Crops

South African avocado producer partners with Alfa Laval

Ecovado's plant will be driven by the Alfa Laval processing line.

A South Africa-based agroprocessing company called Ecovado has launched an avocado oil processing plant in Vhembe, Limpopo, in collaboration with global heat exchanger manufacturer, Alfa Laval Middle East, South and East Africa (MESEA)

This move follows Ecovado identifying Vhembe's largely unexplored market potential in avocados, which the region is naturally blessed with -- enough to sustain its wider economic progress. Boosting local avocado production will secure long-term supply and open up income opportunities for households. The success of this project will fulfil Ecovado's fruitforcash vision as part of its local development cause for employment generation and agricultural sustainability.

Ecovado's plant will be driven by the Alfa Laval processing line, giving the South African company an instant edge in the export markets with its quality products matching global standards. The project is being funded by Alfa Laval through Swedish export credit agency, EKN. Alfa Laval has also extended its funds beyond Vhembe to cover the costs of avocado seedlings for small scale farmers from the adjacent regions.

Local residents are running the day-to-day operations at the Ecovado plant, with fruits sourced directly from small scale growers. The company is now focusing to scale up production before it can grow its network of community suppliers, and in turn, expand export reach.

“This project represents exactly what sustainable industrial development should look like: world class technology enabling local entrepreneurship, job creation and long-term community development,” said Alfa Laval South and East Africa general manager, Bongani Twala.

South African delegates visit China for agricultural collaboration

The delegation examined intelligent seedling equipment.

As part of China-Africa cooperation programme, more than 10 experts and scholars from South Africa visited Jinhua in East China's Zhejiang province to explore the city's development and achievements, with their itinerary also comprising Wuzhou Ancient City and the China-Africa (Jinhua) Agricultural Science and Innovation Park

The delegation examined intelligent seedling equipment and took a tour of the China-Africa Agricultural Science and Technology Exchange Center. They got to see firsthand Jinhua's agricultural innovation capabilities.

At the China-Africa (Jinhua) Agricultural Science and Innovation Park in Changshan township, Wucheng district, the delegation sampled specialty agricultural products such as lotus seeds and sweet potatoes cultivated by the Jinhua Academy of Agricultural Sciences. These were meant for consumption like fruits, and were highly appreciated. China-Africa agricultural cooperation were explored through insightful exchanges on modern agricultural technologies.

This visit is part of the lead-up to the 2026 China-South Africa Seminar on Human Rights in Hangzhou. Before the seminar, participants have conducted field visits in Jinhua and Hangzhou to deepen their understanding of local advancements and collaborative efforts in agriculture.

Green Climate Fund to finance climate-smart agriculture in Ivory Coast

The LARACI project will enhance soil carbon sequestration.

Ivory Coast has secured US$50mn from the Green Climate Fund to support the Ministry of Environment and Ecological Transition-led LARACI project, also known as Strengthening Sustainable Land Management and Climate-Resilient Agri-Food Systems in Ivory Coast

The five-year programme set to be implemented across regions adversely impacted by climate change is scaled to directly impact 147,000 people.

While cocoa has given Ivory Coast its global name, it has come at the huge environmental cost of deforestation. Regions like N’Zi, Moronou, Iffou, Me and Gbeke have bore the brunt with rising temperatures, rainfall variability, droughts, floods, and climate-induced pest pressure, among other climate adversities. Cocoa fame has also overshadowed rice, cassava and yam production, which were left neglected and underfinanced even though a good 48 per cent of the population depends upon these crops to make a living.

The LARACI project has identified these crops to restore their production with climate smart agricultural practices based on a three-point agenda:

- Introducing agrometeorological advisory services and advancing climate-aligned finance to build a national foundation for climate-resilient agriculture

- Boost agroforestry and sustainable land management to reduce emissions and enhance soil carbon sequestration

- Leverage technology to support underfinanced crop production by fostering inclusive growth for women and youth

The project will also reduce emissions of 606,212 tCO₂eq over the five-year implementation period, and around 3.8 million tCO₂eq over a twenty-year lifespan.

Approved at the Green Climate Fund’s 45th board meeting in Dushanbe, the LARACI project will be implemented by FIRCA as CGIAR act as the entity accredited to the fund. AfricaRice will also be one of the contributors of the project.

