Farming & agriculture

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Locust attack: Excessive pesticide use will take its toll on Thar ecology

The strongest pesticides used to counter locust invasions will leech into waterbodies and crops, say experts. Lethal pesticides used to counter locust swarms invading the Indian side of the Thar desert will irrevocablly harm the fragile desert…

Xinjiang still China's largest cotton producer in 2019

Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in Northwest China continued to be the country's largest cotton production base in 2019, despite a year-on-year output reduction of 2.1 percent. The region's cotton output reached more than 5 million metric…

Locust swarms threaten more countries in eastern Africa – FAO

Swarms of desert locusts could ravage more countries in eastern Africa and threaten the livelihood of many more people, the United Nations’ Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) said on Monday. The swarms, first sighted in December,…

Brazilian fruit exports reach US$1 billion for the first time

Brazil closed 2019 for the first time, with US$1 billion in fruit exports, according to information from the Ministry of Agriculture's (AgroStat) foreign trade statistics system. According to the National Supply Company (Conab), this scenario…

Global cotton trade is projected at a 7-year high

For 2019, increased imports are expected in many non-cotton-producing countries, as well as some producing ones. Although China—a major producer—is projected as the leading importer in 2019, its upcoming imports are expected to be below…

United Nations declares 2020 as the International Year of Plant Health

Plants make the oxygen we breathe and give us 80 percent of the food we eat. But plants are under attack by invasive pests. These pests destroy up to 40 percent of the world’s food crops and cause $220 billion in trade losses each year according…

Queen gives approval to Brexit, opens new Ag markets for U.S.

Queen Elizabeth II Last Thursday gave her formal approval to legislation pulling Britain out of the European Union, setting the stage for a potential U.S.-U.K. trade deal. "The withdrawal agreement has received royal assent and is now law,"…

East Africa hit by most serious locust outbreak in 25 years

The most serious outbreak of desert locusts in 25 years is spreading across East Africa and posing an unprecedented threat to food security in some of the world’s most vulnerable countries, authorities say. Unusual climate conditions are…

Brazil: Anvisa concludes public consultation on abamectin

The deadline for contributions to Public Consultation 728/2019, which deals with the toxicological re-evaluation of the active ingredient, abamectin, in agrochemical products in the country, ended on 23rd December, 2019. The agency's proposal,…