Overcoming challenging conditions with boron
Farming is one of the main economic activities in Central Africa, though a lack of arable land, water shortages, and poor soil quality make it impossible for most countries to fulfill all the dietary needs of the population. An estimated 40% of the population in the eastern and northern parts of Central Africa regularly experience severe food shortages and poverty as a result of low agricultural production.
In the Central African Republic and Republic of Congo, export crops such as cotton, coffee, and tobacco are produced largely on small landholdings while sugarcane and palm oil are grown on larger mechanized plantations.
Agriculture in the Congo is mostly at a subsistence level and the country has yet to achieve self-sufficiency in food production. Most of the country is covered in tropical forest while the rest has poor sandy soils, making cultivation extremely challenging. Food crops consist mainly of cassava, plantains, bananas, rice, yams, and beans.