Connect with:
Tuesday / October 22. 2024

logo
mobile-logo
Home2020 (Page 91)
Acquaculture, E-commerce

 It aims to offer on-call support for aquaculture farmers to provide information on lock down regulations 

Aquaconnect, the pioneer aquaculture technology venture has launched an emergency helpline number 72999 10993 to support Indian shrimp and fish farmers during the pandemic lockdown. Through the helpline, Aquaconnect aims to offer on-call support for aquaculture farmers to provide information on lockdown regulations and farming related queries. 

 The help-line service that was launched on 27th March will be offering all types of assistance to the farmers during the lockdown period. Through the helpline, farmers can get information and services such as farmgate price fluctuations, offline farming support, availability and transportation of seed & farm inputs etc. This help-line number will also serve as a support centre to provide the latest government announcements and important messages on the Aquaculture sector throughout the lock-down period. 

 Rajamanohar Somasundaram, CEO, Aquaconnect said, “We witness that there are confusions among farmers after recent lock-down announcement from Govt. of India due to COVID-19 outbreak. As the summer culture is about to begin, they are worried about the transportation of important farm inputs such as seed and feed. Also, there is a lack of clarity on the market dynamics due to the lockdown, which we aim to bring through the launch of our helpline. We have industry experts who are constantly monitoring the Government orders and its implementation on the ground. We are partnering with veteran farm technicians, farmers and processors to gather information and share it with farmers thought the helpline service”

We are also encouraging our farmers to avoid frequent farm visits considering this challenging time and suggest them to manage the pond activities from home using our free mobile advisory solution FarmMOJO. This helps them to keep updated on their farm operations remotely and able to take decisions accordingly”, he added.

 

 It aims to offer on-call support for

Agrotech, E-commerce, R&D

It will capitalise NEC’s AI-enabled agricultural ICT platform, CropScope, to visualise tomato growth 

 NEC Corporation today announced the conclusion of a strategic partnership agreement with Kagome Co., Ltd. to launch agricultural management support services utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) for leading tomato processing companies.

The new service capitalizes on NEC’s AI-enabled agricultural ICT platform, CropScope, to visualize tomato growth and soil conditions based on sensor data and satellite images, and to provide farming management recommendation services. This AI expertise enables the service to provide information on the best timing and optimal amounts of irrigation and fertilizer for the cultivation of healthy crops. As a result, farms will be able to achieve stable yields and lower cultivation costs, while practicing environmentally sustainable agriculture without depending exclusively on the technical skill of individual growers.

By using this service, leading tomato processing companies can obtain a comprehensive understanding of the most effective growing conditions for tomato production on their own farms, as well as their contract growers. Also, they can manage crop harvest orders across all fields in an optimal way based on objective data, which helps to reduce yield loss and improve productivity.

 

Tomato markets are expected to continue expanding in line with population and economic growth, particularly in emerging countries. However, it is necessary for sustainable tomato cultivation to overcome a variety of challenges, such as a decrease in growers and environmental issues. 

NEC and Kagome began collaborating in the agricultural field in 2015, and by 2019 they had conducted demonstrations in a variety of regions, including Portugal, Australia and the United States. An AI farming experiment in Portugal in 2019 showed that the amount of fertilizer used for the trial was approximately 20% less than the average amount used in general, yielding 127 tons of tomatoes per hectare, which is approximately 1.3 times that of the average Portuguese grower, and almost the same as that of particularly skilled growers.

 With the goal of commercializing this service, Kagome will establish a Smart Agri Division in April 2020, first targeting customers in Europe, then aiming to expand the business to worldwide markets. As a promising market of the future, trial services of tomato production in Japan are scheduled to take place in 2020. 

“Kagome has been developing agricultural management support technologies using big data in collaboration with NEC since 2015, with the aim of realizing environmentally friendly and highly profitable agricultural management in the cultivation of tomatoes for processing on a global basis,” said Kengo Nakata, General Manager, Smart Agri Division. “By combining Kagome’s farming know-how with NEC’s AI technology, we will realize sustainable agriculture,” he added. 

