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.
Viewpoint: Biotech industry should rebuild EU’s trust in science to foster farming innovation
The global environmental challenges are changing too fast and we therefore need speedy reactions too, including innovative plant breeding technologies ...
Deciphering US plans for regulating biotech animal breeding
An overview of the regulation of biotech breeding as it relates to animals, covering some open and unsettled issues. ...
Podcast: 7 modern pest control tools that protect our food from hungry bugs
Need to manage a pest problem? Luckily, there are many ways to do that! From physical to biological and chemical ...
Fungus-resistant hazelnuts illustrate how genetic modification safeguards our food supply
Ordu is a picturesque city between the mountains and the Black Sea, where a quarter of the world’s hazelnuts grow ...
High organic food consumption linked to ‘strong nutritional, environmental benefits,’ study claims
The aim of this study, based on observational data, was to compare some sustainability features of diets from consumers with ...
Viewpoint: Outgoing FDA chief Scott Gottlieb scored some wins, but dropped the ball on food labeling, gene-edited plants and animals
Gottlieb’s policy proposals for FDA oversight of gene-edited plants and animals were as inexplicable as they were inconsistent with longstanding U.S. policy ...
Are bugs disappearing? A science-based ‘insect apocalypse’ Q&A
Q. Dear Umbra, Insects are disappearing at an alarming rate. This terrifies me! What actions can I take to mitigate ...
EU neonicotinoid insecticide ban spurs farmers to abandon canola crops, important resource for bees
When neonicotinoid seed treatments were first banned in flowering crops, control of cabbage stem flea beetle in oilseed rape [OSR] ...
Food revolution: Will lab-grown meat, milk and eggs take over grocery stores?
It’s been 6 years since scientists grew the world’s first beef burger made without the cow in the lab. As ...
Plant hormones help battle purple witchweed, major threat to sub-Saharan Africa’s staple crops
Striga hermonthica, also known as purple witchweed, is an invasive parasitic plant threatening sub-Saharan Africa's food production. Striga infects the region's staple ...
Viewpoint: Opponents of lab-grown meats are using anti-GMO arguments they will soon regret
Anti-GMO style tropes are being used against the Impossible Burger by people who should know better ...
Declining diversity of sorghum, world’s fifth most important cereal crop, could threaten Africa’s food security
The diversity of the crop Sorghum, a cereal used to make alcoholic drinks, has been decreasing over time due to ...
Fine tuning photosynthesis: Predictive model helps scientists breed higher yielding crops
In the next two decades, crop yields need to increase dramatically to feed the growing global population. Wouldn't it be ...
CRISPR-edited crops could help avoid famine as global food demand grows
Just like human beings, plants get sick. Microorganisms such as fungi, oomycetes, bacteria, viruses and nematodes (tiny worm like organisms) ...
Sequenced durum wheat genome aids efforts to breed more nutritious, disease-resistant crops
University of Saskatchewan (U of S) researchers say they have discovered how to significantly reduce cadmium levels in durum wheat, ensuring the ...
Podcast: Recycling 190 million pounds of pesticide containers to promote sustainable agriculture
Ag recycles! On this episode of Biotech Facts and Fallacies, plant scientist Steve Savage delves into the world of agricultural ...
Pollution from corn farming linked to 4,300 premature deaths annually, study claims
A study published [April 8] in Nature Sustainability shows how deadly [corn] can be. And eating it isn’t the killer; ...
Royalty-free seeds, mobile devices help African farmers boost crop yields despite drought
As our global population continues to grow and the climate becomes hotter and drier and resources become scarcer.... we need ...
Video: The case for growing (and eating) sustainable GMO AquAdvantage salmon
Recently, a company called AquaBounty earned U.S. approval to begin selling their genetically engineered salmon in grocery stores. The salmon ...
Newly discovered plant immune response mechanism reveals how crops battle deadly pathogens
Although separated by more than one billion years of evolution, plants and animals have hit upon similar immune strategies to ...
USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue pushes agricultural innovation as solution to world hunger
In a morning filled with inquiry, laughter and wisdom, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue conversed with Purdue President Mitch ...
Viewpoint: 2 reasons GMOs might be the ‘miracle’ Nigeria is looking for
As Nigeria gets slammed with another gavel of shame – this time called the Misery Index – we suddenly realize ...
CRISPR crops spur farming innovation despite climate change, water shortages and exploding food demand
The discussion and debate surrounding advances in agriculture have become frequent topics of discussion....[N]ow more than ever, the concept of ...
California towns fear arrival of citrus greening disease now threatening Florida’s orange industry
It may be only a matter of time until a deadly and incurable citrus disease sweeps through Ventura County’s agricultural ...
Biotech firms Amfora, Corteva strike deal to produce CRISPR-edited crops to meet surging protein demand
Amfora, a biotechnology company, announced it has reached a non-exclusive research and commercial license agreement with Corteva Agriscience, the agriculture ...
Video: Lab-grown meat could hit the market within five years
Lab-grown meat, cultured from the stem cells of animals, is considered by many to be a sustainable and ethical solution ...
Car sickness? How transportation harms honey bees, and what we can do about it
Bees have received a lot of attention recently, and for good reason. They face challenges from parasites and pathogens while ...
