NOURISHMENT

Covering two thirds of the available crop land, rice is the main staple of the Malagasy diet. It is consumed two to three times per day in traditional dishes and snacks, such as Koba – a snack consisting of rice, banana and peanut. Other dishes include Akoho sy voanio – chicken prepared with rice and fresh coconut, and Ro – a watery soup of green leafy vegetables and sometimes dried shrimps, which is accompanied by rice.

Despite a long-standing government goal of rice self-sufficiency, Madagascar remains a net importer of rice. In order to reduce the reliance on imports, Givaudan hired local agronomy experts to work side by side with farmers to find a new way of increasing rice production. This system which was implemented – the so-called System of Rice Intensification (SRI) – is doubling rice production on farm land. These experts also set up an education programme which advises local farmers how to maximise their crop yield and how to monitor and maintain the soil conditions in their existing fields.

Based on consultation from these agronomy experts, villagers in Ambohimitombo dug a 3km canal to remove excess field water which made 50 hectares of land available for rice production.

With this increased production, the system ensures energy and nutrition for the growing population and prevents the compromise of agricultural cash crops – which includes vanilla.