Offering defence against pests and diseases: Bioversity International farmer-researcher field trials mark success at several levels

Worldwide, farmers lose more than 25% of their harvests each year due to crop pests and diseases that attack their fields. Pests and diseases not only affect farmers’ family food baskets and income, but they also affect how much food is available on global markets. Ironically, one solution to that l...

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Autor principal: Bioversity International
Formato: Artículo preliminar
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: 2013
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/105103
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author Bioversity International
author_browse Bioversity International
author_facet Bioversity International
author_sort Bioversity International
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Worldwide, farmers lose more than 25% of their harvests each year due to crop pests and diseases that attack their fields. Pests and diseases not only affect farmers’ family food baskets and income, but they also affect how much food is available on global markets. Ironically, one solution to that loss can be found where the loss is occurring. Consider, for example, that there are some 1,200 varieties of bananas and thousands of varieties of beans – each of these varieties has its own level of resistance to pests, diseases and even to extreme weather conditions that could stem those losses. That is why Bioversity International has set up field trials, working with farmers who plant different varieties of the same crops next to each other in their fields, to see which combinations provide the most effective control against which pests and diseases. Initial results from around the world indicate change. Ugandan farmers have seen the presence of weevils that attack banana plants reduced by 75%. Smallholder farmers in Ecuador who planted diverse bean varieties harvested their crop in spite of a heat wave, while those who invested in one commercial variety lost everything. Chinese farmers in the mountains of Sichuan and Yunnan provinces identified their most resistant traditional maize and rice varieties and established community seedbanks to make them available. The Government of Morocco produced a film promoting the importance of genetic diversity in reducing crop pests and diseases for the general public.
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spelling CGSpace1051032025-11-05T08:04:31Z Offering defence against pests and diseases: Bioversity International farmer-researcher field trials mark success at several levels Bioversity International harvesting crop losses disease control pest control Worldwide, farmers lose more than 25% of their harvests each year due to crop pests and diseases that attack their fields. Pests and diseases not only affect farmers’ family food baskets and income, but they also affect how much food is available on global markets. Ironically, one solution to that loss can be found where the loss is occurring. Consider, for example, that there are some 1,200 varieties of bananas and thousands of varieties of beans – each of these varieties has its own level of resistance to pests, diseases and even to extreme weather conditions that could stem those losses. That is why Bioversity International has set up field trials, working with farmers who plant different varieties of the same crops next to each other in their fields, to see which combinations provide the most effective control against which pests and diseases. Initial results from around the world indicate change. Ugandan farmers have seen the presence of weevils that attack banana plants reduced by 75%. Smallholder farmers in Ecuador who planted diverse bean varieties harvested their crop in spite of a heat wave, while those who invested in one commercial variety lost everything. Chinese farmers in the mountains of Sichuan and Yunnan provinces identified their most resistant traditional maize and rice varieties and established community seedbanks to make them available. The Government of Morocco produced a film promoting the importance of genetic diversity in reducing crop pests and diseases for the general public. 2013 2019-10-15T15:44:40Z 2019-10-15T15:44:40Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/105103 en Open Access application/pdf Bioversity International (2013) Offering defence against pests and diseases. n. 4 p. ISBN: 978-92-9043-951-6
spellingShingle harvesting
crop losses
disease control
pest control
Bioversity International
Offering defence against pests and diseases: Bioversity International farmer-researcher field trials mark success at several levels
title Offering defence against pests and diseases: Bioversity International farmer-researcher field trials mark success at several levels
title_full Offering defence against pests and diseases: Bioversity International farmer-researcher field trials mark success at several levels
title_fullStr Offering defence against pests and diseases: Bioversity International farmer-researcher field trials mark success at several levels
title_full_unstemmed Offering defence against pests and diseases: Bioversity International farmer-researcher field trials mark success at several levels
title_short Offering defence against pests and diseases: Bioversity International farmer-researcher field trials mark success at several levels
title_sort offering defence against pests and diseases bioversity international farmer researcher field trials mark success at several levels
topic harvesting
crop losses
disease control
pest control
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/105103
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