Bhutan
Bhutan and Bangladesh join forces to combat threat of rust diseases
For the first time, Bhutan and Bangladesh are collaborating on evaluating Bangladeshi wheat lines for resistance to yellow and leaf rusts.
Keeping virulent wheat diseases in check amid pressures of climate change
Delivering Genetic Gain in Wheat is a new project that aims to mitigate climate change threats to wheat and develop disease-resistant and heat-tolerant varieties, writes Cornell’s Ronnie Coffman.
USAID’s Feed the Future initiative highlights CIMMYT heat tolerant maize breeding
The Feed the Future initiative of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) featured CIMMYT’s Heat Tolerant Maize for Asia (HTMA) project in a recent newsletter, highlighting it as an exemplary public-private partnership. Launched in 2013, the project is developing heat-resilient hybrid maize for resource-poor smallholder farmers in South Asia whose livelihoods are threatened by climate change.
Bhutan releases new wheat varieties after a gap of 20 years
Wheat is currently considered a secondary cereal in Bhutan because it is grown over an area of only 5,540 acres. However, its contribution to the Bhutanese farming system in terms of food and other requirements is acknowledged. This is particularly relevant in far-flung and remote farming communities where access to imported wheat products is limited. Wheat cultivation has been challenged by many constraints; most notably pressure from diseases (particularly rusts).
Heat stress-resilient maize hybrids for Asian farmers
The “2nd Annual Progress Review and Planning Meeting for the HTMA Project” was held 22-23 July at UAS, Raichur in Karnataka, India. To take advantage of the presence of renowned scientists at this newly established agricultural university, the inaugural session of the meeting was organized as a special seminar on “Global initiatives on climate resilient crops.”
