Professor Apurba Shee
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- Qualifications:
BE, MS, PhD
- Biography:
Dr Apurba Shee is a Professor of Applied Economics in the Food and Markets Department within the Natural Resources Institute (NRI) at the University of Greenwich and an ESRC Policy Fellow at the UK Ministry of Justice. Apurba holds an M.S. in Applied Economics and Management from Cornell University and a PhD in Applied Economics from Penn State University. Before joining NRI in 2017, he worked as an economist for six years in the CGIAR institutions, first at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and then at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) to increase resilience and reduce vulnerability for rural populations in developing countries.
Apurba's research interests are in the fields of applied microeconomics, development economics, agricultural finance, and applied econometrics. He is an experienced researcher on innovative climate risk financing, adaptation, and food systems resilience. Apurba undertakes research to identify what works in real-world contexts and their social and economic impacts to inform and shape effective public policy. His research relies on experiments and observational data. Having been based in Africa (2012-2017), he has extensive experience conducting research throughout the continent (Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Ethiopia, Zambia, Uganda, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Mali, Senegal, Ivory Coast). In addition, he has extensive experience in promoting microfinance and women empowerment collectives in India. His research has been published in leading agricultural economics journals and policy forums.
He has led or co-led many internationally recognised research projects as the Principal Investigator or a Co-Investigator in the UK, Asia, and Africa. His research projects have been funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the African Union, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO). Apurba is currently leading (Principal Investigator) two major three-year research projects: The project “Economic and Empowerment Impacts of Millet Enterprises by Women Collectives”, funded by 3ie under the Swashakt program supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, where he is leading a large international team of researchers from UK and India. He is co-leading the project “Risk Contingent Credit for Resilience and Food Security” in Kenya and Ethiopia in partnership with IFPRI, funded by GIZ.
Apurba has contributed to improved policymaking by translating complex research information through clear communication both in the UK and overseas in addressing economic and social problems by developing innovative evidence-based research. Along with his NRI role, he is an ESRC Policy Fellow at the UK Ministry of Justice (MoJ), working across several civil service analyst teams to provide evidence-based policy advice to reduce reoffending and protect the public; specifically, provide expert advice and review various experimentation and evaluation projects to make better decisions to improve justice outcomes in the UK.
- Selected Publications:
- Turvey, C. and Shee A. (2023) Inclusive Finance and Agricultural Development in Africa, Handbook of Microfinance, Financial Inclusion and Development. World Bank Handbooks in Development. Edward Elgar. ISBN 978178990386.
- Shee, A., Ndegwa, M.K., Turvey, C. G. and You, L. (2023) Transforming Food Systems through Risk Contingent Credit in Rural Africa: Development, Experimentation, and Evaluation; Food Systems Transformation in Kenya: Lessons from the Past and Policy Options for the Future. International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) Book. (In Press)
- Shee, A., Parmar, A., Rout, S., Strum, B. and Bennett, B. (2023). Assessing the Measurement Methods of postharvest Food Loss and Waste: Opportunities and Challenges, Forthcoming Journal of Enterprise Development and Microfinance
- Oyetunde-Usman, Z. and Shee, A. Abdoulaye, T. (2023). Does Simultaneous Adoption of Drought Tolerant Maize Varieties and Manure Impact Productivity and Welfare Outcomes? Evidence from Rural Nigeria Forthcoming Australian Journal of Agricultural Economics.
- Ngwenyama, P., Siziba, S., Nyanga, LK., Stathers, T., Bechoff, A.,Shee, A., and Mvumi, BM. (2023). Determinants of smallholder farmers’ maize grain storage protection practices and understanding of the nutritional aspects of grain postharvest losses. Forthcoming Food Security
- Bechoff, A., Shee, A., Mvumi, B. et al. (2022). Prediction of nutritional postharvest losses along the crop value chain: a case study with three key food-security crops in sub-Saharan Food Security https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-021-01238-9
- Ndegwa, M.K., Shee, A., Turvey, C. G. and You, L. (2021) Sequenced crop evapotranspiration and water requirement in developing a multi-trigger rainfall index insurance and risk-contingent credit. Weather, Climate, and Society. 14(1): 19-38.
- Shee, A., Turvey, C., and Marr, A. (2020). Heterogeneous Demand and Supply for an Insurance-Linked Credit Product in Kenya: A Stated Choice Experiment Approach Journal of Agricultural Economics https://doi.org/10.1111/1477-9552.12401
- Ndegwa, M.K., Shee, A., Turvey, C.G., You, L. (2019). Uptake of Insurance-Embedded Credit in Presence of Credit Rationing: Evidence from a Randomized Controlled Trial in Kenya, Agricultural Finance Review, https://doi/10.1108/AFR-10-2019-0116
- Shee, A., Azzarri, C., Haile, B. (2020). Farmers’ Willingness to Pay for Improved Agricultural Technologies: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Tanzania. Sustainability, 12, 216. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12010216
- Turvey, C.G., Shee, A., and Marr, A. (2019) Addressing Fractional Dimensionality in the Application of Weather Index Insurance and Climate Risk Financing in Agricultural Development: A Dynamic Triggering Approach. Weather, Climate and Society, https://doi.org/10.1175/WCAS-D-19-0014.1
- Shee, A., Mayanja, S., Simba, E., Stathers, T., Bechoff, A., and Bennett, B. (2019). Determinants of postharvest losses along smallholder producers maize and sweetpotato value chains: An ordered probit analysis Food Security, 11: 1101. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-019-00949-4
- Shee, A., Turvey, C., and You, L. (2019). Design and Rating of Risk-Contingent Credit for Balancing Business and Financial Risks for Kenyan Farmers. Applied Economics, 51:50, 5447-5465
- Rajandran, S., Afari-Sefa, V., Shee, A., Bekunda, M., Dominick, I. and Lukumy, P. (2017). Does crop diversity contribute to dietary diversity? Evidence from integration of vegetables into maize-based farming systems in Tanzania. Agriculture & Food Security 6:50
- Shee, A. and Stefanou, S. E. (2016). Bounded Learning-by-doing and Sources of Firm Level Productivity Growth in Colombian Food Manufacturing Industry. Journal of Productivity Analysis, 46(2): 185-197
- Woodard, J., Shee, A., and Mude, A. (2016) A Spatial Econometric Approach to Designing and Rating Scalable Index Insurance in the Presence of Missing Data, The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance-Issues and Practice, 41(2): 259-279
- Shee, A. and Stefanou, S. E. (2015). Endogeneity Corrected Stochastic Production Frontier and Technical Efficiency. American Journal of Agricultural Economics 97(3): 939-952
- Shee, A., Turvey, C. G. and Woodard, J. A. (2015). Field Study for Assessing Risk-Contingent Credit for Kenyan Pastoralists and Dairy Farmers. Agricultural Finance Review 75 (3): 330-348
- Vrieling, A., Meroni, M., Shee, A., Mude, A. Woodard, J. de Bie, Rambold, F. (2014). Historical Extension of Aggregated NDVI from Operational Products for Livestock Insurance in Kenya. International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation, 28 (238-251).
- Leeuw, J.D., Vrieling, A., Shee, A., Atzberger, C., Hadgu, K.M., Biradar, C., Keah, H., Turvey, C. (2014). The Potential and Uptake of Remote Sensing in Insurance: a review. Remote Sensing 6, no.11: 10888-10912
- Shee, A. and Turvey, C. G. (2012). Collateral Free Lending with Risk-Contingent Credit for Agricultural Development: Indemnifying Loans against Pulse Crop Price Risk in India. Agricultural Economics 43, 561-574
Recent Conference Presentations
- Agricultural and Applied Economics Association conference (AAEA), Farmer preferences for adopting drought-tolerant maize varieties: evidence from a choice experiment in Nigeria, Aug 16, 2021 Online
- Agricultural and Applied Economics Association conference (AAEA), Does Simultaneous Adoption of Drought Tolerant Maize Varieties and Organic Manure Impact Productivity and Welfare Outcomes of Farm-households in Nigeria? Aug 17, 2021 Online
- STFC Food Network+ 4th Annual Conference, Developing Price Risk-Protected Warehouse Receipt System in Promoting Resilient Food Supply Chains in Africa, 27 May 2021 Online
- International Seminar on Food and Nutrition Security in Africa, FaNSI Conference (Keynote speech) “Assessing the Measurement Methods of Food Loss and Waste: Opportunities and Challenges” 27 Jn 2021 Online
- AAEA 2019 conference “Heterogeneous Demand and Supply for an Insurance-Linked Credit Product in Kenya: A Stated Choice Experiment Approach” Jul 22, 2019, Atlanta, USA
- Agricultural Economics Society Conference 2019 “Fractional Dimensionality of Weather and a New Approach to Risk Financing in Agriculture: Evidence from Kenya” Apr 15, 2019, Warwick, UK
- AAEA 2018 conference “Heterogeneous Impacts of Credit Rationing on Agricultural Productivity: Evidence from Kenya” Aug 6, 2018, Washington DC, USA
- ICAE 2018 conference (session chair and presenter) “Design and Rating of Risk-Contingent Credit for Balancing Business and Financial Risks for Kenyan Farmers” Jul 31, 2018, Vancouver
- Innovate for Climate Conference (I4C) (Presenter and panel discussion) “Risk-Contingent Credit: An Innovative Solution for Climate Risk Finance in Sub-Saharan Africa” May 23, 2018, Frankfurt, Germany
- UTK Research Seminar Presentation “Heterogeneous Impacts of Credit Rationing on Agricultural Productivity: Evidence from Tanzania” University of Tennessee, Jan 10, 2017 Knoxville, TN, USA
- International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie) TW13 Inception Workshop, “Uptake and Evaluation of Innovative Insurance Embedded Credit for Promoting Resilience and Livelihoods for Smallholder maize and wheat farmers in Kenya” 3-4 November 2016, New Delhi, India
- Africa RISING ESA Project Phase 1 Legacy Review Meeting, Presented two papers “Farmers’ Willingness to Pay for Improved Agricultural Technologies: Results from Field Experiment in Tanzania” and “Heterogeneous Impacts of Credit Constraints in the Presence of Risk Rationing: Evidence from Tanzania” 30 June- 2 July 2016, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
- IFPRI RISE Research Day “Heterogeneous impacts of credit constraints in the presence of risk rationing” March 16, 2016 Washington DC
- SCC-76 Annual Conference on Economics and Management of Risks in Agriculture and Natural Resources, “Heterogeneous impacts of credit constraints in the presence of risk rationing” 17-19 March 2016 Florida, USA
- Africa RISING West Africa Project Annual Review and Planning Meeting, “Africa RISING Baseline Survey Data Summary for Ghana and Mali” 24 March 2015, Accra, Ghana
- Research / Scholarly Interests:
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Poverty, agricultural development and sustainable intensification
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Research/Scholarly InterestsAgricultural Finance and Production Economics
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Innovative microinsurance and risk-contingent credit instruments
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Impact Evaluation of socio-economic programmes
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Agriculture and food value chain analysis
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Applied Econometrics
- Research Projects:
- Principal Investigator, ESRC Policy Fellowship; “Ministry of Justice - Experimentation and Evaluation Fellowship” 2022- Current and Previous Funded Research Projects
- Principal Investigator, “Economic and Empowerment Impacts of Millet Processing and Value Addition Enterprises by Women SHGs in Tribal Areas of Odisha” funded by the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 2020-
- Principal Investigator, “Developing Price Risk-Protected Warehouse Receipt System in Promoting Resilient Food Supply Chains in Africa” funded by the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) Food Network+, 2020-2021
- Project co-leader and Co-Principal Investigator, “Promoting Resilience and Food Security through Risk-Contingent Credit in Africa” funded by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, 2020-
- Project leader and Principal Investigator, Uptake and Evaluation of Innovative Insurance Linked Credit for Promoting Resilience and Livelihoods for Farmers in Kenya, 2017-
- Project co-leader and Principal Investigator, Satellite Technologies, Innovative and Smart Financing for Food Security (SATISFy), 2016 – Aug 2017
- Monitoring and evaluation specialist, Africa Research in Sustainable Intensification for the Next Generation (Africa RISING) projects in Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Ethiopia, Ghana and Mali, 2015-17
- Principal Investigator, “Piloting Risk-Contingent Credit for Weather and Market Price Risks in Kenya”, funded by BASIS Assets and Market Access Collaboration Research Support Program (USAID), 2013-14
- Product design lead, Index-Based Livestock Insurance (IBLI) in arid and semi-arid regions of Northern Kenya, 2012-15
- Greenwich Academic Literature Archive (GALA) link:
http://gala.gre.ac.uk/view/authors/6390.html
- Responsibilities:
Responsibilities include implementation and delivery of externally funded projects, supervising PhD students and teaching.
- Awards:
External Recognition
- Platform for Agricultural Risk Management (PARM) Advisory Committee member, 2023-
- Associate Editor/ Editorial Board– Agricultural Finance Review, 2015- Present External Recognition
- National Research Committee (NRC) Lead Reviewer, 2022-
- Membership affiliation – UK Evaluation Society, American Economic Association (AEA), Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA), Association for International Agriculture and Rural Development (AIARD), International Association for Agricultural Economists (IAAE), American Risk and Insurance Association (ARIA)
- Reviewer- Journal of Applied Econometrics, World Development, American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural Economics, Agricultural Finance Review, Journal of Development and Agricultural Economics, Food Security, AAEA Annual meeting 2017 contributed papers, ICAE 2018 contributed papers
Awards
- Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Policy Fellow at the UK Ministry of Justice, 2022
- University of Greenwich Vice Chancellor’s Scholarship, 2018
- Ford Foundation International Fellow, 2005
- AIARD (Association for International Agriculture and Rural Development) Future Leaders Scholarship, 2009
- Competitive International Tuition Grant-in-Aid, Penn State University, 2011
- Gamma Sigma Delta, The Honor Society of Agriculture, 2011
- Penn State nominee for the AAEA Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation Award, 2013
- External Profiles:
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1836-9637
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3042
Professor of Applied Economics
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Dr Christopher J Turner
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- Qualifications:
BSc, MSc, PhD
- Biography:
Christopher Turner is a Senior Lecturer in Food Systems and Public Health Nutrition at the Natural Resources Institute (NRI), University of Greenwich.
Chris is a human geographer with an interdisciplinary background in social science, epidemiology, and public health nutrition. His research focuses food environments and the role that they play in shaping diets, nutrition, and health around the world – particularly in low- and middle-income country settings.
Chris leads the Food Systems and Nutrition research group at NRI. He also co-manages the UK Food Systems Centre for Doctoral Training (UKFS-CDT) and is the innovation and impact theme lead on Food Systems for Improved Nutrition.
Chris joined the University of Greenwich in January 2020 as a Research Fellow under the Food and Nutrition Security Initiative (FaNSI). Prior to joining, he was a Research Fellow in the Department of Global Health and Development at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in 2019. He also held a Research Assistant position at the Department of Human Geography, Lund University, Sweden, from 2013-2015.
Chris graduated from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine in 2020 with a PhD in Epidemiology and Population Health.