Ivory Coast's national priorities on sustainability, especially climate finance initiatives, have drawn global traction, with Abidjan selected as the host country for Green Climate Fund’s Africa regional office.

Kenyan farmers embracing regenerative farming practices

The MSULi programme has been designed to generate maximum value.

Regenerative and climate-smart farming practices are empowering coffee and tea farmers in Kirinyaga and Embu counties to grow climate resilient with improved yields, giving way to livelihoods security

Part of the Mt Kenya Sustainable Landscape and Livelihoods (MSULi) programme for spreading awareness on sustainable production and creating employment opportunities, this six-year initiative is implemented by Rainforest Alliance with support from the IKEA Foundation. When initiated in 2020, the campaign included more than 55,000 farmers from the Mt Kenya area, who are now well versed in sustainable farming practices, landscape restoration and climate adaptivity.

"Farmers have reported that they have been able to replace their old varieties with improved tea clones and coffee seedlings, and are now witnessing increased yields and better quality produce," said Rainforest Alliance Country director, Marion Nyaga.

The Rainforest Alliance 2025 Annual Report and Impact Data in Kagio, Kirinyaga county, has drawn positive response from private sector partners who brought affordable financing to farmers and agribusinesses. Coffee and tea production besides, farmers also learnt about natural resources conservation and enterprises diversification by growing avocado and macadamia as well.

The campaign saw farmers using environmentally friendly methods to restore biodiversity and boost soil health. The result reflected in the buzz of the bees and the croaking of frogs and toads driving pollination across Mt Kenya, which had till now suffered years of degradation due to unsustainable farming practices. The farmers were trained in compost-making to replace chemical fertilisers and pesticides, resulting in restored soil fertility and much less production costs. With enhanced moisture retention capacity, the soils are now capable of supporting dry spells that may run longer than usual.

The MSULi programme has been designed to generate maximum value even when it is not operational. It has a fully registered Landscape Management Board, a multi-stakeholders platform, to coordinate conservation and sustainable agricultural activities beyond the project's lifespan. "Regenerative agriculture is what our grandfathers and grandmothers used to practice. They planted different crops together, used manure and maintained healthy soils. We are simply bringing back those practices using modern knowledge," said Landscape Management Board trustee, Karugu Macharia.

Around 220 hectares of degraded forest that has been restored and more than 500 hectares of degraded farmland that has been rehabilitated in Mt Kenya landscape as part of the project is going to serve generations to come.

"We have created green enterprises and worked with financial institutions so farmers can access affordable loans to invest in climate-smart agriculture," said manager, Dida Wario.

Malawi promotes indigenous flour kinds at FAO's Diversity Seed Fair

Sorghum and cowpeas flour.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) recently held a Diversity Seed Fair in Chikwawa, a district in southern Malawi

This comes as part of FAO’s initiative to revive lost crops. Such types are often nutrients-rich indigenous and drought-resistant varieties that can naturally survive dry environments but lack the reach to be picked up for research or investments.

Around 75 farmers joined the seed fair, exhibiting biscuits made of sorghum and cowpeas to more than 200 visitors, including government researchers, private sector representatives and community leaders. These are indigenous kinds of flour that can be traced back to generations of Malawian farmers. While its produce in Malawi peaked through the 1950s and 1960s, soon these became overshadowed as global staples, such as maize, wheat took the market by storm.

Now Malawi farmers are facing drought challenges, and FAO together with the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development of Malawi, is supporting communities in coping with water scarcity by exploring sustainable indigenous alternatives.

"In the past we used to plant many maize seeds in one planting station but now we have been trained in conservation agriculture," says Elda Saliva, a farmer from Thimba village in Makanda. "With these new methods, our yields have increased, allowing us not only to feed our families, but also to earn income from the surplus."

Running a pilot in Malawi, this initiative,

FAO began the Addressing Water Scarcity in Agriculture and the Environment (AWSAMe) initiative with a pilot in Malawi that involved skills sharing on data analysis and drought screening. Around 20 government researchers and extension officers were selected for capacity development training in collecting and analysing high-quality agricultural data alongside field water management techniques for drought screening.

Government experts evaluated 24 cowpea varieties and 30 sorghum varieties across irrigated as well as dry situations. The seeds were sourced from rural communities and the national gene bank, and data generated from them regarding which perform best under drought.

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