“NEC is pleased to have signed a strategic partnership agreement with Kagome and to jointly launch an agricultural management support business utilizing AI for the processed tomato market,” said Masamitsu Kitase, General Manager, Corporate Business Development Division. “By accelerating the digitization of agriculture, NEC aims to realize a sustainable agriculture that can respond flexibly to global social issues on climate change and food safety,” he added.

 

 

 

It will capitalise NEC’s AI-enabled agricultural ICT

E-commerce, Logistics, Warehousing

The company is running their operations 24×7 to meet home delivery demand 

 

 

 Snowman Logistics has announced that the company is running their operations 24×7 as cold storage warehousing and transportation are under essential services notified by the Government of India to meet the demand for home delivery of food, medicines and essential goods amidst the lockdown. The company is taking abundant precaution and ensuring strict social distancing of people engaged in the supply chain business.

 Last week the Prime Minister announced a nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of Covid-19, with only essential services remaining open. Ministry of Home Affairs had clarified that all facilities in the supply chain of essential goods whether involved in manufacturing, wholesale or retail of such goods through local stores, large brick and mortar stores, or e-Commerce companies should be allowed to operate, 

Commenting on the ramp-up of operations, CEO, Sunil Nair said, “There is an increased demand for food and essentials from our partners involved in Pharmaceuticals, QSR and home delivery business. We are going all out to ensure that there is no supply disruption amidst the lockdown. We take this as our topmost priority to ensure that food reaches home and adhering to lock down is better followed by the community by remaining at home.  We thank all our team members who are working to ensure that food is delivered to our customers and from there to the consumers.” 

Snowman caters to its comprehensive network of reputed clients, who source and consume temperature sensitive products including dairy products, canned food Items, poultry and meat, seafood, healthcare and pharmaceutical products.

 

The company is running their operations 24x7

Logistics

Blanket detention free time is applicable only to imports into India and Nepal. 

 Maersk, the world’s biggest container shipping company, has announced waiver of container detention charges on all its import shipments into India till April 7. This comes after the Government imposed a three weeks nationwide lockdown to check the spread of Coronavirus. The move has disrupted trade.

 As reported by businessline,the announcement follows an order issued by the Director General (DG) of Shipping on Saturday, advising shipping lines not to impose container detention charges on import shipments till April 7 “for the smooth functioning of trade and maintenance of supply chain in the country”. 

The DG Shipping Amitabh Kumar also advised lines to desist from collecting “any new or additional charges”. More carriers are expected to announce waiver of container detention charges heeding the advice of DG Shipping. 

India’s maritime regulator acknowledged that some delays in evacuation of goods from the ports have become inevitable due to the disturbance of downstream services.

“As a result of these developments, some cargo owners have either suspended their operations or are finding it difficult to transport goods/cargo and complete the paperwork, resulting in detention of containers without their fault”, the DG Shipping wrote in the order.

Maersk Line said the blanket detention free time is applicable only to imports into India and Nepal. It also covers shipments to inland container depots (ICDs). All commodities will be covered under the blanket-free time period.

 

Some cargo owners will temporarily cease operations or face challenges in transportation and documentation procedures during this period resulting in the disruption of imports and exports, the company said.

“As a special concession to our customers during these challenging times, we will not be charging container detention on all our import shipments into India for the period from 25 March to 7 April (both days inclusive). This will be over and above any existing free time arrangement that is currently availed and agreed as a part of any negotiated contractual terms,” Maersk said in a March 27 customer advisory. 

This concession is a one-off gesture during this period for our customers. In the current situation, all partners in the supply chain face significant challenges, whilst Maersk continues to face uncertainties and added costs due to network disruptions in these times. Our invoices will reflect this change for all import delivery orders impacted, the Denmark based line said.

 Maersk Line said it was yet to review the detention charges for export customers. “However, we are currently allowing drop off of unused empty containers without charges that may have been picked up prior contingency on a case to case basis,” it said.