- Selected Publications:
- O’Meara, L., Sison, C.,Isarabhakdi, P., Turner, C., Harris, J. (2024) ‘Whatever we have is what we eat’: How marginalised urban groups in the Philippines and Thailand experienced their food environments through COVID-19, Health and Place, 88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2024.103279
- Turner, C., Salm, L., Spires, M., Holdsworth, M., Laar, A. (2023) Capturing the moment: A snapshot review of contemporary food environment research featuring participatory photography methods, Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2023.101364
- Spires, M.,Battersby, J., Cohen, N., Daivadanam, M., Demmler, K.M., Mattioni, D., Pradeilles, R., Thompson, C., Turner, C., Venegas Hargous, C., Wertheim-Heck,S. S., Wills, W., Hawkes, C. (2023) “The People's Summit”: A case for lived experience of food environments as a critical source of evidence to inform the follow-up to the 2021 UN Food Systems Summit, Global Food Security, 37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2023.100690
- Turner, C. Bhogadi, S., Walls, H. Surendran, S., Kulkarni, B. Kinra, S., Kadiyala, S. (2022) Drivers of food acquisition practices in the food environment of peri-urban Hyderabad, India: A qualitative investigation, Health and Place, 74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2022.102763
- O’Meara, L*., Turner, C*., Costa Coitinho, D., Oenema, S. (2021) Consumer experiences of food environments during the Covid-19 pandemic: global insights from a rapid online survey of individuals from 119 countries, Global Food Security, 32, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2021.100594
- Constantinides, S.V*., Turner, C*., Frongillo, E.A., Bhandari, S., Reyes, L., Blake, C.E. (2021) Using a global food environment framework to understand relationships with food choice in diverse low- and middle-income countries, Global Food Security, 29, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2021.100511
- Turner, C., Kalamatianou, S., Drewnowski, A., Kulkarni, B., Kinra, S., Kadiyala, S. (2019). Food Environment Research in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Scoping Review, Advances in Nutrition, 11:2, 387–397. https://doi.org/10.1093/advances/nmz031
- Turner, C., Aggarwal, A., Walls, H., Herforth, A., Drewnowski, A., Coates, J., Kalamatianou, S., Kadiyala, S. (2018) Concepts and critical perspectives for food environment research: a global framework with implications for action in low- and middle-income countries, Global Food Security, 18:93–101; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2018.08.003
- Research / Scholarly Interests:
Chris has expertise in food environment research. He is involved in a range projects and initiatives across the world, with particular interest and experience in low- and middle-income country settings across sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia.
His work includes the development of theory and concepts for food environment research. He led the publication of the food environment conceptual framework by the Agriculture, Nutrition and Health Academy – Food Environment Working Group in 2018. This framework has since seen wide uptake across research, teaching, policy and practice. Chris continues to lead the Food Environment Working Group in an expanded format in 2024, supported by the Innovative Methods and Metrics for Agriculture and Nutrition Actions (IMMANA) program and the Food Systems Research Group at NRI.
His work also includes the development of novel mixed methods for food environment research, such as the use of participatory photography and mapping to capture the lived experience of food environments with a view to co-designing public health nutrition interventions and policies.
He is an active member of the Community of Practice on the Lived Experiences of Food Environments, led by Dr Mark Spires (NRI, University of Greenwich), and the Guild/Arua Centre of Excellence of Food Environment Actions for the Promotion of Health, led by Associate Professor Meena Daivadanam (Uppsala University, Sweden) and Associate Professor Jane Battersby (University of Cape Town, South Africa). He is also actively engaged with the Agriculture, Nutrition and Health Academy (ANH Academy) under the IMMANA programme.
- Teaching Programmes:
UK Food Systems Centre for Doctoral Training (UKFS-CDT)
- Research Projects:
2023-present: Food Environment Actions for the Promotion of Health. PIs: Meena Daivadanam (Uppsala University, Sweden), Jane Battersby (University of Cape Town, South Africa). African Research University Alliance (ARUA)-The Guild Clusters of Excellence. Partner.
2023-present: Political Economy Analysis of Food Industry (PEAFI) - unpacking the influence of the food industry on adolescent consumption of ultra- processed foods in Sub-Saharan Africa. Innovative Methods and Metrics for Agriculture and Nutrition Actions (IMMANA). PI.
2021-present: Strengthening African Food Systems in the face of climate change and food insecurity (SAFOODS). FOSC ERA-NET Co-fund on Food systems and Climate. Co-I.
2020-present: UK Food Systems Centre for Doctoral Training (UKFS-CDT) – Partnership for a Sustainable Food Future. UKRI Strategic Priorities Fund Programme - Transforming the UK food system. Co-I and Co-manager.
- Research Students:
2023-present: Samuel Wairimu, UKFS-CDT, NRI, University of Greenwich. Primary supervisor.
2022-present: Leah Salm, UKFS-CDT, NRI, University of Greenwich. Primary supervisor.
2022-present: Olive Zgambo, UKFS-CDT, Centre for Food Policy, City University, London. External supervisor.
2021-present: Ebunoluwa Awotunya, NRI, University of Greenwich, UK. Secondary supervisor.
- Greenwich Academic Literature Archive (GALA) link:
http://gala.gre.ac.uk/id/user/7864
- Responsibilities:
Chris leads the Food Systems and Nutrition research group at NRI. He also co-manages the UK Food Systems Centre for Doctoral Training (UKFS-CDT) and is the innovation and impact theme lead on Food Systems for Improved Nutrition.
- Awards:
- Chris was awarded a studentship in Epidemiology and Population Health in 2015, funded by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the London Centre for Integrative Research on Agriculture and Health (LCIRAH).
- Chris was the recipient of a Newton Bhabha Placement Grant in 2016, funded by the British Council, leading to a 3-month placement at the National Institute of Nutrition in Hyderabad, India
- External Profiles:
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8091-1108
ResearchGate
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Christopher-Turner-13
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3714
Senior Lecturer in Food Systems and Public Health Nutrition
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Professor Debbie Rees
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- Qualifications:
BSc, PhD
- Biography:
Prof Debbie Rees is a plant physiologist working on the handling and storage of perishable plant produce. She has been working for the NRI since 1994. Early work at NRI focused on improving postharvest handling of sweet potato in East Africa. Subsequently, she broadened her research area to cover postharvest technology for a wide range of perishable crops both in the UK and overseas. Current/recent projects focus on apple, pear, broccoli, swede and cabbage in the UK, on yams in West Africa, sweet potato in East Africa as well as high value commodities imported into the UK such as avocado, grape.
Debbie was appointed as a Reader in Plant Physiology in 2003, and as Professor in Plant Physiology in 2022. She is joint lead for the Produce Quality Centre (PQC), a collaborative research centre with NIAB based around postharvest facilities run by the University which focusses on developing, testing and evaluating new technologies, products or produce to improve storage and shelf-life of produce.
A wide-ranging career started with a PhD at Oxford University investigating the use of phosphorus Nuclear Magnetic Resonance to study energy metabolism in human muscle and bacteria. Following a one year fellowship at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, she then spent five years as a post-doctoral researcher studying photosynthetic mechanisms at Sheffield University, followed by 2 years working in the Wheat programme at CIMMYT (International Centre for Wheat and Maize) in Mexico.
- Selected Publications:
Books edited
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Rees, D., Orchard, J.E. and Farrell, G. (eds) (2012) Crop Post-Harvest: Science and Technology Volume 3: Perishables Wiley Blackwell, UK
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Rees, D., van Oirschot, Q and Kapinga, R. (eds) (2003) Sweetpotato post-harvest Assessment: Experiences from East Africa. Chatham, UK. Natural Resources Institute.
Scientific Papers
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Fisher, Rosalind , Thurston, Karen, Colgan, Richard and Rees, Deborah (2023) Monitoring low O2 stress in apples: what we can learn from chlorophyll fluorescence and respiratory characteristics. Postharvest Biology and Technology, 208:112661. ISSN 0925-5214 (Print), 1873-2356 (Online) (doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.postharvbio.2023.112661)
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Kumar, R., Rees, D. and Fisher, L.H.C. (2022) Preserving food without creating plastic pollution: A primer on progress in developed and low- to middle-income countries. Enterprise Development and Microfinance, 33:4, 1–17 https://doi.org/10.3362/1755-1986.22-00073
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Fisher, L., and Rees, D. (2022) The effect of wash water chlorine content on the pinking discolouration of fresh cut Iceberg lettuce. International Journal of postharvest Technology and Innovation, 8 no 2—3 https://doi.org/10.1504/IJPTI.2022.121880
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Rees, D., Bishop, D. ,Schaefer, J., Colgan, R., Thurston, K. Fisher, R. and Duff, A. (2021) SafePod: a respiration chamber to characterise apple fruit response to storage atmospheres. . Postharvest Biology and Technology 181, 111674 https://doi.org/ 10.1016/j.postharvbio.2021.111674
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Sharma, S.K., McLean, K., Colgan, R., Rees, D., Young, S., Sønderkær, M., Terry, L. A., Turnbull, C., Taylor, M. A. and Bryan, G. J. (2021) Combining conventional QTL analysis and whole-exome capture-based bulk-segregant analysis provides new genetic insights into tuber sprout elongation and dormancy release in a diploid potato population. Heredity, 127 (3). pp. 253-265. ISSN 0018-067X (doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41437-021-00459-0 )
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Apolot, M.G., Acham, H., Ssozi J., Namutebi, A., Masanza, M., Kizito, E. and Rees, D. (2020) Postharvest practices along supply chains of Solanum aethiopicum (Shum) and Amaranthus lividus (Linn) leafy vegetables in Wakiso and Kampala districts, Uganda. African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development 20(03):15978-15991 DOI: 10.18697/ajfand.91.177715
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Mignouna, D.B., Akinola, A.A., Abdoulaye, T., Alene, A., Manyong, V.M., Maroya, N., Aighewi, B., Kumar, L., Balogun, M., Lopez-Montes, A., Quain, M.D. Rees, D., and Asiedu, R. (2020) Potential returns to yam research investment in sub-Saharan Africa and beyond. Outlook on Agriculture 49(2):003072702091838 DOI: 10.1177/0030727020918388
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Akanyijuka, S., Acham, H., Gaston, T., Namutebi, A., Masanza, M., Jagwe, J.,N., Kasharu, A., Kizito E. and Rees, D. (2018) Effect of different processing conditions on proximate and bioactive contents of Solanum aethiopicum (Shum) powders, and acceptability for cottage scale production. American Journal of Food and Nutrition, 6 (2). pp. 46-54. ISSN 2374-1155 (Print), 2374-1163 (Online) (doi:https://doi.org/10.12691/ajfn-6-2-3)
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Apolot, M.G., Ssozi, J., Namutebi, A., Masanza, M., Kizito, E., Rees, D. and Acham, H. (2018) Changes in sensory and quality characteristics of S. Aethiopicum (Shum) and A. Lividus (Linn) leafy vegetables along the supply chain. American Journal of Food Science and Technology, 6 (4). pp. 161-166. ISSN 2333-4827 (Print), 2333-4835 (Online) (doi:https://doi.org/10.12691/ajfst-6-4-5)
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Sekulya, S., Nandutu, A., Namutebi, A, Ssozi, J, Masanza, M, Jagwe, J.N., Kasharu, A., Rees, D., Kizito, E.B. and Acham, H (2018) Effect of post-harvest handling practices, storage technologies and packaging material on post-harvest quality and antioxidant potential of Solanum Aethiopicum (Shum) leafy vegetable. American Journal of Food Science and Technology, 6 (4). pp. 167-180. ISSN 2333-4827 (Print), 2333-4835 (Online) (doi:https://doi.org/10.12691/ajfst-6-4-6)
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Sekulya, S., Masawi, A., Namutebi, A., Ssozi, J., Masanza, M., Kabod, B., Jagwe, J.N., Kasharu, A., Rees, D. and Kizito, E.B. (2018) Antioxidant potential of the farmer preferred selections of Solanum aethiopicum vegetable consumed in central Uganda. European Journal of Biological Research, 8. pp. 26-33. ISSN 2449-8955 (Online) (doi:https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1195552)
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Glowacz, M., and Rees, D. (2016) Exposure to ozone reduces postharvest quality loss in red and green chilli peppers. Food Chemistry, 210. pp. 305-310. ISSN 0308-8146 (doi:1016/j.foodchem.2016.04.119)
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Glowacz, M., and Rees, D. (2016) Using jasmonates and salicylates to reduce losses within the fruit supply chain. European Food Research and Technology, 242 (2). pp. 143-156. ISSN 1438-2377 (Print), 1438-2385 (Online) (doi:1007/s00217-015-2527-6)
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Glowacz, M., Colgan, R. and Rees, D. (2015). The use of ozone to extend the shelf-life and maintain quality of fresh produce (Review). Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 95. Pp. 662-671
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Glowacz, M. Colgan, R., Rees, D. (2015). Influence of continuous exposure to gaseous ozone on the quality of red bell peppers, cucumbers and zucchini. Postharvest Biology and Technology, 99, 1-8.
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Macaulay B.B., and Rees, D. (2014) Bioremediation of oil spills: a review of challenges for research advancement. Annals of Environmental Science. 8: 9-37.
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Cheema, M.U.A., Rees, D.,Colgan, R.J., Taylor, M. and Westby, A. (2013) The effect of ethylene, 1-MCP and AVG on sprouting in sweetpotato roots. Postharvest Biology and Technology 85: 89-93
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Rees,D. van Oirschot, Q.E.A. and Aked, J. (2008) The role of carbohydrates in wound-healing of sweetpotato roots at low humidity. Postharvest Biology and Technology 50:79-86
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van Oirschot, Q.E.A., Rees, D., Aked, J. and Kihurani, A (2006) Sweetpotato cultivars differ in efficiency of wound healing. Postharvest Biology and Technology 42: 65-74
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Tomlins, K.I, Rwiza, E., Nyango, A., Amour, R., Ngendello, T., Kapinga, R., Rees, D., and Jolliffe, F. (2004) The use of sensory evaluation and consumer acceptability for the selection of sweetpotato cultivars in East Africa. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture. 84: 791-799
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van Oirschot , Q.E.A, Rees, D., and Aked, J. (2004) Sensory characteristics of five sweet potato cultivars and their changes during storage under tropical conditions. Food Quality and Preference. 14, 673-680
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Rees, D., van Oirschot, Q.E.A., Amour, R., Rwiza, E., Kapinga, R., and Carey T. (2003) Cultivar variation in keeping quality of sweetpotatoes. Postharvest Biology and Technology 28: 313-325
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Stathers, T.E., Rees, D., Kabi, S., Mbilinyi, L, Smit, N, Kiozya, H., Jeremiah, S., Nyango, A., and Jeffries, D (2003) Sweetpotato infestation by Cylas in East Africa: I. Cultivar differences in field infestation and the role of plant factors. International Journal of Pest Management, 49: 131-140
24. Stathers, T.E., Rees, D., Nyango, A., Kiozya, H., Mbilinyi, L, Jeremiah, S., Kabi, S., and Smit, N (2003) Sweetpotato infestation by Cylas spp. in East Africa: II. Investigating the role of root characteristics. International Journal of Pest Management, 49: 141-146
25. Rees, D., Kapinga, R., Mtunda, K., Chilosa, D., Rwiza, E., Kilima, M., Kiozya, H. and Munisi, R. (2001). Effect of damage on market value and shelf-life of sweetpotato in urban markets of Tanzania Trop. Sci. 41: 142-150
26. Agona, J.A., Nahdy, S.M., Giga, D.P. and Rees, D. (1999) A visual scale of loss assessment for dried sweet potato chips due to Araecerus fasciculatus Degeer (Coleoptera: Anthribidae) infestation on-farm. Uganda Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 4: 1-5
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Fischer, R.A., Rees, D., Sayre, K., Lu, Z.-M, Condon, A.G. and Larque-Saavedra, A. (1998) Wheat yield progress associated with stomatal conductance, photosynthetic rate and cooler canopies. Crop Sci. 38: 1467-1475
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Rees, D., Horton, P. and Schreiber, U. (1993) The relationship between photosystem II intrinsic quantum yield and millisecond luminescence in thylakoids. Res. 37, 131-138
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Cleland, R.E., Rees, D. and Horton, P. (1992) Light induced fluorescence quenching and loss of photochemistry in chromatophores of photosynthetic purple bacteria. Photochem. Photobiol. B: Biol., 13, 253-265
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Rees, D., Lee, C.B., Gilmour, D.J. and Horton, P. (1992) Mechanisms for controlling balance between light input and utilisation in the salt tolerant alga Dunaliella C9AA. Res. 32, 181-191
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Soma, M.R., Mims, M.P., Chari, M.V., Rees, D. and Morrisett, J.D. (1992) Triglyceride metabolism in 3T3-LI cells. An in vivo 13C NMR study. Biol. Chem. 267, 11168-11175
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Ruban, A.V., Rees, D., Pascal, A.A. and Horton, P. (1992) Mechanism of delta-pH-dependent dissipation of absorbed excitation energy by photosynthetic membranes.II. The relationship between LHCII aggregation in vitro and qE in isolated thylakoids. Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1102, 39-44
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Rees, D., Noctor, G., Ruban, A.V., Crofts, J., Young, A. and Horton, P. (1992) pH dependent chlorophyll fluorescence quenching in spinach thylakoids from light treated or dark adapted leaves. Photosynth Res. 31, 11-19
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Noctor, G., Rees, D., Young, A. and Horton, P. (1991) The relationship between zeaxanthin, energy-dependent quenching of chlorophyll fluorescence and transthylakoid pH gradient in isolated chloroplasts. Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1057, 320-330
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Horton, P., Ruban, A.V., Rees, D., Pascal, A.A., Noctor, G. and Young, A.J. (1991) Control of the light-harvesting function of chloroplast membranes by aggregation of the LHCII chlorophyll-protein complex. FEBS Lett. 292, 1-2
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Ruban, A.V., Rees, D., Noctor, G.D., Young, A. and Horton, P. (1991) Long wavelength chlorophyll species are associated with amplification of high-energy-state excitation quenching in higher plants. Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1059, 355-360
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Rees, D., Noctor, G. and Horton, P. (1990) The effect ofhigh-energy-state excitation quenching on maximum and dark level chlorophyll fluorescence yield. Photosynth. Res. 25, 199-211
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Rees, D. and Horton, P. (1990) The mechanisms of changes in photosystem 2 efficiency in spinach thylakoids. Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1016, 219-227
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Lee, C.B., Rees, D. and Horton, P. (1990) Non-photochemical quenching of chlorophyll fluorescence in the green alga Dunaliella. Photosynth. Res. 24, 167-173
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Horton, P., Crofts, J., Gordon, S., Oxborough, K., Rees, D. and Scholes, J.D. (1989) Regulation of photosystem II by metabolic and environmental factors. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B 323, 269-279
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Rees, D., Young, A., Noctor, G., Britton, G. and Horton, P; (1989) Enhancement of the delta-pH dependent dissipation of excitation energy in spinach chloroplasts by light activation: correlation with the synthesis of zeaxanthin. FEBS Lett. 256, 85-90
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Rees, D., Smith, M.B., Harley, J. and Radda, G.K. (1989) In vivo functioning of creatine phosphokinase in human forearm muscle studied by 31-P NMR saturation transfer. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance in Medicine 9, 39-52
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Mitsumori, F., Rees, D., Brindle, K.M., Radda, G.K. and Campbell, I.D. (1988) 31-P NMR saturation transfer studies of aerobic Escherichia coli Biochim. Biophys. Acta 969, 185-193
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Hasthorpe, S., Carver, J.A., Rees, D. and Campbell, I.D. (1988) Metabolic effects of interleukin 3 in 32D C123 cells analyzed by NMR. Cell Mem. Physiol.
