Agriculture & Food
We eat to live. Humans use approximately 11% of Earth’s land for the cultivation of crops for food, but also for clothing, medicine and biofuels. Globally, major crops include sugarcane, pumpkin, maize (corn), wheat, rice, cassava, soybeans, hay, potatoes and cotton.
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Off-patent chemistry: Financially strapped American farmers switching to generic crop chemicals
U.S. farmers struggling with slumping incomes and depressed grain prices have been switching to cheaper generic pesticides and fungicides as ...
Viewpoint: Organic or intensive agriculture? Brazil reframes the debate over the most promising future for farming
It's the year 2050, and the world's population has just passed 9 billion people. Economic growth has lifted hundreds of ...
Viewpoint: We need scalable solutions to meet the surging global demand for food. Here’s why biotechnology is key
According to the United Nations, the world’s population is projected to reach nearly ten billion by 2050.1 Against this backdrop, problems ...
Can genetically modified crops co-exist with the rest of agriculture?
Co-existence and containment of genetically modified (GM) plants has been a contentious issue since GM technologies were first commercially released ...
Viewpoint: RFK, Jr. ignites debate over the American diet and the future of meat but his solutions are simplistic and unrealistic
Now that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has kicked off his Make America Healthy Again, or MAHA Commission, food system advocates ...
Viewpoint: Regenerative agriculture that does not include the judicious crop chemicals to fight insects and disease is doomed to fall way short
The Noble Research Institute, a non-profit organization dedicated to farm and ranch education, defines regenerative agriculture as “the process of restoring ...
‘We eat first with our eyes’: The line between appetite and indulgence is dangerously blurred
From an evolutionary point of view, finding nutritious food sources is essential. While today, our foraging consists of walking down ...
Do liberals and conservatives shopping at the supermarket think about food differently? Brain imaging suggests they do
This study examines if the political affiliation of adults who self-identify as Democrat or Republican differs based on brain activity ...
Viewpoint: Why Europe is greenlighting crop gene editing while it rejected GMOs?
The European Union is yet to adopt a comprehensive legal definition for NGTs [new genomic techniques] . The current understanding ...
‘Super horses’: Newly engineered gene-edited equestrian racers are faster and more agile
[S]cientists are using the technology to improve traits in domestic animals. Argentina’s scientists have recently achieved a groundbreaking milestone in ...
How agricultural drones offer farmers a sustainable edge
Traditional farming tools — big tractors, crop dusters, and lots of human labor — are expensive, inefficient, and hard on ...
EU approved three new GMO corn varieties for import as opposition to genetic engineering eases
In a move that could influence global agricultural policy, the European Commission (EC) has approved the import and use of ...
Viewpoint: Here’s how Environmental Working Group’s Carey Gillam, Le Monde and the Oak Foundation destroy reputations while promoting the tort industry
The small media and political monitoring company v-Fluence – also known for one of its products, Bonus Eventus – has been the target ...
Protein propaganda and expensive pee: Supplement shakes and massive steak consumption have no health benefits and is a waste of money
The nearly ubiquitous social media message is, whoever we are, we need more protein. ... “Whey protein has falsely been ...
Anorexia cases in the U.S. have doubled in recent years, and treatments remain elusive
Over 10,000 Americans die from eating disorders every year, according to the National Association for Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders. Such prolonged ...
Food and beverage companies are overhauling their brands as RFK, Jr.’s ‘transparency campaign’ escalates
For food and beverage companies, complying with additive bans is no longer just about ticking boxes – it is a ...
Gene editing poised to dramatically improve the sustainability profile of tilapia
Brazilian Fish, one of Brazil’s largest tilapia producers, announced it will use genome editing technology to accelerate genetic improvements in ...
The Longevity Business Is Booming—and Its Scientists Are Clashing”
[Leonard Guarente's pet field of improving human longevity] has moved from the fringes to science’s hot center. It’s drawn billions ...
Viewpoint: Another top NIH food scientist quits, citing RFK, Jr.’s political interference and science censorship
The National Institutes of Health's top researcher on ultra-processed foods announced Wednesday he was stepping down from the agency, accusing ...
Here is the skinny on Lilly’s weight loss pill that could be a blockbuster alternative to Ozempic and other GLP-1 diabetes and weight loss drugs
Orforglipron, developed by Eli Lilly, represents a significant advancement in the treatment of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Unlike traditional ...
Citrus greening antidote in the works: AI deployed to figure out how to fight deadly plant disease
Scientists have uncovered the first known natural defense mechanism against citrus greening disease, a deadly plant illness that has devastated ...
National security challenge: China poised to overtake the U.S. as the global leader in biotechnology innovation
The comprehensive report from the bipartisan National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology (NSCEB) delivers a “sobering, even frightening,” conclusion: that China is ...
Food industry moves to reformulate spices, dyes and other products in response to RFK, Jr.’s controversial attacks on safe additives
United States Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s influence is already being felt throughout the food ...
Food waste: How critical a crisis? What can be done?
The documentary BUY NOW! has ignited important conversations about the impact of consumerism on waste and environmental degradation. The documentary ...
Organic produce now costs as much as 53% more than conventional alternatives, and the price disparity is getting worse
Clean eating is important to many Americans, and that often goes beyond fruits and veggies. The quality of those products ...
The FDA’s new definitions of ‘healthy’ foods takes effect at the end of April—Here’s what you need to know
All of us have probably had the experience of browsing the aisles at the grocery store looking for healthy foods ...
Swamped by lawsuits targeting its weedkiller paraquat, Syngenta reaches mass settlement but reaffirms global regulatory consensus that the chemical is safe-as-used
Besieged by thousands of lawsuits alleging that its paraquat weedkiller causes Parkinson’s disease, its manufacturer, Syngenta, has entered into an agreement aimed ...
