Roadrunner Chickens and Waning Disease Resistance

There is heightened interest in raising indigenous chickens in the country at the moment. As the indigenous birds are fast gaining commercial recognition and widespread consumer appreciation, there has been an upsurge in the number of players joining this very promising poultry value chain. The major players in question are the breeders of the indigenous birds, fertilized eggs producers, hatchery operators and the farmers who raise and fatten the birds for the market. The sector is fast getting so organized that today one can procure any quantity of day old indigenous chicks with little effort, a feat which was not attainable in the five years ago. Nevertheless, as the sector strives to take root challenges are arising and hounding the farmers, particularly the new entrants. In the past few weeks, I have been inundated by farmers’ emails and calls regarding the issue of disease resistance of the indigenous birds. The major concern raised is to the effect that the farmers are observing a significant departure from the norm in terms of the birds’ ability to deal with diseases as well as general vitality. Traditionally our indigenous birds are famed for their hardiness, adaptability, high disease resistance and low maintenance. However, these highly sought-after characteristics seem to be waning away as the intensification of the indigenous birds gathers momentum. This article shall tackle some of the major reasons for the above-mentioned shift from the norm and attempt to proffer some practical solutions to these challenges.....

 https://agriuniverse.co.zw/technical/170-technical-matters/tech-poultry/217-roadrunner-chickens-and-waning-disease-resistance.html

CIMMYT develops multiple stress tolerant maize varieties

GOVERNMENT has hailed the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) and its partners for developing multiple stress tolerant maize varieties that withstand drought and fall armyworm.

Speaking at the 2024 CIMMYT annual partner’s day in Harare recently, Agriculture ministry permanent secretary Obert Jiri said the organisation was playing a key role in developing the agricultural sector........

 https://www.newsday.co.zw/agriculture/article/200024897/cimmyt-develops-multiple-stress-tolerant-maize-varieties