Africa - Invasive species cost $3.66t a year

20.05.2021 147 views
Invasive species introduced by human activity are costing African agriculture some $3.66 trillion every year - around 1.5 times the combined gross domestic product of all African countries - new research showed on Thursday. Non-native species of weed, insect or worm can have catastrophic effects on farming, with just a single bug capable of reducing yields of staple crops across the continent. Now researchers based in Ghana, Kenya, Britain and Switzerland have sought to estimate the annual economic hit caused by invasive species to African agriculture. The team studied open source and peer-reviewed literature on species that were not native to the continent but had caused crop losses to assess the economic impact on yield, management and the cost of research. Next, they surveyed more than 1,000 stakeholders - including farmers, researchers and government officials - about the financial implications of invasive species. Participants were asked to estimate crop losses caused by invasive alien species as well as the costs incurred. The team found that the average cost of invasive alien species to the agricultural sector in Africa's 54 countries was $74.3 billion each year. But there was substantial variation among countries. The worst affected nations were found to be Nigeria - which loses around $1 trillion annually due to invasive species - and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which loses $317 billion each year. In all, economic losses by invasive alien species were found to exceed the GDP of 27 out of 49 countries included in the study, which was published in the journal CABI Agriculture and Bioscience. The overwhelming majority (99.2 percent, or $3.63 trillion) of estimated total costs inflicted by alien species came from removing invasive weeds from crops. Weeding cereal crops accounted for 72 percent ($2.61 trillion) of this, the authors found, while weeding maize and root crops accounts for 14 percent ($508 billion) and weeding vegetables accounts for 3.3 percent ($120 billion). Rene Eschen, corresponding study author from Switzerland's CABI research institute, said the research highlighted the hidden economic and social costs of having to weed crops across the continent. "The removal of invasive alien weeds is largely unpaid work and is primarily carried out by women and children, reducing the amount of time they are able to spend on income-generating and community activities or education," he said. The species found to cause the most crop losses was a moth known as Phthorimaea absoluta, which affects tomato plants, at an estimated cost of $11.4 billion annually. Other insects were estimated to inflict more than $21.5 billion worth of crop losses each year to maize, cassava and mango and citrus crops. The authors cautioned that their findings may in fact underestimate the true economic cost of invasive species to Africa's agriculture sector, as they didn't include costs related to chemical herbicides used to control pests and disease. Source - https://www.globaltimes.cn
27.03.2024

Turkey - Climate change may affect grape cultivation

A recent study has highlighted the impact of the climate crisis on viticulture in Turkey, predicting that the expected rise in temperatures and reduced rainfall could shift the suitability of vineyard regions for grape production over the next three decades.

27.03.2024

Crop crisis reveals El Niño’s toll on Southern Africa

New findings from the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (Enso) reference group highlight the significant impact of the 2023/24 El Niño event on various aspects of climate and agriculture in Southern Africa.

27.03.2024

Philippines - Crop losses reach P80M as drought hits Negros Oriental

As the El Niño phenomenon worsens in Negros Oriental, damage to rice, corn, and other high-value crops has reached more than PHP80.4 million, the Department of Agriculture-Provincial Agriculture Technology Coordinating Office (DA-PATCO) said Tuesday.

27.03.2024

USA - Farmers say coverage has become unavailable or unaffordable as drought and floods increasingly threaten their crops

Farmers who grow fresh fruits and vegetables are often finding crop insurance prohibitively expensive — or even unavailable — as climate change escalates the likelihood of drought and floods capable of decimating harvests.

27.03.2024

India - Telangana Minister assures financial support for rain-affected farmers

Telangana Excise and Prohibition Minister Jupally Krishna Rao has assured the farmers that the government is committed to providing financial help to the cultivators whose crops were damaged due to unseasonal rains.

27.03.2024

Australia - Managing canola pests using beneficial insects, spiders and mites

Australian grain growers will benefit from improved pest management strategies with the commencement of two new research projects focusing on beneficial insects (beneficials) in canola.

27.03.2024

USA - Early blooms indicate strong fruit year if frost, freeze can be avoided

Warm temperatures in late February and early March have led fruit trees across Virginia to blossom early. Based on what growers are seeing, the number of blooms indicate at banner crop. However, there is a risk a portion of that crop could be wiped out by a freeze or frost.

27.03.2024

USA - As winters warm, Wisconsin fruit growers brace for the worst

On a cool, early spring morning in March, Liz Griffith stands among her apple trees, reaching to the very highest branches with a pole saw. Birds that have already returned north call to each other over the “snip snip” of shears, as Griffith and her staff prune through eight acres of apple trees on her orchard in Cottage Grove.

istanbul escort şişli escort tbilisi escort şişli escort şişli escort maslak escort istanbul escort beşiktaş escort taksim escort izmir escort ümraniye escort mecidiyeköy escort şişli escort taksim escort ümraniye escort kartal escort şirinevler escort maltepe escort istanbul escort ümraniye escort kadıköy escort vip escort mersin escort istanbul escorts ataköy escort avcılar escort beylikdüzü escort okmeydanı escort şişli escort tuzla escort işitme cihazı sex shop sex shop sex shop sex shop sex shop sex shop sex shop sex shop