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Home2021November (Page 10)
AgroPolicy, Environment, Sustainable Energy

The World Bank will spend $25 billion in climate finance annually to 2025 through its Climate Action Plan

India has signed the sustainable agriculture action agenda after the first week of the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, laying out new commitments to make farming more sustainable and less polluting.

The ‘Sustainable Agriculture Policy Action Agenda for the Transition to Sustainable Agriculture and Global Action Agenda for Innovation in Agriculture’ was among the highlight action pledges to be clinched by the participating countries at the 26th Conference of Parties (COP26) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) recently.

The countries laid out new commitments to change their agricultural policies to become more sustainable and less polluting and to invest in the science needed for sustainable agriculture and for protecting food supplies against climate change.

The World Bank will commit to spending $25 billion in climate finance annually to 2025 through its Climate Action Plan, including a focus on agriculture and food systems.
 
 

The World Bank will spend $25 billion

Agrotech, Environment, World

Reports will be made available on the digital platform, organised by sector dashboards that will feature the data collected, strengthening initiatives that are being undertaken in the sector

Minerva Foods, the leading beef exporter in South America together with the Institute of Forest and Agricultural Management and Certification (Imaflora), a Brazilian non-governmental organisation, which works to promote social and environmental transformations in the forestry and agricultural sectors, have announced their partnership in Imaflora’s new programme Carbon On Track, for measuring the carbon balance of farms in South America.

 

Maintaining its pioneering spirit, Minerva Foods is the first partner from the livestock sector to engage with Carbon On Track. Minerva Foods selected 25 supply farms in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Paraguay and Uruguay to participate in a pilot project totalling more than 232,000 head of cattle and 185,000 hectares of pasture, and encompassing five different biomes: Amazon, Pantanal, Cerrado, Pampas and Chaco.

 

Reports will be made available on the digital platform, organised by sector dashboards that will feature the data collected, strengthening initiatives that are being undertaken in the sector. Personalised control panels will be developed for partner companies, which will store the results of the balance sheets, as well as information regarding the monitoring of suppliers, environmental performance history, forest restoration projects and initiatives to encourage low carbon livestock farming.

 

Looking to the future, Carbon On Track may also enable the certification of projects that are aimed at generating carbon credits. 

Reports will be made available on the

Agro Universities, AgroPolicy, Environment

Discussions were held on region and season-specific methane ameliorative strategies

The Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi in association with the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Nairobi, Kenya jointly organised a Training Programme on ’Livestock Methane Emission: Assessment, Impact and Amelioration Strategies’ at the ICAR-National Institute of Animal Nutrition and Physiology, Bengaluru, Karnataka.

 

Dr S Ayyappan, Chancellor, Central Agricultural University, Imphal; Chairman, Karnataka Science and Technology Academy & Former Secretary (DARE) & Director General (ICAR) marked his presence as the Chief Guest of the occasion. In his address, Dr Ayyappan emphasised on developing the region and season-specific methane ameliorative strategies.

 

Dr Praveen Malik, Animal Husbandry Commissioner, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying, Government of India was the Chief Guest during the valedictory function. In his address, Dr Malik accentuated on the periodical updating of the enteric methane emission inventory. He also apprised about the Agnii Programme for the field validation of the developed technology and connecting the researchers to the emerging entrepreneurs and incubations.

 

The Guest of Honor, Dr H Rahman, Regional Representative South Asia, ILRI, New Delhi underlined the regarded the research programme on livestock methane emissions as one of the ILRI’s mandates.

 

Dr Raghavendra Bhatta, Director, ICAR-NIANP, Bengaluru stressed on the importance of initiating the methane amelioration in the hotspots with the joint efforts by the networking of researchers.

 

The programme registered a total of participation by 22 participants from 10 states across the country.

Discussions were held on region and season-specific

Agro Universities, AgroPolicy

M Venkaiah Naidu inaugurates Pt Deendayal Upadhyaya College of Horticulture & Forestry

The Vice President, M Venkaiah Naidu emphasised the need to promote agro-based industries in rural areas to create employment opportunities for the rural youth. Referring to the phenomena of reverse migration from cities to villages during the COVID-19 pandemic, he said that entrepreneurship in agriculture can immensely benefit the Indian economy by creating jobs in areas where they are needed the most.

