B4FA Week in Review - Week of 25 November

B4FA – The Week in Review

Week of 25 November 2012

In what has been deemed a ‘breakthrough for food security,’ an international team of scientists has completed a ‘shotgun sequencing’ of the wheat genome, a paper published in Nature revealed. Thanks to these results and the on-going work of other scientists on the wheat genome, it is expected that wheat that resists common diseases and better tolerates temperature fluctuations will soon be on the horizon.

This week a $25 million grant to support cutting-edge cassava breeding was announced by Cornell University. African scientists will be better able to analyse the cassava genome to select desired traits and shorten the lengthy process of breeding cassava. New varieties of cassava could be produced in six years – good news for the millions of people who rely on cassava as a staple crop.

The Guardian explores how food security is moving up the development agenda, particularly as food prices rise, while Africa Renewal Online notes that the African Union’s efforts to boost investments in agriculture through its Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme are having mixed results, primarily due to a lack of adequate funding and also because it cannot be enforced.

Lastly, after approving imports of genetically modified maize last year, Kenya has now banned all imports and cultivation of GM crops. SciDev.net reports that Kenyan scientists are concerned about the future of biotech research and development in Kenya as a result of this recent turn of events.

Please read on for even more interesting articles from this week! As always, we welcome your feedback at [email protected]

B4FA

Leading scientists analyse African innovation in Addis Ababa workshop
B4FA.org

Tanzanian Media Fellow highlights role of U.S., EU in African GMO debate
B4fA.org
Biosciences – including Genetics

Analysis of the bread wheat genome using whole-genome shotgun sequencing
Nature

Scientists Sequence the Wheat Genome in Breakthrough for Global Food Security
Science Daily

FOOD: Decoding food security (wheat genome)
IRIN Humanitarian News and Analysis

New $25 million grant will improve cassava breeding
Nanowerk.com

Trust ‘a major challenge’ to agricultural biotechnology
SciDev

Researchers to conduct further study on African rice blast
Crop Biotech Update, ISAAA

Ghana

AGRA launches two-year climate change project for Ghana
Ghana Business News