Husker researchers help show how to double Africa’s corn yield

The collaborative study by UNL faculty and international partners analyzed a database of more than 14,000 smallholder cornfields across seven countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. This field is in Rwanda. Photo by Patricio Grassini, Agronomy and Horticulture/Africa1 Better agronomic practices could reduce land conversion, need for imports LINCOLN, Neb. — An international partnership that includes University of Nebraska-Lincoln researchers has demonstrated how smallholders in Africa can double maize yields by adopting better agronomic practices. The study, published May 27 in Nature Communications, helps address the growing demand for maize in Africa, a region where yields are well below other parts of the world. Without yield improvement, meeting future maize demand would require conversion of vast tracts of natural land for maize cultivation or require increased reliance on expensive maize imports from other countries — an option that could undermine the food sovereignty of African ...