Maersk Line has reiterated that the waiver is only applicable to detention. “Customers who are paying demurrage and/or container freight station (CFS) ground rent charges directly (Ex: direct port delivery or DPD customers) will have to handle this directly with the respective Port/ CFS. In cases where customers are paying demurrage/ ground rent charges via Maersk, then we will endeavour to pass through any waiver/ concessions received by these Port/CFS to our customers”, it added.

                                                                                                                          

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blanket detention free time is applicable only

Agro chems – Chemicals, E-commerce, Seeds

FBN will be extending a range of special pricing offers on more than 80 vital seed and chemical products 

 

 

Farmers Business Network (FBNsm), the independent farmer-to-farmer network, recently announced a new program to support family farms amid market turbulence, as farmers enter their critical planting period. 

Over the next four weeks, FBN will be extending a range of special pricing offers on more than 80 vital seed and chemical products, discounted by up to 15 percent off our already low prices, to help farmers strengthen their bottom lines during this extraordinary time through the planting season. 

“We are prepared to lead the industry in helping farmers, and by putting real dollars to work. We hope others will follow,” said Amol Deshpande, CEO and Co-Founder of Farmers Business Network. “FBN is doubling down on our mission to increase the profit potential of family farms through significantly reducing prices on major inputs.” 

As a member of FBN, farmers join a network of over 10,500 farmers in the U.S. and Canada, who have come together to share unbiased information on input prices and seed performance, as well as real-world experiences managing the farm. Combined with online tools and resources to buy inputs, get crop marketing advice and access financing and insurance programs, FBN connects farmers with business tools to help them grow their profit potential. 

“American and Canadian farmers are going to hit it extra hard this year,” said Cale Carlson of LEAAD Farms in Marquette, Nebraska. “As a member of FBN, I know I can rely on a tight knit community to help me through – whether it’s a conversation on the FBN Community forum, or just helping me think through some ideas. We’re all in this together and FBN has our back,” added Carlson.

 In addition to lowering certain prices by up to 15 percent on chemicals and seed, farmers can receive a free membership offer with purchase and up to 30 days of 0% input financing for new members.

 “The online, low-touch model of FBN is extremely adaptable to this challenge, and we are ready to provide farmers with reliable support, service and supply,” said Charles Baron, Chief Innovation Officer and Co-Founder of Farmers Business Network. “We have taken significant measures to keep our farmers rolling through planting, while protecting the health and safety of the FBN community, which is our first and most important priority.”

 Farmers have the flexibility to order inputs online or via phone, as well as schedule delivery or pick-up of chemical and seed orders at one of our 70+ new local FBN Hub locations positioned across the United States. All farmers are welcome at FBN Hubs. More information on health and safety measures for accessing FBN facilities can be found here.

 “FBN is 100% committed to bringing farmers the incredible value, savings, and service they have come to expect from us, no matter how challenging the situation,” added Deshpande. “And when the chips are down, we will invest more in our customers, not less.”

FBN will be extending a range of

E-commerce, R&D

The Company is positioning CELEXT07 as a commercial product to initiate product sales 

Mondias Natural Products Inc. (NHP.V) (the “Company” or “Mondias”) specializing in evidence-based natural products for the healthcare, bio-agriculture and functional beverages markets recently announced that the Company has successfully completed the initial research studies previously announced with Premier Tech. Premier Tech efficacy results for CELEXT07 confirm that the product has potential as a biocontrol and bio-stimulant agent.  As part of the research agreement, Premier Tech has shared study results with Mondias and both parties have completed the 180-day exclusivity period.  In addition, both parties have agreed to extend their research collaboration to confirm Mondias’ results and protocol on the use of CELEXT07 as a bio-stimulant in medicinal crops under greenhouse conditions.