 

Addressing the second Annual Convocation of Dr Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Pusa at its Piprakothi Campus (East Champaran) in Bihar, the Vice President said that the Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) can immensely help small and marginal farmers with forward (processing, marketing and export) and backward (input and extension services) linkages in the Food Supply Chains. Therefore, he emphasised the need to promote FPOs through handholding and capacity building, and appreciated the University for initiating training programmes in this regard. Reiterating that there is a lot of scope for food processing in India, he urged the universities to encourage farmers in their respective region to form collectives.

 

The Vice President also inaugurated the Pt Deendayal Upadhyaya College of Horticulture & Forestry (its administrative building and two hostels for the girls and boys), Centre of Excellence on Embryo Transfer Technology and Indigenous Cattle Breeds – Conservation and Improvement Centre. 

 

The Governor of Bihar, Phagu Chauhan, Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar, Deputy Chief Minister, Renu Devi, Agriculture Minister of Bihar, Amarendra Pratap Singh, Member of Parliament, Radhamohan Singh, Chancellor of Dr Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Prafulla Kumar Mishra, Vice-Chancellor, Dr RC Srivastava, Secretary, DARE & DG, ICAR, Dr Trilochan Mohapatra, faculty and students were among those who attended the event.

 

Naidu highlighted the need for increasing the farmers’ income through various sources, including improved resource use efficiency. The Vice President asked Dr Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University to work on the Impact Assessment of Technologies and also evaluate alternative farming techniques and their sustainability.

 

Congratulating all the students who graduated today, the Vice President asked them to strive to excel in their chosen domain and contribute towards the growth and development of the country. 

 

“Agro-based tourism which will boost farm economy and will also act as a detox therapy for urban tourists by letting them experience the natural beauty of the place, ethnic food, unique flora and fauna,” he added.

M Venkaiah Naidu inaugurates Pt Deendayal Upadhyaya

Finance

The adjusted EBITDA was $293 million

FMC Corporation has reported third-quarter 2021 revenue of $1.19 billion, an increase of 10 per cent versus third quarter 2020. Revenue increased 9 per cent organically. On a GAAP basis, the company reported earnings of $1.22 per diluted share in the third quarter, an increase of 44 per cent versus the third quarter of 2020. Adjusted earnings were $1.43 per diluted share, an increase of 17 per cent versus third quarter 2020, and 12 cents above the midpoint of guidance.

 

In the third-quarter, the company registered revenue of $1.19 billion, an increase of 10 per cent versus Q3 2020 and up 9 per cent organically. The consolidated GAAP net income was $160 million, up 43 per cent versus Q3 2020. The adjusted EBITDA was $293 million, up 12 per cent versus Q3 2020. The consolidated GAAP earnings of $1.22 per diluted share, up 44 per cent versus Q3 2020 and the consolidated adjusted earnings per diluted share was $1.43, up 17 per cent versus Q3 2020.

 

 

The adjusted EBITDA was $293 millionFMC Corporation

Agrotech, Machinery - Pre-harvesting, Machinery – Post-harvesting

The company has adopted a multi-pronged approach to boost farm mechanisation

Sonalika Tractors has registered its highest-ever YTD figures of 85,068 overall tractor sales in FY’22, recording a growth of 6.56 per cent over 79,829 units sold in the same period last year. Sonalika has registered overall tractor sales of 17,130 tractors on October 21, registering 5.5 per cent growth to surpass industry growth.

 

Sonalika has adopted a multi-pronged approach to boost farm mechanisation and take farmers towards farm prosperity in an affordable way. Be it product innovation, offering customised state-specific tractors, newer categories and markets or optimising services – having the right mindset at the right place at the right time has propelled the company to offer technologically advanced farming solutions to its customers. 

 

Sonalika’s advanced technology powered premium tractors such as Tiger and Sikander DLX along with region-specific tractors such as Chhatrapati (for Maharashtra) and Mahabali (for Telangana) have lately been joined by the Maharaja, fully-customised tractors especially designed for farmers in Rajasthan.

The company has adopted a multi-pronged approach

Acquaculture, Sustainable Energy, Webinar

Discussions were held on the development of the fisheries sector and the sustainable harnessing of fisheries resources available in the country

Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India organised a webinar on ’Promotion of Inland Saline Water Aquaculture’. This was the eighth webinar in the series being part of celebrating Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav. 

