30 May 2014 www.avrdc.

org
AVRDC has a
new office in
Islamabad,
Pakistan
page 5
From seed to sales
(...continued on page 2)
Nearly two
decades
after their
release, two
AVRDC
improved
tomato
varieties are
at the heart
of a rapidly
developing
production
and
processing
sector in
East Africa.
To live a healthy
life, eat a
rainbows worth
of vegetables
every day!
page 7
Research has its rewards, provided you are
willing to wait. In the early 1990s AVRDC
embarked on a project to develop tropical
tomatoes for Africa with resistance to
viruses, late blight and other diseases. These
disease-resistant lines would need to tolerate
hot, humid conditions; yield well; and have
improved shipping qualities and shelf life to
survive transport on rough roads.

Photos courtesy of Mel Oluoch
2
(...continued from page 1)
(...continued on page 3)
The Centers tomato breeders got to
work, and by 1997, two AVRDC-
developed tomato lines were
released by the Tanzanian
Horticultural Research Institute
(HORTI-Tengeru) under the names
Tanya and Tengeru-97. The new
cultivars produced full-fleshed,
juicy fruit suitable for eating fresh
or cooked, and had thicker skins,
which allowed the fruit to last up to
three weeks at room temperature,
unlike the commonly grown
varieties Marglobe and
MoneyMaker. With overall
improved resistance to viruses,
diseases and pests, Tanya and
Tengeru-97 were poised to take
their place as Tanzanias top
tomatoes.
Their path to the throne illustrates
the complexity of seed distribution
and the need for the public and
private sector to work in tandem to
ensure farmers can obtain quality
seed at the right time for the
planting season.
On the seed circuit
AVRDC produced breeder and
foundation seed of the two cultivars
in Tanzania, and then joined a
partnership with HORTI-
Tengeru to multiply seed; a
mechanical seed extractor from
Taiwan improved the efficiency of
seed extraction. The two
institutions trained farmers in
improved cultivation practices and
distributed seed kits. This activity
generated interest in the new
tomatoes and demand for seed
among more farmers in Tanzania.
The improved cultivars also were
introduced to local seed companies,
which began to scale up production
to meet the rising demand.
Alpha Seed, in Moshi, Tanzania,
was one of those companies.
Owners Prof. Hussein and Mariam
Crated tomatoes ready to sell in Tanzania. Food processing companies need reliable supplies of produce to keep production lines open. With
access to quality vegetable seed at the right time, farmers can feed the vegetable supply chainand earn income to feed their families as well.
(l): Mechanical seed extractors improve the
efficiency of seed extraction.
(r): Tanya seed stored in bulk at East African
Seed Co. Ltd., Tanzania.
(...continued from page 2)
3
(...continued on page 4)
Mongi were early champions of
Tanya and Tengeru-97 who
recognized the cultivars superior
qualities and promoted their
advantages to farmers in Tanzania.
The couple had some compelling
figures to share: The new cultivars
produced 36% higher yield than old
varieties, had 17% lower production
costs, and resulted in a 39%
increase in income.
Based on its work in Tanzania,
Alpha Seed won a bid from the
Food and Agriculture Organization
to distribute improved tomato seed
in Uganda, Zambia, Burundi, and
the Democratic Republic of the
Congo. This distribution
strengthened demand for the
cultivars across eastern and central
Africa, which prompted other seed
companies to add them to their
seed portfolios.
Today, most vegetable seed
companies in eastern Africa sell
Tanya and Tengeru-97
throughout the region, and also
market the cultivars in Malawi,
Mozambique, South Sudan, and
Zimbabwe.
In 2012 East African Seed Co. Ltd.
produced about 9 tons (t) of seed of
each cultivar, and sold the largest
proportion in 2013. Alpha Seed Co.
produced and sold 3-4 t of seed of
each tomato. Africasia Seed Co.
Ltd., was established in Arusha,
Tanzania in November 2012. In its
first seed production season, the
company produced 2.5 t of Tanya
and 4.5 t of Tengeru 97, and sold
about 1.5 t combined by October
2013. By April 2014 they estimated
annual sales in 2013-14 of 5 t, and
(l): Packing vegetable seeds at the Alpha Seed Company in Moshi, Tanzania. (r): Alpha Seed Company owners Prof. Hussein (l) and Mrs.
Mariam Mongi persuaded farmers across eastern Africa to give Tanya and Tengeru 97 a try. Their creative marketing methods engaged
thousands of growers, who are now producing the two tomato cultivars for processing and fresh market sale.
Promoting AVRDC tropical tomatoes: stamps
printed by Taiwans Post Office.
SomeSeedCompaniesCommercializingTanyaand
Tengeru97
Country
AlphaSeedCo. Tanzania
KiboSeedCo. Tanzania
MbeguTechnologies Tanzania
KrishnaSeedCo. Tanzania
TanSeedInternaonal Tanzania
SimlawSeedCo. Kenya
HORTITECHSEEDCO. Kenya
FICASEEDS Uganda
VICTORIASEEDS Uganda
HarvestFarmSeeds Uganda
PrisneSeeds Zimbabwe
EastAfricanSeedCo. Tanzania,Kenya,Uganda
Qualita Mozambique
SementePerfeita Mozambique
(...continued from page 3)
4
project future sales to double in
2015. At a sowing rate of 150 g of
seeds per hectare, combined sales
of these three seed companies
translates to approximately 130-
150,000 hectares of land in eastern
and southern Africa planted with
the AVRDC-developed cultivars.
Opening new markets
for farmers
The market for improved tomato,
especially processing types, is
growing rapidly in the region.
Tanzanias major tomato processor,
Darsh Industries, produces 50-
100 t/day of tomato ketchup and
tomato paste at its Arusha facility,
yet must import 70% of its tomato
pulp from China as it cannot source
enough tomatoes locally to keep
production lines open.

