AGRI NEWS NET

Headlines of the week

Various industries are searching for emission reduction tactics as eco-consumer rates in the United States rise. The agricultural sector is a significant polluter, requiring technological advancement to enhance sustainability. Environmentalists are exploring the cross benefits of using solar power to support farming.

Researchers at McMaster University have created a powerful new weapon against bacterial contamination and infection. They have developed a way to coax bacteriophages—harmless viruses that eat bacteria—into linking together and forming microscopic beads. Those beads can safely be applied to food and other materials to rid them of harmful pathogens such as E. coli 0157. Each bead is about 20 microns, (one 50th of a millimeter) in diameter and is loaded with millions of phages.

A new campaign is calling for livestock farming to be replaced by a technology that creates protein in micro-organism tanks.  Precision fermentation (PF) is a form of brewing, which sees microflora like yeast or bacteria be genetically engineered to make proteins or fats (rather than beer or bread). This, campaigners say, means that we can create the same ingredients found in animal meat, without the animals. 

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The Horn of Africa experiences two rainy seasons per year. The timing varies across the region, but rains broadly fall from March to May (the “long rains”) and from September to December

West Virginia University researchers are working to improve soil health and increase economic gains for Appalachian cattle farmers by bringing nutrients, like carbon, to the soil while decreasing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

An apple a day may keep the livestock veterinarian away. Juice, pulp, and other waste from Empire apples, when injected into chicken eggs before hatching, show signs of boosting the animal's intestinal health, according to Cornell research.

Headline of the week