A Looming Bread Basket Failure

These are the two basic ingredients for successful agriculture: healthy soils and strong performing seeds. 

The world finds itself facing the first severe bread basket failure of the 21st century. It has not been brought about by climate change, as most researchers and practitioners would have predicted. We are facing a food crisis that has been triggered by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, two countries that together account for about 34 percent of the wheat traded annually.

The prospect of a breadbasket failure in the Black Sea region is pushing the prices of commodities to record highs. Russia is also the leading exporter of fertilizer globally and an important fuel supplier, both key inputs for agricultural production. The uncertainty associated with trade restrictions is causing havoc in food-insecure countries and regions that were already worn out by the economic slowdown caused by the pandemic. Africa and the Middle East are ill-prepared to deal with the crisis but there are at least 35 countries, only in Africa, that source most of their wheat from Ukraine. As grain stocks fall, the effects of this conflict will reverberate in other countries and regions of the world, including North America. The global outlook for 2022 does not look good at all. There is an urgent need for bold answers to the global food crisis that is already here.

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Leasing Vs. Buying Agricultural Machinery

Producers are considering other options for obtaining machinery services due to increasing equipment costs, obsolescence of owned equipment, and limited sources of outside debt capital.

When operating an agriculture business, every decision you make is important, and everything you decide to spend money on matters. It is, therefore, essential to think about what you need to purchase outright so as to ensure your company can thrive, while also being aware of what you can lease to keep operations ticking over.

Machinery and equipment expense typically represents a major cost in agricultural production. Purchasing equipment with the use of personal or business equity and loans from financial institutions or equipment manufacturers has been the typical method of obtaining machinery services for most farm operations.

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Post-Harvest Losses: A Key Contributor to Food Insecurity in Kenya

By Kevin Onyango and Lilian Kirimi

• The national maize post-harvest losses are estimated to be between 12 and 20 percent of the total national production. At a 5-year national average production of 40 million 90-kg bags, the loss is between 4.8 and 8 million bags annually.
• The estimated national monthly consumption of maize is 3.39 million bags. Kenya, therefore, loses an equivalent of over 1 month of consumption or an equivalent of a whole short rains harvest, estimated at an average of 5 million bags.
• Strategies to reduce the losses such as promotion and investment in better post-harvest produce handling and management practices as well as appropriate and efficient on-farm and off-farm storage technologies are urgently required.

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Challenges for Kenya in big push to reduce post-harvest losses

Five years ago, the Kenyan government announced its “big four” development strategy to be implemented over the next five years. Food security was one of the key strategies. The others are affordable housing, manufacturing and universal health care.

In the realm of food security, the reduction of post-harvest losses has been identified as a way to boost production. This is in addition to expanding the area used by commercial agriculture for staple crops, expanding irrigated agriculture and increasing the use of yield enhancing inputs.

Kenya estimates that 20% of cereals are lost even before reaching the market. That’s a high figure, particularly since it doesn’t include food waste. Food waste refers to good quality food that is fit for human consumption but that does not get consumed because it’s discarded, either before or after it spoils.

Food loss refers to quantity and quality, in which the economic value of produce is degraded. Such food may even become unsuitable for human consumption.

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