In November 2013 Darsh received a
grant from Africas Agriculture Fast
Track Fund to support planning
surveys and assessments for a
proposed USD 6.7 million
investment in a new tomato
processing facility in Iringa, central
Tanzania. The plant will double the
companys production capacity.
To supply the new facility, Darsh
will source Tanya tomatoes grown
by approximately 3800 smallholder
farmers (40% of which are women)
in the irrigated land of the Baobab
ecozone.

Tanya offers the firmness, size,
shape, color, uniformity and taste
the company seeks in a processing
tomato. How to ensure farmers will
have enough seed of this preferred
cultivar? Darsh is separating
Tanya seed from the pulp it
processes at its Arusha plant,
helping to scale up seed production
and reduce waste.

The red tide: Darsh Industries processes 50-100 t/day of tomato ketchup and tomato paste in
Arusha, Tanzania, but the company imports about two-thirds of its pulp from China, as local
tomato production is not yet sufficient to fully supply their operations. Local farmers that can ramp
up Tanya tomato production will find a ready buyer for their crop.
Read more
Darsh Industries: http://redgold.co.tz/
Agriculture Fast Track Fund: http://www.aftfund.org/darsh-industries-
signs-agreement-aft
Tomatoes have people talking in Tanzania.
5
CORNUCOPIA
New agreement and a new office for Pakistan
AVRDC The World Vegetable
Center has a long history of
collaboration with Pakistan. For
example, researchers from the
Pakistan Agricultural
Research Council (PARC)
participated in the Centers South
Asian Vegetable Research Network
(SAVERNET) from 1990 to 2000.
This research group was
instrumental in developing and
disseminating improved vegetable
linesespecially mungbeanacross
South Asia to diversify crop
rotations, enrich soils, and improve
diets.
On 7 May 2014, this long-standing
relationship was re-invigorated
when AVRDC and PARC signed a
Memorandum of
Understanding to guide future
research and development
activities. Both institutions share a
common goal: to accelerate R&D on
vegetable crops and to promote
safe, sustainable vegetable-based
farming systems in Pakistan.
Among other benefits, the
agreement will foster the
development of joint research
proposals, facilitate germplasm
exchange, and provide
opportunities for Pakistani
scientists to undertake training at
AVRDC.
AVRDC opened a new Pakistan
Office in Islamabad on 15 May
2014 in the Plant Genetic
Resources Institute (PGRI) of the
National Agriculture Research
Centre (NARC) to accommodate
the Centers current activities in the
country funded through the United
States Agency for International
Development (USAID) Agricultural
Innovations Program. Iftikhar
Ahmad, PARC Chairman; M.
Azeem Khan, NARC Director
General; Shahid Masood and
Nadeem Amjad of PARC;
Muhammad Imtiaz,
International Maize and Wheat
Improvement Center (CIMMYT);
Abdul Majid, International
Center for Agricultural Research in
the Dry Areas (ICARDA); Abdul
Rehman, International Rice
Research Institute (IRRI);
Muhammad Islam, International
Livestock Research Institute
(ILRI); and Mansab Ali, AVRDC
Project Manager, inaugurated the
office with a modest ceremony and
a new sign.
(l): Mansab Ali (3rd from left), AVRDC Project Manager, and Iftikhar
Ahmad (4th from left), Pakistan Agricultural Research Council
Chairman, sign the MoU.
(r): AVRDCs new Pakistan Office in the Plant Genetic Resources
Institute of the National Agriculture Research Centre in Islamabad.
Farewell
AVRDC sadly
said goodbye
to Robert
Holmer,
Regional
Director,
East and
Southeast
Asia, who left
the Center
after almost 4 1/2 years to join the
Deutsche Gesellschaft fr
Internationale Zusammenarbeit
(GIZ) GmbH Regional School Health
Program.
Among Roberts many achievements,
perhaps his greatest contribution was
the development of a strong,
proactive regional network of public
and private-sector partners who now
work together on a number of fronts
