Sustainability/Climate Change
Food production needs are expected to roughly double over the next 35 years as the world population grows and people in under developed countries become more affluent and demand more calories. Healthy ecosystems are vital to the survival of all organisms. How can we grow crops without harming the environment? How can we balance technology and global food security? What is the right balance of organic and conventional farming? What role can genetics and biotechnology play without compromising the needs of tomorrow?
Below is the complete archive of related articles sorted by date.
Tackling bees’ greatest threat: Lithium chloride could kill Varroa destructor mites without harming bees
A new study suggests that tiny doses of lithium chloride could be an easy and effective treatment for Varroa mites, ...
‘Organic GMOs’: Pamela Ronald and Raoul Adamchak on how genetic engineering can reduce pesticide use and protect the environment
[Genetic engineering] is a powerful tool that can help us farm responsibly and sustainably by minimizing damage to the environment and ...
New generation of GMO crops could dramatically boost biofuel production
Plant biomass contains considerable calorific value but most of it makes up robust cell walls, an unappetising evolutionary advantage that ...
Judge delays glyphosate lawsuit after study of 45,000 people finds no link to cancer
In October 2016, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) consolidated all federally-filed Roundup lawsuits into one court in ...
How artificial intelligence might solve the ‘chemical treadmill’ farmers are trapped in to kill crop-choking weeds
After months of research, they faced a disappointing truth: There was no way around herbicides. “Turns out zapping weeds with ...
We produce enough food on this planet to feed everyone: So why do we need GMOs?
A new "planetary boundaries" study says agriculture can be more sustainable to save the planet. Others say the numbers don't ...
How living GMO algae could electrify rural Africa
Fuel cells powered by living algae that are five times more efficient than current models, have been designed by scientists ...
Herbicides and fungicides could be key factors in bee health problems, study finds
Honey bees might be drawn to the very chemicals that are endangering them, based on experiments in which they preferred ...
How ‘good’ bacteria can boost crop yields without pesticides or GMOs
In 1988, a remarkable finding illuminated a new path that agricultural scientists would soon follow in their quest to maximise ...
Rethinking the pesticides–neonicotinoids–bee health crisis narrative: Why the media get it wrong
Are bees endangered because of the use of insecticides, and in particular the class of chemicals known as neonicotinoids, which ...
Despite 2014 EU ban, neonicotinoid insecticides still found in quarter of UK honey samples
Almost a quarter of British honey samples remain contaminated after a partial ban on neonicotinoid pesticides, new research has revealed ...
Can CRISPR gene editing save chocolate from extinction?
Beyond the glittery glass-and-sandstone walls of the University of California’s new biosciences building, rows of tiny green cacao seedlings in ...
Can online gamers help developing nations solve aflatoxin crop contamination?
Puzzle solvers at the website Fold.it, a crowdsourcing project, are being asked to look for new and efficient ways to ...
Speed breeding: Researchers show wheat, canola and other key crops can be bred 6 generations per year
Pioneering new technology is set to accelerate the global quest for crop improvement in a development which echoes the Green ...
GM Arctic Apple promises to ‘dramatically reduce’ consumer food waste
I’m an apple loyalist—I pack one as an after-lunch snack nearly every day of the week. So I jumped at ...
Scientist raised next to sugarcane farm where controlled burning rampant explains ecological benefits of GMO sugar beets
In the early 90s, I lived in Barquisimeto, Venezuela, known for music, art, and its green Valle del Turbio. This ...
Egypt develops high-yield arid-resistant GMO wheat but activist opposition blocks biotechnology advances
Researchers at Egypt's National Research Center (NRC), affiliated with the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, obtained a patent for ...
Banning glyphosate: France may replace well-tested herbicide with pelargonic and other more toxic ‘natural’ chemicals
Activists say glyphosate can be replaced with natural herbicides—but "natural" doesn't necessarily mean that they're safer or better for the ...
Genetically modified healthier foods: Will consumers accept Cargill’s low-fat GMO canola oil?
Rich Fletcher spent 11 years tinkering with the genetics of the canola plant in pursuit of a single goal: Lowering ...
Fraudulent ‘organic’ food imports overwhelming USDA, investigation finds
The U.S. Department of Agriculture fails at regulation of organic food as fraudulent products overwhelm the agency’s conflicted, compromised system, ...
Global glyphosate herbicide ban would cause substantial damage to economy and environment, study shows
A new study finds that a ban on glyphosate would cause billions of dollars in economic losses and increase the ...
Milk without cows: Commercialization of synthetic dairy products in the works
Berkeley-based Perfect Day – which is creating ‘vegan’ dairy proteins without cows – is in talks with food industry partners ...
Canada proposes new limits—but no ban—on neonicotinoid insecticides to protect bees
The [Canadian] federal government has proposed tighter restrictions around two insecticides that are harmful to bees, but stopped short of ...
Should we create ‘genetically superior’ bee species resistant to varroa mites?
In Australia, the bee industry is trying to find a way to protect Aussie bees from the varroa mite before ...
EPA reverses course, says neonicotinoid insecticides benefit soybeans, other crops
EPA has reversed an Obama-era determination that seeds treated with commonly-used neonicotinoid insecticides bring little benefit to soybean production, a ...
Gates Foundation, EU pledge over $500 million for agricultural research and innovation
The European Union together with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation pledged ... more than €500 million [$589 million] over ...
Open source science: Scientists researching rice plant genetics agree to not file for patents
The Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR), a nonprofit established in the 2014 Farm Bill with bipartisan congressional support, ...
