Plant science is helping to make our food safer and healthier – which is more important than ever in a world with a fast-growing population. But how? Test your knowledge with this short quiz!
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TOP 10 FOODIE ACCOUNTS TO FOLLOW
Food is at the heart of what we do, follow our top ten twitter accounts to hear what these foodies have to say:
Dave Chang
Follow chef @davidchang, founder of Momofuku — group of restaurants in the US.
Carla Hall
Follow @carlahall, co-host on “The Chew,”a popular lifestyle series. She has competed on multiple cooking shows and believes food connects us all.
James Wong
Follow @Botanygeek British-Malaysian botanist with a special interest in food crops who teaches about plants, food & horticultural science.
Michael Smith
Follow @ChefMichaelSmth, FoodTV host, cookbook author and official food ambassador for Prince Edward Island.
Dennis Littley
Follow @AskChefDennis, a food & travel blogger, chef, and speaker based in Orlando.
Michele Payn
Follow @mpaynspeaker, she is an agriculture focused entrepreneur growing the farm and food conversation and founder of Cause Matters Corps.
Chris Osburn
Follow @tikichris, a London-based food and travel blogger.
Camilla Hawkins
Follow @FabFood4All, she runs the UK-based food blog Fab Food 4 All where she blogs about food and shares recipes.
Russ Parsons
Follow @Russ_Parsons1, former food columnist for the LA times and author of How to Pick a Peach & How to Read a French Fry.
Sudhvir Singh
Follow @sudhvir, Oslo-based physician and Policy Director at EAT forum – The science-based global platform for food system transformation.
BEST REPORTS FROM THE PAST 12 MONTHS
As 2019 gets underway, we want to make sure that you’re equipped with the most up to date information on plant science in sustainable agriculture. So we have created a list of the most influential reports published over the last 12 months. Take a look to make sure you didn’t miss any!
A Special Report on the Impacts of Global Warming
Global Warming of 1.5°C: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
This United Nations report looks at the predicted impact of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, in the context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development, and efforts to eradicate poverty. It established, among other findings, that “populations at disproportionately higher risk of adverse consequences with global warming of 1.5°C and beyond include local communities dependent on agricultural or coastal livelihoods”.
Report of Projected Insect Pressure Increases
Increase in Crop Losses to Insect Pests in a Warming Climate: Deutsch, Tewksbury, Tigchelaar, Battisti, Merrill, Huey, and Naylor
Climate change causes erratic weather patterns, extreme temperatures, and changes in natural resources. This report adds increases in insect pressure to crops to the list of things farmers have to worry about if temperature rises by two degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Under this scenario, farmers could lose 59 billion kilos of wheat –more than the entire wheat production in the US in 2017, 92 billion kilos of rice, and 62 billion kilos of maize.
Annual Update on Status of Biotech Crops Around the World
Global Status of Commercialized Biotech/GM Crops in 2017: ISAAA
The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) released its annual global biotech crop acreage report, which features data on the environmental and socio-economic benefits of plant biotech. ISAAA reported that the adoption of biotech crops has reduced CO2 emissions by 27.1 billion kg and conserved biodiversity by saving 22.5 million hectares of land from agricultural use in 2016.
Additionally, in developing countries, planting biotech crops has helped alleviate hunger by increasing the incomes for millions of smallholder farmers and their families, bringing improved financial stability to more than 65 million people.
Pesticide Safety, Investment, Efficacy Trends Report
Evolution of the Crop Protection Industry Since 1960: Phillips McDougall
This report demonstrates how pesticides have improved since 1960. A more diverse portfolio is available for farmers to fight crop pests of all sorts and as the growth of the sector continues, the safety and efficacy have increased while toxicity of the products has decreased.
Analysis of The Current Position of Agriculture in the EU
The Challenges Facing Agriculture and The Plant Science Industry in the EU: AgbioInvestor
This report analyses the European agricultural sector’s productivity, policy and support, regulatory environments, and reliance on imports. It highlights the obstacles put in place by a political system that does not prioritize agricultural innovation and shows the consequences of reduced access to modern agricultural tools.
More Land Needed to Farm Organic Food than Non-Organic
Assessing the Efficiency of Changes in Land Use for Mitigating Climate Change: Searchinger, Wirsenius, Beringer & Dumas
In this report, published by Nature International Journal of Science, it was confirmed that farming organic food can result in higher emissions and greater land use due to loss from pests and lower yields. Biodiversity and carbon sequestration are important in the fight against climate change, and preserving land while feeding a growing population can be achieved with agricultural innovation like plant biotechnology and crop protection.
Post-Brexit Possibilities for Regulation of Plant Biotechnology
UK Plant Genetics: A Regulatory Environment to Maximize Advantage to the UK Economy Post Brexit: Brookes, 2018
This paper examines the economic value of the UK plant genetics sector and the most appropriate regulatory environment for maximizing long-term benefits to the UK economy outlined in three scenarios: continued regulatory alignment with the EU, improved implementation and some change; making the current GMO system work “as intended”, or the UK sets its own path of divergence from EU regulations on GMOs.