to address micronutrient
malnutrition, improvements in
vegetable production, and market-
related issues. His positive
relationship with Kasetsart
University, the host of AVRDC
operations in Thailand, has brought
many benefits to the Center.
During his tenure hundreds of
participants gained valuable skills
and expertise through the annual
International Vegetable Training
Course (IVTC) and SATNET Asia
workshops. Robert refined and
expanded the IVTC over the years,
bringing in new activities and voices
to provide a lively, relevant learning
experience for participants.
At GIZ, Robert will design simple,
scalable, sustainable and nutritious
school feeding programs for different
Southeast Asian countries in
collaboration with their ministries of
education and agriculture as well as
NGOs and the private sector. School
feeding programs help get children
into school and help to keep them
there, Robert says. The programs
reduce absenteeism, and once the
children are in school, the programs
can contribute to their learning,
through avoiding hunger and
enhancing cognitive abilities.
He wont be too far away from
vegetables, however. As school
feeding programs run for a fixed
number of days a year and have a
pre-determined food basket, they can
also benefit farmers and producers by
generating a structured and
predictable demand for their
products, thereby building a market
and the enabling systems around it.
His new email address:
robert.holmer@giz.de
Best of luck, Robert!
6
CORNUCOPIA
Welcome
Ping-Chen Li, Research Intern from the Breeding Department, Plant Pathology,
Known-You Seed Co., Ltd., Taiwan, arrived at AVRDC headquarters on 1 May
2014 for a two-month internship. Ping-Chen is working on screening methods for
tomato resistance against leaf curl disease under the supervision of Lawrence
Kenyon, Plant Virologist.
Shriniwas Gautam, Postdoctoral Scientist in Monitoring & Evaluation, joined
the Center on 23 May 2014. He holds a PhD in Agricultural Economics from the
University of Missouri, USA and brings a strong background in interdisciplinary
action research to the position. Previously Shriniwas worked with Nepals
Department of Agriculture on development and extension projects, agribusiness
and agricultural marketing. He has studied the supply chain of Asian vegetables in
the upper Midwest of the United States, and also has evaluated access to and
efficiency of rural broadband services in Missouri to inform a strategic regional
planning effort. Shriniwas is based at AVRDCs East and Southeast Asia Research
and Training Center in Kamphaeng Saen, Thailand.
7
CORNUCOPIA
A bright spectrum of health
AVRDC Nutritionist Ray-Yu
Yang, East and Southeast Asia
Vegetable Research and Training
Assistant Somchit
Pruangwitayakun, and
Information Technology and
Communication Assistant Sorawit
Limsiriwat wanted to make it
easier for consumers to make
nutrition-conscious choices when
planting a garden and planning
meals. What better way than using
color as a reminder?
The 7 Colors Vegetable Gardening
Seed Kit developed by the trio
features red, orange, green, yellow,
purple, white and blue (yes, blue)
vegetables, noting the health
benefits each color confers. For
instance, red vegetables provide red
-pigmented bioactive compounds
such as lycopene in tomato (which
helps to reduce the risk of prostate
cancer) and capsanthin in chili,
another compound linked to
reducing cancer risk. White crops
including onion, garlic and
cauliflower contain organo-sulfur
compounds that have antimicrobial
and anticancer properties. Blue
vegetables, like the flowers of the
butterfly pea, contribute
anthocyanins and other flavonoids
that protect the body from
oxidative damage and reduce the
risk of heart disease.
The message? To live a healthy life,
eat a rainbows worth of vegetables
every day!
http://avrdc.org/download/
publications/crop-guides/
other_crops/7%20Color%
20Vegetables.pdf

