Boosting global food security - USDA’s $455M Investment

Sep 25, 2023

The USDA is taking a significant step in battling global hunger by investing $455 million in the Food for Progress and McGovern-Dole Programs. This move is forecasted to deploy over 375,000 metric tons of U.S. commodities, making a considerable difference in many countries.

Food for Progress is working towards a world where everyone has access to food by developing agricultural value chains and promoting trade activities. The program's strategy involves selling commodities locally and regionally, ensuring the balance between helping developing markets and maintaining U.S. interests.

Meanwhile, the McGovern-Dole Program is a beacon of hope for school children, providing nutrition and promoting education. This program has been instrumental, delivering meals to millions and supporting educational programs in 48 countries for more than two decades.

This funding ensures that the McGovern-Dole Program remains the largest donor to school feeding initiatives worldwide. The upcoming projects are set to reach children in countries like Cameroon, Haiti, Mozambique, Nepal, Nicaragua, Sri Lanka, and Togo. Food for Progress projects are scheduled in Bangladesh, Cote d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Lesotho, Mauritania, Nepal, and Togo.

These investments underline the USDA’s and the administration’s dedication to meeting global nutritional requirements and the continuous success of such programs. The USDA also aims to reform America’s food system, with a focus on resilience, fairness, and access to healthy food for all communities.

Source : wisconsinagconnection

Video: LALEXPERT: Sclerotinia cycle and prophylactic methods

White rot, also known as sclerotinia, is a common agricultural fungal disease caused by various virulent species of Sclerotinia. It initially affects the root system (mycelium) before spreading to the aerial parts through the dissemination of spores.

Sclerotinia is undoubtedly a disease of major economic importance, and very damaging in the event of a heavy attack.

All these attacks come from the primary inoculum stored in the soil: sclerotia. These forms of resistance can survive in the soil for over 10 years, maintaining constant contamination of susceptible host crops, causing symptoms on the crop and replenishing the soil inoculum with new sclerotia.