State of knowledge of soil biodiversity – Status, challenges and potentialities

There is increasing attention to the importance of biodiversity for food security and nutrition, especially above-ground biodiversity such as plants and animals. However, less attention is being paid to the biodiversity beneath our feet, soil biodiversity, which drives many processes that produce food or purify soil and water. This report is the result of an inclusive process involving more than 300 scientists from around the world under the auspices of the FAO’s Global Soil Partnership and its Intergovernmental Technical Panel on Soils, the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Global Soil Biodiversity Initiative, and the European Commission. It presents concisely the state of knowledge on soil biodiversity, the threats to it, and the solutions that soil biodiversity can provide to problems in different fields. It also represents a valuable contribution to raising awareness of the importance of soil biodiversity and highlighting its role in finding solutions to today’s global threats.

Source: https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en/c/cb1928en

Food Security, Safety, and Sustainability—Getting the Trade-Offs Right

The United Nations sustainable development goals include eradication of hunger. To feed 10 billion persons 2050, we need to get the trade-offs right between sustainability, food security, food safety, and make better use of food already produced. The hierarchy of strategies for reducing food losses and waste are in descending order source reduction, reusing or reprocessing surplus foods, recycle food as feed for animals, recover the energy as biofuels, nutrients as compost, or raw materials for industry, while as last resorts one may consider recovering the energy by incineration or dumping as garbage in landfills. This paper will explore the trade-offs inherent when aiming at triple goals of sustainability, food security, and safety looking at these strategies for reducing food losses and waste and resource footprints. Intensification of food production and circular food systems could be parts of these solutions to future food security. In this regard could our future trade-offs be informed by the experiences from the use of antimicrobials to intensify food production and from the outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in terms of circular food production? There is no trade-off between intensification of food production aided by antimicrobials and the public health risks from antimicrobial resistance due to the zoo-technical use of antimicrobials. A sustainable future requires control of antimicrobial resistance. If one avoids that cycles of nutrients become cycles of pathogens and/or hazards, circular food production systems will a major contribution to the future sustainable food security. Source reduction i.e., limiting food losses and waste appears to the strategy most promising for achieving sustainability. By using artificial intelligence and intelligent packaging major progress is possible, with the added benefit of better control of food fraud. A changed diet—eating more plant-based foods and not eating animal protein produced by edible feedstuffs, and source reduction of the food lost or wasted should enable us to feed at least an additional billion persons. Solutions to sustainability and food security should integrate food safety considerations from the start.

Introduction

Food safety and security are two complementing elements of our sustainable future. This paper will argue that in the long run the aims of food safety and security must be aligned to achieve sustainability, and the trade-offs between these three goals must be managed carefully and based on evidence. Hence, we need novel solutions for our future food security and sustainability without compromising food safety to achieve the United Nations sustainable development goals (SDG) including eradication of hunger and poverty, clean water, sustainable land use, responsible production and consumption, mitigating climate change, and sustainable life on land and water. Several approaches are possible for achieving sustainability and food security, such as limiting food losses and waste, eating more plant based foods or recycling foodstuffs. The trade-offs between food safety and security are fraught with challenges, e.g., when constructing circular food production systems where nutrients are recycled, one could also get a cycle accumulating pathogens.

The tools and strategies used to achieve food security must align with food safety, and public health as well as sustainability. Food chains are complex and not transparent, hence we believe a One Health approach is needed to assess trade-offs and achieving sustainability (Boqvist et al., 2018). In addition, the control of food frauds are an emerging issue requiring attention. Getting the trade-offs right, between the security, safety, and sustainability of food production, will require careful balancing between multiple concerns and challenges. In this balancing exercise could previous failures inform us—for example antimicrobials used for intensifying animal production, and the failed circular food and feed system based on meat and bone meal (MBM) that caused the mad cow disease epidemic (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, BSE)?

This paper explores and discusses some of the trade-offs between sustainability, food security and food safety. The discussion will follow the outline and food recovery hierarchy suggested by the US Environmental Protection Agency (Figure 1), but focus on the most promising options at the top of the hierarchy.

Further reading: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2020.00016/full

African Development Bank Annual Meetings 2022: Time to tackle triple crises of food, energy and finances, says Ghanaian Finance Minister

Ghanaian Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta on Thursday emphasized the nation’s partnership with the African Development Bank in its development as he addressed journalists at a press conference to publicize the institution’s upcoming annual meetings.