 Mondias CEO Dr Patrick Frankham stated that “These results confirm that CELEXT07 is a versatile and robust organic agriculture product and that the previous data generated by our CSO Dr Samsatly and his team in collaboration with the McGill University Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences are highly reproducible as reported by our colleagues at Premier Tech.”  Dr Frankham added that “The Company is positioning CELEXT07 as a commercial product to initiate product sales including ongoing discussions with potential partners. Given our prior experience with cannabis plants and the time to market this represents the best opportunity to monetize the product.” 

Dr. Jamil Samsatly, Mondias CSO stated that “over the past 6 months, we have continued to advance our agricultural research and developed commercial application protocols for the use of CELEXT07 in various crops.”  Dr. Samsatly also added that “we have initiated MITACS grant funded research and we have expanded our pipeline of novel organic plant biocontrol and bio-stimulants.” 

CELEXT07 Target Markets in Canada 

As of 2018, there was an estimated 11M square feet of cannabis greenhouse in Canada and an eligible 59M, 53M, 39M square feet of greenhouse tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers in the country.  According to Health Canada data there are an estimated 29,193 individuals registered for personal and designated cultivation of cannabis for their own medical purposes at the end of September 2019.

The Company is positioning CELEXT07 as a

Agro Universities, R&D

Field trials will start this year from April to October in Faridkot Center of Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana. 

Whiteflies are one of the top 10 devastating pests in the world that damage more than 2000 plant species and function as vectors for some 200-plant viruses. Cotton is one of the worst hit crops by whiteflies. In 2015, two third of the cotton crop was destroyed by the pest in Punjab. In a move to fight against whiteflies National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI) Lucknow has developed a pest-resistant variety of cotton and is going to start field trials this year from April to October in Faridkot Center of Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana.

 As Bt cotton is also a genetically modified cotton and present in the market for farmers usage then why this variety was needed. Answering to this, senior scientist, Dr PK Singh from NBRI said, “Bt cotton is resistant to two pests only. It is not resistant against whiteflies. In 2007, we decided to work on one more insect pest- whiteflies. It not only damages cotton but many other crops too.” 

To develop the pest-resistant variety researchers explored 250 plants from lower plant biodiversity to identify novel protein molecules that are toxic to whitefly. “Leaf extract of all the plants were prepared separately, and whiteflies were allowed to be fed on them. Out of the 250 plants, the leaf extract of an edible fern Tectariamacrodonta causes toxicity to the whitefly” said Dr Singh.

 This fern is known to be used as salad in Nepal and as a concoction for the gastric disorders in many regions of Asia also goes in favour for the possibility of the insecticidal protein that is found in the fern. It works against whiteflies but being safe for application on the crop plants and provides protection from them. 

When whiteflies feed on sub-lethal doses of insecticidal protein, it interferes with the life cycle of insect that in turn resulted with very poor egg laying, abnormal egg, nymph and larval development and extraordinary poor emergence of the fly. However, this protein was found to be non-effective on non-target insects.“This clearly shows that the protein is specifically toxic to whitefly and does not cause any harmful effect on other beneficial insects like butterfly and honeybee. To answer that whether this protein is safe to mammals or not, the toxicity of the protein was also tested on the rat mammalian model” said Dr Singh.

 

By when this variety may be expected to be there for farmers use? “It depends on many factors. Whiteflies tolerance trait that has been introduced in the plant. If that performs the same way in the field, then only it can be given to the farmers for cultivation. We have to see if this trait can be agronomic trait too,” said Dr Singh.

 

Field trials will start this year from

Supply Chain, World

To take measures for global food systems to continue to work well

The Director-General of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), QU Dongyu, has urged leaders from the G20 countries to take measures for global food systems to continue to work well, particularly in relation to access to food for the world’s poor and most vulnerable during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The Director-General said lockdowns and restrictions on movement could disrupt food production, processing, distribution and sales, both nationally and globally, with the potential to have an “immediate and severe” impact on those restricted by mobility.

Qu said global food markets are well supplied but there is growing concern and that measures should be taken to ensure that both national food markets and the world market continue to be a transparent, stable and reliable source of food supply.

As economic activities slow down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, access to food will be negatively affected by income reductions and loss of employment.  

