The Future of Food, Agriculture, and Aquaculture

[caltrek]

Agricultural Expansion Increases Flooding in South American Plains
June 29, 2023

Introduction:

(Eurekalert) The loss of deep-rooting native vegetation and declining evapotranspiration due to rapid agricultural expansion in the South American plains has led to shallow groundwater tables and increased flooding throughout the region, researchers report. The findings reveal the hydrological impacts and potential escalating flooding risks associated with rainfed agriculture expansion at subcontinental and decadal scales, and improve understanding of hydrological changes in other regions of the world undergoing similar landscape change. Increasing global demand for grain is leading to rapid conversion of large swaths of South American native grasslands and forests to agricultural land. Although these flat sedimentary landscapes host some of the most productive soils on Earth, their hydrology is particularly sensitive to water balance shifts introduced by land and water use changes. However, the hydrological impacts of rapid rainfed farming expansion in these regions is poorly understood, resulting in sustainability challenges and unknown potential risks. According to Javier Houspanossian and colleagues, the extent and speed of farming expansion across the South American plains region over the past 40 years offers an unprecedented natural laboratory to evaluate the effects of rainfed farming on hydrology. Combining remote sensing data and in situ groundwater monitoring observations, Houspanossian et al. discovered that as crops replaced native vegetation and grasslands, floods in the region gradually became larger, more expansive, and more responsive to precipitation events, particularly since 2000. Furthermore, the findings show that the groundwater table shifted from deep (12 to 6 meters below the surface) to shallow (4 to 0 meters) due to agricultural land conversion. Using data from field studies and simulations, Houspanossian et al. suggest that declining rooting depths and evapotranspiration associated with shifting from native to agricultural plant regimes could explain this hydrological transformation. “The findings presented here are critical for future land use policies that support farming, water management and rural towns in smarter and more-integrated ways,” write the authors.

Read more here: https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/993645

From conclusion in Science article:

(Science) The insights provided in this work on the connection between extensive land use change and the growing flood sensitivity in the South American plains will help improve our understanding of hydrological changes in other regions of the world with similar characteristics, including dry and stagnant hydrological settings and expanding rainfed grain production systems, such as those of Ukraine or Canada

Source: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.add5462

[caltrek]

Researchers Conclude: We've Underestimated the Risk of Simultaneous Crop Failures Worldwide
by Kelly MacNamara
July 5, 2023

Introduction:

(Science Alert) The risks of harvest failures in multiple global breadbaskets have been underestimated, according to a study Tuesday that researchers said should be a "wake up call" about the threat climate change poses to our food systems.

Food production is both a key source of planet-warming emissions and highly exposed to the effects of climate change, with climate and crop models used to figure out just what the impacts could be as the world warms.

In the new research published in Nature Communications, researchers in the United States and Germany looked at the likelihood that several major food producing regions could simultaneously suffer low yields.

These events can lead to price spikes, food insecurity and even civil unrest, said lead author Kai Kornhuber, a researcher at Columbia University and the German Council on Foreign Relations.

By "increasing the concentration of greenhouse gases, we are entering this uncharted water where we are struggling to really have an accurate idea of what type of extremes we're going to face," he told AFP.

Read more of the Science Alert article here: https://www.sciencealert.com/researche ... worldwide

For a presentation of the study results as found in Nature Communications: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-38906-7

[wjfox]

We'll be seeing a lot more of this food protectionism in the future.

And honestly, who could blame India? They are just trying to ensure their own people have cheap, accessible food.

India is largely self-sufficient in agricultural production, but many countries in the West are not. The UK's domestic supply is only enough to meet about 64% of its current demand and we haven't produced 100% of our own food since the pre-Industrial era. Today's figure for Norway is even lower at ~50%.

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'Some will go hungry, some will starve': Global rice shortages feared after India bans exports

Friday 21 July 2023 20:47, UK

The Indian government has banned the export of non-basmati white rice - trigging fears of shortages and price rises across the world.

India is the world's largest supplier of the food - making up 40% of global exports - which more than three billion people rely on as a staple.

Last year it exported around 22 million tonnes, of which almost half constituted the now-banned non-premium rice.

The ban comes after the cost of rice soared by 11.5% in a year in the country, and the government has introduced the ban in the hope it will lower prices and improve availability domestically.

https://news.sky.com/story/some-will-go ... s-12925097

[caltrek]

Hops for Beer Flourish Under Solar Panels. They’re Not the Only Crop Thriving in the Shade.
by Matthias Schrader and Dana Beltaji
July 22, 2023

Introduction:

AU in der HALLERTAU, Germany (AP via Courthouse News) — Bright green vines snake upwards 20 feet (six meters) toward an umbrella of solar panels at Josef Wimmer’s farm in Bavaria.