It starts with a seed
As part of the European Union-
funded SATNET Asia project
(Network for Knowledge Transfer
on Sustainable Agricultural
Technologies and Improved Market
Linkages in South and Southeast
Asia), AVRDC The World
Vegetable Center facilitated the
second of three in-country trainings
on Vegetable Genebank
Management and Seed
Production Systems from 26-29
May 2014 in collaboration with the
European Union funded Anndya
project in Ratanikiri, Northeast
Cambodia. The training course had
multiple aims: to help participants
understand the vegetable seed
industry in Cambodia, define
appropriate and applicable seed
production technologies, learn seed
saving principles and practices,
learn management practices to
establish and sustain community
seed banks, and finally, to develop a
plan to extend the knowledge and
skills they gained during the
training.
Annick Schubert, Anndya
Project Manager, welcomed 25
extension staff and officers from
various non-government and
government agencies as well as
Andreas Ebert, AVRDC
Genebank Manager, who was the
main trainer. Andreas was assisted
by Somchit Pruangwitayakun,
Research and Training Assistant,
and Yon Samnol, Anndya co-
coordinator, who also acted as the
official translator for the different
training sessions.

Anndya project: http://
annadya.org/
8
CORNUCOPIA
Launching a scent-sible approach to pest management
An inception workshop for the
project Attraction in Action: Using
pheromones and other safe and
sustainable management strategies
to reduce losses from insect pests
and plant diseases on vegetable
legumes and leafy brassicas in
Southeast Asia funded by the
Federal Ministry for Economic
Cooperation and Development
(BMZ) through Deutsche
Gesellschaft fr Internationale
Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH was
held from 28-30 April 2014 at the
headquarters of the Vietnam
Academy of Agricultural Sciences
(VAAS) in Thanh Tri, Ha Noi,
Vietnam. Collaborators from
Germany (Humboldt University
Berlin), Kenya (International Centre
of Insect Physiology and Ecology,
and The Real IPM Company), India
(Bio-Control Research Laboratories),
Lao PDR (Department of
Agriculture), Cambodia (General
Directorate of Agriculture) and
Vietnam (Vietnam Academy of
Agricultural Sciences, Plant
Protection Research Institute and
Fruits and Vegetables Research
Institute) participated in the
meeting. The workshop was
inaugurated by Trinh Khac
Quang, Vice President for VAAS.
Vu Manh Hai, Senior Researcher
and former Vice President of VAAS,
and Jaw-Fen Wang, Plant
Pathologist and Global Theme
Production Leader at AVRDC The
World Vegetable Center welcomed
the project team and other
participants. R. Srinivasan,
Entomologist (AVRDC) and the
Project Manager, coordinated the
planning workshop; Lawrence
Kenyon (Virologist, AVRDC),
Sopana Yule (Research Assistant -
Entomology, AVRDC East and
Southeast Asia), Pepijn
Schreinemachers (Agricultural
Economist, AVRDC) and Fang-I Ho
(Assistant Specialist, Bacteriology,
AVRDC) also participated. Over two
days the participants discussed
options, mapped out strategies, and
fine-tuned their work plans. On a
one-day field trip, the group visited
vegetable production fields in Van
Duc Commune, Gia Lam District and
the Plant Protection Research
Institute and Fruits and Vegetables
Research Institute of VAAS.

