Climate-friendly rice wins 2015 Popular Science award
A new strain of low-methane rice has won Popular Science’s “Best of What’s New” award 2015 for engineering. The new kind of rice, known as SUSIBA2, has been developed by splicing a single gene from barley into rice plants to reduce the amount of methane the rice produces and, ultimately, the amount released into the…
Tackling climate change and agriculture at COP21 – a look at the landscape approach
by Dr Trevor Nicholls, CEO, CABI At COP21 last week, the world’s leaders agreed on a way forward to manage climate change. Limiting global warming to less than two percent was undoubtedly a landmark decision and, for the first time, there was unanimous recognition that humans impact the climate and that humans must do something about…
Update: Plant Health News (02 Dec 15)
Here’s a taste of some of the latest stories about plant health, including a boost for parasitic weed research in Africa from the Gates Foundation, benefits of modern farming come to Peru and a surge in climate change-related disasters posing a growing threat to food security. Click on the link to read more of the latest plant…
Update: Plant Health News (23 Sep 15)
Here’s a taste of some of the latest stories about plant health, including the damage to irrigation channels caused by Chilean earthquakes, the promotion of earthworms to improve soil fertility and boost crop yields in Zimbabwe, and a severe reduction in cereal production in Central America as a result of the El Niño. Click on the link…
Update: Plant Health News (26 Aug 15)
Here’s a taste of some of the latest stories about plant health, including the risk of invasive pests spreading across Africa as a consequence of irrigation, research into genetic markers for disease resistance and salt tolerance of rice in Vietnam, and farmers in Honduras adopting sustainable methods to deal with increasing drought. Click on the…
Update: Plant Health News (12 Aug 15)
Here’s a taste of some of the latest stories about plant health, including the potential impact of climate change on food security in Sub-Saharan Africa, the use of biocontrol to manage fruit fly in Kenya and the impact of Fusarium on banana production in Honduras. Click on the link to read more of the latest…
New FAO Report: Climate change and what it means for food systems
How will climate change impact the future of food production, trade and consumption, and most importantly, what do leading scientists recommend as an appropriate policy response? In a newly released book from FAO, cross-sectoral insights from scientists and economists put the picture of food and food security into perspective in a changing climate. The findings…
Increased carbon dioxide levels in air restrict plants’ ability to absorb nutrients
Contributed by Fiona Bunn A recent study from the University of Gothenburg has shown that plants that are grown in air with a higher percentage of carbon dioxide (CO2) have reduced levels of nitrogen in their tissue, causing increased nitrogen deficiency and reduced growth. The study was conducted across four continents in large scale projects,…
Closing the gender gap for a food-secure future #AgGenderGap [Video]
In the video below, inspiring women share their views on closing the gender gap in farming under climate change.
Pests of the forest are spreading
Much is covered in the news about deforestation by humans, but less is widely known about the damage done to forests by pests and diseases. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) produces an assessment of the world’s forest resources every five years. Their last report highlighted the effect that climate change will have on forests…