The genetic gain of biomass cover and height in the interspecific Urochloa pipeline was estimated by establishing an ERA trial in two locations in Colombia. Each trial included 150 genotypes from seven cycles of selection in different stages, along with genebank accessions and cultivars. The assessed traits were visual biomass, biomass cover calculated from drone images and height. For the genetic gain estimation, we used a two-stage approach considering only the hybrids in the stage 4, selected after multi location trials in Latin America by the Group Papalotla.

In 2022, a new cohort of U. humidicola hybrids was obtained and named Bh22. This cohort was composed of 5,024 hybrids and corresponded to the 3rd cycle of recurrent selection. Out of 5,024 individuals tested, 1,887 were identified as apomicts through the molecular marker p779/p780 (Worthington, 2016). In 2023, with the objective to select i) a subset of genotypes based on their performance and ii) mothers based on hybrid performance, a multi-environment trial was implemented.

This roadmap presents a series of stages and activities that are recommended to access to financing sources that encourage the adoption of practices associated with Zero Deforestation livestock farming models. The first part of the roadmap consists of categorization of the level of deforestation risk in the supply chain based on the self-analysis of the direct and indirect supply networks.

The relationship between climate change and conflict is a complex one, and Bangladesh is often cited as an example of a country where climate change is leading to conflict. However, the situation on Hatiya Island, a densely populated sandbar in southeastern Bangladesh, suggests that the relationship between climate change and conflict is more nuanced than is often portrayed.

Gender inequalities remain deeply entrenched in many agri-food systems (AFS), limiting the potential of women—especially those from agriculture-dependent communities—to be empowered and to build social and economic resilience to climate change challenges. The Harnessing Gender and Social Equality for Resilience in Agri-food Systems (HER+) initiative will generate learning and evidence on where and how to intervene at a deeper level to disrupt the foundations of inequality in AFS. This effort requires high-quality data.

There is a push toward natural, chemical-free farming in India, reflected in the National Mission on Natural Farming (NMNF). Working to promote on-farm bio-input preparations and agro-ecological practices, the NMNF notably prioritizes working among “traditionally low or no fertilizer input users… generally confined to hilly, tribal, high forestland districts,” ostensibly viewing these areas as more amenable to chemical-free farming.

In the face of transforming agri-food systems (AFS) and climate change, it is critical to uncover potential pathways through which gender equality and resilience of AFS can be simultaneously addressed. In this quasi-experimental impact study, we assess the effects of two interventions in Kishoreganj district in Bangladesh—a climate hotspot—on women’s empowerment, intrahousehold gender equality of climate resilient capacities and AFS outcomes.

Njuki et al., (2021) find that women’s leadership and decision-making at all levels constitute a particularly underresearched pathway to gender equality and justice in agri-food systems. To respond to this knowledge gap, this study investigates if and how voluntary sustainability systems (VSS) contribute to women’s meaningful participation, representation and leadership in agri-food systems.

Inadequate and poor-quality feed resources constrain livestock production that compromises the livelihoods dependent on livestock in low- and middle-income countries. Several forage varieties have been developed, targeting smallholder farmers in developing countries, yet the level of adoption remains low, particularly among women farmers. Adoption of varieties could enhance livelihoods by increasing livestock productivity and by providing income from the sale of surplus forage. Evidence on gendered barriers to, and incentives for, adoption of forage varieties is scarce.

Women play an important role in agriculture and account for around 50% of the agricultural labor force in Asia. Strong evidence exists to prove that women farmers have less access to land, inputs, labor and information compared to men, which, in turn, can influence technical efficiency in farms, that is the effectiveness with which a given set of inputs is used to produce output. Strong reasons indicate that women’s empowerment may contribute to enhancing technical efficiency, most notably through improvements in women’s access to human, physical, and social capital.

Enhancing the productivity of crops through the adoption and uptake of technologies improves farmers' socio-economic status through increased market participation. However, smallholder farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) face a myriad of challenges that make it difficult for them to access and participate in the output markets. Like most SSA countries, the uptake of improved technologies is still low in Malawi. This paper examines the relationship between uptake of improved potato seed and donor-funded training on market participation.

Cassava's storage roots represent one of the most important sources of nutritional carbohydrates worldwide. Particularly, smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa depend on this crop plant, where resilient and yield-improved varieties are of vital importance to support steadily increasing populations. Aided by a growing understanding of the plant's metabolism and physiology, targeted improvement concepts already led to visible gains in recent years.