 

The event was presided over by Jatindra Nath Swain, Secretary, Department of Fisheries (DoF), Government of India (GoI) and attended by more than 100 participants including DoF officials of GoI and States/UTs, scientists from ICAR fisheries institutes and faculty of state agriculture, veterinary and fisheries universities, entrepreneurs, fish farmers, hatchery owners, and other stakeholders from the aquaculture industry.

 

The webinar began with the welcome address by IA Siddiqui, Fisheries Development Commissioner, DoF along with an introduction of the theme of the webinar and the panellists, Swain, Sagar Mehra, Joint Secretary (Inland Fisheries), Dr J Balaji, Joint Secretary (Marine Fisheries) in DoF, Jose Antony, Scientist, NGRC, Gujarat of ICAR-CIBA and other participants. 

 

Swain discussed the development of the fisheries sector and the sustainable harnessing of fisheries resources available in the country. 

 

Mehra highlighted the present status and potential of aquaculture in saline waters available in the northern states of Haryana, Panjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. He also highlighted the importance of species diversification, disposal of waste saline water, trained manpower for shrimp culture for sustainable inland saline water aquaculture.

 

Dr Balaji mentioned the importance of quality seed, entrepreneurship model, organic shrimp aquaculture and zonation with all the requisite support infrastructure for sustainable development of saline aquaculture in these four northern states. 

 

Antony made a comprehensive presentation on ‘Promotion on Inland Saline Water Aquaculture’ and emphasised on status, issues and future of inland saline water aquaculture in the fisheries sector.

 

The webinar concluded with a vote of thanks proposed by Dr SK Dwivedi, Assistant Commissioner, DoF.

Discussions were held on the development of

Environment, Supply Chain, Sustainable Energy

Commits to Net Zero Carbon Emissions by 2050

Mexico-based baking company Grupo Bimbo announced its commitment to achieving Net Zero Carbon emissions by 2050. The commitment considers emissions for its entire value chain, covering all scopes across all activities. By doing this, Grupo Bimbo has become the first Mexican food company to commit to Business Ambition for 1.5°C and join the United Nation’s Race to Zero Campaign with targets established and validated by science-based targets.

 

Building on initiatives that have directed Grupo Bimbo towards cleaner energy for years now, it includes transitioning to 100 per cent renewable energy, moving to lower carbon logistics and vehicles, implementing energy efficiency strategies, and supporting suppliers and partners in reducing their emissions through technological innovation. Grupo Bimbo will also include neutralisation actions through reforestation and carbon sequestration measures aligned with its regenerative agriculture initiative.

Commits to Net Zero Carbon Emissions by

Agro Universities, Agrotech, Environment

More than 160 participants from various institutes participated in the webinar

The ICAR-Directorate of Weed Research, Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh recently organised an international webinar on ’Weed Flora and their Management in Rice-Wheat Cropping System.’ 

 

The speakers, Dr RK Malik, System Agronomist, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) and Dr Virender Kumar, Senior Scientist, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippines outlined the overall scenario of the weed problems in rice and wheat in India. The speakers also underlined the weed flora shifts due to the change in the ecology, management practices, soil types and climate change with the critical analysis at the District Levels in eight major rice-wheat growing states of the country.

 

Dr NT Yaduraju, Former Director, ICAR-DWR, Jabalpur emphasised on using the advances in machine learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in weed management to solve the problems.

 

Earlier, delivering the welcome address, Dr JS. Mishra, Director, ICAR-DWR, Jabalpur highlighted the weed problems in the rice-wheat cropping system in the Indo-Gangetic plains.

 

More than 160 participants from ICAR institutes, state agricultural universities, central agricultural universities, ICAR-Agricultural Technology Application Research Institutes, Krishi Vigyan Kendras, CG Centres, Pesticide Industry and NGOs participated in the webinar.

More than 160 participants from various institutes

Agro Universities, Agrotech, R&D, Sustainable Energy

According to DG ICAR, the collaboration will help to strengthen agricultural research, innovations and farmers’ outreach for sustainable agricultural development

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was recently signed between ICAR and the Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA), New Delhi at Krishi Bhawan, New Delhi. Dr Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary (DARE) & Director General (ICAR)and Dr MJ Khan, Chairman, ICFA signed the MoU on the behalf of their respective organisations.

