Vanuatu’s Department of Agriculture is working to limit the impacts of natural disasters on food production, by encouraging farmers to adopt sustainable practices.
“When we talk about sustainable farming system, we are referring to a farming system that we use that will help to ensure that there is high agricultural production, year after year,” Junior Salong, soil agronomist at the Vanuatu Department of Agriculture said.
ABC Radio Australia reports the system includes using crop rotation, alley cropping and contour cropping to help prevent soil erosion and landslides.
“These disasters always effect our farms but we have to put some practices in to help reduce the risk of these disasters damaging out crops,” Mr Salong said.
Vanuatu’s Agriculture Department is focused on ensuring there is continued food production after a disaster.
“If we continue farming [after disasters] there’s no reduction in the yield but there is sustainability in the production.”
“It is very important for us to use these practices to make sure there’s food production after disaster,” Mr Salong said.
Photo file Loop Vanuatu