The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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caltrek
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Re: The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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Were the Impossible and Beyond Burgers a Fad, or is Plant-based Meat Here to Stay?
by Kenny Torrella
April 17, 2023

Introduction:
(Vox) A few years ago, plant-based meat seemed poised to take over the center of the American plate.

Sales growth for cow–free burger patties and meatless sausages soared 18 percent in 2019, and 45 percent in 2020. Investors poured billions of dollars into hundreds of startups’ coffers to help them create the next best imitation. Some of the world’s largest meat companies, like Tyson Foods and Smithfield Foods, hitched their star to the meat-free wagon too, launching their own products. In 2019, Beyond Meat had the most successful stock market debut of any company since the 2008 financial crisis, and later that year, the Impossible Whopper landed on every Burger King menu in the country.

But the hype set up unrealistic expectations for just how big a bite animal-free meat could take out of the real meat market. The meteoric growth couldn’t last forever.

Recently published sales data found that meatless meat sales in grocery stores declined by 1 percent in 2022, after zero growth in 2021, putting a yearslong ascent into question.

Further Extract:
Simultaneous critiques that plant-based meat doesn’t taste good enough and is too processed put the sector in a double bind. If companies shorten ingredient lists and reduce salt and fat content, they’ll taste worse, but if they jack those up, health-based criticisms will intensify. Threading that needle will be a persistent challenge.
Read more here: https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/202 ... eat-sales

caltrek’s comment: Part of the problem I suspect lies with a somewhat irrational desire to directly substitute meat with plant-based equivalents. This is both for taste and to ensure an adequate protein input. What this misses is that a plant based whole foods approach largely dispenses of this need. There are plenty of tasty plant foods that just don’t happen to taste like meat. Protein requirements are overestimated. Recommendations by the government are more an outcome of a political process. So, there is a reluctance to come up with recommendations contrary to the wishes of the dairy and meat industry. In actuality, one can meet one’s protein needs simply through foods such as mushrooms, beans, avocados, spinach, etc. One does not need as much protein as the government guidelines suggest. At least that is the argument put forward by nutrition expert T. Colin Campbell, who had an insider’s look at how the recommendation process works. So, one doesn’t need a meat substitute such as a plant-based burger or hot dog. At least not as far as nutritional needs are concerned.
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caltrek
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Re: The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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Adapting Apples to the Times
April 17, 2023

Introduction:
(Eurekalert) Through careful crossbreeding and selection, University of Maryland researchers have developed what may just be the perfect apples for American growers trying to adapt to a changing world. The two new apples, a yellow and a red one are heat-tolerant, blight-tolerant, low-maintenance, easy to harvest and not least, delicious-tasting. Both have been approved for patents and are awaiting the final grant from the U.S. Patent Office.

They address a growing suite of problems the apple industry has been grappling with. The fruit has always been labor-intensive to bring to market, with trees that need to be trained, pruned, and harvested by hand. In the past decade, all U.S. farmers have felt the squeeze of labor shortages, and the apple industry has been among the hardest hit. According to USApple, the nonprofit apple industry association, labor shortages caused an average 3% drop in U.S. crop production employment annually from 2016 to 2021, but apple orchard employment plummeted by 22% a year. Meanwhile, the wages farmers must pay have risen at the same time the price of fresh apples has fallen.

Compounding these stressors on apple growers, the climate is changing rapidly: Heat waves in the Pacific Northwest in recent years strained the country’s largest apple producing areas. The South is growing hotter, and northern and eastern regions of the country are seeing shorter and warmer cool seasons, all of which spell uncertainty for orchard fruits tuned to cooler conditions.

The UMD team’s new apple trees could help farmers sidestep these obstacles.

“These trees require a lot less hand labor compared to apples that are available to growers now,“ said Chris Walsh, University of Maryland professor emeritus in the Department of Plant Science & Landscape Architecture who developed the new apples with his colleagues Julia Harshman and Kathleen Hunt. “We can’t say they’re non-pruning, but the pruning a farmer would do is minimal on these trees."

Read more here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/986226
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Re: The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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New Tool for Genetics and Cultivating High-quality Rice
April 24, 2023

Introduction:
(EurekAlert) Genetic markers such as fragment length polymorphisms (RFLP), simple sequence repeat (SSR), and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) provide unique identifiers for individual organisms. This aids the identification of significant genetic variations in plants, allowing modern plant breeding to select superior crop varieties. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) has enhanced marker-assisted selection or backcross breeding of crops, which is the transfer a desired trait such into the favored genetic background of another.