Ofori-Atta described the meetings as seminal, in the context of a world seeking to rebalance in the wake of Covid-19 and the war in Ukraine.

“The hosting is long overdue. Forty-one African economies are severely exposed to at least three concurrent crises – rising food prices, rising energy prices and tightening financial conditions – what finance ministers now call the dreaded three f’s,” Ofori-Atta said.

Throughout Africa food prices are currently around 34% higher, crude oil prices 60 % and global inflation is affecting all countries, the minister said, with inflation in Ghana standing at around 23.6%.

“The newly poor in Africa has increased by 55 million and approximately 35 million formal jobs are at risk,” the minister said. “This toxic mix of challenges exist even as we try to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.”

“In the African Development Bank, we have a well-positioned institution with the convening power and a network of technical and financial resources to significantly contribute toward finding robust solutions to some of these intractable problems that we are experiencing,” Ofori-Atta said.

During the annual meetings, scheduled from 23-27 May in the Ghanaian capital Accra, there would be a showcase of products and services of 13 indigenous industrialists and 5 fintechs on the sidelines.

Ofori-Atta also touched on the replenishment of the African Development Fund (ADF), the African Development Bank Group’s concessional lending arm. This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Fund.

“One of the key issues is how to push our non-regionals to accept ADF going to the capital markets to leverage the $25 billion equity so we can get more resources,” Ofori-Atta said.

He said the ADF would benefit from cheaper interest rates, should it turn to the capital markets. Donors and multilateral institutions cannot meet the development demands Africa has.

Speaking of the cocoa value chain, Ofori-Atta noted the importance of adding value to boost incomes of the country’s farmers in the lucrative cocoa industry. He said an emergency food plan proposed by the African Development Bank is designed to assist farmers, especially with fertilisers.

The plan, which hinges on providing certified seeds of climate-adapted varieties to 20 million African farmers, would see the rapid production of 38 million tonnes of food across Africa over the next two years. With the disruption of supplies arising from the war in Ukraine, Africa is facing a shortage of at least 30 million metric tonnes of food, especially wheat, maize, and soybeans imported from Ukraine and Russia. The Bank has pledged to invest $1.3 billion in the plan’s implementation.

“Through our enduring partnership with the Bank, Ghana has undertaken significant infrastructure development,” the minister said. He also noted other areas of collaboration, including education, modernisation of agriculture and financing for small businesses.

“It is a good time for this AGM to happen. It could lead to some really important change in how the global financial architecture is tackled, so that we can get the resources we need to be able to transform the continent,” Ofori-Atta said.

Source: https://www.afdb.org/en/news-and-events/press-releases/african-development-bank-annual-meetings-2022-time-tackle-triple-crises-food-energy-and-finances-says-ghanaian-finance-minister-51554

Good Agricultural Practices basics.

What are GAPs?

Good Agricultural Practices, or GAPs, are voluntary guidelines for produce farmers to reduce the risk of microbial contamination related to food borne illnesses on their farms. The guidelines are based on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s Guide to Minimizing Microbial Food Safety Hazards for Fresh Produce.

Why GAPs?

As consumption of fresh produce has increased, the number of foodborne illness outbreaks associated with fresh produce also has steadily increased. Bacteria such as Salmonella and E. coli 0157:H7 are most often linked to these illnesses, as are parasites such as Cryptosporidium and Cyclospora. As a result, some larger buyers, especially supermarkets and produce distributors, have begun began requiring their vendors to be audited by a third party to certify that they follow Good Agricultural Practices to minimize the risk of microbial contamination on their produce.

Why are GAPs important for my farm?

Good Agricultural Practices can reduce the risk of harmful contamination of your produce

Following best practices for reducing microbial contamination ensures that the food that you sell to the public will not cause harm or illness for consumers. Reducing the risk of contamination before it occurs is the best way to minimize the risk of illness in the public.

Lettuces, salad mix, green onions, tomatoes, sprouts, cantaloupes, carrots, raspberries, and herbs are most often associated with foodborne illness outbreaks because of how they are grown and consumed. All growers, regardless of their products, can benefit from implementing a set of SOP to reduce microbial contamination.

GAPs are not intended to sanitize fresh produce or completely eliminate the risk of contamination: this is impossible. GAPs are intended to guide growers to reduce the risk of contamination where possible.