(l): Attraction in Action Planning Workshop participants.
(r): Active participation of public and private sector partners: Louise Labuschagne (l) from The Real IPM Company, Kenya and Soukhavong
Khodsimouang, Department of Agriculture, Lao PDR.
Researchers from across Asia participated in
the workshop.
Ethiopia: new link in the value chain
Here lies an opportunity to
strengthen the entire vegetable value
chain. That was the conclusion of
one participant at a recent Value
Chain Thinking Training of Trainers
course in Ethiopiaa major training
component in the project Improving
Income and Nutrition in Eastern and
Southern Africa by Enhancing
Vegetable-based Farming and Food
Systems in Peri-urban Corridors
(VINESA).
We have developed a new approach
which local trainers will use to help
farmers increase their incomes by
being more market-oriented and
building more collaborative
relationships across the value
chains, said course leader
Benjamin Dent. The trainers are
now equipped to teach farmers what
practical steps they should adopt.
Mohammed Yesuf, the projects
country coordinator from the
Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural
Research, recommended the course.
It encourages trainers and small-
scale vegetable producers to look
outside the box to find solutions that
fit local situations, and to work
together to build lasting
partnerships, he said.
John Macharia, AVRDCs project
manager based in Arusha, Tanzania,
noted the project has equipped
almost 70 trainers across four
countries with skills and tools to
share the value chain perspective
with local producers, traders and
consumers. There is a huge potential
for African smallholders to boost
their vegetable yields and increase
their incomes by focusing on the
interests and needs of different actors
in the chain, and also by making their
own needs known to the chain, said
John. Increasing the supply and
quality of affordable vegetables can
help improve the nutrition of families
and communities.
At VINESAs Best Practice Hubs,
vegetable researchers, development
agents and farmers can explore the
best innovations to increase yields,
reduce postharvest losses and
develop effective value chains. A
major consideration: the need to
focus on women and men as equal
partners, as the project strives to
integrate a gender-sensitive approach
in all hub activities. VINESA is
funded by the Australian Centre for
International Agricultural Research
(ACIAR) and runs until July 2017.
9
NEWS FROM THE REGIONS
Benjamin Dent delivering a session on value chain thinking to trainers at the Dream Land Hotel, Debrezeit, Ethiopia.
(top): A group of trainers explore what
activities and which relationships could give
the most value and create the least waste if
famers are to sell in a given market outlet.
(bottom): Florence Ghamunga, VINESAs
Gender Consultant, challenges trainers to be
sensitive to gender concerns when training
farmers on value chain thinking.

Travels in Tajikistan
10
NEWS FROM THE REGIONS
AVRDC Director General Dyno
Keatinge and Acting Regional
Director for Central & West Asia and
North Africa, Ravza Mavlyanova,
attended the CGIAR Drylands CRP
planning meeting in Dushanbe,
Tajikistan from 20-23 May 2014 at
the invitation of Jozef Turok, head
of the CGIAR Project Facilitation
Unit and Regional Coordinator,
International Center for Agricultural
Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)
in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Discussions
of AVRDCs proposed role in the CRP
were held and sites in the Rasht
Valley in Eastern Tajikistan were
identified for further study. During a
field trip to Faysabad, Ravza and
Dyno met with local farmers and the
provincial governor. On the 23
rd
, the
AVRDC party visited the Tajik
Academy of Agricultural Sciences,
Institute of Horticultural and
Vegetable Growing at the request of
Director Kh. Nazirov and his senior
colleagues Drs. Ahmedov and
Sanginov. The institute and
AVRDC agreed to increase
collaborative efforts in the country if
USAID Feed the Future funds can be
secured.
TIME TO TALK: A farmers gathering was held at Mang-Haripur village (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) Pakistan on 10 May
2014, as a joint activity of the Tunnel Farming Community, Agribusiness Support Fund, AVRDC, Agriculture
Innovation Program, and the Vegetable Program, National Agricultural Research Centre. Farmers shared
experiences, discussed issues and had a chance to meet all stakeholders involved in protected cultivation of
vegetables in the Hazarah and Pothwar areas.
(right, I to r) Director Nazirov, Dyno Keatinge, Dr. Ahmedov, and Ravza
Mavlyanova review a map outlining the regions of Tajikistan. The country has
a population of 8 million and is the poorest country in Central Asia. Tajikistans
cotton exports account for 60% of agricultural output, support 75% of the rural
population, and use 45% of irrigated arable land. Vegetable crops could help
diversify the countrys agricultural sector.
CANADA: Kathleen Mackay, Executive Director of the Canadian Trade Office
in Taipei, accompanied by Su Yun Geithner, Director of General Relations,
joined the AVRDC Management Team (Dyno Keatinge, Jackie Hughes, IR Nagaraj,
and Dirk Overweg) for a tour of headquarters on 29 May 2014. Dr. Keatinge briefed
the visitors. Genebank Manager Andreas Ebert explained how the worlds largest
public collection of vegetable germplasm operates, and Dyno guided the visitors to
the Demonstration Garden.