However, due to its expensive nature and extensive data processing requirements, NGS is not practical for screening large populations of crop plants, especially among small and medium breeders. A more cost-effective and efficient solution to assess desirable genetic traits in these populations is SNP arrays. These chips have embedded DNA probes that interact with a genetic sample, enabling the detection of hundreds of thousands of variations amongst two or more plant samples.

Tapping the potential of this approach, Associate Professor Wensheng Wang from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and his research team have created a SNP array containing over 56,606 genetic markers for rice.

“Globally, more than 2.6 billion people rely on rice as a staple in their diet. The gene chip developed in our study can be an effective tool for breeders in selecting superior, new, high-quality rice varieties that are more flavorful, better tasting, salt tolerant, and resistant to diseases and insects,” shared Wang. “Moreover, the gene chip can be used for various genetic studies.”

Conclusion:
“Rice3K56 can help small and medium-sized companies select for superior rice varieties in a manner that is less subjective and low-effort,” said Wang. “Our work makes genotyping more mechanized and streamlined, resulting in higher efficiency and accuracy. In the long run, this can ensure not only food security but also a diversification of rice flavors.”
Read more of the Eurekalert article here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/987202

For a technical presentation of the results of the research results as presented in Science Direct: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/ ... ia%3Dihub
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Re: The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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New Ways to Think About Food by Studying Nature’s Chefs
by Matt Shipman
April 24, 2023

Introduction:
(Futurity) A new way to think of some interactions between species classifies a variety of plants, animals, and fungi as “nature’s chefs.”
Specifically, nature’s chefs are organisms that provide food—or the illusion of food—to other organisms. The concept offers a new perspective on species interactions, which can inform how people think about food across the tree of life as well as disparate research disciplines.

“There are many ways of classifying species interactions,” says Brad Taylor, corresponding author of a paper on the new concept and an associate professor of applied ecology at North Carolina State University. “Mutualists interact with other species to both of their benefit. Parasites rely on other species, but the other species doesn’t benefit. Predators devour other species. But the ‘nature’s chef’ concept spans members of all of these groups, with the common factor being that the relevant interactions all rely on food—or the lure of food.”

“The genesis of the idea for nature’s chefs occurred at an interdisciplinary gathering when, in response to an explanation of the evolution of fruits, a chef uttered ‘You mean to say, fruits are nature’s chefs,'” says coauthor Rob Dunn, a professor of applied ecology at NC State. “This seed of an idea led us to review and synthesize what is known about food preparation and sharing across the animal, plant, and fungal kingdoms.”

The research team ultimately outlines three ways that species can produce or prepare food for other organisms: as food, as drinks, or as food-like lures.

Read more of the Futurity article here: https://www.futurity.org/natures-chefs ... 2909602-2

The paper appears in the journal BioScience an abstract of which can be found here:
https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/adv ... ogin=false
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Re: The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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UBC Study Shows Harmful Fisheries Subsidies are Leading to More Fishing Vessels Chasing Fewer Fish, Resulting in Adverse Environmental and Societal Impacts
May 1, 2023

Introduction:
(Eurekalert) Fish aren’t impacted by borders, and neither are the subsidized fishing fleets that follow them. A recent UBC study quantified the number of harmful fisheries subsidies that support fishing in the high seas, domestic and foreign waters and found that between 20 and 37 per cent of these subsidies supported fishing in waters outside the jurisdictions of their home nation; these subsidies also primarily originated from developed nations yet disproportionately impacted developing countries, leading to environmental and societal impacts all around the globe.

“Harmful subsidies often lead to a fishing fleet being able to go out fishing even if [the fishing] isn’t profitable,” said Anna Schuhbauer, author of the study and postdoctoral research fellow at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries. “And these vessels can go wherever they want —they can go to other countries, other economic zones. And so, we were really interested in the impact of these subsidies on the countries where these boats actually fish.”

Harmful fisheries subsidies are any direct or indirect financial contribution by a government to a private sector that increases the revenue, or lowers the cost, of fishing. Fuel subsidies, tax exemptions, support for vessel construction, investment in marketing and processing infrastructure — by altering the economics of fishing in these ways, harmful subsidies can encourage unsustainable fishing capacities that exponentially increase the risk of exploitation.

In 2018, an estimated $22.2 billion in harmful fisheries subsidies were provided to the world’s fishing fleets. Of this, some $5.3 billion were likely to support fishing in foreign waters and within the exclusive economic zones of foreign nations, and $1 billion supported fishing in the high seas. These numbers mean that the benefits, and the resulting environmental and societal costs, of these subsidies are not equally distributed across the places these fishing vessels go to.

