From VOA Learning English, this is the Agriculture Report in Special English.The pressure to feed Asia’s growing population has led to dangerous levels of overfishing near Pacific coastlines.An example can be found in Sindangan, a fishing town in the southern Philippines. Wild catches are falling while prices are rising. One fisherman says the area’s once healthy fish stocks […]
From VOA Learning English, this is the Agriculture Report in Special English. A United Nations report says world food prices stayed the same in August. And that is good news. A measure, or index, from the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization showed that food prices rose six percent in July. A summer of drought in […]
Africa’s Sahel area is dry and farming there is difficult. But in Burkina Faso, women could be important in improving agriculture. The United Nations Children’s Fund, or UNICEF, and its partners are working to support food production in the West African country. In northern Burkina Faso, farmers till rocky land. Severe droughts are common and floods are […]
A researcher who helped make crops grow in dry areas has received this year’s World Food Prize. Daniel Hillel was recognized for his work in developing what is called “micro-irrigation” or “drip irrigation.” It has made farming possible in places where there is little rainfall. Watering plants drop by drop has changed agriculture by reducing the amount […]
“Farm to table” is the name of a movement that encourages people to eat locally grown food. The farm-to-table idea has become more popular in recent years. But there is also a group that also brings “table to farm.” This traveling group is called Outstanding in the Field. It says its mission is to reconnect […]
A coffee-growing cooperative in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo is giving former rebels and soldiers a fresh start. They are being encouraged to make a better and safer living from coffee. The cooperative, or co-op, is called SOPACDI. Its headquarters are in Minova, a town along Lake Kivu. Many people trying to escape conflict have moved there. […]
Animal feed is the biggest cost for most cattle producers. In the United States, the cost of hay, grain and other feed has risen sharply because of a drought. At the same time, wildfires this year burned more than 1 million hectares of North American rangeland. Jack Field raises cattle in the northwestern state of […]
Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday that Americans celebrate on the fourth Thursday in November. This autumn festival is traditionally celebrated with family and friends over a big meal that takes hours to prepare. The meal usually includes turkey served along with dishes like cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, green beans and pumpkin pie. The turkey is usually […]
Some private game farmers in South Africa are hiring armed protection for their rhinos.New security companies are being started to fight an increase in rhinoceros poaching. Poachers are now well-armed and well-financed. A single horn sells for than $65,000 per kilogram. That is more valuable than gold. Rhino horns are sold mostly in Vietnam and China. People there wrongly believe […]
Severe food shortages in the Sahel area of Africa have affected 18 million people in nine countries this year (2012). This was the third severe food crisis in four years in the area south of the Sahara Desert. How can the Sahel break its cycle of food insecurity? Aid workers are asking that question as this year’s […]