– From Annual Report 2024 –

Selected highlights

• A WorldVeg-developed habanero variety outperformed all local checks in Belize, and is undergoing on-farm trial across the country.
• 30 stakeholders attended a workshop and training course in Belize, under the Taiwan MOFA-funded project, ‘the LAC Vegetable Network – Promoting vegetable diversity for more resilient livelihoods and healthier diets in the Latin America and Caribbean region.’
• The IF Foundation, a LAC Vegetable Network Member in Haiti, identified 3 WorldVeg developed sweet pepper lines and selected 4 of the best performing tomato lines for on-farm evaluation to determine adaptation to local farm conditions.
• A pepper breeding collection line was found to be resistant to Begomovirus in Guatemala, and is being crossed to move host resistance into locally preferred varieties.
• 100 extension workers and lead farmers in Mexico were trained as trainers on optimized agronomic practices, pest and pathogen detection, and integrated pest management in Chiapas, Oaxaca and Yucatan states.
• A stakeholder workshop with vegetable value chain actors was organized at CIMMYT headquarters, Mexico to prioritize interventions in Chiapas, Oaxaca and Yucatan, to maximize the potential of vegetable production to improve farmer income and nutrition for all.
• An agreement was signed with CIMMYT to host WorldVeg staff at their headquarters in Texcoco, Mexico, to be established in early 2025.
• The LAC Vegetable Network Partner IPTA in Paraguay showed that one of the open pollinated WorldVeg tomato lines outperformed the local hybrid check.
• IPTA in Paraguay is moving forward with registration and direct release of a chili pepper variety developed by WorldVeg that meets consumer demands and is adapted to local conditions.