IICA-COLEACP Caribbean Agrifood Business Series: Ensuring food quality and safety
- 15/12/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Barbados, Caribbean, Jamaica, News, Suriname
No CommentsThe fourth session of the Caribbean Agrifood Business Series, organised by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and COLEACP, focused on “Ensuring food quality and safety in the Caribbean: the key role of SMEs and businesses”. The online session on 9 December reunited 240 participants from the Caribbean and other parts of world, including 15 African countries. Entrepreneurs, food safety and quality specialists, and experts on policy and finance highlighted the importance of food and nutrition security in… +Senegal: Training in compost production from mango industry waste
- 13/12/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Mangoes, News, Senegal
COLEACP’s recent work with mango producers and processors in Senegal has focused on recovering and quantifying mango waste. Composting was identified as a key solution for recovery of the organic waste produced by the companies. Although this solution is relatively simple, implementing it on a large-scale production site requires specific theoretical and practical knowledge. Through its Fit For Market SPS programme, COLEACP is providing training and consultancy for mango production/processing companies in Casamance. These activities contribute to UNIDO’s implementation of… +Biocontrol: Opportunities and challenges in tropical horticulture
- 13/12/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Africa, Caribbean, News, Pacific, Switzerland
COLEACP Keynote Address at ABIM 2021 On 19–20 October, COLEACP participated in the 16th Annual Biocontrol Industry Meeting (ABIM) in Basel, Switzerland. During these two days, 970 participants from 44 nations were able to network together face-to-face, as well as listen to inspiring presentations and panel discussions. Both SMEs and large enterprises were well represented. The programme of ABIM 2021 included a journalist-led panel discussion involving biocontrol industry leaders, food processors, NGOs and researchers on how biocontrol will help transform… +FAO market access training for Ethiopia
- 07/12/2021
- Posted by: Sandra Borma
- Category: Africa, Ethiopia, News
At the request of the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR) and the Ministry of Agriculture, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) organised a capacity development programme on market access in October. The five-day hybrid training event was organised by the FAO Subregional Office for Eastern Africa (FAO-SFE), FAO Ethiopia and the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture. Contributors included representatives of the World Trade Organization, DG-SANTE of the European Commission, and national and international experts, as well as EIAR, the National… +IPPC/FAO RELEASE GUIDELINES
- 26/11/2021
- Posted by: Sandra Borma
- Category: Angola, Cameroon, Caribbean, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, News, Nigeria, Pacific, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe
On 18 November the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) Secretariat and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) released new guidelines on fall armyworm (FAW): “Prevention, preparedness and response guidelines for Spodoptera frugiperda“. Fall armyworm is affecting plant health in more than 70 countries, with many others at high risk of introduction. The guidelines offer globally harmonized measures and actions that countries can take to minimise the spread of the pest and protect their territories. It is a transboundary pest that… +Côte d’Ivoire: Priority action plan using R-SAT
- 05/11/2021
- Posted by: Sandra Borma
- Category: Africa, Côte d'Ivoire, News
The COLEACP Rapid Assessment Tool (R-SAT) is a practical step-by-step guide to help competent authorities work with private sector stakeholders to conduct a rapid assessment of the status and functioning of SPS systems. Through the Fit For Market SPS programme, Côte d’Ivoire is among the first countries where the R-SAT tool has been used. During a launch workshop in June 2021, the decision was taken to apply the tool to the national control system in the Capsicum sector, both for… +SPS Good Practice Guide for Penja pepper
- 02/11/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Africa, Cameroon, Pepper
A “Sanitary and Phytosanitary Good Practice Guide for the Penja Pepper Sector” has recently been published in French and will soon be available in English. Together with sector stakeholders, the Penja Pepper Representative Geographical Indication Group (GRIGPP) managed the development and production of the guide, which is based on an analysis of SPS risks throughout the value chain. The publication was achieved through the project “Improving SPS capacity in the Penja pepper value chain”, which is funded by the Standards… +Reducing pesticide use in tropical agriculture
- 26/10/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Africa, Caribbean, News, Pacific
On 11–12 October COLEACP participated in a workshop on “Reducing the use of pesticides in tropical agriculture: Key challenges and strategies”, organised by the Agropolis Foundation. During these two days, scientists from the European Union, Middle East and Africa exchanged views on topics ranging from epidemiology, toxicology and environmental impact to societal impacts resulting from pesticide use across the globe. Edouard Lehmann, COLEACP’s Research & Innovation Manager, took part in a round table on how to promote multi-stakeholder collaboration in… +Unfair Trading Practices Directive now law in most EU countries
- 25/10/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Africa, Caribbean, News, Pacific
For over 10 years, COLEACP has been part of a coalition of organisations, including Oxfam, the Fair Trade Advocacy Office and the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM-EU), lobbying the EU to tackle unfair trading practices (UTPs) in agricultural supply chains. We advocated strongly for new legal provisions to extend beyond the EU to also protect third country suppliers. The groundbreaking EU Directive 2019/633 on Unfair Trading Practices in Business Relationships between Businesses in the Agricultural and Food Supply… +Pacific: Training continues in the context of Covid
- 25/10/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Fiji, Pacific
Agriculture in the Pacific region has suffered during the pandemic due to its close relationship with tourism. COLEACP’s regional relay in Fiji, Mereia Volavola, describes the impact: “The Covid19 pandemic seriously affected the businesses in the Pacific, especially the tourism and agriculture sectors. As the international borders closed, the tourism industry collapsed and the demand and export supply for agricultural produce fell. Shipments via airlines and ships were drastically affected as the number of flights and ships reduced and cost… +