The trail an avocado takes from farm to toast is increasingly punctuated by chain-link fencing and AK-47s. At least, that’s become the case in Mexico, where the meteoric rise of the avocado industry has attracted unwanted attention and an increase in violence toward growers and their workers. The threatsContinue Reading
Biodegradable ‘plastic’ bags made out of banana plants sounds a bit…bananas, but a couple of UNSW researchers have found a way to do it, and it could solve two industrial waste problems in one. Two researchers at UNSW Sydney have discovered a novel way to turn banana plantation wasteContinue Reading
Scientists are working to determine if enset – an Ethiopian staple – could aid in the battle against climate change. Described as “a banana on steroids”, enset may be the superfood you’ve never heard of, let alone tasted, but scientists say it could be a lifesaver for a warmingContinue Reading
In the Hawaiian town of Hana on the island of Maui, bread grows on trees, in a manner of speaking. This is what’s known as breadfruit. Typically green and scaly on the outside, white and smooth like squash on the inside, it’s a starchy member of the fig family that’sContinue Reading
The U.S. saw significant increases in Hass avocado imports from all Latin American origins through September this year, USDA data shows. Over the nine-month period, total imports from the region rose by 20% year-on-year from USD 1.7 billion to USD 2 billion. The growth came amid the lowest CaliforniaContinue Reading
Avocado lovers can rejoice, with prices for the fruit dropping to their lowest in almost three years. According to Stats NZ information released today, avocado prices are at their lowest average price since February 2017. In October, they cost NZD 7.54 (USD 4.82) per kg. Avocado prices have beenContinue Reading
South African research facility Du Roi Laboratory has struck a deal with a Taiwanese institute to grow and market a banana variety resistant to Fusarium wilt Tropical Race IV (TR4). The deal announced on Wednesday gives Du Roi the rights to the Formosana variety and allows it to monitorContinue Reading
A total of 770 hectares of land have been cultivated with pineapple since the implementation in 2016 of the integrated pineapple project where pineapple is inter-cropped with oil palm and rubber, the Dewan Rakyat heard yesterday. Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry Sim Tze Tzin said in 53Continue Reading
Longan has become the fourth kind of Vietnamese fruit to be exported to Australia after litchi, mango and dragon fruit. However, experts say there is still a lot of work needed for Việt Nam to secure a firm foothold in the market. Trương Ái Quốc, founder of Aus AsiaContinue Reading
Tana River-based mango pulp manufacturer, Galole Fruit Processing Factory, is back in operation after years of being dormant. The factory, which has been revived at a cost about Sh67 million (USD 116k), will now diversify its operations, incorporating a Sh5.4 million bottled water processing plant with the capacity toContinue Reading
Malawi mangoes, grown in their namesake African country by a European-African firm, Malawi Mangoes Ltd, are being marketed as “99 per cent similar” to the Ratnagiri Hapus. 37-year-old Aneesh Pandey, a fruit retailer, was among a group of buyers waiting for the first consignment of mangoes from Africa atContinue Reading
It is another mango season and as expected, markets are flooded with the fruits, with a majority going for a song. But as some farmers enjoy the boom, last week I visited a mango farmer in Makueni who feared losing his fruits because of increased disease infestation. Diseases often leadContinue Reading
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