“We need to make sure that agricultural trade continues to play its important role in contributing to global food security and better nutrition,” Qu said.

To take measures for global food systems

Agrotech

All stakeholders like Govt bodies, trade organisations, trade associations, professionals, WTCs and even accelerators, incubators, start-ups will be major contributors of center-of-excellence  

 

 

World Trade Center Association (WTCA) agricultural committee in association with agro-industry bodies intend to be a catalyst to the food & agricultural industry in India. World Trade Center Chandigarh, a sub-community under WTCA is an active member of the agro committee. It focuses on the food and agribusiness.

It is well known that Punjab is the largest producer of rice, wheat, cereals and citrus fruits. It has evolved as a start-up hub for food & agriculture and has the largest food park in India. Interestingly, Punjab is also ranked No.1 by World Bank in Ease of Doing Business. Thus, considering the importance of agro business in Punjab, the community intends to set-up a mechanism and the platform to facilitate technology transfer & knowledge exchange. 

Khair Ull Nissa, WTCA board member, member of food & agriculture committee, said, “World Trade Center fraternity has a network of many World Trade Centres which focus on agriculture and have the best practices for it. WTC Chandigarh is setting up a center-of-excellence for food & agriculture. Here all the stakeholders like government bodies, trade organisations, trade associations, professionals, WTCs and even accelerators, incubators, start-ups will be major contributors.”

While speaking on the development, Nissa added, “This center-of-excellence is different from the rest of the centres-of-excellence in the country. There are five elements on which our center is focused on i.e. skill development, up-skilling, entrepreneurship, innovations and R&D.” 

This center-of-excellence is an initiative for boosting the industry which would give access for innovations & new technology. It would facilitate mentorship & training programmes by industry-academia engagement. Adding to it, CoE would be an impetus to food-tech entrepreneurs and the focus being technology exchange and best practices between global markets & the Indian market.

 Several technological advancements have been seen in agriculture for over the years. These advancements have always led to improved efficiency. Thus, now again with a similar notion, the CoE is focused to adopt new technologies like Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Data Enabled Farming, Drones and UAV, Farm Management Platforms, Smart Irrigation, Solar and Drip irrigation, Sustainable Urban Planning.

All stakeholders like Govt bodies, trade organisations,

E-commerce, Trade

Valio Group’s net sales were EUR 1,787 million in 2019, representing 3 percent growth from the previous year (EUR 1,734 million).

 

Domestic net sales increased by half a percent and international net sales by about 7 percent.The work that began in 2018 to improve business profitability advanced as planned and was reflected in the improvement in the milk return.

Valio pays all profit to dairy farms

Valio is a company owned by 4,700 Finnish milk producers, and Valio pays its operating profit to the dairy farms through the co-operatives. Valio’s financial success is measured with a milk margin and a milk return. The milk margin** in 2019 amounted to EUR 838 million (800 million), and the milk return* was 41.2 cents per litre (38.4 c/l).

Valio’s Board of Directors determines the raw milk price based on the market situation and Valio’s financial standing. Board members are milk producers. In 2019, the average price Valio paid for milk was 39.9 cents per litre (39.2 c/l). After-payments for 2019 amounted to 1 cent per litre. The sustainability bonus to encourage the continuous improvement of animal welfare was raised to two cents per litre in July.

Throughout the 2000s, Valio has been able to pay Finnish milk producers a higher price than the European average.

 

Growth in Finland from snacks and plant-based products

Growth in Finland was generated especially in snacks and plant-based products. Valio PROfeel® products continued their strong growth, and the new protein puddings launched in February were a success. The portfolio of plant-based products expanded with Valio Oddlygood® Veggie slices and shreds. The Valio Oddlygood® Barista oat drink developed in collaboration with coffee professionals found its way into the hearts of people in Finland and Sweden. In the traditional categories, milks continued to decline in line with the market trend.

