Villagers collect their monthly food ration provided by the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) near Masvingo, in drought-hit Zimbabwe January 25, 2016. Malnutrition and hunger could be quickly curtailed if more countries signed on to a plan to boost yields, says the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa.

Agriculture investment yields growth and nutrition gains for Africa

Agricultural productivity gains of 5.9 to 6.7 per cent a year offer a bright ray of hope for the continent

African countries that took early action in the past decade to invest in agriculture have reaped the rewards, enjoying higher economic growth and a bigger drop in malnutrition, a major farming development organization said Sept. 6. In a report, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) said: “After decades of stagnation, much of

people in Africa on a hillside

Moving from famine relief to relief from famine

Ethiopia has made solid gains thanks to a co-ordinated attack on the root causes of hunger

Famine relief was a hit in the 1980s — literally — as pop music stars donated the proceeds of their collaboration on the song “Feed the World” to help feed starving people in Ethiopia. It was a sincere effort that raised millions and was part of a global response by governments and aid and development


maize field in Malawi

Mulch, mice and ‘the man problem’ hold up CA adoption

Women are interested in producing food while men are more interested in growing cash crops using conventional methods

After three years of producing maize using conservation agriculture, Nkasauka Nthala is a convert. The yields from her tiny .16-hectare plot of maize grown using direct seeding instead of hoeing were 166 per cent above the yields of maize grown under conventional practices. Yet only a small portion of the farm she shares with her

People putting food in a donation box

New book ‘The Stop,’ about empowerment, transformation of food banks

Recipe Swap: Oatmeal Risotto with Cherry Tomatoes and Basil, and Parsnip, Sage, Rosemary 
in no-time Risotto

As we head toward Christmas, many of us give generously to charitable causes. Food banks are one of them and they definitely need our help. Goodness knows what would happen if we suddenly closed our wallets on them. Over 60,000 Manitobans turned to one in the month of March, according to the Hunger Count 2014


vegetables in a store market

Small-scale farming at a crossroads

Is small beautiful or should the new motto be ‘move up or move out?”

As director general of the International Food Policy Research Institute in Washington, D.C., Shenggen Fan has come a long way from his roots in rural China, where he shared a one-hectare farm with his parents and two brothers. The agricultural economist, honoured earlier this year by the World Food Program’s Hunger Hero Award for his

man and woman carrying a bag of rice

Ebola has become famine’s new friend

Hunger and displacement caused by the crisis could have long-lasting effects

The global campaign to end world hunger came face to face last week with famine’s powerful new ally: the Ebola virus. “It could lead to a hunger crisis of epic proportions,” Kanayo Nwanze, president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) told delegates attending the Borlaug Dialogue, an annual event held in honour of


Haroon Akram-Lodhi speaks about the causes of world hunger.  
Photo: Shannon VanRaes

Population growth not the cause of world hunger: economist

For some the equation is simple — more people on the planet means more people go hungry. Not for Haroon Akram-Lodhi. The economist and Trent University professor who specializes in the political economy of agrarian change in developing capitalist countries, says equating a growing population with global hunger is not only incorrect, but creates a

Despite economic recovery, use of food banks at near-record levels

More than 700,000 Canadians turn to food banks every month, and many of them are employed or from two-parent households

Food bank use is at near-record levels and will only come down if there’s an increase in affordable housing, says Food Banks Canada. More than 700,000 Canadians turn to food banks every month because they have “to choose between paying rent or buying food,” said Katherine Schmidt, the organization’s executive director. “At the root of


Sarah Jaibes is a Zimbabwean farmer practising conservation agriculture. 
Photo: Shannon VanRaes

Conservation agriculture will play a key role in feeding future populations

Conference told that by employing permaculture, cover crops, strategic rotation and reduced tillage, small landowners can generate surpluses and contribute to food security

Sarah Jaibes isn’t a soil scientist, or an international development expert, but she knows a lot about how to make small farms work and what it will take to feed nine billion people by 2050. The Zimbabwean farmer became involved in conservation agriculture in 2009, after rising inflation made it difficult to live on her

Policy shift needed to tap Africa’s farm potential

Reuters / Africa’s agricultural sector could become a $1-trillion industry by 2030 if governments and the private sector radically rethink policies and support for farmers, a World Bank report said March 4. Africa’s food market, currently valued at $313 billion a year, could triple if farmers modernized their practices and had better access to credit,