In growing signs that a trade resolution between the US and China may not be reached before November, China’s government has sought to pressure President Trump into easing tariffs by targeting his voter base ahead of key mid-term elections.

 A month after it imposed tariffs on shipments from the United States, China saw a significant reduction in grain imports, according to figures published by China’s General Administration of Customs.

Agriculture that appears to be more eco-friendly but uses more land may actually have greater environmental costs per unit of food than “high-yield” farming that uses less land, a new study has found.

Sub-Saharan Africa has only slowly tackled problems of undernourishment and moved toward food security, although the outlook varies widely from country to country. The region is already dependent on grain imports to feed its people, and population growth means the challenge of feeding itself in the coming decades is immense. Climate change likely will make it even more difficult. Innovation and research and making sure that farmers have access to the fruits of that innovation and research, are vital. 

Leon du Toit slowly inhales the late summer breeze off fields belonging to a dairy farm not far from Moscow. “Smells just like home,” the 72-year-old South African said.

That’s just what one Russian political figure hopes to hear.

He is leading something of a charm offensive in South Africa with a very particular goal: hoping to lure white South Africans to move 8,000 miles away to rural Russia.

The selling points are abundant farmland, relative safety and a country that holds tight to traditional Christian values.

What is not said — but clearly understood — is how this fits neatly into the identity politics of Russian President Vladi­mir Putin.

Scores of Heads of State and Government from Africa and other representatives convened in China’s capital Beijing for the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit.