Food and Energy Security最新文献

Food security hinges on the complex interactions between our environment and human activities, influencing everything from how food is produced to how it is consumed. In today's globalized world, food systems play a crucial role in determining not only the availability and affordability of food but also its nutritional quality and safety. However, these systems are under increasing stress from various challenges, including climate change, economic inequalities, and urbanization. Climate change affects food security in numerous ways; altering rainfall patterns can lead to droughts or floods, while changing temperatures can impact growing seasons. The effects are not uniform across the globe. For instance, in southern Africa, climate change is a primary driver of food insecurity, posing both ongoing challenges and sudden crises. In contrast, regions like the Indo-Gangetic Plain in India face different issues, such as labor shortages and water quality, which can sometimes overshadow climate impacts. Adapting food systems to meet these challenges is vital, but it is a complex task shaped by various socio-economic factors. Improving food production and distribution is essential for building resilience, but we must also ensure that these changes promote sustainability. Agriculture significantly contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, making it crucial to develop policies that not only adapt to climate change but also mitigate its effects. By tackling these connected challenges together, we can build a safer and more sustainable food future for everyone.

Ensuring household food security is a growing concern in developing countries. Tea workers in Bangladesh are one of the vulnerable groups that lack access to basic needs and suffer from food insecurity. This study examines the impact of income diversity on the food security of tea workers' households in Bangladesh. The Simpson's Index of Diversity (SID) was used to determine income diversity, and the Food Security Index (FSI) was employed to measure food security by surveying 200 tea workers' households in the Sreemangal Upazila of Maulvibazar district. SID values uncover that over one-third of tea workers' households do not diversify their income. However, nearly one-fifth of them have low-level income diversification, while about two-fifths of households have moderate diversity, and around one-tenth have moderately high income diversity. Based on binary logistic regression, the findings revealed that tea workers' households are more likely to be food secure with moderately diversified income than those with no income diversity. Notably, the likelihood of being food secure for female-headed households is nearly double that for male-headed households. Similarly, tea workers' households are more likely to be food secure with moderately high income diversity than those who do not diversify their income. The effect in that case is significantly higher for male-headed households than the insignificant effect in female-headed households. Moreover, educated, employed, and livestock and poultry asset-raising tea workers' households are greatly protected from food insecurity. Therefore, the study recommends diversifying income and enhancing the scope of livestock and poultry raising, as well as educational facilities, to reduce food insecurity and improve the living standards of tea garden workers in Bangladesh.

Nitrogen (N) is the most important nutrient for crop plants to achieve their yield potential, yet it is also recognized as a major pollutant of the environment due to often-excessive N-fertilizer use. The world has been struggling for decades to improve N use efficiency (NUE) beyond 50%. Nano-nitrogen, a nanoparticle-based liquid N-fertilizer, has been reported to improve crop yield, yet any gain in NUE is uncertain. Field and controlled tests on the usage of nano-nitrogen in rice(scented)-wheat systems and its impact on crop yield, growth responses, and NUE were conducted to ascertain this. The study included 10 strategies for the integration of nano-nitrogen with the conventional practice of prilled urea, including four with varying degrees of replacement of soil-applied prilled urea by foliar applied nano-nitrogen (33%, 50%, 66%, and 100%), two with augmentation using additional inputs (micronutrients, and sea-weed fertilizer), and two with sensor-based fertilizer scheduling using leaf color chart (LCC) and greenseeker (GS). The controls included ‘100% prilled urea’ (R0; no replacement) and ‘no N fertilizer at all’ (No-N). Replacing prilled urea with foliar applied nano-nitrogen up to 33% in the rice-wheat system [2 soil applications of prilled urea (2/3rd of currently recommended fertilizer) and 1 foliar application of nano-nitrogen (3 mL per liter)] was found to significantly improve achievable NUE. Up to 33% replacement of conventionally used prilled urea by nano-nitrogen (2 soil-1 foliar scenario) did not significantly affect grain yield as well as N yield for the rice-wheat cropping system; however, it saved 80 kg N application, which translates to 4848 MJ energy saving per hectare in the rice (scented)-wheat cropping system. Augmentation with seaweed fertilizer, biofertilizer, and micronutrients further improved yield and energy efficiency (13% higher) compared to 100% N via prilled urea. With 13.5 M ha of area under the rice-wheat system in the Indo-Gangetic plain, a saving of at least 65 PJ of energy is achievable from the region. More sustainable N use in rice (scented)-wheat systems can be achieved by transitioning from soil-based to soil-foliar hybrid application technique.