Read more here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/987830
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Re: The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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Commercial Fishing Regulatory Spat Will Get High Court Audience
by Kelsey Reichmann
May 1, 2023

Introduction:
WASHINGTON (Courthouse News) — The Supreme Court agreed Monday to hear a case that would upend decades of precedent around how administrative agencies assert their authority.

Brought by a group of commercial fishing firms, one of two cases added this morning to the high court’s docket next term asks the justices to overturn the 1984 precedent in Chevron USA Inc. v. National Resources Defense Council Inc that has governed the operation of federal agencies. Last term the conservative majority limited Chevron deference in West Virginia v. EPA, but this new challenge could spell the end of the precedent for good.

For the last 40 years, Chevron has given agencies deference in their actions unless Congress said otherwise. West Virginia clarified exceptions to Chevron that said if an action involved a “major question,” then the agency should have to get congressional authorization. The court has yet to clarify how the major questions doctrine will be interpreted.

Commercial fishers are fighting a government effort targeted at eliminating overfishing. A new monitoring program, Loper Bright Enterprises argues, oversteps the government’s authority.

“The Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA) requires petitioners and other vessel owners to make room onboard for federal observers who can oversee operations to ensure compliance with a slew of federal regulations,” Paul Clement, an attorney with Clement & Murphy representing Loper Bright Enterprises, wrote in the petition. “That is an extraordinary imposition that few would tolerate on dry land.”

Read more here: https://www.courthousenews.com/commerc ... audience/

caltrek’s comment: If the Supreme Court is going to make it so difficult to regulate businesses, then perhaps nationalization of said businesses is the answer. Then, you wouldn’t have to screw around with all of theses self-serving arguments about “major question” issues. Such issues would simply be handled by the managers in charge, with an eye toward public opinion and the elected politicians who appointed them. The Supremes may yet “accelerate” us toward socialism. Alternatively, toward oblivion.
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Re: The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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Experts Warn Against “Devastating” Fungal Infections Wiping Out Crops and Threatening Global Food Security
May 3, 2023

Introduction:
(Eurekalert) Scientists have warned of the “devastating” impact that fungal disease in crops will have on global food supply unless agencies across the world come together to find new ways to combat infection.

Worldwide, growers lose between 10 and 23 per cent of their crops to fungal infection each year, despite widespread use of antifungals. An additional 10-20 per cent is lost post harvest[GS1] . In a commentary in Nature, academics predict those figures will worsen as global warming means fungal infections are steadily moving polewards[GS2] [GS3] [GS4] [VL5] , meaning more countries are likely to see a higher prevalence of fungal infections damaging harvests*. Growers have already reported wheat stem rust infections — which normally occur in the tropics — in Ireland and England. The experts also warn that tolerance to higher temperatures in fungi could increase the likelihood of opportunistic soil-dwelling pathogens to hop hosts, and infect animals or humans.

Professor Sarah Gurr, Chair in Food Security at the University of Exeter, co-authored the report. She said fungi had recently attracted attention through popular hit TV show The Last of Us, in which fungi take over human brains. She said: “While the storyline is science fiction, we are warning that we could see a global health catastrophe caused by the rapid global spread of fungal infections as they develop increasing resistance in a warming world. The imminent threat here is not about zombies, but about global starvation.”

Across the world, food security is expected to encounter unprecedented challenges as rising populations mean more demand. Across the five most important calorie crops of rice, wheat, maize (corn), soya beans and potatoes, infections cause losses which equate to enough food to provide some 600 million to 4 billion people with 2,000 calories every day for one year.

Read more of the Eurekalert article here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/988140

To read a commentary entitled “Address the growing urgency of fungal disease in crops[VL8] ” as published in Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-01465-4
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Re: The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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Team Sequences Tart Cherry Genome for the First Time
by Emily Lorditch
May 19 , 2023

Introduction:
(Futurity) The scientists were searching for the genes associated with the tart cherry trees that bloom later in the season to meet the needs of a changing climate.

They started by comparing DNA sequences from late-blooming tart cherry trees to the sequenced genome of a related species, the peach. However, in a surprise, the genetic discrepancies between the species outweighed the similarities, leading the team to create the first annotated Montmorency tart cherry genome and identify the DNA segments that code for each gene.

“I naively thought that this would be an easy endeavor; we would simply sequence a few early and late-blooming cherry trees and align the sequences to the peach genome and get an answer in just a few weeks,” says Courtney Hollender, an assistant professor in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Michigan State University. “I couldn’t have been more wrong.”

