Viet Nam News - Hanoi,Vietnam 28-03-2009
HA NOI — A 50 per cent fall in the price of cassava this year has affected many farmers who started to grow the crop when prices leapt in 2007. Last year the farmgate price of cassava was VND1,000 per kg. Now it is only VND450.
Nguyen Van Chien, a resident of Cau Khai Village in Dong Cuong Commune of Van Yen District in the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai, said he had planted more than 10,000 cassava plants and would have made VND20 million profit (US$1,100) if the price had held.
Chien said many families in the commune faced the same problem. Their only solution was to stop harvesting to save labour and transport costs in the hope that prices would soon rise.
According to the chairman of the Dong Cuong People’s Committee, Vu Manh Hai, the commune has 400ha of cassava which is expected to yield 16,000 tonnes. Yet only half of the crop has been harvested.
"Not only is the market price of cassava lower, fertiliser and transportation costs have gone up," he said, adding that farmers would lose money if they sold cassava now.
Chief accountant of Van Yen Cassava Factory Tran Quang Hung said the factory had so far bought only 20,000 tonnes of cassava, much lower than in other years.
The owner of a cassava processing workshop in Lam Giang Commune, Do Van Lien, said in previous years, he had purchased from 20,000 to 30,000 tonnes of cassava, but this year he had bought only 10,000 tonnes.
According to statistics by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Yen Bai Province, cassava plantations in the province last year amounted to more than 16,000ha.
Of this, 9,700ha were in Van Yen, Yen Binh and Van Chan districts. In future, the province plans to grow only 12,000ha.
In past years, Chinese partners bought large quantities of cassava from Viet Nam. They paid from VND500 per kg in 2005 to a peak of VND1,200 per kg in 2008.
On the bandwagon
This encouraged farmers to place more and more land under cassava. The estimated yield of cassava in Van Yen District alone could be 162,000 tonnes, however only about 30,000 tonnes has been harvested and sold to factories.
"We advised farmers not to grow more cassava, but they didn’t listen. They wanted to grow more cassava because the price was high last year," said Nguyen Cong, a staff of the province’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
"Although it means breaking the province’s planning on cassava plantation, we cannot do anything because farmers say they have the right to plant any crop they want on their own land," he said.
The same situation is happening in other provinces, such as Hoa Binh, Thanh Hoa and Phu Yen.
Only 30 per cent of the total 13,000ha of cassava in Hoa Binh Province has so far been harvested.
Late last year, farmers in many districts of Thanh Hoa Province dug up their sugar-cane plantations to grow cassava.
"The commune cannot stop farmers from reducing sugar-cane areas to grow cassava," said vice chairman of Xuan Hoa Commune of Thanh Hoa Province Luong Van Xuan.
Head of the Planning Unit of Van Yen Cassava Factory Nguyen Van Thong said that the factory would try to purchase all cassava from farmers.
"However, the price cannot be as high as it was in previous years because of the current common economic difficulties in every country," he said.
Thong said if the provincial authority could financially support cassava factories, it would mutually benefit both farmers and factories.
Yen Bai Province authorities plan to give farmers an extra VND50 for every kg of cassava to help farmers.
Director of the Department of Cultivation under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Tri Ngoc said low prices were not only affecting cassava farmers, but also those growing many other kinds of crops.
"Staff at local agriculture offices can hardly force farmers to grow particular crops," he said. "But we must provide more information to farmers about long-term prospects of various crops."
At present, Viet Nam has an estimated 510,000ha under cassava, but it is hoped to reduce this to 375,000ha by next year.— VNS
Mar 29, 2009
Mar 25, 2009
Export turnover in first quarter up 2.4%
Nhan Dan - Hanoi,Vietnam, March 24, 2009
Vietnam has earned US$13.5 billion from exports in the first three months of this year, up 2.4% against the same period last year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Due to the impact of the global economic crisis, exports (excluding crude oil) from the foreign invested sector decreased 13% year-on-year, earning only US$4.5 billion.Items that registered high export growths in both quantity and value in the first quarter include rice, cassava (picture from cassavanews), pepper and tea.
In the meantime, the import turnover of many other products decreased by 50%-70% compared to the same period last year. Only imports of new medicine saw an increase of 22.4%.
In total, Vietnam’s total import turnover in the first quarter is estimated at US$11.8 billion, down 45% compared to the same period last year.
