimentarius Commission has adopted 44 new and amended food standards and set up a comprehensive set of risk analysis principles for food items not covered by Codex. 09/07/2007 (source FAO)

Latin America and the Caribbean: uneven progress in hunger fight

Despite positive results in the fight against hunger in many parts of Latin America and the Caribbean, progress has not been evenly distributed, says FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf. 06/07/2007 (source FAO)

Locusts could reach India and Pakistan

Desert Locust swarms from Ethiopia and northern Somalia are expected to cross the Indian Ocean and could reach India and Pakistan. 04/07/2007 (source FAO)

Growing bio-fuel demand underpinning higher agriculture prices

Increased demand for bio-fuels is causing fundamental changes to agricultural markets, according to a joint OECD-FAO report. 04/07/2007 (source FAO)

FAO signs agreement with Italian Meteorological Service

Italy will supply to FAO real-time meteorological data, products and services that will help the UN agency improve its services in developing countries. 02/07/2007 (source FAO)

UN food standards commission meets

New measures to ensure safer infant powdered formula and hygienic egg production will be discussed by the Codex Alimentarius Commission. 02/07/2007 (source FAO)

Countries making progress in response to avian influenza

The response to the deadly H5N1 virus in poultry has significantly improved over the past three years, but the virus remains entrenched in several countries. 27/06/2007 (source FAO)

African Swine Fever likely to be widespread in Georgia

There is strong evidence that the devastating pig disease African Swine Fever is widely spread across Georgia. 26/06/2007 (source FAO)

Tackling hunger in the Horn of Africa

Six African governments and the United Nations today agreed on a road map to tackle the root causes of rising hunger across the drought-plagued Horn of Africa. 26/06/2007 (source FAO)

The most fundamental human right is the right to food

Dr. Jacques Diouf yesterday urged Europe's parliamentarians to meet the challenge of the fight against hunger especially in rural areas. 26/06/2007 (source FAO)

FAO helping countries fight illegal fishing in Indian Ocean

A group of 50 participants from 13 countries in the Indian Ocean region are strategizing on how to toughen up controls in coastal ports in order to better combat illegal fishing during an FAO-run workshop starting in Mauritius. 21/06/2007 (source FAO)

Bringing mountain peoples together

Nearly one-third of the world’s food insecure live in mountain areas - over 245 million people, but development has barely touched many mountain communities. Increasingly, however, mountainous regions in Europe are providing resources and expertise to highland communities in developing countries. 20/06/2007 (source FAO)

IAEA Establishes International Seismic Safety Centre

The IAEA officially inaugurated an international centre to coordinate efforts for protecting nuclear installations against the effects of earthquakes. 3 October 2008 (Source: iaea)

ICARDA Board of Trustees Spring Meetings 2008

The 43rd Meetings of the ICARDA Board of Trustees (BOT) was held at ICARDA Headquarters in Aleppo, 28 April - 3 May. The official BOT Meeting was held on 1-2 May; and it was preceded by the Board Program Committee Meeting on 28-29 April followed by the Meetings of the Audit and Nomination Committees and the Executive Committee which were held concurrently on 30 April. In their two-day-long meeting, the Board reviewed and discussed the implementation of ICARDA's Strategic Plan, the Medium Term Plan 2009-2011, implementation of the EPMR and CCER on Finance and Management, governance issues, staff matters and other issues. The Board devoted a special session to discuss the CGIAR Change Management Initiative and developed the elements of a position paper for ICARDA. Opening the meeting, Dr Guido Gryseels, Board Chairperson, welcomed the members, particularly the new members Dr Camilla Toulmin, Director of the International Institute of Environment and Development, London, Mr Taleb Kattoun representing the State Planning Commission of the host country Syria, and Ms Petal Somarsingh, a financial expert, who attended the Board Meeting as an observer before joining the next Board Meeting as a member. Dr Mahmoud Solh, Director General, presented his report to the Board, in which he highlighted the achievements of the Center and described the steps taken to implement the EPMR recommendations, the Strategic Plan, the recommendations on the CCER on Management and Finance, funding status and financial management, resource mobilization and donors relations, strengthening relations with NARS, participation in CGIAR meetings and the CGIAR Change Management, and the progress made in Challenge Programs. The Director General informed the Board that many of the recommendations made in the EPMR and CCER have been implemented and the implementation of other recommendations was underway. The Strategic Plan has been completed and the implementation of the Strategy has already started. The Research Programs have been realigned. Dr Solh said that financially, the overall picture looks positive, considering the financial indicators of the CGIAR and the fact that the financial statement for 2007 reflected a surplus. The Board conveyed its appreciation to the Director General for the healthy financial condition of the Center but plans to pay close attention to financial matters throughout the year. The Board then had an exhaustive discussion on the implementation of recommendations of the 5th EPMR report, and the implementation of the recommendations of the CCER on Management and Finance, including Corporate Services. ICARDA's future CCERs also came up for discussion at the meeting. The CGIAR Change Management, which is currently underway, and External Review were also discussed by the members of the Board. The meeting also deliberated on ICARDA’s Performance Measurement Indicators. The Board Members had extensive deliberations on the issue of Human Resources and several important decision were taken, including inflation adjustment of salaries; merits, awards and bonuses based on performance appraisal, and reclassification of staff. The Director General later announced these Board decisions at a staff meeting held on 5 May. 8 May 2008 (Source ICARDA)

