A late 2024 Emirates Nature-WWF initiative to replant the overgrazed Hajar mountains in eastern Dubai has underlined the grass-fed UAE goat rearing set up. In presenting its partnership with Visa to replant forests, Emirates Nature-WFF cites that overgrazing has reduced new vegetation habitats here. This is why the scientific agency wants to keep goats at bay via steel fences after planting the drought-resistant Sho’a...
Food prices in Japan get unruly, prompting cost standardization plan
Unruly food prices in Japan have prompted the government to deliberate on how to seamlessly pass agricultural costs onto consumer prices. Accordingly, the Agriculture Ministry is setting up a committee to recommend ways to feature costs into especially rice and vegetable prices. The recommendations however will only come after the panel has looked into the country’s trading set up. The aim is standardize...
California’s red abalone harvest still under ban, black abalone provides state shell
Two developments have swayed the US mollusc sector in 2024, both to do with California. They include the long-term closure of the California red abalone season and the naming of black abalone shells as the state seashell. Regarding red abalone, its fishing in the Golden State remains closed till April 1, 2026, leaving fishermen yearning for its comeback. According to the National...
The South Africa macadamia sector mulls diversifying exports outside China
The South Africa macadamia sector needs to diversify exports away from China to avoid disruptions as happened in 2015, industry experts have warned. Speaking at the Macadamias South Africa (SAMAC) summit in September 2024, Professor Ferdi Meyer of the Bureau for Food Agricultural Policy cited China’s rising acreage. Meyer hinted at uptick cultivation of macadamia in China in 2024 on 300,000 hectares versus South...
What new sea cucumber developments in Alaska and the Netherlands hold for UK’s Invertebrates Imports
The start of the 2024-25 Alaska sea cucumber season and the discovery of ten sea cucumbers in the Netherlands hold much for UK’s invertebrates’ imports. Alaska, one of the biggest sea cucumber sources in the world, began its harvest on October 7, 2024. Alaskans aim to harvest some 1.76 million pounds of the critters, slightly above the 1.67 million pounds of the...
U.S. increases Pacific bluefin tuna catches by 80% for 2025-26 season
The commercial haul of the Pacific bluefin tuna (Thunnus orientalis) will increase by 80% in the 2025-26 American season, following successful restocking. The decision by the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission in September 2024 to increase catch limits owes to findings of ample restocking. Earlier in June, the International Scientific Committee for Tuna and Tuna-Like Species in the North Pacific Ocean had announced an impressive population...
Abaca and bamboo to drive PH’s sustainable agricultural agenda
The Philippines’ delegation at the 2024 World Food Forum in Rome has promised to drive sustainability through mango, seaweed, abaca and bamboo cultivation. During the event, the Department of Agriculture’s secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. outlined the economic and sustainability benefits of these tropical produce. Laurel linked the four produce to the goals of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)...
Food prices in Fiji to cool courtesy Agriculture Ministry
The government aims to reduce food prices in Fiji, following the cooling of food inflation between August and September 2024. According to the Ministry of Agriculture on October 18, 2024, the process will begin by scaling up small-scale farming. Second to this will be to prioritize food “affordability” as a major intervention for food security and nutrition purposes. To this end, the Deputy Secretary at the Ag...
Rice harvest in Japan begins amid turn to robotics
The 2024 rice harvest in Japan is in progress from the mountainsides of Togowa in Mizayaki Prefecture to the sunshiny western prefecture of Okayama. At the same time, robotics are increasingly stepping in to aid an aging population. In Togowa’s slopes, farmers will be reaping their paddies throughout October, marking a six-month grain maturity journey. The region’s terraces undulate through picturesque...
American ginseng gets senatorial defense against trade war with China
A farm tour by Senator Tammy Baldwin in Wisconsin has revealed that American ginseng is still reeling from the trade war with China. Baldwin took her campaign visit to a farm in Wausau, WI which in early October 2024 hosted the Marathon Ginseng Festival. During the October 15 visit, the senator traced the difficulties local farmers have been facing during the tariff war amid...