PetroVietnam General forecasts profit to rise 15 percent in 2009
Thanh Nien Daily - Ho Chi Minh City,Vietnam, March 23, 2009
PetroVietnam General Services Joint Stock Co., a trader of cassava with interests in mobile phones and oilfield services, forecast profit will rise 15 percent this year on higher shipments of the root. Profit may climb to VND100 billion (US$5.7 million) as the company plans to increase exports of cassava to as much as 300,000 metric tons from 97,000 tons a year earlier, said a statement on the Ho Chi Minh City-based company’s website.
The statement did not clarify if the earnings figure is net income. The company did not have to pay corporate tax last year, and calls to officials at the company weren’t immediately answered.
“Shipments of sliced cassava may help make a big contribution to the company’s 2009 business plan,” the statement said.
Profit increased 5 percent to VND25 billion in the first two months of 2009, the statement said.
Source: Bloomberg
IITA develops cassava for improved nutrition
Le Mali en ligne - Mali
News - Africa news
Lagos, Nigeria - Scientists at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), based in Nigeria's South-west city of Ibadan, are working on cassava-based recipes that will be used in improving the nutrition and health of vulnerable groups, including women and children. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is funding the US$5.3 million project, which seeks to unleash the power of cassava in Africa (UPoCA). The two-year project, which covers Sierra Leone, DR Congo, Ghana, Nigeria, Malawi, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Tanzania, also aims to introduce and test a cassava-based complementary food for acceptability in that country.
Speaking on Sunday during a field training of trainers on new farm measurement tools, UPoCA’s Project Manager, Dr. Braima James, said the project would deploy proven technologies to maximize production, commercialisation, value addition and utilization of cassava.
``The project aims to ensure adequate supply of cassava and cassava food products at economically-affordable prices in the participating countries by making readily available improved cassava varieties, production processes and farm gate processing.
``Information, education and communication strategies will help to boost previously piloted research-for-development gains in the cassava sub-sector,’’ James, who is also an IITA Scientist, said.
IITA Crop Utilisation Specialist, Dr. Busie Maziya-Dixon, said that the institute had developed several food products from cassava, proving that cassava is not just a food crop but also a cash crop.
``Cassava is no longer seen as a ‘poor man’s crop’ but an industrial crop that is not just providing food for resource-poor farmers but also money in their pockets," she said.
Lagos - 22/03/2009
News - Africa news
Lagos, Nigeria - Scientists at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), based in Nigeria's South-west city of Ibadan, are working on cassava-based recipes that will be used in improving the nutrition and health of vulnerable groups, including women and children. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is funding the US$5.3 million project, which seeks to unleash the power of cassava in Africa (UPoCA). The two-year project, which covers Sierra Leone, DR Congo, Ghana, Nigeria, Malawi, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Tanzania, also aims to introduce and test a cassava-based complementary food for acceptability in that country.
Speaking on Sunday during a field training of trainers on new farm measurement tools, UPoCA’s Project Manager, Dr. Braima James, said the project would deploy proven technologies to maximize production, commercialisation, value addition and utilization of cassava.
``The project aims to ensure adequate supply of cassava and cassava food products at economically-affordable prices in the participating countries by making readily available improved cassava varieties, production processes and farm gate processing.
``Information, education and communication strategies will help to boost previously piloted research-for-development gains in the cassava sub-sector,’’ James, who is also an IITA Scientist, said.
IITA Crop Utilisation Specialist, Dr. Busie Maziya-Dixon, said that the institute had developed several food products from cassava, proving that cassava is not just a food crop but also a cash crop.
``Cassava is no longer seen as a ‘poor man’s crop’ but an industrial crop that is not just providing food for resource-poor farmers but also money in their pockets," she said.
Lagos - 22/03/2009
Nigeria: IFAD Supports Cassava Production With $10 Million
AllAfrica.com - Washington,USA, 23 March 2009
by Alexandra Mede
Abuja — International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a United Nations organ, weekend unveiled plans to support cassava production in Nigeria with the sum of $10 million (about N1.45 billion). The support is billed to come under the Root and Tuber Expansion Programme (RTEP) of the Federal government.IFAD Regional Portfolio Adviser for West and Central Africa, Perecent Ange, made this known in a statement in Abuja on Sunday.
According to Ange who had just completed a field mission to access the impact of the root and tuber expansion programme in Nigeria, the new spending plan on cassava production is in addition to a similar amount already spent on the production since inception.
