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ZIMBABWE – Maize farmers in Zimbabwe have beseeched agro-input stockists to extend the price reductions they effected on fertilizers to hybrid seeds and holistically lower costs of production. Zimbabwe Farmers Union (ZFU) Secretary General Mr. Paul Zakariya said that, while farmers were pleased with a notable reduction in fertilizer prices, the same could be done to hybrid maize seed whose…
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KENYA — Ingredion, a global leader in food ingredient solutions, has unveiled a groundbreaking initiative in Kenya, introducing the “Ready-to-Drink Nutritious Ambient Porridge.” Made from locally sourced crops, including maize, soybeans, sorghum and sweet potato, the ready-to-drink porridge is sweetened using a sweetener produced from the stevia plant, fortified with 15 micronutrients, processed and packed in a Tetra Brik Aseptic…
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UGANDA – The Government of Uganda is working with private warehouse owners, through the public-private sector model, to offer grain warehousing services across the country to boost grain quality and position the country as a major grain producer and exporter. The development comes at a time when dealers and importing countries like Kenya and South Sudan have raised concerns over…
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MEXICO – Researchers at a top Mexican agricultural university have unveiled advances in developing hybrid corn seeds to boost local production in a bid to offset imports of genetically modified (GM) yellow corn seeds from the U.S. According to researchers at the Autonomous University of Chapingo, the hybrid seeds will help replace imported grain from the U.S. which is at…
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KENYA – The Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (Kephis) has embarked on a move to increase its workforce by 12.5 percent this year to boost the fight against fake seeds and monitor plant diseases. Speaking during the fourth International Phytosanitary Conference in Nairobi, KEPHIS Managing Director Prof Theophilus Mutui said the agency has been cleared to recruit 50 new workers…
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UGANDA – Uganda is considering setting up a national seed company to work alongside private seed companies in a bid to provide certified and quality seeds to farmers in the country. Fred Bwino Kyakulaga, Minister for Agriculture revealed this while commissioning a seed laboratory and a poultry hatchery for local chicken at Ngetta Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute in…
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Kenya – In anticipation of the impending El Nino phenomenon, the government has allocated KES2 billion (US$13.5M) for the acquisition of grain dryers to mitigate against post-harvest losses during the harvesting season. Trade Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria revealed this during the University of Eldoret’s annual agribusiness tour where the country basket lies, noting that the driers will enable farmers to…
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KENYA – Ukraine plans to install a cereal hub at the port of Mombasa to increase its exports to East Africa. This was announced by Kenyan President William Ruto after a meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, on the sidelines of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly, which is ongoing from September 19 in New York.…
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USA- Corn and soybean prices experienced a significant dip following the release of the latest World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE) report by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), revealing larger-than-expected supplies in the US. On the contrary, wheat prices remained relatively stable despite a notable reduction in world inventory expectations, as highlighted by CRM Agri. The report made…
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ZIMBABWE – ZimbaSeed, a subsidiary of the Zambia Seed Company and a local seed variety producer plans to introduce its new drought-resistant maize varieties on the market before the onset of the summer cropping season at a time when the country is bracing for the El Nino weather pattern. The new varieties being introduced to the market are ZMS405, an…
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