Review of Genetically Engineered Crops Safety Information
Food and Feed Safety of Genetically Engineered Food Crops, by Delaney B, Goodman RE, Ladics GS
This article reviews the safety information regarding Genetically Engineered (GE) crops and foods, by evaluating over 20 years of research in genetic engineering. Like the issue statement, it is based on the premise that although new GE crops are assessed by regulatory authorities prior to approval for commercial use, there is still a public debate on the safety GE crops.
A Review of The Benefits GMOs Have Afforded Brazilians in the 20 Years Since Adoption
20 Years of GMOs: Environmental, Economic and Social Benefits in Brazil: CIB, Agroconsult
2018 marked the 20th anniversary of the introduction of GM crops in Brazil. The country is the second largest adopter of biotech crops globally on more than 50 million hectares of farmland and agriculture is one of the most dynamic industries within the country. To quantify the benefits of GM crops in the country, a conventional crop and a GM crop were compared, year by year, to assess the technical nuances of use of pesticides, the differences in production costs, and the financial results of one system verses the other.
A Study Quantifying Economic and Social Benefits from Timely Regulation of Ag Biotech Products
The Impact of Delays in Chinese Approvals of Biotech Crops: Informa Agribusiness Consulting Group
The 2018 study quantifies the wide-reaching social and economic benefits both importing and exporting countries could realize if timely and functional regulatory systems were in place. Delays in the regulatory process—including delays in innovations reaching the marketplace – impede global initiatives to improve food and nutrition security, advance economic prosperity, and increase the adoption of environmentally sound practices.
Literature review Shows Benefits of Tech to Smallholder Farmers
The Role of Technology in the Future of Smallholder Agriculture: CropLife Foundation
The role of technology to improve smallholder-based food production systems has been written about extensively. CropLife International worked with the CropLife Foundation to provide a literature review to better understand how modern agricultural technologies can improve smallholder livelihoods. The review found that of a variety of factors, risk was paramount in influencing the adoption of technology relating to irrigation, genetic resources, pest management, and conservation agriculture among others.
You can also view our top 10 studies for 2017, 2016, and 2015.
RESOLUTIONS FOR SUSTAINABLE FARMING
HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE?
By: CropLife International
Take this quiz to test your knowledge on climate change and agriculture! Click here.
5 WAYS FARMERS CAN RESPOND TO CLIMATE CHANGE
CREEPY-CRAWLIES AND CLIMATE CHANGE
By: CropLife International
According to a recent study, as global temperatures go up, so will insect populations. These “creepy-crawlies” eat crops meant for human consumption and cause a host of other problems for farmers. Check out what could happen from more climate change:
With access to crop protection and plant biotechnology as part of an Integrated Pest Management strategy, farmers can beat the bugs.
GIF: HOW DOES CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACT AGRICULTURE?
By: CropLife International
Climate change can cause a host of problems for farmers including flooding, excessive heat, and drought. See how innovative technology and the right tools allow farmers to continue producing despite these changes:
To learn more about how climate change impacts agriculture here.
5 WAYS FARMERS AND BIODIVERSITY RELY ON EACH OTHER
Farmers can help increase biodiversity in a number of ways and a rich diverse environment helps farmers too! Check out our infographic below to learn about the top five.
PAUL TEMPLE ON PROMOTING BIODIVERSITY
“We’ve shifted away from generations that were focused on food, that’s not their primary focus. People today care about the environment.” Paul Temple, is a third generation beef and arable farmer in Yorkshire. Running a family farm, legacy is extremely important to Paul, and he is always on the lookout for ways to make his farm more sustainable.
In the following video Paul talks about how the grassland margins on his farm give bees a place to forage and have helped to bring other species back to the area.
In the EU, farmers must maintain a 2-meter margin alongside their hedges. In Paul’s case this left him with a grass margin around all his fields. This might seem like quite a lot of land to go unfarmed, but what Paul found was that these margins have been extremely beneficial for the local wildlife.
“If you leave these grass margins, you get a lot more small mammals there. Two or three years after these have been established then you’ll get owls and other small mammal predators,” he explained.
Paul joined a high-level environmental scheme that increases these margins up to 10m. More used to farming crops, Paul found this to be a slow learning curve. “The tricky bit is you get one cycle a year. We’re eight years into our environmental scheme so I’ve only got eight years or eight cycles of experience.”
However, over time experimenting with different flowering mixes within his margins, and learning when to cut and manage this land, has helped Paul to make these areas more effective: “we are now finding owls back in the area that we never had when I was a child.”
Paul also follows Integrated Pest Management practices on his farm. You can learn more about what he does on his farm in our Crop Protector video series.