AsiaDHRRA Online

Here’s something to interest you if you’re planning your career path or thinking of embarking on a new line of work. ScienceMag presents a nice overview of career opportunities in the area of food security.
The demand for scientists with expertise in the agriculture/food sector is likely to increase in the next decade, says Celia Caulcott, [...]

FarmFriday shares this interesting article by Elizabeth Pennisi in ScienceMag about the scientific community’s efforts in creating “the ideal crop” and “developing new technologies for a better farming future”
Substantial improvements are needed in current crops to achieve higher yields and sustainable farming. To achieve those gains, agricultural companies have turned to robotics and other measures [...]

FrankenThursday brings this worrying article from NPR which says that “A survey of North Dakota has turned up hundreds of genetically modified canola plants growing along roads across the state.” Aint that scary? Apart from safety, health and ecological concerns this has legal ramifications as well, as GMO purveyors like Monsanto has  been known to [...]

The Centre for Sustainable Rural Development (SRD)is proud to announce the launching of their first bi-annual e-newsletter in 2010 containing recent events, news and stories about their projects and activities.
Click here to read the newsletter…
Or better yet pay their website a visit here…

Here’s an interesting read from the http://www.soilassociation.org asserting that those saying we need to double global food production by 2050 are basically using the wrong figures and interpretations.
‘Telling porkies: The big fat lie about doubling food production’, reveals that all those claiming we need to double global food production by 2050, or 50% by 2030, [...]

Here’s an interesting news about increasing yield of african rice varieties:
New findings reported by the Africa Rice Center counter the widely held view that African rice, preferred by local consumers for its taste, is inherently lower yielding than Asian rice. They also confirm its remarkable adaptability to harsh growing conditions in Africa and hence its [...]

Here’s an interesting article we picked up over at IPS.

Franz Chávez interviews Bolivian expert in natural resource management WILFREDO QUIROZ
Wilfredo Quiroz / Credit:Franz Chávez/IPS
LA PAZ, Apr 3 , 2010 (IPS) – The gradual loss of traditional farming practices that preserve the land has pushed into extreme poverty small farmers in Bolivia who 20 years [...]

AsiaDHRRA is set to participate in the Investment Forum and Market Place for Food Security in Asia and the Pacific to be held in Manila, Philippines on 7-9 July 2010.  It also joins other CSOs in preparing for the official CSO Pre-forum meeting on July 6 and the CSO side meetings [...]

AsiaDHRRA in partnership with its member in the Philippines, PhilDHRRA, and with support from the Associated Network for Social Accountability in East Asia Pacific (ANSA-EAP) co-sponsored a regional forum entitled “Strengthening Social Accountability towards Food Security: A look at the Asian Development Bank”.
The forum was participated by national and regional network in Asia and [...]

Have a look-see at the website of the FAO Civil Society Regional Consultation on Food Security in Asia and the Pacific Region. Available for download are the consultation proceedings, various documents and presentations during the activity. You can also view the activity photos.
The overall objective of the regional Civil Society consultations was to agree on [...]

For FarmFriday we share this interesting newsbit we found in our inbox from IRRI.
IRRI News | 04 May 2010 | Los Baños, Philippines
Rice growers in Bohol, an island province of the Philippines, are expecting higher rice yields and income thanks to new japonica rice varieties developed in collaboration with Korea and the International Rice Research [...]

So phosphorus is running out right? well, sort of, coz it turns out phosphorus can also be found in urban sewage. Will the phosphorus crisis spur urban mining?
They sift the powder through their fingers, smell it and admire its soft, brownish shimmer. The members of the delegation from Japan, dressed in black suits and yellow [...]

You’ve probably never heard of this crisis. After Peak Oil comes this news about Peak Phosphorus. Supposedly, this element, a key component of the global food chain is to run out in 30 years and a lot of people are concerned because “Our dwindling supply of phosphorus, a primary component (mainly as fertilizer) underlying the [...]

Got this from our friend Diderik. HungerWednesday shares this informative book published by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars about the worrisome trend of international landgrabbing for food production.
The world is experiencing a grain rush. With increasing frequency, food-importing countries and private investors are acquiring farmland across the developing world. This new [...]

HungerWednesday shares this interesting article from Resurgence about how  the globalization of the food market has made food cheap but ironically has also caused hunger. Chanced upon this in our Facebook as shared by FB friend Imam Cahyono.

Cheap food causes hunger.
On its face, the statement makes no sense. If food is cheaper it’s more affordable [...]