Agri-food systems are integral to sustainable development, climate change mitigation, and food security; however, they are also responsible for 19%–29% of anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Without targeted interventions, emissions from these systems risk escalating climate vulnerability and impeding sustainable progress. This study examines strategies for transforming agri-food systems toward low-carbon, circular bioeconomy models through green innovation and policy support, specifically within the contexts of the OECD and potentially adaptable frameworks for the Global South. Using a quantile autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model, we analyze the impacts of environmental innovation, government agricultural spending, total factor productivity, and population density on climate vulnerability across OECD countries, with implications for scalability in emerging economies. Results show that long-term increases in environmental patents, government agricultural expenditures, and total factor productivity significantly reduce climate vulnerability. Additionally, a U-shaped relationship between agricultural CO₂ emissions and food vulnerability is identified, indicating that while initial emissions reduction may mitigate vulnerability, sustained emissions intensify long-term risks. These findings emphasize the role of sustainable agricultural practices and robust policy frameworks in fostering climate resilience and economic sustainability. This research provides an evidence-based assessment of environmental impacts within agri-food systems, presenting actionable policy insights for advancing a circular bioeconomy, especially relevant for sustainable transformation in the Global South.

Despite their nutritional and agronomic benefits, taro roots, and sweet potatoes remain underutilised in formal agricultural markets. This study investigated the factors influencing smallholder farmers' participation and intensity of participation in the value chains of these crops in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Using a double-hurdle regression model on survey data from 300 smallholder farmers, the analysis identified crop-specific determinants of participation. For sweet potato farmers, location, farm size, and extension visits positively influenced participation, while marital status, irrigation access, and credit access had significant negative effects. In contrast, taro value chain participation was influenced by cultural-geographic context, market channel choice, and cooperative membership, while credit access and yield had negative effects. Intensity of participation was generally higher for sweet potato producers, reflecting stronger institutional and market support. The findings highlight that value chain integration is shaped by context-specific socioeconomic, institutional, and infrastructural factors. Policy interventions must therefore consider crop-specific dynamics and address systemic constraints such as financial service design, extension reach, and market infrastructure to support inclusive value chain participation.

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is a staple crop, but heat stress adversely impacts rice production and poses serious threats to global food security. Gibberellin (GA) is widely recognized as a critical regulator of rice growth and development; however, the mechanisms by which GA homeostasis responds to heat stress and its role in rice thermotolerance remain to be fully elucidated. This study reveals that heat stress disrupts GA homeostasis by suppressing biosynthesis and enhancing inactivation, leading to reduced bioactive GA content and impaired rice thermotolerance. The GA-deficient mutant d18 exhibited lower thermotolerance than wild-type (WT) plants, which was restored by exogenous GA₃ application. In contrast, the GA biosynthesis inhibitor paclobutrazol (PBZ) reduced thermotolerance in WT plants. Mechanistically, heat stress-reduced bioactive GA content triggered excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation by promoting ROS generation and inhibiting ROS scavenging. The d18 mutant accumulated higher ROS and displayed greater membrane damage under heat stress compared to WT. Both GA₃ and the ROS scavenger glutathione alleviated ROS accumulation and membrane damage, enhancing thermotolerance in d18, while PBZ exacerbated ROS accumulation and membrane damage, further impairing thermotolerance in WT. Importantly, exogenous GA₃ application or genetic enhancement of GA signaling, such as knocking out the GA signaling repressor gene SLR1, improved rice yield under heat stress. These findings demonstrate that GA-mediated regulation of ROS homeostasis is critical for rice thermotolerance, providing strategies for developing heat-resilient rice varieties by regulating GA-ROS homeostasis.

Climate change has accelerated the degradation of agricultural land, prompting innovation to develop and adapt current global production systems to accommodate more people with increased demand for resources. Novel technologies such as vertical farming offer an opportunity to secure climate-resilient food production. This study used Life Cycle Assessment to examine how the environmental impact of lettuce production in a commercial vertical farm compares with traditional field farming based on two contrasting UK farms and a Spanish farm. The vertical farm was found to have higher emissions in all impact categories except for water use; however, when using renewable energy sources, vertical farming was found to have higher, yet more comparable greenhouse gas emissions to field farming (0.93 kg CO₂eq kg⁻¹ lettuce (VF), 0.58 kg CO₂eq kg⁻¹ lettuce (UK 1 + 2)). Energy use (electricity or diesel), the choice of substrate, and soil emissions were the biggest hotspots for lettuce production in this study. Yields per area in vertical farming systems, however, were much higher than the field farming scenarios (97.3 kg m⁻² (VF), 3.3 kg m⁻² (average of field farms)), and the land sparing potential of vertical farming systems offers an opportunity to use spared land to potentially reap other environmental benefits while securing food production.