According to Mohapatra, the collaboration will help to strengthen agricultural research, innovations and farmers’ outreach for sustainable agricultural development.

In his address, Dr Mohapatra outlined the unparalleled contributions of the stakeholders that have led the country to succeed in the agricultural sector. The DG, ICAR urged for making the efforts to scale out the technologies to the farmers and develop new linkages through ICFA with the industry for demand-driven research. He also stressed convergence between and amongst the similar activities of ICAR and ICFA to fortify the impacts of the technologies. He appreciated the ICFA’s efforts for promoting the technologies, capacity development and trade facilitation. The DG, ICAR also stressed developing a detailed work plan wherein all the activities with their timeline may be detailed out for the efficient implementation of the MoU.

Dr Khan highlighted the ICFA’s various activities and scope of developing the partnerships between the two organisations.

Present were Sanjay Garg, Additional Secretary (DARE) & Secretary (ICAR); Deputy Directors General, ICAR; Assistant Directors General, ICAR and Dr JP Mishra, ADG (International Relations) & OSD (PPP), ICAR along with Pravin Shrivastava, Director General, ICFA and the other senior officials of ICFA.

According to DG ICAR, the collaboration will

AgroPolicy, Supply Chain, Sustainable Energy

CSIR will also develop harvesting machinery to be used by local farmers and self-help groups

Lt Governor Ladakh RK Mathur, The Administration of Union Territory of Ladakh, met Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh and thanked the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) under the aegis of Union Ministry of Science & Technology for promoting ’Leh Berry’ which is an exclusive food product of the cold desert and also a means of wide-ranging entrepreneurship as well as self-livelihood.

 

Dr Singh said that the value addition of Leh Berry this agriculture product has the potential to revolutionise the economic scenario of the newly created Union Territory. He said that reference to its medicinal properties is also being found in the Tibetan literature of the 8th century AD. 

 

The Minister informed the LG that CSIR, in collaboration of UT Govt of Ladakh, will start commercial cultivation of sea buckthorn berry from the coming spring season in Ladakh. He said, CSIR will also develop harvesting machinery to be used by local farmers and self-help groups, as currently only 10 per cent of berry is being extracted from the wild sea buckthorn plant. 

 

Dr Singh said that local entrepreneurs will be provided gainful employment through farming, processing and marketing of about 100 odd products from sea buckthorn plant like jams, juices, herbal tea, vitamin C supplements, healthy drinks, cream, oils, and soaps in a completely organic manner. 

 

He said this immunity-boosting natural berry is getting increasingly popularised not only in India but also in great demand in foreign countries for its medicinal value. The minister informed that the ancient local Ladakhi amchi medicine system also places a very high premium on the sea buckthorn berry and its curative properties. 

 

Dr Singh told Mathur that a high-level team of senior scientists from CSIR will soon visit Ladakh to evaluate the Zinc Fortification project for Pashmina Goats, Sheep and Yak as Ladakh is mainly an animal-based economy. He said CSIR is contemplating starting a geo-thermal Energy Project for warming and cooling systems in a Zero-net energy programme by linking it with solar power. 

 

CSIR will also develop harvesting machinery to

AgroPolicy, Dairy

The MoU will provide milk producers of Uttar Pradesh the essential market access, while broadly keeping in view the sustainability and viability of the overall operations

In an attempt to promote dairy farming in Uttar Pradesh, the Government of Uttar Pradesh has requested the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) to manage the Varanasi Milk Union for five years. NDDB has accepted the request of strengthening the state’s dairy cooperative business. 

 

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to this effect was signed between Govt of Uttar Pradesh, Pradeshik Cooperative Dairy Federation Ltd (PCDF), Varanasi Milk Union and NDDB during a virtual ceremony. 

 

Lakshmi Narayan Chaudhari, Minister of Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development & Fisheries, Govt of Uttar Pradesh, Atul Chaturvedi, Secretary, AHD, Govt of India, Varsha Joshi, Joint Secretary (C&DD), AHD, Govt of India, Meenesh Shah, Chairman, NDDB, Sudhir Garg, Principal Secretary, Dairy Development, Govt of Uttar Pradesh, Shashi Bhusan Lal Sushil, Milk Commissioner, Govt of Uttar Pradesh, Ravi Shankar Gupta, In-charge Managing Director, PCDF and Arun Mishra, CEO, Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) graced the occasion.

