In the heart of southern Rwanda, a technical school is turning to innovative agricultural practices to tackle nutrition challenges among its students. Busasamana Technical School has begun cultivating mushrooms using Juncao technology, a method that promises to enhance the quality of school meals in a sustainable and cost-effective manner. This initiative is part of Rwanda’s broader school feeding program, which aims to reduce child hunger and improve access to education for children from low-income families.
The school’s physics teacher and feeding coordinator, Alice Allouette Marie Munyurabanga, sees mushroom farming as a potential game-changer. “Mushroom cultivation presents new opportunities to improve the meals we provide, particularly for those whose families struggle financially,” she noted. However, she acknowledged that a lack of knowledge and skills in mushroom cultivation techniques poses a challenge.
To address this, Munyurabanga participated in the Second African Training Workshop on Applications of Juncao Technology, held at the China-Rwanda Agriculture Technology Demonstration Center in Huye District. The workshop, which ran from July 16 to July 23, attracted 57 participants from five African countries. It focused on the use of Juncao technology for mushroom farming, livestock feed, and environmental protection, offering a platform for agricultural officers, educators, and development experts to share knowledge and experiences.
Juncao technology, developed in the 1980s by Professor Lin Zhanxi of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, is a multifunctional agricultural innovation. It involves a hybrid grass used primarily as a substrate for growing edible and medicinal mushrooms, but also serves as livestock feed and aids in ecological restoration. The technology has been introduced in over 100 countries, including Rwanda, through the Juncao technology project launched at the UN headquarters in 2017.
Munyurabanga’s interest in Juncao technology was sparked during a study tour to China in May. She sees the recent training as an opportunity to deepen her understanding and improve her skills in mushroom cultivation. “With the knowledge I have gained, I will be able to help produce enough mushrooms for our students when I return to school,” she said.
The implications of this initiative extend beyond Busasamana Technical School. Mushrooms, chosen for their nutritional value and cost-effectiveness, are currently included in students’ meals at least twice a week. The school’s plan to plant Juncao grass and produce its own mushroom substrate could serve as a model for other schools. This could lead to a wider adoption of Juncao technology in Rwanda’s school feeding program, potentially improving the nutrition and learning outcomes for students across the country.
Chen Xiaobin, an expert at the China-Rwanda Agriculture Technology Demonstration Center, expressed his hope to organize future training workshops specifically for schools. This would better support Rwanda’s national feeding strategy through the application of Juncao technology, marking a significant step towards addressing nutrition challenges in a sustainable and innovative way.