Implementing phytodiverse grassland may benefit producers through improved herbage production when compared to reference grassland with fewer plant species and may reduce enteric methane emissions of ruminants. Available knowledge of the effect of diverse grassland on dairy cow milk production is contradictory, and influences of species diversity or composition are not precise enough to make valid statements on required species or proportions to improve milk production. The aims of the current study were therefore to evaluate effects of diverse grassland on dairy cow milk production, methane emissions, and forage nutritive value under grazing. Based on 16 eligible studies, we conducted a meta-analysis. In these studies, swards of diverse vs. reference grassland differed in the proportion of grass (0.38 vs. 0.69) and of dicotyledonous non-legumes (0.33 vs. 0.026). We found no differences in milk production or methane emissions related to sward type. Plant species that are expected to reduce methane emissions only occurred in very small proportions in the herbage dry matter. Our hypothesis that the milk production of cows grazing diverse grassland instead of simple reference swards is higher and methane emissions lower is thus neither rejected nor confirmed. Milk production correlated positively with legume proportion, which did not differ between sward types. Overall, the analysis revealed that 63% of the studies lasted 10 days or less. Consequently, there is a need for more full-year and multi-year dairy cow grazing system studies on diverse grassland to account for variation in grassland primary productivity and nutritive value within seasons and among years.

Although South Africa is nationally a food-secure country, food insecurity at household and individual levels is unacceptably high, particularly in rural areas, where many households struggle to meet their food needs. To address the food insecurity and poverty challenges in the rural areas of South Africa, the Department of Agriculture has promoted home and community garden programs to increase the food production of poor and vulnerable rural households. Thus, the study aimed to assess the impact of the food garden programs on households' food security status in uMzumbe Local Municipality. The study applied random and purposive sampling methods to collect data using a structured questionnaire administered directly to 223 respondents. A Tobit regression model was used to examine the determinants of households' food security status. The study revealed that total income (p < 0.001), extension services (p < 0.01), credit access (p < 0.05), age, farm size (p < 0.01), and education level (p < 0.05) positively impacted the respondents' food security status. In contrast, household size (p < 0.001), home gardens (p < 0.01), and community gardens (p < 0.01) negatively influenced the households' food security status in the study area. The study indicated that the implementation of the home and community garden programs was not enough, in and of itself, to improve the food security status of those living in uMzumbe Municipality. Therefore, it is recommended that land reform, income generation, credit access, and educational and extension services should be considered to expand the performance of the food gardens to contribute more to the households' food security in uMzumbe Local Municipality.

Climate/environmental changes have posed significant challenges to crop production. Cassava (Manihot esculenta) is an important starchy root crop of a great significance in food security, energy production, and various bio-industrial applications, as well as a model for studying stress tolerance. Improving stress tolerance can help further increase the starch yield of this crop and expand its planting regions. A20/AN1 domain-containing family genes are master regulators in abiotic stress tolerance, but functions for most cassava A20/AN1 genes (Metip) are unknown. In this study, three Metip genes (Metip4, Metip8, and Metip11) were functionally characterized by prediction, yeast two-hybrid, subcellular localization in rice protoplasts, transgene in Arabidopsis, and virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) and transcriptome sequencing in cassava. As a result, these genes were intron-free and positively regulated the tolerance of plants to drought, salt, high (32°C) and low (10°C) temperatures, and Mn, but differed in regulating resistance to Cd and Cu, which paralleled changes in plants in contents of proline and relative water, reactive oxygen species, malondialdehyde, endogenous abscisic acid, and/or catalase activity. Metip4, Metip8, and Metip11 proteins were nucleus-localized, had no direct interactions between them, and displayed variations in amino acids within A20/AN1 domains. Moreover, 280 differentially expressed genes (DEG), 4 differentially regulated pathways, and 9 DEG-encoded protein interactions were found to be common in VIGS-treated cassava potted under drought. The results not only clue the formation of multiple functions of A20/AN1 family genes but also strongly suggest that Metip4, Metip8, and Metip11 genes have potentialities in gene engineering abiotic stress-tolerant crops.