"To this end, about 300 mini cassava processing centres are to be established in the country in addition to the 220 in existence. Under the initiative, three integrated cassava plants are to be established in three states in the country. They are Ogun, Kogi and Imo states respectively," he said.
by Alexandra Mede
Abuja — International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a United Nations organ, weekend unveiled plans to support cassava production in Nigeria with the sum of $10 million (about N1.45 billion). The support is billed to come under the Root and Tuber Expansion Programme (RTEP) of the Federal government.IFAD Regional Portfolio Adviser for West and Central Africa, Perecent Ange, made this known in a statement in Abuja on Sunday.
According to Ange who had just completed a field mission to access the impact of the root and tuber expansion programme in Nigeria, the new spending plan on cassava production is in addition to a similar amount already spent on the production since inception.
"To this end, about 300 mini cassava processing centres are to be established in the country in addition to the 220 in existence. Under the initiative, three integrated cassava plants are to be established in three states in the country. They are Ogun, Kogi and Imo states respectively," he said.
Cassava important crop in the tropics
By KEITH PATTON, Special to the Daily News
Palm Beach Daily News - Palm Beach,FL,USA, Friday, March 20, 2009
Cassava is one of those plants with as many names as there are different communities eating it. It is known as manioc, manihot, yucca, mandioca, sweet potato tree and tapioca plant. It is an important food crop in the tropics, where it is grown for its starchy, tuberous roots. This plant is sometimes referred to as the potato of the tropics, and it is a staple for many people around the world.
Cassava has been grown in Florida for many years and, as the Caribbean population increased, so did its cultivation in backyard gardens. Around the late 1800s and early 1900s, it was grown to such an extent that a few small starch factories were started to process the crop.
While not as important a commercial crop as it once was, about 800 acres were grown in Miami-Dade County for the fresh market in 1984. Only a relatively few gardeners now include it in their home gardens, but it is such an easy plant to care for and establish, I would encourage everyone to give it a try.
Cassava is a shrubby perennial that grows to a maximum of 6 to 8 feet. It has smooth, erect stems and resembles the cannabis plant. The large, compound, dark-green, reddish-veined leaves are divided into about seven leaflets. The stems contain a soft white center and have nodes from which new plants are obtained.
The roots, the most valuable part of the plant, grow in clusters of four to eight at the stem base. Roots are from 1 to 4 inches in diameter and from 8 to 15 inches long, although roots up to 3 feet long are found.
The winner of this year's largest vegetable at the South Florida Fair was a cassava.
The pure-white interior of the roots is firmer than potatoes and has very high starch content. The roots are covered with a thin, reddish-brown, fibrous bark that is removed by peeling. The bark is reported to contain toxic hydrocyanic acid, which must be removed by washing, scraping and heating. Eat the flesh, not the bark.
Two types of cassava recognized are "bitter" and "sweet." The sweet-type roots contain only a small amount of the acid and are boiled and used as a vegetable, along with the young leaves, which are used a greens.
Leaves are not eaten raw because of the poisonous substances. Boil them like other greens, such a turnips.
The roots also are used for animal feed, and the starch is used for glue, laundry starch and tapioca pudding.
Cassava needs eight to 11 frost-free months to produce usable roots. It requires about the same soil and fertilizer as sweet potatoes.
Cassava is propagated by planting 10-inch sections of the stem 2 to 4 inches deep at 4-foot intervals on 4-foot wide rows. The roots are dug or pulled and used soon after harvest, since they deteriorate rapidly.
Large plants will be very tough, so most grow this plant for a single season. The plant, however, can grow for many years, producing roots that weigh many pounds.
Stick with small roots, and you will be surprised at just how many recipes exist for this plant.
Tired of potatoes? Grow cassava.
For more information, call the Palm Beach County Master Gardener hot line at 233-1750.
Keith Patton is coordinator of the Florida Yards and Neighborhoods program at the Palm Beach County Cooperative Extension Service. Portions of this column may have been produced by his colleagues at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.
Root Cause Analysis
Learn how to lead root cause analyses and investigations using various techniques such as www.process-improvement-institute.com
Tapioca Starch Buyers Wanted
Enjoy subsidies for attending the Asia's largest trade fairs by HKTDC.
www.hktdc.com
cd scratch removal Machines
30 day 100% Money Back Guarantee! Free kit included, now $499 and up.
www.jfjdiscrepair.com
Money Plant Tree Seeds
Buy rare and unusual tree seeds online. Easy order, fast delivery.
seedrack.com
Palm Beach Daily News - Palm Beach,FL,USA, Friday, March 20, 2009
Cassava is one of those plants with as many names as there are different communities eating it. It is known as manioc, manihot, yucca, mandioca, sweet potato tree and tapioca plant. It is an important food crop in the tropics, where it is grown for its starchy, tuberous roots. This plant is sometimes referred to as the potato of the tropics, and it is a staple for many people around the world.
