We believe in
a world free from hunger.

 
 

We believe in
the power of plants.

 
 

We believe in
an inclusive market.

 
 

We believe in
purpose-driven science.

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Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Crop Improvement

We partner with scientists and stakeholders around the globe to co-develop tools, technologies, and methods in crop improvement that address local concerns and focus on building equitable community impact. Our aim is to listen to national agricultural research institutes as they define their own goals and drive advancement to breed resilient crop varieties that stand up to pests, diseases and climate change. We believe that if national programs play a central role in designing innovations that prioritize and target their unique needs then these solutions will be more sustainable in the long-term.

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Featured project

Crop Innovation in West Africa (CIWA)

Efforts by the Crop Innovation in West Africa are leading to enhanced food and nutrition security across the rural populations of West Africa through improved agricultural productivity and overall economic development with a unique commitment to gender and social inclusion.

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Our global network

Uganda

Host: East African Center of Innovation for Finger Millet and Sorghum (CIFMS) led by the National Semi arid Resources Research Institute (NaSARRI)

Haiti

Host: Central American and Caribbean Crop Improvement Alliance (CACCIA) co-led by Quisqueya University

Nepal

Quick Win: Breeding pulse crops towards protein biofortification with the Nepal Agricultural Research Institute

Senegal

Host: Crop Innovation in West Africa (CIWA) led by the Institut Sénégalais de Recherches Agricoles (ISRA)

Costa Rica

Host: Central American and Caribbean Crop Improvement Alliance (CACCIA) co-led by the Instituto Nacional de Innovación y Transferencia en Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA)

Malawi

Host: Center of Innovation for Crop Improvement for East and Southern Africa (CICI-ESA) led by Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR)

Nigeria

Quick Win: Identification of QTL/genes associated with resistance to Taro Leaf Blight (TLB) and yield quality in Colocasia esculenta in biparental mapping population with the National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI)

Tanzania

Partner country: Center of Innovation for Crop Improvement for East and Southern Africa (CICI-ESA) and the East African Center of Innovation for Finger Millet and Sorghum (CIFMS) in collaboration with the Tanzania Agriculture Research Institute (TARI)

Mozambique

Partner country: Center of Innovation for Crop Improvement for East and Southern Africa (CICI-ESA) in collaboration with the Instituto de Investigação Agrária de Moçambique (IIAM)

Burkina Faso

Partner country: Crop Innovation in West Africa (CIWA) in collaboration with the Institut de l’Environnement et de Recherches Agricoles (INERA)

Niger

Partner country: Crop Innovation in West Africa (CIWA) in collaboration with the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique du Niger (INRAN)

Kenya

Partner country: East African Center of Innovation for Finger Millet and Sorghum (CIFMS) in collaboration with the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization

Cornell University

ILCI headquarters and objective area partners: breeding informatics, cross-cutting themes, genomics, institutional capacity and priority setting

Cultural Practice, LLC

Objective area partner: Cross-cutting themes

RTI International

Monitoring, Learning and Evaluation

Colorado State University

Objective area partner: Trait discovery

Kansas State University

Objective area partner: Phenomics

Clemson University

Objective area partner: Phenomics

Centers of Innovation for Crop Improvement

Led by National Agricultural Research Institutes in each country, these centers act as regional hubs to drive tools, technologies and methods that target crops that are essential for food security

Uganda

East African Center of Innovation for finger millet and sorghum (CIFMS)

Malawi

Center of Innovation for Crop Improvement for East and Southern Africa (CICI-ESA)

Costa Rica & Haiti

Central American and Caribbean Crop Improvement Alliance (CACCIA)

Senegal

Crop Innovation in West Africa (CIWA)

Recent highlights

SeedsAnnouncements
January 6, 2024

Crop Improvement support bolsters seed industry research, collaboration

Asia Pacific is the fastest-growing seeds market globally, signaling a surge in agricultural innovation across the region. To bolster research and collaboration in this domain, 46 mid- and senior-level executives from…
SorghumAnnouncements
October 27, 2023

ILCI partners on new Feed the Future Climate Resilient Cereals Innovation Lab

Cornell University researchers are partnering on the newly announced Feed the Future Climate Resilient Cereals Innovation Lab (CRCIL), providing plant breeding expertise and powerful computational tools to increase the accessibility…
AnnouncementsTrait Discovery
October 26, 2023

New plot-labeling program supports plant breeders in Global South

Plant breeding is a numbers game – to quickly develop needed crop varieties in the face of rapidly changing climatic conditions, plant breeders need to screen thousands of plants each…

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