Visitors
11
NEWS FROM THE REGIONS
A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE:
Thirty-four future representatives
of Taiwans diplomatic corps
visited the AVRDC campus on 29
May 2014 as part of a training
program organized by the
Institute of Diplomacy and
International Affairs,
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(MOFA). After a briefing by
Head of Communications
Maureen Mecozzi, the group
engaged in a lively Q & A session.
Research Assistant Pamela Huang
then led the visitors through the
Demonstration Garden.
INDIA: Manish Chauhan, Director General of the India-Taipei
Association and Avnish Sharma, the associations Deputy Director
General, toured AVRDC headquarters on 27 May 2014. They met with
the AVRDC Management Team, visited the Genebank and
Demonstration Garden, and planted a tree in the Centers Green
Drive.
SOUTHWEST IS BEST: Forty-two students
from different universities in southwest Taiwan
participating in a training program for
International and Innovative Talent
hosted by National Cheng-Kung University
made a quick stop at AVRDC headquarters on
23 May 2014. The students were briefed by
visitors coordinator Shiu-luan Lu and took a
tour of the Demonstration Garden.
AUSTRALIA: Kevin Magee,
Representative of the Australian
Office in Taipei, met with the
AVRDC Management Team for
discussions and lunch on 7 May
2014.
FISHING FOR
KNOWLEDGE: Thirteen
graduate students and four
faculty members from the
Department of Seafood
Science and Technology,
National Kaohsiung Marine
University visited
headquarters on 29 April 2014.
They enjoyed a briefing from
Shiu-luan Lu and a tour of the
Demonstration Garden under
the guidance of Garden
Manager Willie Chen.

12
CORNUCOPIA
New vegetable lines in the spotlight during AVRDC
Breeders Showcase Open Day
A par tner shi p of long standi ng bear s fr ui t
for vegetable pr oducer s i n Tai wan.
Over the past 30 years, AVRDC The World Vegetable
Centers breeding programs in partnership with the
Council of Agriculture (COA) Taiwan have developed
and released numerous improved cultivars of tomato,
pepper, Chinese cabbage and squash to benefit
Taiwanese growers and processors.
On 23 May 2014 AVRDC hosted a Breeders
Showcase Open Day at its headquarters in Shanhua to
present its newly developed vegetable lines and exchange
information with Taiwanese breeders from the public
and private sectors.
The field trials underway at AVRDC allowed Taiwanese
breeders to evaluate and select useful AVRDC lines for
their breeding programs, which will lead to improved
vegetable cultivars that will benefit Taiwans farmers.
The event also provided an informal forum for breeders
to discuss technical information and production
problems faced by Taiwan farmers.
13
CORNUCOPIA
Fresh, 30 May 2014
Fresh is published by
AVRDC The World Vegetable Center
P.O. Box 42, Shanhua, Tainan 74199
Taiwan

avrdc.org
Comments, ask a question, add a name to our mailing list: info@worldveg.org
Editor: Maureen Mecozzi
Graphic design: Kathy Chen
Photographic guidance: Amy Chen and
Vanna Liu
Contributors: Mansab Ali, Sheila de Lima, Peter
Hanson, Robert Holmer, Dyno Keatinge, Nick
Kao, John Macharia, Ravza Mavlyanova,
Somchit Pruangwitayakun, Srinivasan
Ramasamy, Lydia Wu

Withusfromthestart
It is difficult to anticipate where an idea will lead or how long it will last. Surely Edwin
B. Oyer, who served as the Associate Director of the Asian Vegetable Research and
Development Center (AVRDC) during its inception from 1971-1974, must have wondered
from time to time how the fledgling institution would fare over the years. Recently Dr.
Oyer, professor emeritus in horticulture from Cornell University USA, took a moment to
get in touch with the institution he helped to create:
I have just spent the last several hours perusing the website and
want to commend whoever maintains your website on an
excellent job! It is hard to believe that it is already over forty
years ago that the Center was established. The two-day
symposium [held to mark the Centers 40
th
Anniversary] was very
impressive.
I will be 87 years old in June, and still enjoy activities on the
Cornell campus. Both Mary Ann and I retain fond memories of
our years at AVRDC.
I am very proud that the Center I helped establish has been
sustained over these many years!
The Center in the news
AVRDCs 40
th
Anniversary was
highlighted in a recent issue of the APSA
Magazi ne, the in-house publication of
the Asia and Pacific Seed Association.
The Solomon Islands Ministry of
Agriculture featured the Centers efforts
to breed and distribute a tomato suited
for local conditions in the May 2014 issue
of its newsletter, Agri kalsa Nui s.
Agri-Hub Tanzania covered the recent 2014
Agri-Finance Fair at AVRDC Eastern and Southern
Africa, calling it a resounding success.
http://apf-tanzania.ning.com/profiles/blogs/the-
2014-agri-finance-fair-a-resounding-success?
xg_source=activity