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Horton, P., Oxborough, K., Rees, D. and Scholes, J.D. (1988) Regulation of the photochemical efficiency of photosystem 2: Consequences for the light response of field photosynthesis. Plant Physiol. Biochem. 26, 453-460
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Horton, P., Crofts, J., Oxborough, K., Rees, D. and Scholes, J.D. (1988) Regulation of the yield of chlorophyll fluorescence and the photochemical efficiency of photosystem 2. Proc R. Soc
- Research / Scholarly Interests:
My research focuses on optimising handling and storage of perishable produce to reduce food loss and waste. This includes the development and testing of new technologies and sustainable packaging.
I am particularly interested in technologies that are able to monitor the response of fresh produce to the storage and handling environment in situ, so that this information can be used to optimise that environment. As an example I provided scientific support for the development of the SafePod technology which uses respiratory characteristics of fruit in store to pick up stress responses and therefore allow optimisation of atmospheric composition for Controlled Atmosphere storage. This technology is now used in many countries of the world for apple storage. I am currently working on using a similar approach to improve potato store management. I have also worked on the potential for monitoring fluorescence from chlorophylls in green photosynthetic tissues as an indicator of produce health and shelf-life potential. I am working with industry to develop the use of gaseous ozone for produce decontamination with no residues.
- Teaching Programmes:
Lecturer on Postharvest Technology of Fruit and Vegetables for the Masters Programmes Food Safety and Quality Management, Sustainable Agriculture.
- Research Projects:
NERC: 2021-2023 Reduced plastic packaging and food waste through product innovation simulation. P-I for NRI. Partners: City (Lead), UoSheffleld, UoKent, WRAP. £738K
This project used modelling of the behaviour of different types of UK domestic households to predict the impact of food packaging design on both food and packaging waste. NRI’s role was to obtain data on the shelf-life of key fresh commodities for different packaging and storage scenarios. The output of the project is a tool that can be used by the food industry to help determine the best packaging solutions that not only reduce packaging pollution, but minimise food waste.
Innovate SMART: 2020 O3Preserve: evaluating the potential for ozone flushing to extend shelf-life of strawberries. P-I for UoG. Partners: Ozone Technologies Ltd (Lead) £110K
Gaseous ozone is a powerful antimicrobial agent, but with its short shelf-life, rapidly breaks down leaving no chemical residues. This proof of concept project tested the concept of injecting ozone into retail packs of strawberries and demonstrated an extension of shelf-life. Funding is being sought to take this technology to commercial stage.
Newton: 2018 – 2020 BioFreshPak:Low cost film to reduce losses in the Indian fresh produce supply chain. PI for UoG. Partners: Nextek (Lead), Solutions4Plastics, Brunel University + 5 Indian collaborating organisations, £1.2M
This project tested the concept of using cassava starch to reduce the cost of compostable films for preserving fresh produce through the supply chain in India. The project successfully demonstrated the film manufacture, compostability and efficacy in shelf-life extension of a range of produce marketed domestically in Punjab, India. Some of the findings are contributing to a new project, Nextloopp, also led by Nextek which seeks to develop a demonstration at commercial scale of recycling of ppolypropylene plastic packaging.
Innovate: 2015 – 2018 SafePod: New technology for intelligent control of fresh produce storage. Project Manager/ PI for UoG. Partners: SCS Ltd (Lead), AC Goathams, Avalon, Sainsbury’s. £860K
This project involved the development of the SafePod; a chamber that can be placed within a commercial apple controlled atmosphere store in order to monitor the metabolic status of the fruit. By detecting when the fruit is stressed, this enables the storage environment to be optimised. Furthermore, by monitoring changes in respiration rate through the storage season, it is possible to predict when the fruit has reached the end of its storage life and should be removed for marketing.
This technology is now being used by apple growers in the UK and in North America.
The concept of monitoring metabolic status in storage using SafePod is now being tested for other commodities, including potato.
BBSRC-HAPI: 2013–2016 Controlling dormancy and sprouting in potato and onion. CoI for UoG Partners: James Hutton Institute (Lead), Imperial College, Cranfield University) £640K
This project sought to unravel the genetic and molecular processes underlying the very important traits of tuber and bulb dormancy in potato and onion respectively.
Potato and onion production relies on industrial-scale storage to ensure year-round availability, for both fresh and processing sectors. Multiple strategies are used to extend dormancy and minimise sprouting, including low temperature storage and/or the application of sprout suppressant chemicals. Key sprout suppressant chemicals have been withdrawn recently, so that there is an urgent need to develop new storage strategies for potato and onion.
The project used phenotypic and genotypic analysis of the progeny of a cross between two diploid potato lines. NRI provided the potato storage environments and undertook the trials to enable phenotypic observations and sampling for genotypic analysis.
Project Outputs:
An updated unified model for hormonal dormancy control for potato was produced (also relevant to onion).
- Genome locations (QTLs) were identified associated with tuber dormancy and sprout growth. This could potentially lead to markers for tuber dormancy/sprouting for use in breeding
- Candidate genes involved in dormancy control were identified. Transgenic lines for functional validation and further expression work have been produced for one gene (TERMINAL FLOWER 1/CENTRORADIALIS).
- Profiles of gene expression, hormone concentrations, key metabolites and respiration through progression of dormancy, dormancy break and sprout growth were obtained for both potato and onion.
- Greenwich Academic Literature Archive (GALA) link:
http://gala.gre.ac.uk/view/authors/675.html
- Responsibilities:
Joint lead of the Produce Quality Centre
- External Profiles:
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3541-0424
LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-rees-76258413a/
Google Scholar
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=SC_xBCAAAAAJ&hl=en
Research Gate
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Debbie-Rees
Professor of Plant Physiology
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Dr Diego Naziri
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- Qualifications:
Advanced University Degree (BSc/MSc), PhD
- Biography:
Dr Diego Naziri joined the Natural Resources Institute (NRI) of the University of Greenwich in November 2010 as Market and Trade Economist. Before joining NRI he was Postdoc Fellow at the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD) and at the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA). Between 2006 and 2008 he was Research Fellow at the Agronomic Institute for the Overseas (IAO), the former technical-scientific branch of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for agriculture and rural development cooperation. Diego has more than 15 years of working experience in socio-economic research on transformation, sustainability and resilience of agri-food systems in the tropics. His main research interest lies in analyzing agricultural development problems and solutions with a focus on value chains, postharvest management, participatory methodologies for linking farmers to markets, crop-livestock-fish system integration, trade-related policies, agricultural innovation systems, innovation management and sharing, and management of complex research in development partnerships and multi-agency projects. Apart from his experience in conducting short-term research and consultancy in various low and middle-income countries (LMICs) on a number of different commodities, Diego has long-term overseas experience in Africa (Uganda), Asia (Vietnam) and Latin America (Brazil and Argentina) where he primarily focused on development challenges and opportunities of root and tuber crops. He obtained his Advanced University Degree (BSc/MSc) in “Agricultural Sciences” from the University of Turin (Italy) in 2001 and the PhD in “Cooperation for Sustainable Development” from the University "La Sapienza" of Rome (Italy) in 2006. He has been seconded to the International Potato Center (CIP) since 2014 and currently acting as CGIAR senior scientist based in Vietnam.
- Selected Publications:
Peer reviewed articles
- Wauters, P., Naziri, D., Turinawe, A., Akello, R. & Parker M.L. (2022). Economic analysis of alternative ware potato storage technologies in Uganda. American Journal of Potato Research, Vol. 99, 217-228. DOI: 10.1007/s12230-022-09874-3
- Akello, R., Turinawe, A., Wauters, P. & Naziri, D. (2022) Factors Influencing the choice of storage technologies by smallholder potato farmers in eastern and southwestern Uganda. Agriculture, 12(2): 240. DOI: 10.3390/agriculture12020240
- Alam, G.M.M., Sarker, M.N.I., Gatto, M., Bhandari, H. & Naziri, D. (2022). Impact of COVID-19 on fisheries and aquaculture sector in developing countries and way forward. Sustainability, 14(3): 1071. DOI: 10.3390/su14031071
- Tanimonure, V.A., Naziri, D., Codjoe, S.N. & Ayanwale, A.B. (2021). Underutilised indigenous vegetables for household dietary diversity in the era of climate change in Southwest Nigeria. Agriculture, Vol. 11(11): 1064. DOI: 10.3390/agriculture11111064
- Gatto, M., Naziri, D., San Pedro, J. & Bené, C. (2021). Crop resistance and household resilience – the case of cassava and sweetpotato during super-typhoon Ompong in the Philippines. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, Vol. 62. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijdrr.2021.102392
- Tanimonure, V.A. & Naziri, D. (2021). Impact of climate adaptation strategies on the net farm revenue of underutilized indigenous vegetables’ (UIVs) production in Southwest Nigeria. Resources, Environment and Sustainability, Vol. 5. DOI:1016/j.resenv.2021.100029
- Asindu, M., Ouma, E., Elepu, G. & Naziri, D. (2020). Farmer demand and willingness-to-pay for sweetpotato silage-based diet as pig feed in Uganda. Sustainability, Vol. 12(16): 6452. DOI: 3390/su12166452
- Prain, G., Wheatley, C., Odsey, C., Verzola, L., Bertuso, A., Roa, J. & Naziri, D. (2020) Research-development partnerships for scaling complex innovation: Lessons from Farmer Business School in IFAD-supported loan-grant collaborations in Asia. Agricultural Systems, Vol. 182. DOI: 1016/j.agsy.2020.102834
- Bentley, J.W., Naziri, D., Prain, G., Kikulwe, E., Mayanja, S., Devaux, A. & Thiele, G. (2020). Managing complexity and uncertainty in agricultural innovation through adaptive project design and implementation. Development in Practice, Vol. 31(2). DOI: 10.1080/09614524.2020.1832047
- Atkins, M., Byrd, K., Pincus, L., Naziri, D., Agboola, J.O. & Yossa, R. (2020). Fish, roots, tubers and bananas: opportunities and constraints for agri-food system integration. International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability. DOI: 10.1080/14735903.2020.1776815
- Kikulwe, E.M., Okurut, S., Ajambo, S., Nowakunda, K., Stoian, D. & Naziri, D. (2018). Postharvest losses and their determinants: A challenge to creating a sustainable cooking banana value chain in Uganda. Sustainability, 10(7):2381. DOI: 10.3390/su10072381
- Naziri, D., Mayanja, S., Ssemwanga, J. & Donovan, J. (2017). Approaches and tools for inclusive value chain development: Lessons from Uganda for improved impact. Enterprise Development and Microfinance, Vol. 28(4), 323-341. DOI: 3362/1755-1986.00036
- Asindu, M. Elepu, G., Ouma, E., Kyalo, G., Lule, P. & Naziri, D. (2017). Sweet potato wastes in major pig producing districts in Uganda: An opportunity for investment in silage technologies. Livestock Research for Rural Development, Vol. 29, Article 216. http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd29/11/asim29216.html
- Tu, V.P., Nguyen, T.T., Chu, K.S., Luong, H.N., Nguyen, T.H.D., Bennett, B., Naziri, D., Tomlins, K. & Anh T.K. (2016). Potential use of by-products for animal feed from cassava in Viet Nam. Journal of Science and Development, Vol. 14(1), 93-100.
- Naziri, D., Rich, K.M. & Bennett, B. (2015). Would a commodity-based trade approach improve market access for Africa? A case study of the potential of beef exports from communal areas of Namibia. Development Policy Review, 33(2), 195-219. DOI: 10.1111/dpr.12098
- Naziri, D., Aubert, M., Codron, J.M., Loc, N.T.T. & Moustier, P. (2014). Estimating the impact of small-scale farmers’ collective action on food safety: The case of vegetables in Vietnam. The Journal of Development Studies, 50(5), 715-730. DOI: 10.1080/00220388.2013.874555
- Naziri, D., Quaye, W., Siwoku, B., Wanlapatit, S., Tu, V.P. & Bennett, B. (2014). The diversity of postharvest losses in cassava value chains in selected developing countries. Journal of Agriculture and Rural Development in the Tropics and Subtropics, 115(2), 111–123. DOI: urn:nbn:de:hebis:34-2014121946902
- Kleih, U., Linton, J., Marr, A., Mactaggart, M., Naziri, D. & Orchard, J. (2013). Financial services for small and medium-scale aquaculture and fisheries producers. Marine Policy, Vol. 37, 106-114. DOI: 10.1016/j.marpol.2012.04.006
- Nguyen, T.T., Tu, V.P., Chu, K.S., Luong, H.N., Nguyen, T.H.D., Bennett, B., Naziri, D. & Anh T.K. (2013). Application of value chain analysis in understanding the losses and wastes of cassava in Vietnam. Journal of Science and Technology, Vol. 51(6A), 70-76.
