Sustainable rubber and latex production
America and the world sees a rubber shortage. A new plan to grow it in America, sustainably.
farming
Ancient farmstead with winepress and chandelier found in the Holy Land
Along with the likelihood that the people in the area north of Tel Aviv practiced regenerative organic agriculture, the people back then were farmers with culture!
Regenerative agriculture the solution, says Woody Harrelson
Building on what was before now, a new film narrated by Woody Harrelson offers a solution to the pickle we are in - or the pickle we think we are in. Regenerative agriculture.
Tunisia’s lagoon farms and hanging gardens recognized as world heritage sites
Ramli agricultural systems in the lagoons of Ghar El Melh and hanging gardens of Djebba El Olia provide vital ecosystem services and traditional knowledge preservation.
Mega-mergers may move in during vulnerable times
Farmer Vernon Hugh Bowman took Monsanto to court and lost. Mergers between companies like Dow-Dupant, Monsanto-Bayer are frightening to market transparency and democracy, and to stakeholders like farmers.
American irrigation research finds watering sweet spot for agriculture and earth
Every drop counts in the Middle East and North Africa. How can we learn to better manage water on national scales. Some new research offers tips.
Ancient farm in Spain gets UN recognition
The UN recognizes the importance of ancient Spanish farming techniques. With climates similar to the Levant and influenced by North Africa, there is so much the Middle East can learn from Spain.
Plentiful rain not enough to grow the wheatfields of Syria
If you look to what was brewing before the Syrian civil war, it was clear that people there were suffering from the effects of climate change. Environmentalists warned that extended droughts there would cause hunger, poverty and unrest. The conditions were right about a decade ago for the poor conditions to foment to a very unfavourable civil war with millions of Syrians displaced to Jordan, Turkey, Lebanon, Europe and even Canada.
Farmer swears his billygoat produces milk
A farmer in Al Ain, the very green, flowery emirate bordering Dubai, claims that after three years of impregnating legions of nannies on his farm, his billy goat suddenly sprouted udders. And then produced milk.
Iranian man shows #farmlove with inspiring Instagram photos
For some, being a farmer is suicidal. Water and land are scarce, small farmers struggle to compete with the likes of Monsanto, and there are a host of environmental problems to contend with as well. In this context, it’s almost unthinkable that this bright young man dreams of following his father’s footsteps – as a farmer in Iran.
Is There a “Forest” Under the Desert Outside of Dubai?
Agricultural scientist Tony Rinaudo is behind one of the world’s most successful reverse desertification projects – in Niger, and now he thinks a similar underground forest might exist in the Arabian desert outside of Dubai.
Locusts Swarm Lebanon. Fodder for a Tasty Treat?
Locusts that bred in southern Egypt first swarmed Cairo, causing panic in Israel and Jordan, and now Lebanese farmers are battling the pests as well. Farmers in the north and south of Lebanon reported locust clouds over the weekend and expressed concern over the impact the insects would have on their crops. But the Agriculture Ministry […]
Locusts Threaten to Overtake Egypt
Like in biblical times locust swarms threaten Egyptian crops. Scattered pockets of locusts in southern Egypt and northern Sudan are a threat to agricultural land, warns the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Countries along the Red Sea should remain on “high alert and make every effort to find and treat all infestations”, it says. […]
Small American Farmer Sends Monsanto Seed Patents to Supreme Court
Vernon Hugh Bowman, farmer vs Monsanto, billion dollar seed and biotech company. It sounds like something from a book about the perils of the future, a future that is strangely today reality: The seed-engineering company Monsanto genetically engineers seeds to have desirable traits that make them hearty or the plants resistant to the effects of herbicides […]
Grabbing Foreign Lands to Buffer Resource Shortages
It’s real-life Hunger Games, and the Middle East is among the busiest land-grabbers. In the last decade, nearly half a billion acres of land – eight times the area of Great Britain – were sold or leased in transnational deals, according to a 2012 report published by the Land Matrix project, a coalition of research […]