Dan Blaustein-Rejto
Viewpoint: Public investment in agricultural innovation is woefully inadequate. Here’s what should be done
Doubling government funding for agricultural research and development (R&D) would have tremendous environmental and economic benefits, according to a new ...
Carbon tradeoff: Which is better for the environment — grain-fed or pasture-raised beef?
Beef production accounts for the largest share of global livestock greenhouse gas emissions and is an important target for climate ...
How the America Grows Act will improve agricultural innovation and spur research on climate change crop innovation
Agricultural research is key to ensuring food security, economic stability, and sustainable development. It is the driving force behind advances ...
Analysis: Climate mitigation funding imbalance? US government slow to fund climate-smart agricultural innovation — 1/35th of what’s spent on clean energy
Agriculture is a substantial source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, accounting for about 10% of the U.S. total. Farmers, ranchers, ...
Viewpoint: Why Washington should sharply increase funding for intensive agricultural to address climate change, spur sustainability
The 20th century was a time of massive changes in US agriculture. From farmers scraping a living out of the ...
Analysis: Assessing sustainable food production — Certifications like ‘organic’ tell us very little. It’s time to shift focus to outcomes
In 80 years—during which our knowledge of farming’s environmental impacts has grown profoundly—the federal government’s basic approach to agricultural sustainability ...
Sustainable GM farming innovation: How Argentina’s drought-tolerant genetically-engineered wheat reduces greenhouse gas emissions and increases yields
In October 2020, Argentina approved the world’s first genetically engineered wheat for cultivation and consumption. Production expanded dramatically in 2021, and will continue to ...
Will plant based meat alternatives curb the greenhouse gas impact of animal agriculture? This independent study concludes consumers are key
New plant-based meat (PBM) alternatives that aim to mimic the taste and texture of beef could have significant economic, environmental, ...
Farming sustainability study: What climate benefits could widespread adoption of genetically modified crops bring to Europe?
Genetically modified (GM) crops can help reduce agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In addition to possible decreases in production emissions, GM yield ...
Breakthrough technologies reduce the carbon footprint of US beef production
In 2019, the United States produced approximately $111 billion worth of beef, exporting about 3 billion pounds and employing hundreds ...
‘They offer a magical vision of a better future but not in this world’: In Foreign Policy, social scientists opposed to conventional agriculture spark fierce organic vs intensive farming debate
A recent back and forth has stirred up controversy over at Foregin Policy. Are “Big Ag” and intensive farming destroying ...
How important is soil quality to addressing climate change? It’s critical, and here’s a blueprint for refocusing American R&D
COVID-19 and the resulting economic crisis have highlighted and exacerbated the plight of American farmers, while also threatening already dwindling ...
Viewpoint: As meat consumption reaches record highs, it’s clear that substituting plants for meat won’t help address climate concerns. Here’s what will
[G]lobal emissions from food production are expected to rise 60% by 2050, in large part because of increased livestock production ...
Viewpoint: Is our western food system based on ‘intensive agriculture’ broken? Not if the environment and alleviating poverty and hunger matter
In the popular bourgeois imagination, the idealized farm looks something like the ones that sell produce at local farmers markets ...
Viewpoint: While China is investing heavily in addressing climate change’s impact on agriculture, US dallies. Here’s why we need to fix that
Popular proposals to cut food’s large environmental footprint rest on the idea that we have all the technologies and information ...
Viewpoint: Public investment in farming technology could cut land use by 63 thousand square miles—’about the size of Iowa’
Using existing research on the relationship between R&D and productivity and SIMPLE, a global economic model of agriculture, we find ...
Land use for meat production slashed by 140 million hectares since 2000. Intensive agriculture could keep the decline going
Pastureland is by far the single largest human land use on the planet. Globally, we use twice as much land ...
‘Ecomodern Eating’: Why agricultural productivity and innovation are key to sustainable food and farming
Sunday, April 22nd, marked nearly 50 years since millions of people gathered for the first Earth Day. Their celebration raised awareness ...
100% organic farming would require ‘Australia-sized amount of extra land’ due to lower yields, no synthetic fertilizer
Organic farming, which prohibits the use of synthetic fertilizers, is often touted as the solution to many of agriculture’s environmental ...
Would switching to organic farming cut greenhouse gas emissions?
A new study, led by the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture, gives the impression that a large-scale shift to organic farming ...
Livestock feedlots more sustainable than organic cattle grazing, research shows
[Editor’s note: Dan Blaustein-Rejto is a food and agriculture analyst at the Breakthrough Institute.] A new report provides further evidence ...
Viewpoint: Meatless meat could be next environment-saving breakthrough
[Editor's note: Dan Blaustein-Rejto is a food and agriculture analyst at the Breakthrough Institute. He holds a Master’s in public policy from ...