- Naziri, D. & Bennett, B. (2012). Private voluntary standards in livestock and meat sectors: implications for developing countries. Food Chain, 2, n. 1, 64-85. DOI: 10.3362/2046-1887.2012.006
Books and book chapters
- Okike, I., Wigboldus, S., Samireddipalle, A., Naziri, D., Adesehinwa, A.O.K., Adejoh, V.A., Amole, T., Bordoloi, S. & Kulakow, P. (2022). Turning waste to wealth: Harnessing the potential of cassava peels for nutritious animal feed. In G. Thiele, M. Friedmann, H. Campos, V. Polar & J.W. Bentley (Eds.), Root, tuber and banana food system innovations: Value creation for inclusive outcomes. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-92022-7_6
- Devaux, A., Velasco, C., Ordinola, M. & Naziri, D. (2020). Enhancing value chain innovation through collective action: Lessons from the Andes, Africa, and Asia. In H. Campos & O. Ortiz (Eds.), The potato crop: Its agricultural, nutritional and social contribution to Cham, Switzerland: Springer. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-28683-5_3
- International Potato Center (2019). Connecting smallholder root and tuber growers to markets through Farmer Business Schools. Food Resilience Through Root and Tuber Crops in Upland and Coastal Communities of the Asia-Pacific (FoodSTART+). Lima (Peru). 65 pp. (Production coordinators: Naziri & C. Enalbes). DOI: 10.4160/9789290605287
- International Potato Center (2019). Farmer business school with climate change and gender perspective: Learning and monitoring guide. Food Resilience Through Root and Tuber Crops in Upland and Coastal Communities of the Asia‐Pacific (FoodSTART+) Project. Lima (Peru). 44 p. (Production coordinator: Naziri). DOI: 10.4160/9789290605256
- Mignon, S., Mazars-Chapelon, A., Chapellier, P., Janicot, C., Antona, M., De Romemont, A., Faure, G., Naziri, D., Moustier, P., Aubert, M., Codron, J.M., Nguyen, T.L. & Siboni, D. (2017). Capital social et action collective. In M. Antona & F. Bousquet (Eds.), Une troisième voie entre l’état et le marché: Echanges avec Elinor Ostrom (pp. 81-89). Versailles Cedex: Quae Editions.
- Naziri, D. (2009). Can consumer choice foster more diversified farming systems? The experience of direct sale in Toscana. In A. Bocci & T. Chiari (Eds.), The sustainable use of agrobiodiversity in Italy. Report on case studies on article 6 of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (pp. 75-86). Firenze: Istituto Agronomico per l’Oltremare.
- Naziri, D. & Castellani, L. (2005). Impact of the Uruguay Round on the EU market access policy for fisheries and future perspectives. Which consequences of a unilateral trade liberalization?. Torino: Dipartimento di Economia e Ingegneria Agraria, Forestale e Ambientale, Università degli Studi di Torino, 127 pp.
- Naziri, D. & Castellani, L. (2002). Produzione e commercio internazionale del cacao: situazione e tendenze (Production and international trade of cocoa: situation and relevant issues). Torino: Dipartimento di Economia e Ingegneria Agraria, Forestale e Ambientale, Università degli Studi di Torino, 205 pp.
Selected working papers and research reports
- Naziri, D., Belton, B. Alobo Loison, S., Shikuku, K., Reardon, T., Kaguongo, W., Maina, K. Ogello, E. & Obiero, K. (2021). Pivoting in response to Covid-19 disruptions in the midstream of potato and fish value chains in Kenya. Lima, Peru: CIP; Penang, Malaysia: WorldFish.
- Dentoni, D., Brak, A. & Naziri, D. (2021). Farmer Business Schools (FBS) in local communities: How do FBS stimulate farmers’ learning and social capital? CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers and Bananas (RTB). https://hdl.handle.net/10568/116677
- Tinyiro, E., Mayanja, S., Kisakye, S. & Naziri, D. (2021). Gendered mapping of steamed sweetpotato among urban consumers in Uganda. Lima (Peru). CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers, and Bananas (RTB).
- Tinyiro, E., Mayanja, S., Kisakye, S. & Naziri, D. (2021). Consumer preferences for steamed sweetpotato in urban areas of Uganda. Lima (Peru). CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers, and Bananas (RTB).
- Sartas M., Zervas P., Konstantinidis S., Sarfatti P., Schut M., Bonaiuti E., Naziri, D. & Clarke V. (2021). Descriptors for documenting innovations and their contributions to impact. Lima (Peru). CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers, and Bananas (RTB). DOI: 10.4160/9789290606079
- Kisakye, S., Tinyiro, E., Mayanja, S. & Naziri, D. (2020). Current status of knowledge about end-user preferences for boiled potato in Uganda – A food science, gender and demand perspective. Kampala, Uganda: CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers and Banana (RTB). DOI: 10.4160/9789290605546
- Atkins, M., Byrd, K.A., Pincus, L., Naziri, D., Yossa, R. & Thilsted, S.H. (2020). Integrating fish, roots, tubers and bananas in food systems: Opportunities and constraints. Working Paper: FISH-2020-06. Penang, Malaysia: CGIAR Research Program on Fish Agri-Food Systems; Lima, Peru: CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers and Bananas.
- Prain, G. & Naziri, D. (2020). The role of root and tuber crops in strengthening agri-food system resilience in Asia: A literature review and selective stakeholder assessment. FoodSTART+ Working Paper. Lima (Peru). International Potato Center. ISBN: 978‐92‐9060‐539‐3. 58pp. DOI: 10.4160/9789290605393
- Palao, L.K., Naziri, D., Balanza, J.G. & Campilan, D.M. (2019). Transformational adaptation of key root and tuber crops in Asia: Species distribution modelling for assessing crop suitability in response to climate change. FOODSTART+ Project. Lima (Peru). International Potato Center. 34 pp. DOI: 10.4160/9789290605300
- Even, B., Naziri, D., Le Thi, H. & Palao, L.K. (2019). Is Vietnam in need of supportive policies for promoting roots and tubers development? Insights from Quang Binh province. FOODSTART+, funded by EU/IFAD.
- Nabukeera, C. & Naziri, D. (2017). Economic viability of ware potato storage in ambient stores in eastern Uganda. RTB-ENDURE report, funded by EU/IFAD.
- Ojakol, J.F., Lule, P., Kyalo, G., Pezo, D., Naziri, D., Lukuyu, B. & Mutetikka D. (2017). Effect of sweetpotato silage diets on performance of growing pigs in Uganda. RTB-ENDURE report, funded by EU/IFAD.
- Lule, P., Ojakol, J.F., Asindu, M., Naziri, D. & Ouma, E. (2017) Economic analysis of sweetpotato silage-based diets for smallholder pig farmers in Uganda. RTB-ENDURE report, funded by EU/IFAD.
- Mayanja, S., Mudege, N. & Naziri, D. (2016). Gender situational analysis of the cassava value chain in Western Uganda and strategies for gender equity in postharvest innovations. RTB-ENDURE report, funded by EU/IFAD.
- Mudege, N., Mayanja, S. & Naziri, D. (2016). Gender situational analysis of the potato value chain in eastern Uganda and strategies for gender equity in postharvest innovations. RTB-ENDURE report, funded by EU/IFAD.
- Mudege, N., Mayanja, S. & Naziri, D. (2016). Gender situational analysis of the sweetpotato value chain in Central and Eastern Uganda and strategies for gender equity in postharvest innovatiion. RTB-ENDURE report, funded by EU/IFAD.
- Waigumba, S.P., Nyamutoka, P., Wanda, K., Abass, A., Kwagala, I., Menya, G., Acheng, S., Nuwamanya, E., Matovu, M., Kaliisa, R., Muyinza, H., Nyakaisiki, E. & Naziri, D. (2016). Market opportunities and value chain analysis of fresh cassava roots in Uganda. RTB-ENDURE report, funded by EU/IFAD.
- Nalunga, A., Kikulwe, E., Nowakunda, K., Ajambo, S. & Naziri, D. (2015). Structure of the cooking banana value chain in Uganda and opportunities for value addition and postharvest losses reduction. RTB-ENDURE report, funded by EU/IFAD.
- Abayomi, L. A., Sandifolo, V., Naziri, D., Kaitano, V. & Shaw, M. (2013). C:AVA II Investment study - Malawi case study. C:AVA NRI project report, funded by the BMGF.
- Bennett, B., Naziri, D., Mahende, G., Magadi, J. & Masau, B. (2013). C:AVA II Investment study - Tanzania case study. C:AVA NRI project report, funded by the BMGF.
- Naziri, D. & Lam, H. (2013). Will exports of cassava from Nigeria to China take off in the coming years? An assessment of the opportunities of targeting the emerging Chinese bio-fuel industry. C:AVA NRI project report, funded by the BMGF.
- Naziri, D., L., Abayomi, L., Sandifolo, V., Kaitano, V. & Sergeant, A. (2013). Market opportunities for cassava in Malawi. C:AVA NRI project report, funded by the BMGF.
- Naziri, D. & Bennett, B. (2013). Value chains and levels/causes of post-harvest losses for cassava and yam. Gains from Losses from Roots and Tubers (GRATITUDE), EC, Brussels. FP7 no. 289843.
- Naziri, D., Sergeant, A., Graffham, A., Sanni, L., Abayomi, L. & Siwoku, B. (2013). Market opportunities for cassava in Nigeria. C:AVA NRI project report, funded by the BMGF.
- Bennett, B. & Naziri, D. (2013), Market Study for a range of potential cassava and yam waste product solutions in Ghana, Nigeria, Thailand and Vietnam, Gains from Losses from Roots and Tubers (GRATITUDE), EC, Brussels. FP7 no. 289843.
- Coote, C., Naziri, D., Kuiseu, J., Dembele, D. & Coulibaly, N. (2011). Diagnosis of capacity development needs of the OPV Maize Innovation Platforms for Technology Adoption (IPTAs) in Mali. NRI project report, funded by the DFID.
- Naziri, D. (2011). Financial services for SME fisheries: Egypt case study. NRI project report, funded by the GIZ.
- Naziri, D. (2011). The rapid rise of private voluntary standards in the livestock and meat sectors and their implications for developing countries. NRI Working Paper, funded by the DFID.
- Research / Scholarly Interests:
- Planning and conduct of applied socio-economic research in the agri-food and rural development sectors of LMIC countries, including market research, value chain analyses and feasibility studies.
- Postharvest management, value chain upgrading, market and business development.
- Food loss and waste assessment and reduction, particularly along value chains of perishable crops.
- Public and private standards in domestic, regional and international trade of agricultural and livestock products and implications for smallholder farmers’ market access.
- Establishment and management of partnerships between research organizations and government agencies, non-governmental organizations, private sector and service providers, including multi-stakeholder innovation platforms.
- Intellectual, technical and management leadership of interdisciplinary teams involving both biophysical and social scientists.
- Proven experience in strategic planning, project/program management, financial oversight, and M&E to ensure delivery of expected results and outcomes in a cost-effective and timely manner.
- Member of the NRI Development Studies Research Group.
- Research Projects:
Senior Scientist in the “Market Intelligence and Product Profiling”, a One CGIAR Initiative (2022-2030) which aims to provide data, information and insights to inform decisions that will prioritize and align CGIAR investment in breeding pipelines and seed systems. https://www.cgiar.org/initiative/05-market-intelligence-for-more-equitable-and-impactful-genetic-innovation/
Senior Scientist and Country Focal Point in the “Nature Positive Solutions”, a One CGIAR Initiative (2022-2030) which aims to re-imagine, co-create, and implement nature-positive solutions-based agrifood systems that equitably support local food and livelihoods, while simultaneously ensuring that agriculture is a net positive contributor to nature. https://www.cgiar.org/initiative/12-nature-positive-solutions-enhancing-productivity-and-resilience-safeguarding-the-environment-and-promoting-inclusive-community-growth/
Principal investigator (P.I.) of FoodSTART+, a USD 2.2mln EU-IFAD funded initiative (2015-2019) to directly support IFAD’s strategic framework 2016-2025. It introduced, validated and scaled root and tuber crop (RTC) innovations for reducing food vulnerability and enhancing resilience in the region, primarily within the framework of large-scale IFAD investment projects in India, Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam. http://www.rtb.cgiar.org/foodstartplus/
P.I. of RTB-ENDURE, a USD 3.6mln EU-IFAD funded multi-disciplinary project (2014-2017). It addressed key postharvest challenges of potato, sweetpotato, cassava and banana in Uganda by testing and validating technological and commercial innovations for improved postharvest management, expanded processing and targeting changing needs of emerging urban markets. Implementing team consisted of CIP, IITA, CIAT, Bioversity Int., CIRAD and several national partners, including 5 NARI, 3 Universities, 5 NGOs, local authorities, private firms and farmers’ organizations. Supervised three MSc students conducting relevant socio-economic research. https://www.rtb.cgiar.org/rtb-endure/
- Greenwich Academic Literature Archive (GALA) link:
http://gala.gre.ac.uk/view/authors/5898.html
- Responsibilities:
Research, consultancy and teaching
- Awards:
- Member of the International Association of Agricultural Economists (IAAE)
- Member of the European Association of Agricultural Economists (EAAE)
- Teaching Associate Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy (HEA)
- Member of the International Society for Tropical Root Crops (ISTRC)
- Invited speaker, moderator and panelist at several international conferences and symposia
- Reviewer for a number of peer-reviewed journals.
- External Profiles:
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8078-5033
LinkedIn
https://www.linkedin.com/in/diego-naziri-9064524/
Google Scholar
https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=MqEEW0cAAAAJ&hl=it
Research Gate
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Diego_Naziri
Scopus
https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=55237604600
CGSpace
https://cgspace.cgiar.org/discover?rpp=10&etal=0&query=naziri&group_by=none&page=3&filtertype_0=author&filter_relational_operator_0=equals&filter_0=Naziri%2C+D.
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3069
Associate Professor of Agri-food Systems Innovation
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Dr Gideon Edu Onumah
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- Qualifications:
BSc. (Hons.), MSocSc, PhD
- Biography:
Dr Gideon Edu Onumah is a Ghanaian national and has been with NRI for over 14 years. He has been working on African agricultural production, marketing and finance systems as well as on rural/micro finance issues. He has undertaken considerable desk and field research in agricultural commodity sectors, using a range of analytical tools, including value chain analysis, transaction cost analysis and the institutional framework to identify opportunities in the agricultural sector as well as institutional innovations which enhance the capacity of producers and other stakeholders to exploit and benefit from such opportunities. His experience in the commodity sectors includes both food crops, especially grains as well as export crops.
Dr Onumah is that the forefront of the promotion of modern agricultural marketing and finance institutions such as the warehouse receipt system and functional agricultural commodity exchanges. He is currently leading a team of Europe-based experts (under AGRINATURA-EEIG) who are collaborating with African farmers' organisations in promoting market-based farm risk management tools which can benefit smallholder farmers. The project which is called Farm Risk Management for Africa (FARMAF) is funded by the European Union.
Dr Onumah has also been involved in research and consultations on policy and regulatory issues affecting agricultural commodity trading and finance systems. It was in recognition of his work in these areas that he was asked to contribute at a special international colloquium on Warehouse receipts and securitisation of finance to smallholder farmers in 2012. He was also invited as a chapter contributor for the first issue of Africa Agriculture Status Report.
- Selected Publications:
- "Transforming African agriculture by improving output markets"- Chapter 7, Africa Agriculture Status Report, AGRA, Nairobi, Kenya 2013.
- "Warehouse receipts and securitization in agricultural finance to promote lending to smallholder farmers in Africa: potential benefits and legal/regulatory issues", Uniform Law Review, Vol. 17, 2012-1/2 pp.351-367.
