Wednesday, 17 September 2014
NMC, Press holds joint press conference on “attacks on Journalists in Ghana”
NMC, Press holds joint press conference on “attacks on Journalists in Ghana”: NMC, Press holds joint press conference on “attacks on Journalists in Ghana”
Extension officers trained in seed inspection
Extension officers trained in seed inspection: Extension officers trained in seed inspection
Tuesday, 9 September 2014
Minimum of 128,000 bats sold annually in Ghana
Minimum of 128,000 bats sold annually in Ghana: Minimum of 128,000 bats sold annually in Ghana
Monday, 8 September 2014
Thursday, 4 September 2014
Monday, 1 September 2014
Conserving insects can address food security – Entomologists
A team of entomologists and scientists working on the Global
Pollination Project (GPP) - Ghana have advised crop farmers to conserve insects
that help in plant reproduction (pollination) to aid in increase in crop yield
The team which is made up of lecturers from the department
of entomology and wildlife at the University of Cape Coast (UCC) and scientists
from the Ghana Atomic Energy and the University of Ghana, is advocating for the
conservation of pollinators as natural means to address food security issues
that is gradually closing up on the world
The GPP which started in 2009 is envisioned to end this year
with training of media practitioners who will in turn educate farmers on how to
invite and manage these insects when they approach their farms
Speaking to ritefmonline, Dr. Rofela Combey of the
department of Entomology and Wildlife, UCC said the project is focusing on bees
which are the most important pollinators as they work on about 63 percent of
the worlds cultivated crops
She said there seven known major bee families and approximately
30,000 species of the insects that has been identified and many more yet to be
identified
Dr. Combey noted that bees have a mutual relationship with
the crops they pollinate as they collect pollen grains as (protein food source),
nectar (for energy), Waxes, Resins and sometimes plant provide homes for the bees
through the process of pollination of which mankind also benefit profitably from
She advised farmers not to be quick in applying pesticides
immediately they see insects on their crops but rather study the insects as to
what they might be doing on those crops at the time adding that some insects
could be predators of some crop pests and others pollinators
She said it would be advisable if farmers would spray their
crops during the late mornings and seek advice from extension officers and
experts on when, how and what to apply pesticides on and that allowing these
insects on the farms would increase crop yield and ensure proper fruit
formation
Friday, 29 August 2014
Palm Wine nowadays could be poisonous
A Deputy Director of the International Stingless Bee Centre, University of Cape Coast, Dr Kwame Aidoo is counselling consumers of palm wine to be wary of some dangerous practices that may render the product poisonous.
He says for example that palm wine tappers are using harmful insecticides to control organisms that cause rot at the incision point of the palm trunk, and this makes the wine poisonous as the practice contaminates the wine and makes it unsafe for human consumption.
According to the Ghana News Agency, Dr. Aidoo said this at two-day “Global Pollination Project” training for journalists at Somanya in the Eastern region. The training was on the theme, “management of pollinators for sustainable agriculture through an ecosystem approach.”
Dr Aidoo, who is also the Mankessim “STEP Site” Manager of the Global Pollination Project-Ghana, said a study found traces of harmful chemicals in palm wine and those chemicals could kill foraging honeybees and had health implications for people who consume the wine.
He described the situation as unfortunate and attributed it to laziness because the tappers preferred easier ways to the traditional method of using fire to keep the palm trunk dry.
Dr. Aidoo also said palm wine tappers left their fermentation vats uncovered and trap pollinators such as bees and this must be stopped.
He said the production of food to feed the ever growing world population was dependent on pollinators and cautioned farmers against the “wrong” use of pesticides which also destroyed pollinators.
Professor Peter Kwapong, Global Pollination Project-Ghana Coordinator, said the country’s environment could improve if pollinators were conserved.
Dr. Rofela Combey, Department of Entomology and Wildlife, University of Cape Coast, said bees contributed over 60 per cent to world’s cultivated crops making them a major stakeholder in ensuring that crops were fertilized to ensure food security and called for their conservation.
Ghana is part of seven countries participating in the Global Pollination Project, aimed at improving food security, nutrition and livelihoods through enhanced conservation and sustainable use of pollinators.
The project, which began in 2009, is being funded by the Global Environmental Facility (GEF), UNEP and the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO).
The Ghana project has cocoa, mango and vegetable sites at Bobiri-Kubeasi in the Ashanti Region, Dodowa/Somanya in the Eastern Region and Mankessim in the Central Region.
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