Promising lentil lines for drought prone areas

Lentil is one of the major pulse crops used as human food and animal feed in different parts of the world. The total area of world lentil production is about 3.8 million hectares and the average world yield is about 0.8t/ha. ICARDA has a global mandate for lentil improvement in the world. The lentil research activities under the BIGMP are focusing on developing breeding materials for high yield, and resistance/tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses. Drought is one of the key problems in non-tropical dry lands where ICARDA is operating. This cropping season in Syria is known as one of the driest ones since 1979. Crops have suffered because of dry conditions during the planting period that delayed germination. This was followed by a cold period that slowed down the vegetative growth of the crop. Since late March the crops are exposed to terminal drought and in most cases failed to produce seeds, particularly in the driest areas like Breda, where we evaluate many germplasm accessions and breeding lines to identify suitable genotypes for dry areas. Those farmers who could give supplemental irrigation saved their crop while those without such facilities could harvest very low or had no yield. However, under such harsh climatic conditions particularly at Breda, ICARDA's germplasm and breeding lines of lentil were found performing relatively well. The extra - early and early lines filled their grain normally and are expected to give yields of 600-700 kg/ha. These lines will be distributed in the form of International Nurseries to NARS with similar environments. Australian researchers who have collaborative projects with ICARDA have visited lentil materials at Breda and made selections for their own environments and seeds will be dispatched after harvest. 8 May 2008 (Source ICARDA)

Drought and Broomrape - A threat to Faba Bean

Faba bean (Vicia faba) is one of the most important pulse crops produced throughout the world, with roughly 46 million tons of production in 82% of the area in the developing countries. The average grain yield of faba bean is around 1.8 t/ha as compared with its potential (more than 3t/ha) under farmers' conditions that employ improved crop management practices. Climatic variability (cold, heat and drought) and biotic factors (parasitic weeds and diseases) affect faba bean production and productivity. The parasitic weed Broomrape (caused by Orobanche crenata and O. egyptiaca) is the most important limiting factor of faba bean production in the Mediterranean region, mainly in low rainfall and marginal lands (Syria, Egypt, Tunisia Morocco, Spain, Italy). Broomrape is also expanding in new areas like Ethiopia, as drought is becoming a day to day phenomenon in major faba bean producing countries. There are many Orobanche management practices recommended, but developing resistant/tolerant faba bean varieties is a key priority for small holder farmers. The faba bean breeding program at BIGMP is focusing on developing broomrape resistant/tolerant IPG that can be used by NARS. The faba bean screening efforts for Orobanche crenata were started in 1997 using naturally infested soil with Orobanche crenata seeds under rainfall conditions and the materials have reached F9 breeding lines. During this cropping season, plants resistant/tolerant to Orobanche and drought will be selected. Dr Maarten van Ginkel, DDG-Research, with Drs Fouad Maalouf, Faba Bean Breeder and Seid Kemal, Pulse Pathologist, visited the screening nursery last week. Dr. Maalouf explained the purpose and methodologies followed in developing resistant/tolerant faba bean lines for parasitic weed and drought. During the visit, it was possible to locate promising lines with low number of Orobanche shoots (indicator of resistance/ tolerant) and tolerant to drought. As preliminary results indicated, the promising lines have between 6 and 12 pods per plants and 15 to 25 seeds per plant compared with the totally damaged plants with less than 2 pods and 6 seeds per plant. The outputs of the screening nursery will be used in International Nursery for drought and Orobanche as well as in crossing block. The selected lines from F9 lines will be multiplied and tested under targeted environments such as Breda station and sent to NARS for further testing. In the future, besides developing IPG for Orobanche tolerance, research will focus on genetic basis of resistance using biosciences; diversity of the parasitic weed in different regions and integrated Orobanche management using new knowledge. 1 May 2008 (Source ICARDA)

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