- "Improving the efficiency of African agricultural marketing systems through promoting formalized exchange infrastructure: potential, prospects and challenges". Published in peer-reviewed Proceeding of International Conference on "Towards Priority Actions for Market Development for African Farmers", ILRI 2011.
- "Stabilizing food prices in Africa: what role is there for market-based instruments that promote spatial and temporal arbitrage?" (Report of a study on Food price instability in Africa for AFD. Accepted for publication).
- "Analyzing the cassava value chains in Ghana", NRI Report for the Cassava: Adding Value to Africa Project, September 2008.
- "Empowering smallholder farmers in markets: changing agricultural marketing systems and innovations by producer organizations", ESFIM Working Paper II, IFAP/ECART, Paris, September 2007 (co-authored with J. R. Davis, U. Kleih and F. J. Proctor).
- "Making rural finance count for the poor", FCDO (formerly DFID) Working Paper, 2004, (co-authored with Doug Pearce, Junior Davis and Ruth Butterworth.
- "Improving access to rural finance through regulated warehouse receipt systems", Paper submitted to Conference on "Paving the way forward for rural finance", June 2-4 2003, Washington USA.
- "The role of warehouse receipt systems in enhanced commodity marketing and rural livelihoods in Africa", Food Policy, Vol. 27, No. 4. (co-authored with Jonathan P. Coulter.
- Research / Scholarly Interests:
Main interests include development and promotion of sustainable systems to foster access by smallholder farmers to finance, remunerative output markets and farm risk management. The outcome of research and pilots undertaken by Dr Onumah and his colleagues were incorporated in projects to develop efficient crop marketing systems in especially Africa – with funding from different donors including the Common Fund for Commodities, USAID, FAO and the World Bank. Governments which have benefited from these projects include Tanzania, Zambia, Uganda, Ghana and Ethiopia.
The research efforts and pilots undertaken on farm risk management by smallholder farmers has also been utilised in formulating a project being implemented in collaboration with farmers' organisations in Africa to promote access to sustainable, market-based tools which smallholder farmers can use to manage farm risks.
- Research Projects:
Farm Risk Management for Africa (FARMAF)
Location: Burkina Faso, Tanzania, Zambia Year: 2012-2015 Funding Body: European Commission Position Held: Project Coordinator
Description of the Project: The objective of the project is to enhance access to and use of effective pre- and postharvest farm risk management tools (systems, institutions and infrastructure) by smallholder farmers in Tanzania, Zambia and Burkina Faso. This includes access to agricultural insurances linked to improved access to financial services, and enhanced collective action by farmers. It is expected that by using these tools, smallholder farmers will be able to reduce their exposure to downward shocks, improve access to credit and, therefore, their capacity to invest in yield-enhancing technology. Specific contributions are overall project management (shared with project leader); research inputs on innovative financing systems, such as Warehouse Receipt Systems, and commodity marketing; and support of national implementing partners in Tanzania. Research was presented at UK Houses of Parliament in February 2013. The project, led by NRI, is a partnership between AGRINATURA (consortium of European agricultural research institutes and universities) and several national, regional and Pan-African Farmers' Organisations.
Restructuring warehouse receipt system in Tanzania to support viable agricultural commodity exchange
Location: Tanzania Year: November 2012 – June 2013 Funding Body: World Bank/Bank of Tanzania Position Held: Project Leader
Review of existing warehouse receipt system (WRS) and advisory inputs on strengthening the WRS to effectively support a viable commodity exchange in Tanzania. The recommendations made have been incorporated in an action plan adopted by the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania to establish a commodity exchange.
A similar assignment has been undertaken on behalf of the Government of Rwanda. Through the assignment, which was funded by the US-based International Fertiliser Development Centre, NRI advised the Government of Rwanda on regulatory and institutional issues to ensure a robust and trusted warehouse receipt system to assure delivery of commodities traded by the recently-established East Africa Commodity Exchange based in Rwanda. A reliable delivery system has emerged as a cornerstone in assuring the viability of commodity exchanges in developing countries.
This project was undertaken in July-September 2013 and Dr Onumah was the leader of the team of experts which carried it out.
Cassava: Adding Value for Africa (C:AVA)
Location: Ghana, Malawi, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda Year: 2008-2011 Funding Body: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Position Held: SME Finance Specialist
Description of the Project: Overall objective of the project is to strengthen value chains for high quality cassava flour (HQCF). Specific objective of inputs: to understand the financing needs of small-medium scale enterprises and recommend innovative financing mechanisms to ease access to credit, thereby promoting investment in cassava processing technologies in the participating countries.
A similar value chain development approach was used by a team, led by Dr Onumah, in studying the Sweetpotato value chain in Nigeria. The aim of the study was to explore opportunities to promote greater exploitation of the benefits of Sweetpotato in Nigeria. It was undertaken between June 2011 and May 2012 and was funded by the International Potato Centre (CIP)/Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
- Greenwich Academic Literature Archive (GALA) link:
http://gala.gre.ac.uk/view/authors/1922.html
- Responsibilities:
Leading in preparation of bids and managing implementation of winning bids for projects to improve agricultural marketing and finance systems as well as farm risk management systems in developing countries.
- Awards:
- Member: European Association of Agricultural Economists.
- External Reviewer (of grant applications) for Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA).
- Chapter Contributor: Africa Agriculture Status Report (2013) – officially launched in September 2013 in Maputo Mozambique.
- Key speaker/presenter at international seminars and workshops on agricultural commodity trade and finance organised by the World Bank, International Finance Corporation, UNCTAD, IFPRI and COMESA.
- Expert Advisor on commodity trade – UNCTAD.
- Expert Advisor on agricultural development in Africa – UNECA.
- Peer Journal Reviewer (Food Policy Journal).
- External Profiles:
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3229-1661
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3263
Principal Agricultural Marketing and Finance Economist
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Dr Micael de Andrade Lima
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- Qualifications:
BSc, MSc,PhD, FHEA
- Biography:
As a Senior Lecturer in Food innovation at the Natural Resources Institute of the University of Greenwich (UK), apart from being Programme Leader for the MSc Food Innovation programmes, Micael teaches across a range of modules also in the MSc Applied Food Safety and Quality Management, and in the BSc in Food Science and Nutrition. He also supervises a number of postgraduate students on their research projects.
Research-wise, Micael’s expertise spans the production, extraction, and purification (downstream processing) of several molecules and biomolecules via novel and green technologies. These include Supercritical Fluid and Ultrasound-assisted extraction, Liquid-phase Adsorption, and Preparative Chromatography via Ion Exchange and Hydrophobic Interaction, among others. Currently, Micael’s research focus is on the extraction and concentration of plant proteins from underutilised and underexplored food matrices (such as fava beans, brewer’s spent grain, etc.), and the measurement of their functional and rheological properties for the manufacture of plant-based food products.
As a post-doctoral researcher at the Federal University of Ceara (Brazil), Micael’s projects looked into the purification of R-phycoerythrin from red algae, a valuable fluorescent protein that can be used, among other applications, as a biomarker in cancer diagnosis. In his PhD at the University of Reading, his work involved the development of a novel protocol for the sequential extraction and purification of phenolics and carotenoids from different vegetable wastes via the green technologies mentioned above.
Micael has previously worked at Aberystwyth University for 2 years as a lecturer of Food Science in the Distance Learning and the Bioinnovation Wales programmes of the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS). Running modules in joint partnership with Swansea University, he was also responsible for outlining, creating and validating new modules, as well as coordinating, tutoring, moderating and marking in ongoing modules.
- Selected Publications:
- de Oliveira, M.C.; de Oliveira, J.K.; Silva, J.B.; Mendes, L.G.; da Silva, F.S.; Alencar, M.D.S.; Nobre, C.D.A.; Costa, M.G.M.; de Andrade-Lima, M.; Milhome, M.A.L.(2024). Effect of thermal processing on the degradation of pesticides in a banana jam partially formulated with banana peel flour. Applied Food Research, 4(2). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.afres.2024.100445
- D’Almeida, A.P., Neta, A.A.I., de Andrade-Lima, M. et al. Plant-based probiotic foods: current state and future trends. (2024). Food Science and Biotechnology, 2024. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10068-024-01674-1
- Kipling, R. P., Stiles, W. A. V., de Andrade-Lima, M., MacKintosh, N., Roberts, M. W., Williams, C. L., Watson-Jones, S. J. (2022). Interaction in online postgraduate learning: what makes a good forum? Distance Education, 44(1), pp. 162–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/01587919.2022.2150391
- de Andrade-Lima, M., Andreou, R., Charalampopoulos, D., Chatzifragkou, A. (2021) Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Extraction of Phenolic Compounds from Potato (Solanum tuberosum) Peels. Applied Sciences, 11(8), pp. 3410.
- Harith, Z.T., de Andrade-Lima, M., Andreou, R., Charalampopoulos, D., Chatzifragkou, A. (2020) Optimised Production and Extraction of Astaxanthinfrom the Yeast Xanthophyllomyces dendrorhous. Microorganisms, 8 (3), pp. 430.
- da Silveira, T. F. F., de Andrade-Lima, M., Meinhart, A. D., Kuhnle, G., Godoy, H. T. (2020) Effect of Solvent Composition on the Extraction of Phenolic Compounds and Antioxidant Capacity of Bacaba Juice (Oenocarpus bacaba Mart.). Food Analytical Methods, 13 (5), pp. 1119-1128.
- de Sousa, P. L. R., Tavares, P. A. S., Teixeira, E. M. T. S., Dias, N. A., de Andrade-Lima, M., Luna, F. M. T., Gondim, D. R., de Azevedo, D. C. S., Silva Junior, I. J. (2019) Experimental designs for optimizing the purification of immunoglobulin G by mixed-mode chromatography. Journal of Chromatography B, 1125, pp. 121719.
- de Andrade-Lima, M., Charalampopoulos, D., Chatzifragkou, A. (2019) Supercritical Fluid Extraction of Carotenoids from Vegetable Waste Matrices. Molecules, 24(3), pp. 466.
- de Andrade-Lima, M., Charalampopoulos, D., Chatzifragkou, A. (2018) Purification of supercritical-fluid carotenoid-rich extracts by hydrophobic interaction chromatography. Separation and Purification Technology, 203, pp. 1-10.
- de Andrade-Lima, M., Charalampopoulos, D., Chatzifragkou, A. (2018) Optimisation and modelling of supercritical a CO2 extraction process of carotenoids from carrot peels. The Journal of Supercritical Fluids, 133, pp. 94-102.
- de Andrade-Lima, M., de Freitas, M. F. M., Gonçalves, L. R. B., Silva-Junior, I. J. (2016) Recovery and purification of a Kluyveromyces lactis β -galactosidase by Mixed Mode Chromatography. Journal of Chromatography B, 1015, pp. 181-191.
- Pereira, A. L. F., Almeida, F. D. L., de Andrade-Lima, M., da Costa, J. M. C., Rodrigues, S. (2014) Spray-Drying of Probiotic Cashew Apple Juice. Food and Bioprocess Technology, 7(9), pp. 2492-2499.
- Research / Scholarly Interests:
Micael has always strongly identified with novel processes and processing that keep environmental sustainability at their core, and whose impact could be directly converted into benefits to the wider society.
His main research interests are:
-
The simultaneous extraction and concentration of compounds of interest from waste or low-value materials by novel technologies and preparative chromatographic techniques, which would greatly improve the productivity of such processes compared to when they are carried out individually;
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The further purification and isolation of these compounds by innovative techniques.
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The optimisation of such processes, so they can be readily used and translated into real-world applications.
His broader research expertise to date includes process development and optimisation, biotechnological processes for the food, chemical and nutraceutical industries, data modelling, and solutions for waste valorisation. Specific expertise encompasses Supercritical Fluid Extraction, Ultrasound-assisted extraction, Liquid-phase adsorption, preparative chromatography, and design and optimisation of experiments. Other minor/older expertise involve fermentation processes and probiotics, enzyme production and purification, water and effluent quality control, and microbiological and physicochemical analyses of food.
- Teaching Programmes:
Programmes:
- MSc in Food Innovation
- MSc in Food Innovation with Industrial Placement
- MSc in Applied Food Safety and Quality Management
- BSc Food Science and Nutrition
Modules:
- FOOD1058 – Fundamentals of Food Science and Nutrition
- FOOD1036 – Marketing, Innovation and Management
- FOOD1029 – Food Product and Process Development
- FOOD1057 – Food Processing and Preservation
- FOOD1023 – Food Preservation
- ENVI1096 – Research Methods for Postgraduates
- FOOD1037 – Research Project (Food Innovation)
- CHEM1029 – Applied Food Chemistry and Biochemistry
- Research Projects:
- Cost analysis of a stabilisation protocol for Beer Spent Grain (BSG), REF UoG (2024).
- Upcycling Brewer’s Spent Grain for the production of plant-based meat analogues, Starbucks’s Hubbub (2023-2024).
- UK-Brazil partnership for exploring alternative plant protein sources, REF UoG (2023-2024).
- Mathematical modelling of cassava roasting, REF UoG (2022-2023).
- Upcycled plant proteins from brewer’s spent grain, REF UoG (2022-2023).
- Extraction of alternative protein from fava beans via novel technologies, HEIF UoG, (2021-2022).
- Extraction and recovery of phytochemicals from vegetable wastes (2014-2018), CAPES, Brazil.
Senior Lecturer in Food Innovation
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Dr Richard Fuchs
|
- Qualifications:
PhD
- Biography:
Richard is a food safety and quality management specialist with 35 years of work experience. He first started at NRI after obtaining a PhD in biochemistry from the University of Leeds. His work moved into the field of food microbiology at NRI, and his areas of research were the development of rapid diagnostic methods, the study of Listeria monocytogenes in foods, particularly fish and fishery products and the study of traditional fermentation methods. Much of the work was carried out overseas, where he also was also involved in training and capacity building.
From 1994 to 2003, Richard was seconded by the UK Department of International Development to the international Foundation of Science, in Stockholm, Sweden where he was Head of Programme. This organisation awards grants to young researchers in developing countries and also provides a package of other support. His work took him to many countries and he was instrumental in organising workshops and training courses, as well as setting up and supporting networks.
On Richard’s return to NRI, he took on a more active role in teaching and became Programme Leader for the MSc Applied Food Safety and Quality Management. He also played a key role in the development of an e-learning version of the programme. He delivers a number of modules on the programmes.
Richard’s consultancy work has continued parallel to his teaching. He has managed the NRI contribution to a number of large projects including the ACP/OCT funded Strengthening Fisheries Product Health Conditions programme, and the COLEACP run EDES programme, which aimed to strengthen food security systems in developing countries. Some of this work focused on strengthening the capacity of official testing laboratories and supporting them in the attainment of ISO 17025. More recently, Richard has been working with both the International Potato Centre and the World Health Programme in delivering training.
In his work, Richard has worked with all sectors from Government to small businesses both in the UK and overseas. He has supported small start up companies in the UK through a number of initiatives. He has a proven track record of management and leadership and has managed many successful projects in developing countries.
- Selected Publications:
- Musyoka, J., Abong', G., Mbogo, D., Fuchs, R. Low, J., Heck, S. and Muzhinga, T. (2018) ‘Effects of acidification and preservatives on microbial growth during storage of orange fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) puree’. International Journal of Food Science (Open Access Journal)
- Yusuf, A. B., Fuchs, R. S. and Nicolaides, L. (2017) ‘Consumer acceptability of modified and traditionally produced amala from fermented orange-fleshed sweet potato’. African Journal of Food Science 11, pp 183-188
- Yusuf, A. B., Fuchs, R. S. and Nicolaides, L. (2016) ‘Effect of traditional processing methods on the vitamin (A and C) and trypsin inhibitor contents of orange-fleshed sweet potato for production of amala in Nigeria’. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 96, pp 2472-2477
- Cox, J. and Fuchs, R. (2010) ‘Guide to the Development and Maintenance of Fishery Product Testing Laboratories’.