Increase in exports of powders generating customer value

Net sales of international operations were EUR 715 million (669 million). Net sales growth was moderate in the nearby markets of Sweden, Estonia and Russia, while net sales in China grew by close to 40 percent compared to the previous year. We see potential in China especially in special ingredients for the food industry, which we call value-added powders. Profitability improvement in the USA advanced as planned. 

Valio’s share of Finland’s total food exports is about 25 percent. A significant share of our exports is destined for places beyond the nearby countries. Our primary exports to countries around the world are milk powders, cheese and butter. The global market price of butter decreased compared to the high level in 2018, but milk powder prices developed favourably after the depletion of the EU intervention stocks. 

The so-called value-added powders have attributes that bring Valio’s industrial customers various benefits: for example, a bakery or confectioner can reduce sugar, or a maker of energy snacks for athletes can add protein to their products. Sales of value-added ingredients grew by about 30 percent in 2019. 

“We see international growth potential especially in value-added ingredients. The growth is currently limited by the drying capacity of powders because it takes longer to produce value-added powders than ordinary milk powders. In the years ahead, we will be upgrading the production lines to increase plant capacity,” says Valio’s CEO Annikka Hurme.

Valio Group’s net sales were EUR 1,787

AgroPolicy

More than 45 local cotton seed companies used to pay royalties to Monsanto for GM cotton using a gene that produces its own pesticide. 

India has axed the royalties that local seed companies pay to German drug maker Bayer AG for Monsanto’s genetically modified (GM) cotton, a government order said, after cutting them back since 2016.

More than 45 local cotton seed companies pay royalties to Monsanto, acquired by Bayer in 2018, for GM cotton using a gene that produces its own pesticide.

 The local cotton seed companies in India used to pay royalties to Monsanto, a former American agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation which was acquired by Bayer in the year 2018. These royalties were paid by the companies for genetically modified (GM) cotton that has a gene producing its pesticide.

 Before its acquisition in a $63 billion, Monsanto was headquartered in St. Louis. Before the final dismissal happened, India had already started reducing the royalties that triggered a long-running conflict. Even the U.S. ambassador to India at the time, Richard Verma, has approached the Indian Prime Minister several times but India kept lowering the royalties. 

After reducing the royalties paid by Indian seed companies to Monsanto unit by 49%, now the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare terminated the royalty altogether, which may leave the company in distress.

 According to reports, a Bayer spokesman commenting on the dismissal said, “While it is disappointing to see the full elimination of trait fees, we will, in collaboration with other technology providers, continue to highlight the need to maintain a reasonable level of trait fees”.

 Monsanto’s GM cotton seeds were considered a boon to the Indian cotton industry as it was the only lab-altered crop allowed in India and provided an upgraded variety that helped transform the cotton industry of the nation. India is one of the world’s top producers of cotton and the second-largest exporter in the world.

 

Although the company had such a good reputation, Monsanto faced a dispute with Indian seed company Nuziveedu Seeds Ltd (NSL), which argued that India’s Patent Act did not allow Monsanto any patent cover for its GM cotton. Both companies are still engaged in legal proceedings and cases.

More than 45 local cotton seed companies

R&D

MACS 4028 has shown superior and stable yielding ability

 

 

Scientists from Agharkar Research Institute (ARI), Pune, an autonomous institute under the Department of Science & Technology, Government of India, have developed a biofortified durum wheat variety MACS 4028, which shows high protein content. 

The wheat variety developed by the ARI scientists group on Wheat improvement, shown high protein content of about 14.7%, better nutritional quality having zinc 40.3 ppm, and iron content of 40.3ppm and 46.1ppm respectively, good milling quality and overall acceptability.

 MACS 4028, the development of which was published in the Indian Journal of Genetics and Plant Breeding, is a semi-dwarf variety, which matures in 102 days and has shown the superior and stable yielding ability of 19.3 quintals per hectare. It is resistant to stem rust, leaf rust, foliar aphids, root aphids, and brown wheat mite. 

