Award for the Tropical Agriculturalist series

CTA's series of practical agricultural manuals, the Tropical Agriculturalist series, has been given an award by the Academie d'Agriculture de France. The award was presented at a formal meeting of the Academy chaired by Monsieur André Grammont, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, representing the Minister, Mr Jean Pierre Soisson. The French version of the series is published jointly by CTA, ACCT (Agence de Coopération Culturelle et Technique) and Maisonneuve et Larose. The prize was accepted by Professor René Coste, the series editor-in-chief who is a member of the French Académie de Sciences d'Outre-mer, an agronomist, and former Director of the IRCC (Institut de Recherche du Café, du Cacao et des autres plantes stimulants). The books in the series, which now extends to 19 titles, are written by top specialists and have often featured in the pages of SPORE. The handbooks are in paperback format and are designed, produced and illustrated for easy access and practical guidance. They are aimed at development project workers in the field who need clear and simple explanations of crop-improvement techniques and hints which will enable them to get the best out of the land, and thus contribute towards their country's selfsufficiency in food. CTA is delighted that the series has won such acclaim, and is encouraged to pass on to development workers, as well as to the growers themselves, the practical applications of agronomic research.