Pests and Threats

Fall armyworm. Nematodes. Stem rust. Global disruptions. These are just a few of the threats farmers face. Fortunately, there is ongoing global effort to help farmers defeat the perils that endanger their harvests.

Explore these Pests and Threats Stories

Fighting Back Against Ug99 Wheat Stem Rust

A virulent new strain of wheat stem rust is wiping out harvests in Africa, and while progress is being made to contain it, Ug99 still poses a threat to the global wheat crop.

Fighting Back Against Ug99 Wheat Stem Rust

How to Combat Nematodes in Farming

Nematodes are a damaging pest that threaten every cultivated field. Identifying and controlling them takes a nimble, integrated approach.

How to Combat Nematodes in Farming

Invasive Plant Control in Farms and Forests

Invasive plant species threaten farms and forests alike. The proven solutions that keep agricultural yields up and food supplies safe also work to keep wilderness areas free of invaders.

Invasive Plant Control in Farms and Forests

Agricultural Genetics

The science and the promise of crop genetics gets lost in the debate about GMOs. Pamela Roland, a plant geneticist, wants to sidestep the controversy to focus on how to improve food security and global nutrition through genetics.

Agricultural Genetics

Ag Producers Feeling Impact of COVID-19

With distribution systems in tatters, farmers had to respond to the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic all-but instantaneously. Their response offers lessons for the next crisis.

Ag Producers Feeling Impact of COVID-19

Measures to Survive the Covid Farm Crisis

Farming is a cyclical business, filled with ups and downs, but the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was especially brutal, driving farmers out of business. The crisis may have passed, but the carnage shows that highly efficient farm operations are vulnerable to systemic disruptions.

Measures to Survive the Covid Farm Crisis

Crop Sustainability and Pest Control in Farming

Pests are inevitable, and controlling them requires vigilance, creativity, and a big-picture approach.

Crop Sustainability

Explore these Topic Areas

Climate Smart Agriculture

Sustainable agriculture practices, some brand new and some traditional, are helping farmers meet their mission of feeding the world, now and for the future.

Climate Smart Agriculture

Technology and Precision Agriculture

Farming is undergoing a technological revolution. From AI to precision agriculture, farmers now enjoy a range of new solutions that increase yield, sustainability, and profitability.

Technology and Precision Agriculture

Soil and Land

For farmers, the health and quality of soil and the land are always top-of-mind. They are stewards of the land and responsible for feeding the world’s population, and soil underlies everything they do.

Soil and Land

Food Systems

Nature depends on food chains that link all living beings together. Humans have created complicated food systems that work in harmony with the natural world.

Food Systems

Business of Farming

The change happening in farming has led farmers to devote more time to business. The entire agriculture segment is asking more of farmers every day, leading to more opportunities and the need for continuing education.

Business of Farming

Outlook

Agriculture is complex, and the issues it faces range from weather to technology—and everything in between. Read on to explore some of the most important matters impacting farmers and the whole agriculture segment.

Outlook