- Fuchs, R, S. (1999) ‘Listeria monocytogenes – a new microbiological hazard in seafood?’ in Karunasagar, I., Karunasagar, I., and Reilly, A. (eds) Aquaculture and Biotechnology. Oxford and IBH Publishing Co, New Delhi, Calcutta, pp 13-32
- Fuchs, R. S. and Reilly, P. J. A. (1992) ‘The incidence and significance of Listeria monocytogenes in seafoods’, in Huss, H. et al. (eds) Quality Assurance in the Fish Industry. Elsevier Science Publishers, Amsterdam, pp 217-229
- Fuchs, R.S. and Sirvas, S (1991) ‘incidence of Listeria monocytogenes in an acidified fish product, ceviche’. Letters in Applied Microbiology 12, pp 88-90
- Fuchs, R. S. and Surendran, P.K. (1989) ‘Incidence of Listeria in tropical fish and fishery products’. Letters in Applied Microbiology 9, pp 49-51
- Research / Scholarly Interests:
- Food microbiology Listeria monocytogenes in foods
- Traditional food fermentations
- Improved use of food waste
- Food authenticity and traceability
- Teaching Programmes:
- (FOOD 1025) Food Safety (Module Leader/Lecturer)
- (FOOD 1005) Research Project (Module Leader/Project Supervisor)
- (MICR 1005) Food Microbiology (Module Leader/Lecturer)
- (FOOD 1052) Food Authenticity and Traceability (Module Leader/Lecturer)
- (FOOD 1018) Food Chemistry (Module Leader/Lecturer)
- (FOOD 1016) Laboratory Quality Assurance (Module Leader/Lecturer)
- (FOOD 1051) Managing Pre-requisite Programmes (Module Leader)
- (AGRI 1281) Sustainable Pesticide Management (Module Leader)
- (FOOD 1024) Food Safety and Quality Management (Lecturer)
- (FOOD 1023) Food Preservation (Lecturer)
- (ENVI 1096) Research Methods (Lecturer)
- (FOOD 1042) Food Safety e-learning (Module Leader/Lecturer
- (FOOD 1044) Research Methods (Module Leader/Lecturer
- (FOOD 1045) Applied Food Safety Project (Module Leader/Supervisor)
- (FOOD 1043) Food Safety and Quality Management e-learning (Lecturer)
- (FOOD 1040) Applied Food Microbiology (Lecturer)
- (FOOD 1050) Food Management (Lecturer)
Undergraduate Programmes (Module taught on a number of programmes)
- (MICR 1009) Microbiology and the Environment (Module Leader/Lecturer)
- Research Students:
2008-2014 Studies on the Production of Amala from Orange-Fleshed Sweet Potato (Ipomoeabatatas ) using Traditional and Modified Fermentation Processes (A.Yusuf) (J Crenn)
- Greenwich Academic Literature Archive (GALA) link:
http://gala.gre.ac.uk/view/authors/1906.html
- Responsibilities:
- NRI representative on Faculty of Engineering and Science Research Ethics Committee
- Member of the University Research Ethics Committee
- Member of various University validation and review panels
- Awards:
- Approved Royal Society of Public Health Food Hygiene and HACCP Trainer
- Qualified Lead Auditor for BRC Global Standard for Food Safety Issue 8
- External Examiner University of Chester
- External Examiner Northumbria University
- Member of the Institute of Food Science and Technology
- Member of Food Hygiene Expert Group
- External Profiles:
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3830-1274
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3480
Principal Scientist: Food Safety Specialist, Programme Leader - MSc Food Safety and Quality Management
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Dr Richard J. Colgan
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- Qualifications:
BSc (Hons), MSc, PhD
- Biography:
Richard studied for an MSc in Crop Protection at the Institute of Arable Crops- Long Ashton/ University of Bristol, before starting a short-term assignment at INIA in Spain researching the control of post-harvest diseases in protected crops. Richard moved to the Scottish Agricultural Science Agency in 1993, before relocating to East-Malling Research (HRI-East Malling) in 1994 joining the post-harvest team as a storage physiologist and pathologist working with the UK fruit industry to reduce losses of stored apples and pears.
He studied the control of ethylene biosynthesis and identified genes orchestrating ripening in apple for his PhD based at HRI-East Malling and characterised a number of novel inhibitors of ethylene biosynthesis. An extension to this work resulted in developing a number of genetic markers for use in marker assisted selection of new apple varieties with improved texture and eating quality. Richard joined NRI in 2010 working with colleagues to set up the Produce Quality Centre a collaboration between NRI and NIAB-EMR. More recently he has concentrated on more applied approaches to reducing losses and wastage in the supply chain funded by AHDB/WRAP. Reducing disease incidence in stored cabbage was one notable success through the use of the biological control agent SerenadeTM to reduce the spread of Botrytis cinerea. Richard’s interest in ethylene biology led to a Defra-funded SA-Link project to increase the use of ethylene as a sprout suppressant in potatoes with collaborators from James Hutton and Sutton Bridge Crop Storage with a follow-on involvement in a BBSRC-HAPI project understanding mechanisms controlling dormancy in potato and onion. NRI’s involvement in phenotyping dormancy and sprouting helped collaborators at JH to identify QTL’s associated with dormancy break in diploid and tetraploid potato lines. More recently Richard has been working alongside colleagues to develop real-time gas sensing technology for fresh produce subject to prolonged storage: SafePod technology (SCS Ltd) allows for real-time analysis of respiration behaviour of fruit allowing produced to be stored under low-oxygen storage regimes and in another Innovate UK project he has been working with Collaborators (University of Manchester) on isolating volatile signatures of diseased apple for training novel sensing detection technology as a means of real-time monitoring of disease development in stored apples.
Richard works closely with the UK- fresh produce industry to develop solutions to current problems a recent example is the development of a new Innovate UK project to design novel in-field cooling rigs to cool soft-fruit immediately after harvest allowing greater flexibility in cool-chain management.
- Selected Publications:
- Buti M, Sargent DJ, Velasco R, Colgan RJ (2018).A study of gene expression changes at the Bp-2 locus associated with bitter pit symptom expression in apple (Malus pumila)- Molecular Breeding (38):85 .
- Buti M, Poles L, Caset D, Magnago P, Fernandez Fernandez F, Colgan RJ, Velasco R, Sargent DJ (2014) Identification and validation of a QTL influencing bitter pit symptoms in apple (Malus x domestica). Molecular Breeding 35 (1):29.
- Colgan.R.J. and Fernandez. F. (2013) Extending the storage season of apples through selection of low ethylene breeding lines. Aspects of Applied Biology 119, 119-126
- Cheema, M.U.A, D.Rees, R.J.Colgan, M.Taylor, A.Westby (2013) The effects of ethylene, 1-MCP and AVG on sprouting in sweetpotato roots . Postharvest Biology and Technology, 85:89-96
- Hassan, S., Colgan R.J., Paul, M.J., Drake, P., Atkinson, C.J., Sexton, A., van Dolleweerd, C.Keshavarz-Moore E.and Ma, J.K-C.(2012) Recombinant monoclonal antibody yield in transgenic tobacco plants is affected by the wounding response via an ethylene dependent mechanism. Transgenic Research 21:1221–1232.
- Colgan R.J., Atkinson, C.J., Paul, M.J., Drake, P., Sexton, A., Santa-Cruz, S., James, D.J. and Ma, J.K-C. (2010). Optimisation of contained Nicotiana tabacum cultivation for the production of recombinant protein pharmaceuticals. Transgenic Res 19(2):241–256
- Richard Colgan, John Stow , Annalisa Marchese, Sladjana Nidzovic and Mark Else (2006). Storage quality of low ethylene producing apples (Malus pumila Mill.). Journal of Fruit and Ornamental Research, 14(2): 77-85.
- Dandekar AM, Teo G, Defilippi BG, Uratsu SL, Passey AJ, Kader AA, Stow JR, Colgan RJ, James DJ. (2004). Effect of down-regulation of ethylene biosynthesis on fruit flavor complex in apple fruit. Transgenic Research 13 (4): 373-384
- D.S. Johnson, R.J. Colgan (2003) Low ethylene controlled atmosphere induces adverse effects on the quality of ‘Cox’s Orange Pippin’ apples treated with aminoethoxyvinylglycine during fruit development. Postharvest Biology and Technology 27, 59-68.
- Colgan R.J, Dover C.J, Johnson D.S and Pearson K. (1999) Delayed CA and Oxygen at 1 kPa or less control superficial scald without carbon dioxide injury on Bramley’s Seedling apples. Postharvest Biology and Technology 16, 223-231.
- Colgan R.J and Johnson D.S (1998). The effects of post-harvest application of surface sterilising agents on the incidence of fungal rots in stored apples and pears. Journal of Horticultural Science. 73(3) 361-366.
- Johnson D.S, Dover C.J, Colgan R.J. (1996). Effect of rate of establishment of CA conditions on the development of CO2-injury in Bramley's Seedling Apples. Postharvest 1996, Taupo, New Zealand Acta Horticulturae.464, 351-356
- Research / Scholarly Interests:
- Control of fruit ripening and ethylene biology
- Reduction in nutritional-related disorders in fresh produce
- Disease detection and reduction
- Minimising water loss and maintenance of produce quality in the supply chain
- Teaching Programmes:
- Lecture on Post-harvest Biology Technology module (MSc in FSQM)
- Plant Science and Molecular Biology aspects of the MBiol
- Research Projects:
BBSRC-Agritech
- 2019-2022 ICSF WAVE CoolBerry (R.Colgan/D.Rees-NRI, J.Dye JD Cooling, R.Harnden BerryGardens, P.Wilson Scorpion)
- 2018-2019 ISCF WAVE Agri-tech low cost sensors (M.Turner-UoM, R.Colgan-NRI, Saville-NIAB-EMR, N.Dartnell- Cambridge Display Technology)
- 2015-2018 SafePod: New technology for intelligent control of fresh produce storage (D.Rees & R.Colgan NRI)
BBSRC-HAPI
- 2013-2017 Control of dormancy in onion and potato (G Bryan (JHI), M.Taylor (JHI), Turnbull (IC) LTerry(Cranfield), R.Colgan/D.Rees (NRI)
Defra
- 2009-2012 SA-Link Reducing energy usage and wastage by improving ethylene control of potato sprouting (D. Rees (NRI), R.Colgan (NRI), M,Taylor (JHI), G.Bryan (JHI), A.Cunnington (SBCSR)
- 2004-2008 To optimise texture and flavour in stored apples using a genomic approach (M.Else, R.Colgan, K.Tobut, K.Evans) EMR
- 2002-2004 Identification of the mechanism for reduced ethylene production in apple fruit (M.Else, J.Stow, R.Colgan, K.Tobut, K.Evans) EMR
EU
- 2016-2018 Horizon 2020 Thematic network-EUFRUIT
- 1998-2003 FPIV: Novel Inhibitors of ethylene biosynthesis (E.Woltering (WUR), T. De Virje (WUR), J.Stow (EMR), R.Colgan (EMR))
Levy Body
- 2016-2020 Improving tree fruit quality (AHDB-Hort)
- 2015-2018 Role of mineral nutrition in maintaining post-harvest quality of stored potato ( AHDB-Potato)
- 2014-2017 Chlorophyll fluorescence sensors for prediction of harvest maturity of broccoli (HDC)
- 2014-2017 Reducing wastage in stored cabbage and Swedes (HDC)
- 2012-2014 Developing Controlled atmosphere protocols for the extension of the storage life of Braeburn apples and new varieties of apples (HDC).
- 2013-2014 Development of volatile capture and GC-MS/MS analysis of flavour compounds from Gala apples (HDC)
- 2011-2014 Extending the storage and shelf-life of broccoli (HDC)
- 2011- Review of senescent sweetening of potato- (PCL)
- 2011-2013 Optimising the rate of CA establishment of Bramley’s Seedling Stores (HDC)
- 2011-2013 Improving quality and reducing costs of Conference pear storage using SmartFresh (AHDB-Hort/AgroFresh)
- Research Students:
- 2017-2020 Unravelling the mechanisms controlling texture in stored blueberries (M.Carcamo)
- 2016-2019 Structural and biochemical factors affecting apple response to long term low-oxygen storage (R.Fisher)
- 2013-2017 The mechanism of senescent sweetening in potato (C.Carvalho)
- 2010-2014 The role of calcium conjugation and regulation in the development of physiological disorders of apple (M.Mirzaee)
- Greenwich Academic Literature Archive (GALA) link:
http://gala.gre.ac.uk/view/authors/161.html
- Responsibilities:
- Co-founder of the Produce Quality Centre
- Awards:
- Member of the Post-harvest convening group -Association of Applied Biologists (1998-2004)
- Scientific Advisor to the CIPC- Stewardship Group- (2017-present)
- External Profiles:
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0653-5845
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3760
Reader in Postharvest Physiology
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Professor Tanya E Stathers
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- Qualifications:
BSc (Hons), PGCE, MSc, PhD
- Biography:
Tanya has worked as an agriculture for development researcher across sub-Saharan Africa and other geographies for > 25 years. Using interdisciplinary and participatory approaches, her work focuses on deepening understanding of and supporting sustainability of various dimensions of smallholder agri-food systems, with a particular interest in postharvest and collective-learning aspects.
Tanya has worked for the Natural Resources Institute (NRI) since 1998, mainly in Tanzania and Kenya (2004-2015). Prior to joining NRI she worked as a researcher at the Cocoa and Coconut Research Institute in Papua New Guinea (1997-98), and on the Cashew Research Programme at Naliendele Agricultural Research Institute in Mtwara, southern Tanzania (1993-95).
Tanya’s research has encompassed an unusually broad range of agricultural development issues including: agricultural adaptation to climate change, urbanising food systems, rural-urban interdependencies, drivers of food choice, reduction and quantification of postharvest food losses, seed systems, use of agricultural innovation systems approach, the role of experiential and multi-stakeholder social-learning processes and tools for increasing sustainability of food systems, poverty impacts of market certification standards, gender and diversity aspects of agri-food systems, as well as field and laboratory research trials into a range of pre and postharvest constraints across a variety of tropical crops. She recently led the Ceres2030 systematic review and evidence synthesis on effective interventions to reduce postharvest losses in 22 different food crops for 57 countries in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia.
Her interest in the use of creative adult education approaches for strengthening agricultural skills and knowledge has seen her develop several agricultural for development continued professional development training courses. She also delivers seminars on climate change adaptation and postharvest systems and supervises several international postgraduate research students.
She has long-term experience in Tanzania, Kenya and Papua New Guinea, and significant field work experience in Malawi, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Uganda, South Africa and Zambia. She speaks Swahili and slightly rusty French.