He grows hops, used to make beer, and in recent years has also been generating electricity, with solar panels sprawled across 1.3 hectares (32 acres) of his land in the small hop-making town of Au in der Hallertau, an hour north of Munich in southern Germany.

The pilot project — a collaboration between Wimmer and local solar technology company Hallertauer Handelshaus — was set up in the fall of last year. The electricity made at this farm can power around 250 households, and the hops get shade they'll need more often as climate change turbocharges summer heat.

Solar panels atop crops has been gaining traction in recent years as incentives and demand for clean energy skyrocketed. Researchers look into making the best use of agricultural land, and farmers seek ways to shield their crops from blistering heat, keep in moisture and potentially increase yields. The team in Germany says its effort is the first agrivoltaic project that's solely focused on hops, but projects have sprouted around the world in several countries for a variety of grains, fruits and vegetables.

Beer-making hops can suffer if exposed to too much sun, said Bernhard Gruber, who's managing the project's solar component — and since there were already solar installations on the farm, it made sense to give them a second purpose by mounting them on poles above the crops.

Read more here: https://www.courthousenews.com/hops-fo ... e-shade/

[wjfox]

Chocolate may be a luxury in the not-too-distant future...

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Chocolate prices soar as cost of cocoa rises 25%

Mon 24 Jul 2023 16.00 BST

In bad news for chocolate lovers, confectionery makers are increasing prices as cocoa beans trade at near decade highs with no respite on the horizon.

Food companies have been grappling with rising costs for the main chocolate ingredient, with cocoa prices up more than 25% in a year amid widespread flooding in some of the world’s main growing regions.

Analysts at Rabobank noted that sugar, another major ingredient in chocolate, was also priced at historically high levels.

“Some of our favourite types of chocolate in Australia have risen in price by around 10 to 20%, so we’ve seen inflation in the category and that could continue if these cost pressures are going to increase,” associate analyst Pia Piggott said.

She said global cocoa prices had been on an upward trajectory since September last year, as the world heads into a potential third year of a cocoa supply deficit.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-n ... s-flooding

[caltrek]

Colorful Native Corn Makes a Comeback in Mexico
by Fabiola Sánchez
July 26, 2023

Introduction:

IXTENCO, Mexico (AP via Latino Rebels) — On the slopes of the Malinche volcano, Juan Vargas starts the dawn routine he’s had since childhood, carefully checking stalks of colorful native corn. For years, Vargas worried that these heirloom varieties —running from deep red to pale pink, from golden yellow to dark blue— passed down from his parents and grandparents would disappear. White corn long ago came to dominate the market and became the foundation of Mexicans’ diet.

But now, the heirloom corn Vargas grows is in vogue. It accounts for 20 of the 50 acres on his farm in Ixtenco, in the central state of Tlaxcala. Vargas, 53, remembers just one acre reserved for it 2010, when demand was virtually zero and prices low. Fueled largely by foreign demand, the corn in its rainbow of colors has become more profitable for him than the white variety.

Vargas is among farmers in Mexico who’ve been holding on to heirloom strains for generations, against a flood of industrially produced white corn. They’re finding a niche but increasing market among consumers seeking organic produce from small-scale growers and chefs worldwide who want to elevate or simply provide an authentic take on tortillas, tostadas, and other corn-based pillars of Mexican food.

Corn is the most fundamental ingredient of Mexican cuisine, and it’s never far from the national conversation. Amid President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s move to ban the importation of genetically modified corn and his imposition of a 50 percent tariff on imported white corn, some scientists, chefs and others are advocating for the value of the old varieties in an increasingly drought-stricken world.

Heirloom varieties make up far less than one percent of total domestic corn production in Mexico, but for the first time in years, Vargas and others are hopeful about the crop. Some in the academic and public sectors hope to increase its production.

Read more here: https://www.latinorebels.com/2023/07/2 ... oomcorn/

[Tadasuke]

[wjfox]

^ Yeah, I gave up beef a while ago, and just recently stopped eating pig meat (although the latter is more due to animal welfare concerns).

I've also switched from cow milk to oat/plant-based milks (which taste better anyway!).

I still eat chicken, as I can't resist the taste. And I eat lots of seafood.

I doubt I'll ever go full vegan. Once cultured meat is widespread, I will probably start eating beef and pig meat again.

[raklian]

^ Yeah, I gave up beef a while ago, and just recently stopped eating pig meat

That video was horrifying, wasn't it?

[Tadasuke]

I occasionally eat chicken when outside in a restaurant or take some fast food (in KFC for example, small portions) to not feel hungry when I'm on the go. I sometimes order Japanese ramen with chicken or a Turkish kebab with mutton when outside. At home I'm vegetarian, I use cow milk for coffee and plant milk (usually almond) for other things.