Texas A&M’s Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture champions international agricultural development.

Norman Borlaug’s legacy lives on even after his passing in September through programs at Texas A&M’s Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture aimed at championing international agricultural development.

These days, Rwandan farmers are earning significantly more money thanks to Sustaining Partnerships to Enhance Rural Enterprise and Agribusiness Development (SPREAD), a five-year project of the Borlaug Institute. SPREAD began in 2006 by helping the African nation’s coffee growers meet the quality standards of high-end coffee companies, said Dr. Tim Schilling, the project’s director.

"Before 2001, Rwandan coffee quality was so poor that many farmers were digging up coffee trees to plant other crops," Schilling said. "Today Rwanda ranks among the top specialty coffee-producing countries, and over 100,000 farm families earn more than three times what they made in 2001 on coffee."

SPREAD assists in marketing efforts that have improved income from almost zero in 2000 to more than $50 million in 2008 and an expectation of $100 million by 2012, according to Rwanda’s coffee-development authority, OCIR-Café.

The project also helps Rwandan farmers to market other high-value agricultural projects such as cassava flour, chili peppers and pyrethrum flowers, a natural insecticide. The Texas A&M Foundation raises money for several Borlaug initiatives, including the Borlaug Institute Excellence Fund, Borlaug Institute Student Experience Fund, Norman E. Borlaug Endowed Chair for International Agriculture, and Norman E. Borlaug Endowed Fellowships.

Per the family’s request, please direct memorials in honor of the memory and legacy of Dr. Norman Borlaug to the Borlaug International Scholars Fund here by selecting 'College of Agriculture and Life Sciences' and 'Borlaug International Scholars' from the two drop-down menus.

Checks to the fund should be made payable to "Texas A&M Foundation" and may be mailed to the Texas A&M Foundation, 401 George Bush Drive, College Station, TX 77840-2811. Please indicate in the memo line "Borlaug International Scholars Fund."

To learn more about how you can support programs through the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, contact Monica Delisa at (979) 847-9314.