- Selected Publications:
- Macdonald, Mubayiwa, Mvumi, Brighton M, Stathers, Tanya, Mlambo, Shaw and Nyabako, Tinashe (2021) Field evaluation of hermetic and synthetic pesticide-based technologies in smallholder sorghum grain storage in hot and arid climates. Scientific Reports, 11:3692. ISSN 2045-2322 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-83086-3)
- Joshua, Miriam D.K., Stathers, Tanya, Chirwa, Ruth K., Ngongondo, Cosmo, Lamboll, Richard, Monjerezi, M., Mwathunga, E., Kasei, R., Chipungu, F. and Liwenga, E. (2021) A comparative study of flooding on food security of urban and rural households in Blantyre City and Chikwawa, Malawi. In: Godwell, Nhamo and Chikodzi, David, (eds.) Cyclones in Southern Africa: Volume 3: Implications for the Sustainable Development Goals. Sustainable Development Goals Series, 3 . Springer Nature, Switzerland. ISBN 978-3030743024 (In Press) (doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-74303-1)
- Stathers, Tanya, Holcroft, Deirdre, Kitinoja, Lisa, Mvumi, Brighton, English, Alicia, Omotilewa, Oluwatoba, Kocher, Megan, Ault, Jessica and Torero, Maximo (2020) A scoping review of interventions for crop postharvest loss reduction in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Nature Sustainability, 3 (10). pp. 821-835. ISSN 2398-9629 https://rdcu.be/cBRHB
- Stathers, Tanya and Mvumi, Brighton M. (2020) Challenges and initiatives in reducing postharvest food losses and food waste: sub-Saharan Africa. In: Yahia, Elhadi M., (ed.) Preventing food losses and waste to achieve food security and sustainability. Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing, pp. 729-786. ISBN 978-1786763006 (doi:https://doi.org/10.19103/AS.2019.0053.31)
- Mvumi, Brighton M. and Stathers, Tanya (2020) Supporting smallholder farmers in developing countries to improve postharvest management of staple grains: the role of loss reduction technologies. In: Maier, Dirk E., (ed.) Advances in Postharvest Management of Cereals and Grains. Burleigh Dodds Series in Agricultural Science (88). Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing Limited, Cambridge, UK. ISBN 978-1786767691 (doi:https://doi.org/10.19103/AS.2020.0072.16)
- Nyabako, Tinashe, Mvumi, Brighton M., Stathers, Tanya, Machekano, Honest M. and Siziba, S. (2020) Smallholder grain postharvest management in a variable climate: Practices and perceptions of smallholder farmers and their service-providers in semi-arid areas. Environment, Development and Sustainability. ISSN 1387-585X (Print), 1573-2975 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-020-01019-y)
- Ngwenyama, Patrick, Mvumi, Brighton, M., Nyanga, Loveness, K., Stathers, Tanya, E. and Siziba, Shephard (2020) Comparative performance of five hermetic bag brands during on-farm smallholder cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.Walp) storage. Journal of Stored Products Research, 88:101658. ISSN 0022-474X (doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jspr.2020.101658)
- Nyabako, Tinashe, Mvumi, Brighton M., Stathers, Tanya, Mlambo, Shaw and Mubayiwa, Macdonald (2020) Predicting Prostephanus truncatus (Horn) (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae) populations and associated grain damage in smallholder farmers’ maize stores: a machine learning approach. Journal of Stored Products Research, 87:101592. ISSN 0022-474X (doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jspr.2020.101592)
- Stathers, Tanya E., Arnold, Sarah E. J., Rumney, Corinne J. and Hopson, Clare (2020) Measuring the nutritional cost of insect infestation of stored maize and cowpea. Food Security, 12 (2). pp. 285-308. ISSN 1876-4517, 1876-4525 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-019-00997-w)
- Joshua, Miriam Dalitso Kalanda, Ngongondo, Cosmo, Chipungu, Felistus, Malidadi, Charles, Liwenga, Emma, Majule, Amos, Stathers, Tanya, Kosgei, Job Rotich and Lamboll, Richard (2020) Strengthening horticultural innovation systems for adaptation to effects of urbanisation and climate variability in peri-urban areas. In: Matondo, Jonathan I., Alemaw, Berhanu F. and Sandwidi, Wennegouda Jean Pierre, (eds.) Climate Variability and Change in Africa: Perspectives, Experiences and Sustainability. Sustainable Development Goals Series . Springer, pp. 137-156. ISBN 978-3030315429 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-31543-6_11)
- Singano, Charles D., Mvumi, Brighton M., Stathers, Tanya E., Machekano, Honest and Nyamukondiwa, Casper (2019) What does global warming mean for stored-grain protection? Options for Prostephanus truncatus (Horn) control at increased temperatures. Journal of Stored Products Research, 85:101532. ISSN 0022-474X (doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jspr.2019.101532)
- Shee, Apurba, Mayanja, Sarah, Simba, Eria, Stathers, Tanya, Bechoff, Aurelie and Bennett, Ben (2019) Determinants of postharvest losses along smallholder producers maize and sweetpotato value chains: An ordered probit analysis. Food Security, 11 (5). pp. 1101-1120. ISSN 1876-4517, 1876-4525 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-019-00949-4)
- Singano, Charles D., Mvumi, Brighton M. and Stathers, Tanya (2019) Effectiveness of grain storage facilities and protectants in controlling stored-maize insect pests in a climate-risk prone area of Shire Valley, southern Malawi. Journal of Stored Products Research, 83. pp. 130-147. ISSN 0022-474X (doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jspr.2019.06.007)
- Mlambo, Shaw, Mvumi, Brighton M., Stathers, Tanya , Mubayiwa, Macdonald and Nyabako, Tinashe (2018) Field efficacy and persistence of synthetic pesticidal dusts on stored maize grain under contrasting agro-climatic conditions. Journal of Stored Products Research, 76. pp. 129-139. ISSN 0022-474X (doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jspr.2018.01.009)
- Mubayiwa, Macdonald, Mvumi, Brighton, M., Stathers, Tanya , Mlambo, Shaw and Nyabako, Tinashe (2018) Blanket application rates for synthetic grain protectants across agro-climatic zones: Do they work? Evidence from field efficacy trials using sorghum grain. Crop Protection, 109. ISSN 0261-2194 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2018.01.016)
- Mlambo, Shaw, Mvumi, Brighton M, Stathers, Tanya , Mubayiwa, Macdonald and Nyabako, Tinashe (2017) Field efficacy of hermetic and other maize grain storage options under smallholder farmer management. Crop Protection, 98. pp. 198-210. ISSN 0261-2194 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cropro.2017.04.001)
- Lamboll, Richard, Stathers, Tanya and Morton, John (2017) Climate change and agricultural systems. In: Snapp, Sieglinde and Pound, Barry, (eds.) Agricultural Systems: Agroecology and Rural Innovation for Development. Academic Press, London, pp. 441-490. ISBN 978-0128020708 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-802070-8.00013-X)
- Joshua, Miriam K., Ngongondo, Cosmo, Monjerezi, Maurice, Chipungu, Fellistus, Liwenga, Emma, Majule, Amos, Stathers, Tanya and Lamboll, Richard (2016) Climate change in semi-arid Malawi: perceptions, adaptation strategies and water governance: original research. Jàmbá: Journal of Disaster Risk Studies, 8 (3). pp. 1-10. ISSN 1996-1421 (Print), 2072-845X (doi:https://doi.org/10.4102/jamba.v8i3.255)
- Tomlins, Keith, Bennett, Ben, Stathers, Tanya , Linton, John, Onumah, Gideon, Coote, Hilary, Kleih, Ulrich, Priebe, Jan and Bechoff, Aurelie (2016) Reducing postharvest losses in the OIC member countries. COMCEC Agricultural Working Group. pp. 1-194.
- Mvumi, B.M. and Stathers, T.E. (2015) Food security challenges in Sub-Saharan Africa: The potential contribution of postharvest skills, science and technology in closing the gap. In: 11th International Working Conference on Stored Product Protection. Department of Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Thailand, Bangkok, Thailand, pp. 32-43. (doi:https://doi.org/10.14455/DOA.res.2014.7)
- Stathers, Tanya, Lamboll, Richard and Mvumi, Brighton M. (2013) Postharvest agriculture in changing climates: Its importance to African smallholder farmers. Food Security, 5 (3). pp. 361-392. ISSN 1876-4517, 1876-4525 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s12571-013-0262-z)
- Hodges, Rick J. and Stathers, Tanya E. (2013) Facing the food crisis: How African smallholders can reduce postharvest cereal losses by supplying better quality grain. Outlooks on Pest Management, 24 (5). pp. 217-221. ISSN 1743-1026 (Print), 1743-1034 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1564/v24_oct_08)
- Stathers, Tanya, Low, J., Mwanga, R., Carey, T., David, S. and Gibson, Richard (2013) Everything you ever wanted to know about sweetpotato: Reaching Agents of Change training of trainers (TOT) manual. Manual. International Potato Center (CIP).
- Hodges, Richard and Stathers, Tanya (2012) Training manual for improving grain postharvest handling and storage prepared. UN World Food Programme / Natural Resources Institute, Rome - Italy.
- Liwenga, Emma, Swai, Elirehema, Nsemwa, Lebai, Katunzi, Alphonce, Gwambene, Brown, Joshua, Miriam, Chipungu, Felistus, Stathers, Tanya and Lamboll, Richard (2012) Exploring urban rural interdependence and the impact of climate change in Tanzania and Malawi: final narrative report. Project Report. International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Ottawa, Canada.
- Zorya, Sergiy, Morgan, Nancy, Diaz Rios, Luz, Hodges, Rick, Bennett, Ben, Stathers, Tanya , Mwebaze, Paul and Lamb, John (2011) Missing Food: the case of postharvest grain losses in sub-Saharan Africa. Technical Report. The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank, Washington DC, USA.
- Nelson, Valerie and Stathers, Tanya (2009) Resilience, power, culture, and climate: A case study from semi-arid Tanzania, and new research directions. Gender & Development, 17 (1). pp. 81-94. ISSN 1355-2074, 1364-9221 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/13552070802696946)
- Mvumi, Brighton M., Morris, Mike, Stathers, Tanya E. and Riwa, William (2008) Doing things differently: Post-harvest innovation learning alliances in Tanzania and Zimbabwe. In: Sanginga, Pascal, Waters-Bayer, Ann, Kaaria, Susan, Njuki, Jemimah and Wettasinha, Chesha, (eds.) Innovation Africa: Enriching Farmers' Livelihoods. Routledge, London, pp. 186-202. ISBN 978-1844076710 (doi:https://doi.org/10.4324/9781849771733)
- Stathers, T.E., Riwa, W., Mvumi, B.M., Mosha, R., Kitandu, L., Mngara, K., Kaoneka, B. and Morris, M. (2008). Do diatomaceous earths have potential as grain protectants for small-holder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa: the case of Tanzania? Crop Protection, 27 (1), pp. 44–70.
- Mvumi, Brighton M., Stathers, Tanya , Golob, P. and Giga, D.P. (2006) Penetration of Sitophilus zeamais (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) through diatomaceous earth-treated bulk maize grain. International Journal of Tropical Insect Science, 26 (1). pp. 28-34. ISSN 1742-7584 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1079/IJT200694)
- Gibson, R.W., Lyimo, N.G., Temu, A.E.M., Stathers, T.E. , Page, W.W., Nsemwa, L.T.H., Acola, G. and Lamboll, R.I. (2005) Maize seed selection by East African smallholder farmers and resistance to Maize streak virus. Annals of Applied Biology, 147 (2). pp. 153-159. ISSN 0003-4746, 1744-7348 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-7348.2005.00021.x)
- Stathers, Tanya, Denniff, M. and Golob, P. (2004) The efficacy and persistence of diatomaceous earths admixed with commodity against four tropical stored product beetle pests. Journal of Stored Products Research, 40 (1). pp. 113-123. ISSN 0022-474X (doi:10.1016/S0022-474X(02)00083-8)
- Stathers, T.E., Rees, D., Kabi, S., Mbilinyi, L., Smit, N., Kiozya, H., Jeremiah, S., Nyango, A. and Jeffries, D. (2003) Sweetpotato infestation by Cylas spp. in East Africa: I. Cultivar differences in field infestation and the role of plant factors. International Journal of Pest Management, 49 (2). pp. 131-140. ISSN 0967-0874, 1366-5863 (doi:10.1080/0967087021000043085)
- Stathers, T.E., Rees, D., Nyango, A., Kiozya, H., Mbilinyi, L., Jeremiah, S., Kabi, S. and Smit, N. (2003) Sweetpotato infestation by Cylas spp. in East Africa: II. Investigating the role of root characteristics. International Journal of Pest Management, 49 (2). pp. 141-146. ISSN 0967-0874 (print), 1366-5863 (doi:10.1080/0967087021000043094)
- Stathers, T.E., Mvumi, B.M. and Golob, P. (2002) Field assessment of the efficacy and persistence of diatomaceous earths in protecting stored grain on small-scale farms in Zimbabwe. Crop Protection, 21 (10). pp. 1033-1048. ISSN 0261-2194 (doi:10.1016/S0261-2194(02)00088-1)
- Stathers, T.E., Chigariro, J., Mudiwa, M., Mvumi, B.M. and Golob, P. (2002) Small-scale farmer perceptions of diatomaceous earth products as potential stored grain protectants in Zimbabwe. Crop Protection, 21 (10). pp. 1049-1060. ISSN 0261-2194 (doi:10.1016/S0261-2194(02)00089-3)
- Rochat, Didier, Morin, Jean-Paul, Kakul, Titus, Beaudoin-Ollivier, Laurence, Prior, Robert, Renou, Michel, Malosse , Isabelle, Stathers, Tanya, Empuba, Sebastian and Laup, Samson (2002) Activity of male pheromone of Melanesian Rhinoceros Beetle Scapanes australis. Journal of Chemical Ecology, 28 (3). pp. 479-500. ISSN 0098-0331 (Print) 1573-1561 (doi:10.1023/A:1014531810037)
- Belmain, S., Birkinshaw, L., Farrell, G., Golob, P., Hodges, R., Meyer, A., Stathers, T. and Tran, B. (2002) Chapter 6. Pest Management in Crop Post-Harvest: Science and Technology Volume 1: Principles and Practice. Blackwells.
- Prior, R., Morin, J.-P., Rochat, D., Beaudoin-Ollivier, L., Stathers, T. , Kakul, T., Embupa, S. and Nanguai, R. (2000) New aspects of the biology of the Melanesian rhinoceros beetle Scapanes australis (Col., Dynastidae) and evidence for field attraction to males. Journal of Applied Entomology, 124 (1). pp. 41-50. ISSN 9820-1937 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1439-0418.2000.00435.x)
- Martin, P.J., Topper, C.P., Bashiru, R.A., Boma, F., De Waal, D., Harries, H.C., Kasuga, L.J., Katinila, N., Kikoka, L.P., Lamboll, R., Maddison, A.C., Majule, A.E., Masawe, P.A., Millanzi, K.J., Nathaniels, N.Q., Shomari, S.H., Sijaona, M.E. and Stathers, T. (1997) Cashew Nut Production in Tanzania: Constraints and Progress through Integrated Crop Management. Crop Protection, 16 (1). pp. 5-14. ISSN 0261-2194 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/S0261-2194(96)00067-1)
- Stathers, T.E., Moore, D., Prior, C. (1993) The effect of different temperatures on the viability of Metarhizium flavoviride conidia stored in vegetable and mineral oils. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, 62 pp. 111-115. ISSN 0022-2011 (doi:https://doi.org/10.1006/jipa.1993.1085)
- Research / Scholarly Interests:
Every year after harvest, USD$ 4 billion worth of cereal grains alone are lost across Sub-Saharan Africa, this is valuable food that could have fed millions of people and driven economic activity in the region. Much of Tanya’s >25 years of research within agricultural innovation systems across sub-Saharan Africa has focused on the participatory development and promotion of knowledge and effective and acceptable technologies that can help in reducing these postharvest food losses, and particularly those during food storage. She is also involved in quantifying what and why losses are happening at each postharvest stage in different crops, and the financial and nutritional impacts of these losses for countries helping them shape more targeted loss reduction investments.
Realising the importance of experiential learning approaches in building capacity, she has co-developed a number of practical training courses, manuals and other supporting materials for trainers and farmers. Amongst these are the WFP ‘Training Manual for Improving Grain Postharvest Handling and Storage’, the Moyo Nuts/ New Rotations Zambia ‘Improving Groundnut Production and Postharvest Handling and Storage’ and the Reaching Agents of Change ‘Everything you ever wanted to know about sweetpotato’.