 

The MoU will provide milk producers of Uttar Pradesh the essential market access, while broadly keeping in view the sustainability and viability of the overall operations. Using biogas to run Varanasi Milk Union’s dairy plant will be a path-breaking innovation. The unique technology-driven initiative will eventually bring rural prosperity. He appreciated NDDB’s expertise in setting up modern dairy plants across India and making them profitable.

 

 

The MoU will provide milk producers of

Agrotech, R&D

Potential benefits for growers and consumers include less food waste and improved yields 

 

  The J.R. Simplot Company announced that it has entered a strategic alliance with Plant Sciences Inc. (PSI), a Watsonville, CA-based plant breeding company, to drive new breeding techniques for strawberries, including gene editing.

Simplot and PSI have been collaborating since 2011 on multiple new breeding technologies and expect to launch the first commercially available, gene edited strawberry in the coming years. The partnership provides both companies with the increased ability to bring improved strawberries to market with Simplot’s technology and PSI’s germplasm and leadership.

The strawberry market is prime for innovation. Each year, approximately 35 percent of fresh strawberries are discarded by consumers because of waste from poor storage or short shelf life (Yuwei Qin and Arpad Horvath 2021 Environ. Res. Lett. 16 014024). Using new breeding techniques like CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing tools in strawberry development is anticipated to improve shelf life and significantly reduce such waste.

Under the Simplot-PSI strategic alliance, Simplot will use pioneering gene editing technologies to advance strawberry characteristics. PSI will provide its proprietary strawberry germplasm, plant growing expertise, and lead the commercialization of successful varieties.

“At Simplot, we’re excited to participate in a project that may help growers achieve higher yields on less land, resulting in fewer pesticides and reduced water and labour needs, all while extending the quality of a consumer’s favourite foods,” said Susan Collinge PhD, Vice President of Simplot Plant Sciences.

CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tools can be used to introduce modest changes to a plant’s own genome. In 2020, the USDA clarified certain regulatory exemptions with plants produced through innovative, new breeding techniques, including genome editing techniques.

“We are highly motivated to build on our learnings with the J.R. Simplot Company and fully expect to make a profound impact on the strawberry industry by offering better varieties with qualities that both growers and consumers will celebrate,” said Steve Nelson, President and CEO of PSI.

In 2018, Simplot executed a joint intellectual property licensing agreement with Corteva Agriscience™, and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard for foundational CRISPR-Cas9 and related gene editing tools.

 

Potential benefits for growers and consumers include

Agrotech, Environment, IT, Machinery - Pre-harvesting, Machinery – Post-harvesting, Nature

Grover tends to a wide variety of produce, from strawberries to tomatoes to leafy greens – while drastically reducing food waste

Iron Ox, a farming innovation company with deep expertise in plant science, robotics and artificial intelligence, has launched a first-of-its-kind mobile support robot named Grover. The robot can lift more than 1,000 pounds and assists in the monitoring, watering and harvesting of a wide variety of crops, from leafy greens to strawberries.

Grover is a key component of Iron Ox’s broader farming ecosystem, a closed-loop system that optimizes plant yield, reduces growth cycle time and maximises crop quality. The result is locally sourced fruits and vegetables that currently cost about the same as produce from conventional farms, with substantially lower environmental impacts. Grover is the result of Iron Ox’s industry-shaping team of roboticists, plant scientists, and engineers. The San Carlos, California based start-up uses artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision, and robotics to grow more with less, leading to less food waste and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

Grover allows Iron Ox to change crops at a moment’s notice to meet the needs of nearby grocery stores that, for instance, experience a spike in demand for specific seasonal or even out-of-season produce.
Grover employs a differential drive system, multiple LiDAR systems, upward and forward-facing camera systems. Grover is additionally equipped with a lift system to autonomously move 1,000-pound, 6-by-6-foot modules of hydroponically fed plants throughout the greenhouse. Modules are regularly transported by Grover to a scanning booth for inspection and based on the results, they are taken for additional water, nutrients or harvesting.
 

Grover tends to a wide variety of