food

War in Ukraine and Climate Change Could Combine to Create a Food Crisis

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Russia’s war in Ukraine is squeezing food supplies in countries that depend on those two nations for critical grains and cooking oils. The halt in agricultural shipments out of the Black Sea has sent the price of wheat and fertilizer soaring and prompted growing concerns of a global food crisis. In Turkey, people are scrambling … Read more

Food prices: Cutting biofuels could compensate for loss of Ukraine’s grain exports

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By Michael Le Page A wheat field in Ukraine Maksym Belchenko/Getty Images The war in Ukraine has already caused food prices to shoot up as global markets anticipate a loss of wheat and maize exports from one of the world’s largest producers of these crops. But Europe and the US could more than compensate for … Read more

Surprise! Complex Decision Making Found in Predatory Worms With Just 302 Neurons

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As scientists continue to discover more about the brain and how it works, it can help to know just how much brain matter is required to perform certain functions – and to be able to make complex decisions, it turns out just 302 neurons may be required.   That’s based on a new study looking … Read more

‘Fish’ Pet Food Could Actually Contain Endangered Shark, Alarming DNA Study Finds

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Your pet’s dinner may contain endangered shark – even if the ingredients on the label don’t explicitly include “shark”, a recent analysis of commercially produced pet foods has found.   Pet foods often describe their ocean-sourced ingredients with generic terms such as “fish”, “white fish”, “white bait”, or “ocean fish” and researchers wondered if genetic … Read more

Eating More Bugs Could Help The Environment Even More Than We Thought

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Insects have been touted as a food of the future, not least because of the sustainability benefits. An excellent protein source, they take up significantly fewer resources to produce when compared to traditional farming. Give your farm of mealworms around 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds) of food and you’ll get a kilogram of edible protein; with beef, … Read more

What You Eat Has The Power to Reprogram Your Genes. An Expert Explains How

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People typically think of food as calories, energy, and sustenance. However, the latest evidence suggests that food also “talks” to our genome, which is the genetic blueprint that directs the way the body functions down to the cellular level.   This communication between food and genes may affect your health, physiology, and longevity. The idea … Read more

These Ticks Can Survive For Years Without Eating, And Live to Nearly 30 Years of Age

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When it comes to longevity and surviving extended amounts of time without food, the Argas brumpti species of African tick is hard to beat, newly published research shows. Observed close-up in the lab over the course of 45 years by entomologist Julian Shepherd from Binghamton University in New York, some of these ticks have survived as … Read more

Superfoods: Genetically modified purple tomato could go on sale soon in the US

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A small company has applied for approval in the US to sell a genetically modified tomato that is rich in the beneficial pigments found in blueberries Health 23 February 2022 By Michael Le Page Purple tomatoes contain higher levels of antioxidant pigments Eugenio Butelli/Andrew Davis A purple tomato genetically modified to make it rich in … Read more

Crop yields could be boosted up to 37 per cent by covering plants in red plastic

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A simple, cheap technology could help to boost food production and possibly allow crops to be grown in different places in order to cut down on food miles Environment 18 February 2022 By Alice Klein Trial of the LLEAF material in a greenhouse at Western Sydney University Alexander Soeriyadi/LLEAF Pty Ltd The yields of some … Read more