Sustainability

While some of these large-scale vertical farms can quickly become laden with advanced technologies like robotic arms and AI monitoring systems, at ...

America is hungrier than ever for #sustainable food systems—and it is important to address this. Check out this @GreenBiz article to find out how we can rethink current systems to create a sustainable future. bit.ly/32Gms8F

A national sustainability index for the agri-food sector would help demonstrate Canada’s rightful place as a leader of sustainable, safe and responsibly-produced food...

A national sustainability index for the agri-food sector would helpdemonstrate Canada’s rightful place as a leader of sustainable, safe and responsibly-produced food to a more demanding domestic and global marketplace and be a catalyst to add value sector-wide, declares a report released today by a…

FDA has completed its investigation of the multistate outbreak of E. coli 0151:H7 that occurred last fall and was linked to leafy greens. The FDA and CDC found the outbreak was caused by an E. coli strain that was genetically related to the strain found in the fall 2019 outbreak involving romaine lettuce (Salinas, California). Despite conducting environmental sampling at dozens of ranches in the area, the FDA was unable to identify a single site as the source of the outbreak. However, the analysis did confirm “a positive match to the outbreak strain in a sample of cattle feces,” which was located uphill from where the leafy greens identified in the agency’s traceback investigation were grown, according to an FDA release.

Mary Beth Kirkham hadn’t studied microplastics when she was invited to co-edit a new book about microplastics in the environment—but something stood out to her about the existing research.

“I had read in the literature that . . . cadmium and other toxic trace elements [are] increased when we have these particulate plastics in the soil. So, that was of concern to me,” said Kirkham, a plant physiologist and distinguished professor of agronomy at Kansas State University.

Kirkham’s expertise is in water and plant relations and heavy metal uptake, so she decided to conduct her own research in which she cultivated wheat plants exposed to microplastics, cadmium, and both microplastics and cadmium. Then she compared these plants to those grown without either additive. She chose cadmium because it’s poisonous, carcinogenic, and ubiquitous in the environment due to human activity—it’s shed from batteries and car tires, and is naturally found in the phosphate rock used to make agricultural fertilizers.

The agritech grant program will also benefit farmers and agricultural ... Therefore, vertical farming for food production, which takes place in a highly ...

Sustainable food and #agriculture is key 🔑 to meeting all four pillars of food security – availability, access, utilization and stability.

Here at IAG, we’re taking #action to combat food insecurity in the U.K. and beyond. Learn more in our website. pic.twitter.com/oO0UgHLRTt

The Food Miles Definition

You have likely heard the term food miles before, but what it means isn’t always clear, and why it’s important is often overlooked. Food miles help us measure the impact food has on our planet when it travels from the farm to your family. So, by looking at how, when, and from where food finds its way to your neighborhood, we can make sure it arrives in the greenest way possible.

Transportation is the essential link that allows us to deliver the freshest food to grocery stores across North America. That’s why we want to take a closer look at the journey our Tomatoes, Peppers, and Cucumbers take when they travel on trucks from our greenhouse to your house. Let’s get started!

Find records of fraud such as those discussed in this column and more in the Food Fraud Database. Image credit: Susanne Kuehne

For more than 40 years, a syndicate of bribed government and custom officials and slaughterhouses did lucrative business by smuggling fake halal meat into Malaysia. The meat originated in unapproved slaughterhouses in several countries that produced not halal-certified and low-grade meat from a variety of animals. This scandal was a setback on Malaysia’s goal to become one of the world’s main halal meat exporters, which is a multi-billion dollar business.

Today, the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, announced that Enterra Feed Corporation (Enterra) received $6 million under the AgriInnovate Program to help increase the production of sustainable, nutritious products to feed animals while helping to keep food out of landfills.

As the population continues to grow and the effects of climate change, global warming, pollution and other factors impact humanity’s ability to grow and provide enough food for itself, the concern that the world could run out of food is increasing.. The COVID-19 pandemic has put more focus on how fragile the food supply chain is and how easy it is to disrupt the process of feeding the world. For years, it has been mostly a topic of discussion. But with so many disruptions, it is now an issue that needs to be acted on. Social groups, civic associations, government bodies and food manufacturers have taken notice of the problem and are attempting to get their hands around the issues. One of the key points in this discussion revolves around the amount of food and food sources that will be needed in the future. It always starts with the same question: “Will there be enough food?” Most people immediately say no. But is that 100% true? This is where the debate between food insecurity and food waste begins.

