News: 2012
Reviewing evidence on monitoring systems for agriculture, poverty and environment
DFID are seeking a service provider to review the evidence on indicators, metrics and monitoring systems for agriculture, poverty and environment. The aim is to identify lessons and opportunities for the use of data from monitoring systems in the sustainable intensification of agriculture.
Science and industry club together to deliver better crops
Today, the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) is announcing nine new industry-relevant crop science projects as part of the Crop Improvement Research Club (CIRC). The research is aimed at delivering improvements to the main UK cereal crops - oilseed rape, barley and wheat - so boosting efforts to ensure food security.
Findings on aphid symbiosis could provide new insecticide targets
Research led by biologists at the University of York reveals potential new targets for aphid-specific insecticides.
Rothamsted Research announces a new global assessment on soil biodiversity
The Department for Sustainable Soils and Grassland Systems at BBSRC-funded Rothamsted Research is launching a new Global Scientific Assessment on Soil Biodiversity as a result of an international meeting organized by the Global Soil Biodiversity Initiative
Feeling the heat
Plant scientists from Norwich Research Park are gathering evidence on the precise ways in which plants are affected by rising temperatures and falling rainfall levels. Their findings could show us if anything can be done to help crops cope with the increased risks from drought and disease. Research to help plants cope with a changing climate.
Pan-European programme launches first food security initiative
FACCE - JPI (Food security, Agriculture and Climate ChangE Joint Programming Initiative) has announced funding for its first joint action.
Tackle fungal forces for food security, say scientists
More than 600M people could be fed each year by halting the spread of fungal diseases in the world's five most important crops, according to research funded by BBSRC and others published today in the journal Nature.
Exposure to stomach acid primes Campylobacter for intestinal infection
Campylobacter is a major cause of foodborne gastroenteritis, with an estimated 500,000 infections annually in the UK. The most common infection route is on undercooked poultry meat, with the bacteria then crossing the lining of the small intestine.
Feeding wild birds shown to reduce insect pests
The common British past-time of feeding wild birds has been shown to reduce local populations of insect pests, according to research published in Basic and Applied Ecology and funded via a BBSRC doctoral training award.
Rothamsted Wheat Trial : Second generation GM technology to emulate natural plant defence mechanism
Scientists from Rothamsted Research are conducting a controlled experiment, combining modern genetic engineering with their knowledge of natural plant defences to test whether wheat that can repel aphid attack works in the field.
Puzzle solved as maize pest reveals its Achilles heel
Scientists at Rothamsted Research have identified the crucial controls of population cycles of the European corn borer pest, which could help prevent damage to maize crops and thereby save billions of dollars.
Why spring is blooming marvellous (and climate change makes it earlier)
With buds bursting early, only for a mild winter to turn Arctic and wipe them out, we are witnessing how warm weather can trigger flowering, even out of season, and how important it is for plants to blossom at the right time of year.
Public exhibition highlights food security challenges
A new exhibition, 'From Farm to Fork', has been launched today to highlight the challenges of providing the world's growing population with a sustainable, secure supply of good quality food. The exhibition is part of the multi-agency Global Food Security (GFS) programme which brings together the food-related research interests of Research Councils, Government Departments and Devolved Administrations.
Climate change: DFID wins award for maize project
The Department for International Development has won Best Technological Breakthrough at the Climate Week Awards for a project to develop drought-tolerant maize in Africa.
Ideas Lab aims to reduce reliance on fertilizers
A joint Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and National Science Foundation (NSF) 'Ideas Lab' is in development in a bid to provide radically new approaches to producing crops with minimal input of nitrogen fertilizers.
New £15M programme to stimulate food industry sector growth
£15M is to be invested by the Government in new research and development projects and studies that will stimulate innovation and growth in the UK's food industries.
Clock gene helps plants prepare for spring
Scientists have made fresh discoveries about the processes that govern plants' internal body clocks and help them adjust to changing seasons, triggering the arrival of flowers in spring.
Gates Foundation ramp up food security funding
Food security is the priority of the latest Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation call on crop protection. The ‘Grand Challenge’ funding has been made available to foster scientific and technological innovation which could help to provide sustainable food in the developing world.
BBSRC funding at forefront of fight against livestock disease
An emerging livestock disease caused by the Schmallenberg virus has been causing deformities in newborn lambs, goat kids and calves on farms in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, and now the UK. Schmallenberg - named after the place in Germany where the first sample of the virus was identified - causes deformities and still births but does not have major clinical signs in adult animals, making it quite difficult to spot.
New research to help eliminate most common food poisoning bug
Eliminating the most common cause of food poisoning from the food chain is the aim of new research funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the world-leading UK-based poultry breeding company Aviagen.
Watch video: Making sure food is good enough to eat
Producing enough food to feed the world's growing population is becoming a major concern. But making sure the food we grow is safe, nutritious and good enough to eat is also fraught with difficulty. A new Centre of Excellence for Post-harvest Biotechnology (CEPB) has opened in the School of Biosciences at The University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus (UNMC).
£7M public funding available for research to deliver better fruit and veg
A new research initiative launched today (09 February) aims to bring academic researchers together with industry in order to deliver bigger yields of better quality fruits and vegetables for the consumer through more sustainable farming practices.
Launch of UK farming, food and drink export plan
On 27 January 2012, Defra, UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), and industry announced Driving Export Growth in the Farming, Food and Drink Sector: a plan of action.