Cassava has been grown in Florida for many years and, as the Caribbean population increased, so did its cultivation in backyard gardens. Around the late 1800s and early 1900s, it was grown to such an extent that a few small starch factories were started to process the crop.
While not as important a commercial crop as it once was, about 800 acres were grown in Miami-Dade County for the fresh market in 1984. Only a relatively few gardeners now include it in their home gardens, but it is such an easy plant to care for and establish, I would encourage everyone to give it a try.
Cassava is a shrubby perennial that grows to a maximum of 6 to 8 feet. It has smooth, erect stems and resembles the cannabis plant. The large, compound, dark-green, reddish-veined leaves are divided into about seven leaflets. The stems contain a soft white center and have nodes from which new plants are obtained.
The roots, the most valuable part of the plant, grow in clusters of four to eight at the stem base. Roots are from 1 to 4 inches in diameter and from 8 to 15 inches long, although roots up to 3 feet long are found.
The winner of this year's largest vegetable at the South Florida Fair was a cassava.
The pure-white interior of the roots is firmer than potatoes and has very high starch content. The roots are covered with a thin, reddish-brown, fibrous bark that is removed by peeling. The bark is reported to contain toxic hydrocyanic acid, which must be removed by washing, scraping and heating. Eat the flesh, not the bark.
Two types of cassava recognized are "bitter" and "sweet." The sweet-type roots contain only a small amount of the acid and are boiled and used as a vegetable, along with the young leaves, which are used a greens.
Leaves are not eaten raw because of the poisonous substances. Boil them like other greens, such a turnips.
The roots also are used for animal feed, and the starch is used for glue, laundry starch and tapioca pudding.
Cassava needs eight to 11 frost-free months to produce usable roots. It requires about the same soil and fertilizer as sweet potatoes.
Cassava is propagated by planting 10-inch sections of the stem 2 to 4 inches deep at 4-foot intervals on 4-foot wide rows. The roots are dug or pulled and used soon after harvest, since they deteriorate rapidly.
Large plants will be very tough, so most grow this plant for a single season. The plant, however, can grow for many years, producing roots that weigh many pounds.
Stick with small roots, and you will be surprised at just how many recipes exist for this plant.
Tired of potatoes? Grow cassava.
For more information, call the Palm Beach County Master Gardener hot line at 233-1750.
Keith Patton is coordinator of the Florida Yards and Neighborhoods program at the Palm Beach County Cooperative Extension Service. Portions of this column may have been produced by his colleagues at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.
Root Cause Analysis
Learn how to lead root cause analyses and investigations using various techniques such as www.process-improvement-institute.com
Tapioca Starch Buyers Wanted
Enjoy subsidies for attending the Asia's largest trade fairs by HKTDC.
www.hktdc.com
cd scratch removal Machines
30 day 100% Money Back Guarantee! Free kit included, now $499 and up.
www.jfjdiscrepair.com
Money Plant Tree Seeds
Buy rare and unusual tree seeds online. Easy order, fast delivery.
seedrack.com
Liberia: USAID-IITA project aims to introduce cassava-based recipe for improved nutrition and health of vulnerable groups
by Press Release
TheLiberianTimes.com - New York,NY,USA Mar 20, 2009
Scientists at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture are working on cassava-based recipes that will be used in improving the nutrition and health of vulnerable groups (women, children under 5, and pregnant women), thanks to a .3 million United States Agency for International Development project that is seeking to unleash the power of cassava in Africa (UPoCA). Besides the cassava-based recipes that will be first introduced in Sierra Leone, the project also aims to introduce and test a cassava-based complementary food for acceptability in that country.
The 2-year project covers Sierra Leone, DR Congo, Ghana, Nigeria, Malawi, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Tanzania.
Speaking during a field training of trainers on new farm measurement tools (Global Positioning System) in Seirra Leone, UPoCA’s Project Manager, Dr. Braima James, said the project would deploy proven technologies to maximize production, commercialization, value addition and utilization of cassava.
"The project aims to ensure adequate supply of cassava and cassava food products at economically-affordable prices in the participating countries by making readily available improved cassava varieties, production processes and farm gate processing. Information, education and communication strategies will help to boost previously piloted research-for-development gains in the cassava sub-sector," James who is also an IITA Scientist said.
