Challenge s  and our contri b ution Syngenta  Foundation  for Sustainable  Agriculture: Improving the crop  that feeds Ethiopia Building markets Community development Valuing farm work Farmers must contend with the risks of  increasingly volatile markets. The value of a  good harvest can be undone by price volatility.  The availability of market information, for  example on crop prices, can be increased  through knowledge sharing systems. In India  we provide information on pest and disease  management by mobile phone to 2 million  subscribers, in partnership with Nokia Life Tools.  In Brazil, our NUCOFFEE ®  initiative (see page 29)  connects growers and buyers to give farmers a  fairer deal. These are just examples of what can  be done; there is no single solution, and both  companies and governments have a role to play. The long-term solution to labor shortages is  to make farming more profitable and attractive  to young people, and to build strong rural  economies where agriculture is seen as an  attractive career path. Governments, non- governmental organizations (NGOs) and  industry must work together through policies,  regulatory frameworks and investments to  bolster the agricultural sector. Farm work must also be safe and healthy.  We set strict health and safety standards to  protect employees on our suppliers’ farms,  and work with growers and workers to protect  their health, safety and the environment when  they use our products. Around the world, young people are leaving  farming in search of higher income, better  healthcare and education, and the urban way of  life. This often causes labor shortages and rising  wage costs for growers. Syngenta technologies  increase farm profitability and improve labor  conditions on the farm. They can also encourage  the development of a more highly-qualified labor  force, which increases the value proposition of  rural employment. For example, plantations  adopting the PLENE ®  technology (see page 26)  were able to replace the previous labor-intensive  method of planting sugar cane. Syngenta  worked together with the Brazilian Sugarcane  Industry Association UNICA and the Brazilian  government to retrain the workers affected  for higher-value jobs. Rural communities need socio-economic  development to underpin a healthy agricultural  sector. For example, restricted access and  storage constraints exacerbate post-harvest  losses, which can reach 50 percent in some  areas. In Africa, where less than half the rural  population lives close to an all-season road,  transportation can account for 50–60 percent  1 of total marketing and distribution costs.  Worldwide, many rural communities lack other  basic infrastructure. We can play a part in  addressing these problems, but only concerted  action by all interested parties will build  successful rural economies. An Ethiopian researcher  at the University of Bern,  Switzerland, supported by  the Syngenta Foundation,  is leading efforts to raise  the yields of tef. This  cereal is the staple diet of  some 50 million Ethiopians.  Tef traditionally has long,  weak stalks and is easily  damaged by wind and  rain. The Bern research  team has successfully  developed shorter lines.  Colleagues in Ethiopia are  now evaluating these in  the field, crossed with  local high-yielding  varieties. “The initial results  look promising,” says  SFSA’s Ian Barker. “This  crop offers huge potential  for further sustainable  intensification.”  Left: Dr.ZerihunTadele  Institute for Plant Sciences  University of Bern 13 Syngenta Annual Review 2011 More online www.syngentafoundation.org 1 The World Bank, world  development report 2008;  Agriculture for Development ,  p. 119