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Mars launches Farmer Income Lab to help eradicate smallholder poverty
The Farmer Income Lab will commission research and generate discussion to develop measurable frameworks and new business models to significantly reduce farmer poverty.
- Categories
- Agriculture
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Field of View: How a Chilli Cash Crop Helps Subsistence Farmers Shape Their Future
During a three-year process designed to assess the impact of growing a chilli cash crop on small farmers living in southern Africa, it was discovered that when a family earned just $500 more of net income per year, the money materially impacted at least two categories of their basic human needs. But the most profound impact, writes Tanner Methvin, was that of self-determination.
- Categories
- Agriculture
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From Beehive Fences to Coconut Bombs: 10 Non-Chemical Pest-Control Innovations for the Global South
Farm-raiding elephants and malarial mosquitoes are among the pests that plague the Global South. But farmers there also contend with pests that are all too familiar on farms anywhere in the world: harvest-munching rats and mice, for example. Rob Goodier at Engineering for Change lists 10 non-chemical pest-control solutions designed for any place resources are constrained.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Social Enterprise, Technology
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Geodata Technology Moving Into New Fields. Literally.
Geodata and ICT applications help farmers with precision farming, leading to increased yields and improved quality. This information has not yet been made available to financial institutions at a large scale, but it has the potential to increase access to finance for smallholder farmers. The Rabobank Foundation and NpM have launched a Board of Inspiration to help speed the process.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
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Hooked on Sustainable Fish? Great – Now Let’s Help Fishers Who Net Them
Small-scale fishing operations play a critical role in food security and alleviating poverty, but face many challenges in developing countries. The Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership, which has helped build social businesses that train fishers and fish farmers to adopt sustainable practices, is among a growing group of stakeholders working toward a common goal of preserving our oceans and fisheries.
- Categories
- Environment
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How to Stop Wasting Food … and Feed the World
Productivity isn't the only variable in the effort to increase the world's food supply; one-third of all food gets lost or wasted. Science for Society Techno Services claims its solar conduction dryer increases the shelf life of perishable produce by six to 12 months, and the firm even buys processed food from farmers and takes their dehydrated produce to market.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
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Gates, Mastercard Launch New Platform for Smallholder Farmers
Digital technology has long been touted as the key to helping smallholder farmers around the world overcome barriers that have kept them trapped in poverty, though initial innovations did not always deliver on this promise. Now developers of digital tools for agriculture are trying to refine their offerings, focusing on products that farmers want to use and that align with their priorities. And at the top of that list is getting fair prices for their products.
- Categories
- Agriculture
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Mastercard Delivering Financial Inclusion: One Small Kenyan Farm At A Time
The problem with building financial inclusion — particularly in a developing world context — is that it is a tough goal to pursue directly. While there isn’t much in the way of disagreement that more should be done to connect the approximately 2.5 billion adults who are totally (or nearly totally) detached from formal financial services, actually implementing a plan that actually makes a difference is often a very separate matter.
- Categories
- Agriculture
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa