Pig manure used to boost Tuvalu agriculture

Tuvalu is looking at using manure from its pigs to expand its agricultural sector.

The CEO of the Ministry of Natural Resources, Nikolasi Apinelu, said the country's soil was not conducive to farming so there was a need to innovate.

He said Taiwan was helping to modernise farming methods including the use of manure for growing crops.

"These are only atoll nations. They are coral islands. We do not have that much nutrients in our soil. Our soil is non-arable and seawater intrusive into the water table is a big thing," said Nikolasi Apinelu.

"It's beyond our control. We are trying to look for some kind of innovation that we can embark on in order to address all these challenges we are having."

Pigs on Tuvalu's main island of Funafuti are all housed in special pens near the airport in order to avoid run off into the sea.

Manure is being gathered from those pens for the agricultural sector.