Quality and shelf-life of your product is maintained and spoilage reduced

GAPs focus on post-harvest handling and proper cooling, handling and storing of product. This can reduce spoilage, improve quality and ensure that you have the best quality produce for your customers.

Greater organization and efficiency of your operation

After the initial work of developing a food safety plan, many growers report improved efficiency and streamlined inventory control and management of their products.

Your customer may require an audit

Many produce distributors and supermarkets require, or will soon require all their vendors have a GAP audit. If you wish to sell to this buyer, you must have follow their requirements for certification.

What is a GAPs audit?

There are various GAP audits available. The most basic, and easiest to implement, is the USDA GAP audit. The USDA GAP audit checklist consists of these sections:

General farm review (includes worker health and hygiene, traceability, water quality, manure and compost, animals and livestock)
Field harvesting and field packing activities
Packing house facility
Storage and transportation
Traceability (this section has been incorporated into other sections)
Wholesale distribution center (applies to distribution centers)
Preventative food defense procedures (applies to distribution centers or very large farms)

Each section is a checklist related to food safety practices. Everyone must pass the General Farm Review (section 1), but the other sections will vary by grower. Many growers are audited only on 3 or 4 of the sections (e.g. 1, 2, 3 and 4; 1, 2 and 4). Customers who require growers to get an audit will specify which sections are needed.

Source: https://extension.umn.edu/growing-safe-food/good-agricultural-practices-basics

Nigeria: Agric Stakeholders to mitigate the price of Rice.

The price of rice in Nigeria has increased beyond the reach of the common people. The All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), advised the federal government to purchase processed rice sold at CBN and RFAN events in order to attain food sufficiency.

The rice should be sold directly to Nigerians at a subsidized rate in order to level the impact of rising prices.

The National President of AFAN, Kabir Ibrahim, disclosed this in his address while paying a courtesy call on the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Mohammed Abubakar, in Abuja.

He added that despite trillions of naira having been spent on Anchor’s Borrowers Programme to secure rice production in the country, the government should waste no time in coming to the aid of the common people in the country.

He explained that it was time for President Muhammadu Buhari’s government to resuscitate the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA) and Guaranteed Minimum Price (GMP) in order to bring succor to Nigerians.

According to him, the Buhari administration may have made efforts and solid achievements in agriculture via various agric interventions and policies, but Nigerians are complaining bitterly of food shortage, rising food prices, austerity, and food inflation, which if not addressed properly and immediately, could defeat all the investments made in the country’s agric sector.

“It is with great pleasure that we come to express our solidarity with you and the Buhari administration over the efforts and solid achievements in agriculture.”

“Agriculture is today on the front burner of the general discourse in Nigeria with the promise of ushering the attainment of food security and an eventual sustainable agricultural economy that will also ensure an alternative to the oil-dependent economy currently going through several challenges.”

“However, the National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA) should be resuscitated immediately, beginning with the rice displayed in the recent event organized by CBN and RFAN.”

“The processed rice by accredited millers should be bought directly and sold to the public at a subsidized price that’s resuscitating the Guaranteed Minimum Price too.”

Speaking further, the AFAN national president said the various interventions by CBN, donor organizations, the several Acts such as bio-safety, soil science, fertilizer, NASC 2019, PVP 2021, ARCN 2021, NADF, NFRA awaiting assent, were all supported by AFAN at the public hearings in NASS.

He, however, suggested that the National Agricultural Technology and Innovation Policy (NATIP) recently validated and soon to be launched should be properly implemented with stakeholders like AFAN fully involved to make mechanized farming successful in the country.

Ibrahim also explained that all actors in the agriculture space such as the CBN, NALDA, farmers, etc. must work in synergy to really impact Nigeria’s food system.

He said: “FMARD should spearhead an advocacy drive to get all the 36 States plus FCT Abuja to key into the new agricultural policy (NATIP) by convening a proper council on agriculture around mid- March 2022 back to back with the formal launch of NATIP with Mr. President as a special guest.”

“The Minister of Agriculture is to host all farmer organizations in a roundtable prior to the launch of NATIP.”

“The minister is enjoined to reinvigorate the FMARD by making far-reaching restructuring and also evolving a formidable monitoring and evaluation program to ensure proper implementation of the new agricultural policy.”

Source: https://africanharvesters.com/2022/03/04/nigeria-agric-stakeholders-to-mitigate-the-price-of-rice/