He added that knowing the locations of cassava processing sites would guide UPoCA to select and train clusters of farmers around those sites in the project’s value chain.
IITA Crop Utilization Specialist, Dr. Busie Maziya-Dixon said the institute had developed several food products from cassava, proving that cassava is not just a food crop but also a cash crop.
"Cassava is no longer seen as a ‘poor man’s crop’ but an industrial crop that is not just providing food for resource-poor farmers but also money in their pockets," she said.
According to IITA Trainer, Mr. Atcha Cyprien, the GPS is a world-wide satellite-based system used in measuring three dimensional position of a point any where on earth. He emphasized that the device is a receptor which works with the 24 satellites that revolves around the earth sending signals.
The 17 participants for the training were drawn from the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Food Security (MAFFS), Operation Feed The Nation, Planning Evaluation Monitoring Statistic Division, Crop Protection Service of MAFFS and Research Into Use (RIU) units of Kailahun, Kono, Bo, Bonthe, Bombali, Kambia districts and the Western Area of Sierra Leone.
About IITA
Africa has complex problems that plague agriculture and people's lives. We develop agricultural solutions with our partners to tackle hunger and poverty. Our award winning research for development (R4D) is based on focused, authoritative thinking anchored on the development needs of sub-Saharan Africa. We work with partners in Africa and beyond to reduce producer and consumer risks, enhance crop quality and productivity, and generate wealth from agriculture. IITA is an international non-profit R4D organization since 1967, governed by a Board of Trustees, and supported primarily by the CGIAR.
Godwin Atser, g.atser@cgiar.org
Corporate Communications Officer
IITA - Headquarters
Ibadan, Nigeria
URL: www.iita.org
TheLiberianTimes.com - New York,NY,USA Mar 20, 2009
Scientists at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture are working on cassava-based recipes that will be used in improving the nutrition and health of vulnerable groups (women, children under 5, and pregnant women), thanks to a .3 million United States Agency for International Development project that is seeking to unleash the power of cassava in Africa (UPoCA). Besides the cassava-based recipes that will be first introduced in Sierra Leone, the project also aims to introduce and test a cassava-based complementary food for acceptability in that country.
The 2-year project covers Sierra Leone, DR Congo, Ghana, Nigeria, Malawi, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Tanzania.
Speaking during a field training of trainers on new farm measurement tools (Global Positioning System) in Seirra Leone, UPoCA’s Project Manager, Dr. Braima James, said the project would deploy proven technologies to maximize production, commercialization, value addition and utilization of cassava.
"The project aims to ensure adequate supply of cassava and cassava food products at economically-affordable prices in the participating countries by making readily available improved cassava varieties, production processes and farm gate processing. Information, education and communication strategies will help to boost previously piloted research-for-development gains in the cassava sub-sector," James who is also an IITA Scientist said.
He added that knowing the locations of cassava processing sites would guide UPoCA to select and train clusters of farmers around those sites in the project’s value chain.
IITA Crop Utilization Specialist, Dr. Busie Maziya-Dixon said the institute had developed several food products from cassava, proving that cassava is not just a food crop but also a cash crop.
"Cassava is no longer seen as a ‘poor man’s crop’ but an industrial crop that is not just providing food for resource-poor farmers but also money in their pockets," she said.
According to IITA Trainer, Mr. Atcha Cyprien, the GPS is a world-wide satellite-based system used in measuring three dimensional position of a point any where on earth. He emphasized that the device is a receptor which works with the 24 satellites that revolves around the earth sending signals.
The 17 participants for the training were drawn from the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Food Security (MAFFS), Operation Feed The Nation, Planning Evaluation Monitoring Statistic Division, Crop Protection Service of MAFFS and Research Into Use (RIU) units of Kailahun, Kono, Bo, Bonthe, Bombali, Kambia districts and the Western Area of Sierra Leone.
About IITA
Africa has complex problems that plague agriculture and people's lives. We develop agricultural solutions with our partners to tackle hunger and poverty. Our award winning research for development (R4D) is based on focused, authoritative thinking anchored on the development needs of sub-Saharan Africa. We work with partners in Africa and beyond to reduce producer and consumer risks, enhance crop quality and productivity, and generate wealth from agriculture. IITA is an international non-profit R4D organization since 1967, governed by a Board of Trustees, and supported primarily by the CGIAR.
Godwin Atser, g.atser@cgiar.org
Corporate Communications Officer
IITA - Headquarters
Ibadan, Nigeria
URL: www.iita.org
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)