Kuku International Packaging, a company located in Palata Pepoli (BO) and specializing in flexible packaging, has introduced a new crate cover made up of natural elements (95% cellulose) obtained from natural fibers and developed readapting the material used for other solutions.  Photo provided by Kuku International Packaging "This…

Controlled environment agriculture (CEA) production has the opportunity to provide a sustainable alternative to conventional farming. A lot of focus has already been placed on CEA's ability to be very water-efficient and space-efficient, and various studies have looked at its energy use. One area which…

German researchers find that organic meat produces the same amount of emissions as conventional meat.

Researchers in Malaysia have found a way to turn fiber from pineapple leaves into material sturdy enough to make drone frames. Professor Mohamed Thariq Hameed Sultan of Putra University told Reuters that drones built with the material had a higher st...

Its construction is organic and flexible, providing large areas of urban and vertical farming, greenhouses, wildlife corridors, and integration of habitat ...

This year many events took place in a digital setting, including the Global Berry Congress. The Italian Molari Berries & Breeding also attended the special event. "It is interesting to see how, despite the pandemic, the sector was able to keep up with a remarkable trend. Consumers' lifestyles have…

In the fruit and vegetable sector, top seal packaging is mostly used for soft fruit. However, lately, it's becoming increasingly common to package other types of fruit and vegetables in this way too. Think of tomatoes, mushrooms, grapes, and asparagus. Sustainability, better visibility in the shop, and chain efficiency are a…

Many horticultural businesses are in the middle of the crop change or it has already been done. This also means that the used crop gets shredded and removed. These crop remainders often contain plastic. Dutch tomato growers have over two billion plastic clips and 864,000,000 meters of plastic rope per…

Amazon’s plastic pollution is under scrutiny today with the publication of a new report by the nonprofit ocean advocacy organization Oceana. That report estimates that Amazon was responsible for 465 million pounds of plastic packaging waste last year. Amazon says that figure is overblown — by over 350 percent.

Amazon claims that it uses about a quarter of Oceana’s estimate, according to an email from the company to The Verge. If that’s the case, then Amazon still used more than 116 million pounds of plastic packaging in 2019. Amazon did not share what its total plastic footprint was either through a spokesperson or in its most recent sustainability report published last September.

On December 12, Contecon Guayaquil SA (CGSA), the private administrator of the Liberator Simón Bolívar Maritime Port, loaded the world's first container with carbon-neutral certified land and port logistics. The merchandise, belonging to Tropical Fruit, was transported by sea by MSC to France, where it…

In the fruit and vegetable trade, but also in many other areas of the food trade, reusable systems are indispensable. Anyone who uses them knows what problem they bring: there are labels on the containers that did not -or not completely- come off after cleaning. If such containers are then relabeled,…

Vertical farming is to the global food system what algae-based biofuels are to the renewables sector: lots of potential, but in the end, there is only so ...

This very well attended on-line webinar was the first in a series hosted by CambPlants Hub to celebrate the FAO’s International Year of Plant Health. Supported by Cambridge Global Food Security IRC , # Annual Food Agenda , NIAB and the Crop Science Centre , it was a dynamic panel discussion followed by a question and...

Fresh tomatoes grown in high-tech greenhouses score higher in terms of sustainability than organic tomatoes. That is the key finding from academic research conducted on Grodan’s behalf by Wageningen University. In coalition with industry partners, Grodan is now working to build broader awareness of this…

A new CISL report captures insights from leading companies to highlight practices to integrate a sustainable purpose into organisations.

With an emphasis on high crop yielding seeds, fertilisers, pesticides and better methods of farming, India has become a self-sufficient country in the production of food grains. The green revolution ushered in a boost to food production of such an extent that the country exported more food than it…

This has been a banner year for local food. As the pandemic disrupted large-scale food processing and national and international supply chains, many consumers turned to local-food options like community supported agriculture programs, local meat processors, and urban farms. While the supply chain has since stabilized, many local food advocates are hoping that this new emphasis can help make the food system more resilient in the face of other challenges, like the climate crisis.

Now, a new study from Tufts University provides the most comprehensive answers yet to an underlying, fundamental question: With the majority of people concentrated in cities, how possible is it to localize food production in the U.S.?

A new report warns that 84% of companies are failing to address their largest source of carbon emissions â their supply chains. We speak to Dexter Galvin, Global Director of Corporations & Supply Chains at CDP, to find out what should be done.