The MACS 4028 variety is also included by the Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) programme for United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to alleviate malnutrition in a sustainable way and can boost the Vision 2022 “Kuposhan Mukt Bharat”, the National Nutrition Strategy. An endeavor to tackle the hidden hunger in the rural areas of India is being continued using traditional plant breeding approach to achieve “Kuposhan Mukt Bharat.”

MACS 4028 has shown superior and stable

E-commerce, R&D

The MoU aims at setting up a Good Experimental Facilities (GEP) for testing the plant protection products (PPPs).

Scientia Colombia has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with world-leading biopesticide technology developer Bionema, to collaborate on making more environmentally sustainable biological controls available in the fight against pests and diseases in less developed countries. 

 

Leading biopesticide technology company Bionema attended the AgriTech 2020 mission to Colombia, organised by the UK Prosperity Fund. During the visit, Bionema explored the opportunity to collaborate in a new geographical territory. This resulted in a welcome partnership with Scientia Colombia, which offers biological solutions for integrated pest management in Agriculture. 

The two companies signed an MoU during a networking event organised by The British Embassy in Colombia and AgriTech 2020 at Sonesta Hotel, Pereira that will add value in a multitude of ways, with benefits to both parties. Specifically, its aims are to: 

* Set up a Good Experimental Facilities (GEP) for testing the plant protection products (PPPs).

* Commercialise new biopesticide products for high value crops in Colombia.

* Transfer knowledge in the field of biopesticides, and

* Provide training to end users in high value crops.

International collaborations between biopesticide companies in different geographical territories are particularly valuable, considering limitations placed on the movement of live organisms in many parts of the world, and the fact that the organisms in biopesticides may act differently in different environments.

 

The new experimental facility will be able to demonstrate the efficacy of Bionema’s range of biopesticide products – already proven effective and available in Europe – in the South American climate and against native forms of target pests in the region.  

 

Dr Minshad Ansari, Founder and CEO of Bionema, said “I am very confident that our proven technology will lead to commercialisation of new products and service in Colombia, to combat some of the difficult pest and disease which are causing millions of damage to exports products – the warm temperatures will favour these organisms, and I think we can expect to see some great results in the near future.”

The MoU aims at setting up a

Dairy, E-commerce

The milk cooperative has increased supply by 15 to 20% to meet the surge in demand.

Mother Dairy that supplies more than 30 lakh litres of milk daily in the national capital region said that it is not experiencing any major supply disruptions in spite of 5 to 10% increase in demand, amid lockdowns across the country in the wake of coronavirus outbreak.

 

 

As per the report of PTI, spokesperson of Mother Dairy informed that “We are relentlessly working towards ensuring & meeting the demand for milk across the region with no major supply disruption. As milk is a necessary commodity, we are closely working with all our stakeholders & taking all efforts to ensure seamless flow in the value chain to serve customers at these challenging times. For today, we have seen a surge in demand of milk in the range of 5 to 10%”.

 

On the other hand, Parag Milk, a major player in Maharashtra told that it is facing problems in the distribution of milk from the last 2 days due to restrictions in the movement of its employees & distributors from local authorities.

 

Chairman of Parag Milk Foods, Devendra Shah said, “We have seen an increase in orders across all categories because of higher stocking by consumers for food items & this is likely to continue for some time.” He said the increase in demand is mostly from modern trade & e-commerce platforms & orders from general trade are tepid.

Not just milk, the demand for other dairy products such as ghee, paneer and curd, has also gone up as people are purchasing these items in huge quantities than they normally do.

Shah said, “Though the demand is good, there are certain challenges that we are facing since the past two days. Although the government has allowed the essential product supplies but local bodies are not letting delivery boys and distributors to continue with their work”.

 

Chairman and managing director of Ananda Dairy, R S Dixit said there are problems but we are doing our best to serve the nation at this time”.

MD, Amul R S Sodhi also said there was no shortage of milk in India and people should not resort to hoarding of dairy products. Sodhi said that the cooperative has increased supply by 15 to 20% to meet the surge in demand.

The milk cooperative has increased supply by