Growing Knowledge & Building Partnerships

Farmer to Farmer volunteers Cheryl Diermyer and Lauren Rosen traveled around Nicaragua to put together a video that highlights the cattle and dairy farming industries. The volunteers interviewed farmers, business owners and others to bring to light the importance of consuming local dairy products. The consumption of local meat and dairy products is important for nutritional and health reasons and it helps the local economy. The video is being aired on local TV stations and in schools and is being promoted by cattle and dairy farmer associations. Farmer to Farmer works with the whole dairy value chain in Nicaragua, even the marketing/media competent that is generally out of reach for the producers and cooperatives. Watch this video to get a glimpse into the dairy and cattle industry in Nicaragua:

Guyana is known as the Land of Many Waters. As a matter of fact, rivers are often the best means to reach certain areas in Guyana. The capital city, Georgetown, lies below sea level. This makes for a unique experience for FTF volunteers, and those whose assignments bring them to these parts of Guyana often enjoy the adventure and scenery. The Essequibo is Guyana's major river, draining many of the rivers from the interior of the country. Guyana is a beautiful country with rich biodiversity. Below are photos from various FTF staff and volunteer trips over the years. Enjoy! FTF Field Staff pose for a shot on the way to Mainstay, to visit the pineapple growers Amerindian mother teaches her daughter to swim These stilts are helpful in case of flooding Automobile ferry

In the Dominican Republic, Farmer to Farmer volunteer, Ralph Bucca, provided workshops and hands-on trainings on the preservation and processing of fruits and vegetables. At the University ISA, the volunteer gave presentations on the use of solar food dryers and, with much help from the participants, they all constructed a solar dryer. Amongst the participants in the workshops were 30 university students, the Director of the Department of Food Science and Technology, and the Director of Appropriate Technology for Peace Corps/Dominican Republic. The workshop participants at Univeristy ISA show off their newly constructed solar food dryer. The university students prepare bananas, peppers, tomatoes and eggplant to test out the new solar dryer. In addition to trainings at universities, the volunteer visited a mango dehydration business. The volunteer found that the current solar dryer design at their facility is allowing for too much humidity to enter and therefore, not a

Volunteers Trevor Hylton and Brian Rosa examine butternut squash crop with Hauraruni members Over the past 18 months or so, Partners' Farmer to Farmer Program has been assisting the Haururuni Friendly Farmers Society in their shadehouse and in-field production of vegetables. You may remember previous blog posts about their efforts and challenges - growing crops in very sandy soils, experimenting with shadehouse production of vegetables and other technologies. We are excited to announce that their hard work has paid off and Hauraruni has reached its goal: they have recently exported their first crop to Antigua and Barbados! Whereas only 60% of the crop - butternut squash - was expected to be deemed export quality, a startling 91% was determined to be high enough quality for export. The farmers are able to sell the remaining crop to local markets, and they are planning to send a 200 lb sample to New York City. This achievement is a significant success since small-scale farmers

World Food Day is an event designed to increase awareness, understanding and informed, year-around action to alleviate hunger. It is observed each October 16th in recognition of the founding of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The theme of this year’s observance is “United Against Hunger” chosen to recognize the efforts made in the fight against world hunger at national, regional and international levels. In order to overcome hunger and food insecurity, we need to increase global food production without degrading soils and the environment. To achieve food secure populations, it is necessary to improve access, availability, stability, and quality of food. Partners’ Farmer to Farmer Program is contributing to food security and fighting hunger in the communities and countries where we work. Farmer to Farmer volunteers have assisted cooperatives, businesses, small farmers, and associations to improve their practices, yielding more crops and higher profits giving families

Global Giving is matching donations at 30% or more from now until October 21, or until funds run out! Partners of the Americas' Farmer to Farmer Program supports a project on Global Giving called "Feeding Families". Donations support agricultural development and food production in the mountain village of Grand Boulage, Haiti, and FTF volunteers supplement these materials and inputs with training. Support the project now and make your donation count even more! For more information on the project or on FTF activities in Grand Boulage, click on the image below or on the "Grand Boulage" Label on the right hand column of this blog.

What difference does the Farmer to Farmer Program make? Below are just a few outcomes of Partners of the Americas' FTF Program from this year. Thank you to all the volunteers and partners who have contributed to these successes! And remember, a little can go a long way. For example, in Haiti the difference between a child going to school and not going to school is only $50/year in school fees, which is out of reach for the majority of families. Our Haitian staff report that 74% of improved rabbit producers working with FTF are able to send their children to school. Guyana Volunteer Trevor Hylton discusses butternut squash packaging with Hauraruni FFS Chairman and Packaging Facilities Manager Before FTF assistance, the Hauraruni Friendly Farmers Society was limited to agricultural production of some vegetables and beans only in shadehouses and for local markets because of the very sandy soils in the area. With drip irrigation technology and training, they now have the capa

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations recently published about small-scale dairy production. The study confirms that working with the dairy value chain is a way out of poverty and a sustainable income generating activity for small-scale producers.   "Better farm management practices, expanding dairy herd sizes and increasing milk yields could easily improve smallholder labour productivity, which currently is rather low. "Dairy sector development can therefore be a potent tool for poverty reduction," the UN report said."  "Any dairy development strategy, the FAO/IFCN study recommends, must not exclusively focus on dairy producers but improve competitiveness throughout the entire dairy production chain, targeting farmers, input suppliers, milk traders, processors, retailers and others. Creating value in every part of the chain ultimately also benefits consumers who are then able to obtain more dairy products for the same amount of money

Over the years, Partners of the Americas' Farmer to Farmer Program has provided training to beekeepers in many countries throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, including Panama, Bolivia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Antigua and Haiti. Beekeeping has many environmental, nutritional, and health benefits in addition to being a source of income for farmers and their families. Many countries in the region also have a comparative advantage in beekeeping due to climatic factors - Nicaragua can produce honey for 8 months out of the year! Here are a few photos from the archives, combined with a recent one from our Beekeeping project in Haiti. Enjoy! Antigua, 2003 Bolivia, 2002 Haiti, 2009