Tanya’s main research interests and areas of expertise include:
- Participatory multi-stakeholder collective-learning around:
- transforming food systems and urban-rural interdependency
- reducing food loss and waste
- agricultural adaptation to climatic and other drivers of change
- Teaching Programmes:
Tanya has developed and written several research-based training manuals, and created accompanying experiential-learning training courses and appropriate tools including sets of visual flip-charts to facilitate field-based agriculture training and cartoon handouts. These continued-professional development tools combine technical elements of agricultural topics with a hands-on-learning approach. Examples include:
The ‘Everything you ever wanted to know about sweetpotato’ training-of-trainers’ manual and course she developed for the Reaching Agents of Change programme, and updated for use by the Building Nutritious Food Baskets project. The manual has been translated into French, Portuguese, Kiswahili and Amharic and is used in >11 countries, and as a run-for-profit course by training institutes in Ghana, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Mozambique, and Tanzania.
The ‘Training Manual and Course on Improving Grain Postharvest Handling and Storage’ she co-developed for the World Food Programme (WFP) with Rick Hodges, is widely-used in >21 countries for training groups of smallholder-farmers to improve the quality of their produce through better postharvest management enabling them to gain access to higher value quality-sensitive markets.
The ‘Improving Groundnut Production and Postharvest Handling and Storage’ manual, course, field charts and farmer handouts developed to assist two private-companies in Malawi and Zambia in building farmers’ capacity to access higher quality aflatoxin-free groundnut markets.
In 2017, as part of a scaling initiative she worked with a CIP team and developed trainers’ guides, farmer handouts and field charts on sweetpotato planting material conservation ‘Triple S (sand, storage, sprouting)’ enabling farmers to produce sweetpotato planting materials prior to the rain season; thus providing food during the hungry season, climate-resilience and extra income. These tools have been used to train service providers in nine African countries, who have used them to train >10,000 farmers.
She also co-supervises postgraduate students registered at the University of Zimbabwe and University of Greenwich. She lectures and provides practical training on Climate Change and Postharvest Systems, and Postharvest Entomology in two MSc programmes. She led the creation and delivery of a short training course on ‘Agricultural adaptation to climate change’ for >40 university lecturers and postgraduate students from Ethiopia and Uganda during the Biofarming initiative. She also acts as a personal tutor to overseas MSc students studying at the University of Greenwich.
She was also involved in developing one of UoG’s earliest e-distance learning MSc programmes on Grain Storage Management in 2000.
- Research Projects:
Expanding the African Postharvest Losses Information System – APHLIS+
Dates: 2016-2022 Partners: EC Joint Research Council, Agricultural Knowledge Management Services, University of Zimbabwe, network members in 37 Sub-Saharan African countries Donor: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
www.aphlis.net
The 2008 food crisis caused development agencies involved in improving food security across sub-Saharan Africa to realise they needed a more detailed and accurate understanding of the level of postharvest loss of staple food crops occurring
The African Postharvest Losses Information System (APHLIS) was developed and launched in 2009, to bring a rigorous knowledge management approach to cereal postharvest losses (PHL). Tanya leads two work packages: i) development of nutritional and financial dimensions of postharvest loss (PHL) estimates, and ii) expansion of APHLIS to include other key staple food crops (i.e. cowpeas, common beans, groundnuts, cassava), this is being done through combining meta-analysis of loss data from the scientific literature with contextual postharvest data. Since February 2021, she has also become the APHLIS project coordinator.
Ceres2030 Sustainable Solutions to End Hunger
Dates: 2019-2020
www.ceres2030.org
As donors mobilise to meet the targets set by Sustainable Development Goal 2, one of the most pervasive challenges they will face involves information: they need to know how much it costs to fix the problem, what interventions are most effective in solving it, and how they affect the rest of the economy. Ceres2030 brought together economic modelling, machine learning, and evidence-based synthesis into one initiative, helping fill a major knowledge gap in the field of agricultural and food policy. Ceres2030 connected this knowledge back to the donor community, making sure decision makers have the cost figures and evidence they need when deciding where and how to make their investments.
Over 70 researchers volunteered to be part of the Ceres2030 team to generate evidence on where to prioritise spending on interventions to achieve Zero Hunger by 2030. Tanya led the Reducing Food Loss team for Ceres2030 systematically reviewing and synthesising the evidence on interventions for reducing postharvest losses in 22 key food crops in smallholder agri-food systems in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia.
Addressing postharvest bottlenecks: what role for solar powered storage of fresh sweetpotato roots in sub-Saharan Africa? – an integral part of the Sweetpotato Action for Security and Health in Africa (SASHA II) project
Dates: 2015-2019 Partners: International Potato Centre (CIP), Organi Ltd. Donor: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Africa is rapidly urbanising. Fresh sweetpotato roots are already an important part of urban diets in many countries. Exciting new initiatives include the use of orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) puree in bread recipes by major supermarket chains in Kenya, helping to provide vital Vitamin A in the diets of the rapidly growing urban population. However, a year-round supply of fresh sweetpotato roots and sweetpotato products is required to meet these urban consumers’ demands; this can be achieved either through constant year-round production and supply of fresh roots or through a combination of staggered production and the storage of fresh OFSP roots to cover periods of low supply.
One of the objectives of the Sweetpotato Action for Security and Health in Africa (SASHA II) project is to investigate whether commercial-scale storage of fresh OFSP roots is feasible.
To better understand whether fresh root storage might offer opportunities within this OFSP supply chain, in 2015 Tanya undertook a detailed value chain study involving 59 stakeholder and focus group interviews across eight focal counties in Kenya to understand existing sweetpotato value chains, their seasonality, farmers’ production trends and constraints, traders’ root sourcing and trading patterns, price dynamics, retailing behaviours, and consumers’ preferences. This found that large quantities of yellow-fleshed sweetpotato roots are traded from Kabondo and Migori to the large urban markets in Kisumu, Nakuru and Nairobi, with traders sequentially purchasing roots from different areas during the year in order to smooth the supply. Prices vary between the peak and low supply seasons by up to 70%, suggesting that storage has the potential to reduce cost to the consumer. Only very limited amounts of OFSP are currently grown in these counties. The findings of this study were combined with different OFSP puree and fresh root requirement scenarios to calculate the storage capacity needed for a puree processor to hold at least one month’s stock of OFSP roots to control and smooth their supply chain, and reduce the impact of price rises during the low season. Based on this, a medium scale (10 - 30 tonnes) fresh root storage facility was constructed at the processor’s site in Homa Bay (see summary brief).
Tanya has then designed and together with the Organi Ltd and CIP team run a series of fresh OFSP root storage trials in three different storage facilities (2016-2019) at the Organi Ltd in western Kenya. These trials have compared the storage characteristics of different OFSP varieties, and different pre-postharvest handling and curing practices on stored root quality during 4 months storage (see summary briefs 2016, 2017, 2018).
To better understand demand for OFSP fresh roots amongst urban consumers, Tanya has worked with the CIP team in designing and leading a study of consumer awareness of, demand for and packaging of vitamin A rich OFSP roots in informal markets and high-end grocery stores in Nairobi (2018).
Supporting smallholder farmers in southern Africa to better manage climate-related risks to crop production and postharvest handling
Dates: 2013-2016 Partners: University of Zimbabwe, Chitedze Agricultural Research Services Malawi, Food and Agriculture Organisation, University of Pretoria, FANRPAN, SOFESCA, University of Wageningen Donor: European Union
Southern Africa is prone to extreme weather events, such as drought, floods and tropical cyclones, which have devastating impacts on human health, agriculture, infrastructure and other key socio-economic sectors. These climate-related shocks severely affect the livelihoods of the region’s population; 75% of who depend on predominantly rain-fed agriculture. Climate change, with projected increases in the incidence and intensity of extreme climatic events, is likely to exacerbate existing vulnerabilities.
This project aimed to i) develop and promote innovative techniques, methods and approaches for smallholder farmers to manage risks to crop production and postharvest handling associated with drought, floods and cyclones, and ii) strengthen regional knowledge and institutional arrangements on risk management for crop production and postharvest handling in areas prone to climatic hazards.
Tanya was involved in the design and implementation of community-profiling surveys in southern Malawi and Hwedza and Mbire districts of Zimbabwe in 2013 and 2014, which sought to understand farmers and key stakeholders’ experiences and perspectives on the impacts of and coping strategies for climate-related risks and longer-term adaptation options.
This shaped the development of the activities for building postharvest capacity of key agricultural service providers and actors; and learning alliances for community testing of different stored grain (sorghum, maize, cowpeas) treatment options which Tanya has been involved in.
Exploring rural-urban interdependence and the impact of climate change on interdependent food and agricultural systems in Tanzania and Malawi
Dates: 2009-2012 Partners: Institute of Resource Assessment University of Dar es Salaam, Chancellor College University of Malawi, ARI Hombolo Tanzania, ARI Uyole Tanzania, INADES Formation Tanzania, Bvumbwe ARI Malawi Donor: FCDO (previously DFID) and IDRC
Background: Africa is rapidly urbanizing. By 2030 there are projected to be over 759 million African urban dwellers. This poses major challenges for the further provision of infrastructure and services. Alongside this, Africa is particularly vulnerable to climate change and climate variability (CC&CV). As urbanisation and inequality increase, more sophisticated analyses of the linkages and interdependencies between rural and urban areas are emerging. Flows of products, people, knowledge and information, natural resources and money provide strong and dynamic linkages.
Objectives: This research project funded by IDRC and FCDO aimed to strengthen the capacity of individuals, organizations and systems within the agriculture and food innovation systems connecting rural and urban communities in Tanzania and Malawi to adapt to the challenges and opportunities arising from CC&CV.
Results: The project used a multi-stakeholder participatory action research process to explore Rural-Urban interdependencies and climate change (CC). This helped raise awareness amongst local government and other stakeholders regarding urban-rural linkages, urban food systems and their vulnerability to climate change, highlighting important knowledge gaps surrounding urban food security. An experiential learning approach supported peri-urban horticultural producers to work together with other key agricultural stakeholders (e.g. researchers, extension, micro-credit, stockists, and NGOs) and develop horticultural learning plots on which they experimented with soil water conservation techniques (including admixture of manure, reduced width and levelling of seed beds), new varieties, tower gardening techniques (important for situations where land and water are scarce, and for women and disabled persons), different pesticide application methods and crop diversification opportunities (such as sunflower production fields). The process strengthened farmers’ ability to analyse and test ways of improving their situation, to link with other stakeholders and led to a fast uptake of sustainable technologies. The participating farmers managed to significantly increase their profits from horticultural production through increased yields and quality (and therefore prices) and reduced water and land requirements. Neighbouring farmers requested training from the learning group members and copied new practices. In Malawi, urban agriculture was incorporated into national and local government policy and will build on the project’s activities recognising that horticultural systems can be adapted to both improve capacity of vulnerable people and strengthen resilience of food systems.
NRI’s Dr Tanya Stathers and Richard Lamboll participated in the project design, urban food systems situation analysis, and the multi-stakeholder learning processes.
Development of a post-harvest handling and storage handbook and training approach for the World Food Programme’s (WFP), Purchase for Progress (P4P) programme
Dates: 2011-2013 Donor: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Background: WFP aims to purchase food from areas close to where relief food is needed. Over 950 Farmers’ Organisations (FOs) in 20 developing countries are registered to supply grain to WFP through the P4P programme for local food aid procurement. Many of these FOs struggle to supply WFP with cereals and beans that meet quality and safety standards. To help them meet quality standards, FOs are trained in postharvest handling and storage (PHHS).
Objectives: To develop a comprehensive set of Postharvest Handling and Storage training materials and to help ensure a common basis based on best practice for PHHS training efforts within WFP’s Purchase for Progress (P4P) programme. This will enable FOs to collect, store and supply better quality grain to WFP.
Results: The ‘Training Manual for Improving Grain Postharvest Handling and Storage’ can be viewed online. 4,000 copies have been printed in English for distribution to the trainers in the Anglophone P4P focal countries, and 2,000 copies in French. The manual includes technical PHHS information for improving household, primary aggregation point and warehouse level PHHS, it includes ~200 cartoons and 6 posters for farmer training which are designed so the text can be added in the relevant vernacular language, it also includes a detailed section on ‘How to deliver training on PHHS’ using an experiential learning approach.
NRI’s Dr Stathers and Prof Hodges analysed the existing training materials, conducted a detailed needs assessment with key players in 3 focal P4P countries, designed, wrote and developed the manual and approach. They along with colleagues also created the text underlying the World Bank’s 2011 ‘Missing Food’ report which proposes an approach to reducing cereal postharvest losses in Sub-Saharan Africa – this builds on their long and detailed field experiences of smallholder postharvest systems.
Assessing the poverty impact of social and environmental voluntary standard systems in the Kenyan tea sector
Dates: 2010-2013 Partners: Matrix Kenya Donor: FCDO (previously DFID)
Background: Social and environmental voluntary standards, such as Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance certification, are becoming increasingly common in global value chains. However, there is limited systematic evidence available on the impact and development potential of such standards. Donors, the media, NGOs, academics and development practitioners, as well as the voluntary standard bodies themselves are all keen to understand better what difference these standards make to disadvantaged workers and smallholders.
Objective: to systematically examine the impact of voluntary social and environmental standards on poverty and livelihoods, particularly for the most disadvantaged workers and producers in developing countries.
Results: The impact of social and environmental voluntary standards systems was studied in tea (in Kenya and India) and cocoa (in Ghana and Ecuador) amongst smallholder, outgrowers and estate producers. The study used large scale quantitative surveys and numerous sequential qualitative interviews with various stakeholders (e.g. producer organisation managers, smallholder and outgrowers famers (men and women), estate workers (men and women), key informants (e.g. local leaders, academics, trade unions), standard bodies).
Amongst smallholder growers tea farming is their main source of income. The strict quality criteria, increased plucking frequency and crop husbandry trainings associated with the Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance certifications have led to improved green leaf quality and higher yields which translates to higher tea incomes particularly when the tea prices are high. They have been able to invest more in their children’s education, and the Fairtrade premium has been used for a wide range of community investments. These farmers incur long-term and short-term costs associated with being certified but generally feel the benefits outweigh the costs. The detailed findings of certification impacts for smallholders, outgrowers and estate workers are presented in the final report (Stathers, Gathuthi et al., 2013. Poverty impact of social and environmental voluntary systems in Kenyan tea).
NRI’s Dr Stathers led the Kenyan study involving design and implementation of the field work, and analysis and reporting of all the information collected.
- Research Students:
- Daniel Mbogo – Reducing acrylamide risk in processed sweetpotato
- Shaw Mlambo – Grain postharvest pest management in maize smallholder systems in a changing climate – University of Zimbabwe
- Macdonald Mubayiwa – Smallholder postharvest technologies to manage climate-related risks in selected sorghum production systems - University of Zimbabwe
- Charles Singano – Investigation of grain postharvest technologies and systems for managing climate-related risks in smallholder farms of Shire Valley, southern Malawi – University of Zimbabwe
- Tinashe Nyabako – Development of a smart-phone based decision-support system for grain postharvest management in Zimbabwe – University of Zimbabwe
- Onika Stellingburg – An investigation into the factors that influence food choice among Gillingham North Residents – University of Greenwich
- Greenwich Academic Literature Archive (GALA) link:
http://gala.gre.ac.uk/view/authors/472.html
- Awards:
- Technical committee member of the International Working Conference on Store Product Protection (IWCSPP)
- Technical committee member of the All Africa Postharvest Congress and Exhibition
- Reviewer for various research journals including Food Policy, Food Security, Global Food Security, Journal of Stored Products Research, Crop Protection, Scientific Reports, Agricultural Education and Extension amongst others
- Proposal reviewer for various donors and organisations
- Award: De Montfort prize as one of Britain’s Top Younger Researchers at the House of Commons in March 2001
- External Profiles:
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7767-6186
Google Scholar
https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?hl=en&user=hgfGxSYAAAAJ
ResearcherID (WoS)
AAV-7154-2020
Research Gate
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Tanya_Stathers
Academia
http://independent.academia.edu/TanyaStathers
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3626
Professor of Sustainable Agri-Food and Postharvest Systems and Practice
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Hayley Bullivant
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Project Administrator
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