In southern Rwanda, a technical school is cultivating mushrooms using Juncao technology to boost its student feeding program, an innovative step toward addressing long-standing nutrition challenges in a cost-effective and sustainable way.

KIGALI, July 21 (Xinhua) -- In southern Rwanda, a technical school is cultivating mushrooms using Juncao technology to boost its student feeding program, an innovative step toward addressing long-standing nutrition challenges in a cost-effective and sustainable way.

School feeding has become an important part of Rwanda's education policy, aimed at reducing child hunger during school hours and expanding access to learning, especially for children from low-income families.

At Busasamana Technical School, physics teacher and school feeding coordinator Alice Allouette Marie Munyurabanga sees mushroom farming as a promising way to enhance meal quality for students. Mushroom cultivation presents new opportunities to improve the meals we provide, particularly for those whose families struggle financially, she said.

"The school feeding program faces a real challenge when some parents cannot afford to contribute on time," she said. "Mushroom cultivation is potentially a good option to fill the gap. But we do not have enough knowledge and skills on the techniques needed to cultivate mushrooms."

She made the remarks in an interview with Xinhua during a recent Juncao technology training session at the China-Rwanda Agriculture Technology Demonstration Center (C-RATDC) in Huye District in the country's Southern Province.

Munyurabanga was among 57 participants from five African countries attending the Second African Training Workshop on Applications of Juncao Technology, held from July 16 to July 23.

The workshop, co-hosted by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Rwanda's Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources and Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University in China, focused on the use of Juncao technology for mushroom farming, livestock feed and environmental protection. It brought together agricultural officers, educators and development experts from across Africa.

Earlier in May, Munyurabanga joined a study tour to China, where she was introduced to Juncao technology for the first time. The experience, she said, sparked a new interest in applying the innovation at her school.

"By chance, I was selected to take part in this latest capacity-building training," she said. "I see it as a great opportunity for my school, and for the country, to deepen our understanding and improve our 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."

Juncao, a hybrid grass developed in the 1980s by Lin Zhanxi, a professor of Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, is a multifunctional agricultural technology. It is mainly used as a substrate for growing edible and medicinal mushrooms but also serves as livestock feed and aids in ecological restoration. The innovation has been introduced in over 100 countries, including Rwanda.

The Juncao technology project was launched at the UN headquarters in 2017 and supported by the UN Peace and Development Trust Fund.

Munyurabanga said that mushrooms were chosen among various vegetables because they are both nutritious and cost-effective. Currently, her school includes mushrooms in students' meals at least twice a week.

Her school also has access to a large piece of land for agricultural activities. After returning from China, she introduced Juncao technology to her colleagues, who welcomed the idea. The school has since decided to plant Juncao grass to begin producing its own mushroom substrate.

"My hope is for our school to become a model in mushroom cultivation and substrate production," she said. "Other schools could learn from us, not only how to grow mushrooms, but also how to prepare the substrate, how to cook the mushrooms, and how to incorporate them into school meals."

Having gained insights into Rwanda's school feeding program, Chen Xiaobin, an expert at the C-RATDC, said he hopes to organize future training workshops specifically for schools, aiming to better support the national feeding strategy through the application of Juncao technology.