Genomes contain all the genes and genetic instructions for an organism’s development. Sequencing it provides a map for researchers when they are trying to, for example, grow a cherry tree that will bloom later in the season.

Further Extract:
Having the Montmorency tart cherry genome sequence opens the possibilities for a tremendous amount of future research that will ultimately benefit the industry and the consumer by growing more trees that can withstand varying spring weather and produce more cherries.
Read more here: https://www.futurity.org/tart-cherry-g ... 21362-2/
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Re: The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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Bet they'll do the same for cultured meats.

-----

UK to crack down on plant-based food and drink labels

Documents chronicle a years-long lobbying effort by the dairy industry to block plant-based alternatives from using terms such as ‘cheese’

20.05.2023

Plant-based products could be blocked from using terms such as “cheese” or “yoghurt” to describe themselves if new guidance comes into force.

The guidance, which is still in a draft phase, is being prepared to help trading standards officers interpret and enforce laws on how dairy alternatives are described in packaging and marketing.

Documents obtained by Unearthed show that the dairy industry has lobbied for tighter enforcement of the legislation for years.

[...]

Marisa Heath, CEO of the Plant Based Food Alliance UK, said: “This move will make us one of the most draconian nations in regards to what we can and cannot call these sorts of products.

“It does not send out the message that we are a good place for businesses to innovate, manufacture and retail in this sector and it seems odd that post Brexit we want to use EU regulations to create as much restriction and red tape on business as we can after having not enforced this for ten years.”

https://unearthed.greenpeace.org/2023/0 ... -lobbying/


Image
Drinks like Oatly cannot call themselves 'milk.' Photo: Oatly
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Re: The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

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Food for Thought: University of Houston Study Highlights the Role of Clean Technology in Reducing Food Waste
May 26, 2023

Introduction:
(Eurekalert) Foodservice companies have long struggled with the challenge of what to do with all of their food waste. But researchers at the University of Houston Conrad N. Hilton College of Global Hospitality Leadership are shedding light on how clean technology can help those companies reduce waste and establish long-term sustainability goals.

In a study published in the Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, Tiffany S. Legendre, an associate professor at Hilton College, and her team, interviewed 17 leaders of the country’s largest on-site foodservice providers (e.g., Aramark, Compass and Sodexo), about the role clean technology played in their goal setting and achievement for reducing food waste. Clean technology can range from food procurement and waste tracking software and equipment to digital composting systems.

“These companies are providing institutional food services, dealing with several millions of meals each day,” Legendre said. “You can imagine the magnitude of waste in their operation just because of the volume they handle.”

On-site foodservice companies provide high-volume food management on a large scale in places like schools, hospitals and stadiums across the U.S., and they are responsible for a significant portion of all the country’s food waste. For example, approximately 100,000 schools serve lunches to nearly 30 million students each day, and around 530,000 tons are wasted each year.

And according to the United Nations Environment Program, one-third of all food produced in the world – about 1.3 billion tons – is lost or wasted every year. If food waste was represented as its own country, it would be the third-largest greenhouse gas emitter behind China and the U.S.

Read more of the Eurekalert article here:
[ Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, ]
Abstract
On-site foodservice management companies serve many people and have been dealing with severe food waste problems. Thus, many companies adopted clean technology to reduce food waste. This study aims to provide a meaningful understanding of the role of clean technology in food waste reduction goal setting and achievement in these companies. Through 16 expert interviews, this study found that clean technology adoption can make organizational food waste reduction goals more specific by its ability to measure and quantify: specified goals lower psychological distance (temporal, hypothetical, social). When objectives are understood at a concrete (vs. abstract) level, management can better develop detailed action plans and motivate employees to be part of them. However, employees may fear that clean technology can be used as a penalizing mechanism. Therefore, inner-organizational collaboration is critical to achieving sustainability goals and offsetting the double-sided nature of clean technology.


Clean technology is a broadly defined concept encompassing “technology that lowers the pollution level” (Bréchet & Meunier, 2014, p. 61). Multiple forms of food waste management clean technology are available. These include food procurement tracking software (enabling accurate food waste tracking and AI-generated prediction on procurement), food waste tracking systems (similar to a bucket system; e.g., Leanpath, Waste Not 2.0), and food composting technology (machines that enable environmental composting of food waste; e.g., ORCA). However, despite the fast adoption of clean technology in this field, research on how clean technology helps organizational food waste reduction is rare.
Read the study results as presented Journal of Hospitality & Tourism research article here: https://journals.sagepub.com/eprint/MI ... NBUT/full
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