Agriculture

Recording the true production levels of small farms could help farmers access greater support, according to researchers. Image credit - Flickr/Rick Obst, licensed under CC BY 2.0

agriculture | environment | frontier research

12 June 2019

Small farms produce more food than statistics show

Small farms sometimes get overlooked as a feasible solution for feeding a growing population, but researchers say they should be given greater support, with some producing more food than official statistics report.

There is concern that climate change is happening too fast for forests to adapt, so scientists are giving them a helping hand. Image credit - Mehdi Pringarbe/INRA Avignon, licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

agriculture | environment

21 March 2019

Genetic diversity maps to help forests survive climate change

Forests have a special magic for many of us. Steeped in folklore and fantasy, they are places for enchantments, mythical creatures and outlaws. But if they are to survive into the future, they may also need a helping hand from science.

A freesia's root architecture helps the plant store food to survive seasonal weather conditions. Image credit - Brian Atkinson

agriculture | environment

16 October 2018

Root architecture discoveries could help breed drought-resistant crops

We should breed new varieties of crops based on their root architecture rather than just focusing on the top half of the plant, according to scientists looking at how to cultivate plants that use water more efficiently and better withstand drought conditions.

Agriculture should be a good example of a circular economy, but modern farming practices and international markets have changed that. Image credit - Hemmo/ Pixabay.

environment | agriculture

24 September 2018

Recharging soils with carbon could make farms more productive

Turning crop waste and discarded paper into a material called biochar could help to capture carbon from the atmosphere and store it in the soil while also helping to enrich farmland.

agriculture | environment

12 June 2018

Indoor farms could fine-tune the flavours of our food

A new way to farm indoors using different wavelengths of light could boost the taste of fruits, salads and herbs, while also increasing food supply and nutritional value.

agriculture | environment

06 June 2018

Decoding the honeybee dance could lead to healthier hives

Unravelling one of the most elaborate forms of non-human communication – the honeybee’s waggle dance – could help researchers better understand insect brains and make farming more environmentally friendly.

Researchers are working on methods that are faster than laboratory tests to determine if food has been tampered with. Image credit - Pixabay/ Hans, licensed under CC0

agriculture | health

14 May 2018

Forensic accounting can predict future food fraud

Food fraud, where different or low-quality food is deliberately mislabelled and sold as high-quality goods, risks the health of consumers as well as the economic viability of producers and manufacturers. To combat this, researchers have figured out that analysing the past and present behaviour of criminal activity could predict what they might target in the future.

agriculture | open innovation

04 May 2018

Smart beehives and heat treatments could protect bees from decline

Since the mid-1980s, the number of bees in Europe has been in decline. Threatened by pesticides, insecticides and climate change, they are also being struck by infestations of mites and a crippling virus that deforms their wings. But new technology aims to take the sting out of the situation.

Aquaculture and fish farms must adapt to the changing sea conditions of climate change. Image credit - Ferit Rad from Mersin University

environment | agriculture

09 April 2018

Europe must sea food in a new way thanks to warming waters

Aquaculture, or fish farming, is one of the world's fastest growing food sectors, providing about half of all the fish we eat. As it stands, climate change is altering our ocean’s environment, causing the seawater to become warmer and impacting the marine ecosystems profoundly. How will these changes affect marine species, consumers and industries that rely on them?

Recycling food waste to use as animal feed and turning manure into green fertilizers can lead to lower environmental impacts from food production. Image credit - pxhere/1271653, licensed under CC0 Public Domain

environment | agriculture

05 April 2018

Turning food waste into animal feed could take a chunk out of livestock emissions

Using European plant and dairy waste as an alternative to soy-based animal feed could see a big drop in agricultural emissions and prevent deforestation.