Third Volume on Advances in Conservation Agriculture Now Published!
Editor
Professor Amir Kassam, University of Reading, UK and Moderator, Global Conservation Agriculture Community of Practice (CA-CoP), FAO, Italy
About the Book
This book provides an authoritative review from an array of international experts on the adoption of Conservation Agriculture (CA) principles in different regions around the world.
The final volume in this collection reviews the effectiveness of CA in differing contexts and refers to the wealth of research and experiential evidence currently available.
What Others are Saying...
"With comprehensive global coverage, this remarkable compilation will stand as a milestone on the road to transforming agriculture, illustrating how innovative farmers around the world are adapting their practices to ditch the plow, cover up, and grow diversity."
David R. Montgomery, author of Dirt: The Erosion of Civilisations and Growing a Revolution: Bringing Our Soil Back to Life
Exploring the Nutritional Benefits of Drought-tolerant Crops
With a growing urgency to make global crop production more sustainable in the light of climate change, researchers and those alike have been faced with the challenge of developing crops with an increased tolerance to instances of abiotic stress, including drought, heat, cold/frost and floods.
As well as proving to be beneficial to the environment and reducing the carbon footprint of the sector, a team of researchers have also determined that drought-tolerant crops offer greater nutritional benefits.
Based at the University of Delaware, USA, the researchers have dedicated a new study which solely explores the nutritional benefits of drought-tolerant cereal crops, including sorghum, maize and millet.
In regions such as the Middle East, Africa and South Asia where substantial amounts of cereals/cereal products are consumed each year, the primary crops consumed are rice and wheat. Despite this, these crops hold fewer nutritional benefits than drought-tolerant crops.
The researchers suggest that results from this study have the ability to shape the lives of millions currently facing food security challenges simply through dietary shifts.
Are you currently writing a chapter for any of our forthcoming publications, or would like to submit a chapter for consideration? If yes, are you interested in the possibility of publishing it as Open Access (OA)?
Major US retailer opts to invest in vertical farming
Walmart - who are considered to be one of the world's largest food retailers - have announced a new agricultural investment. The retailer have recently pledged invested an undisclosed fee in Plenty - an indoor farming company based in the US. With Walmart as a registered financial backer, Plenty can continue to grow (and increase the production of) pesticide-free produce which will be available to purchase from Walmart's California stores. As well as advocating for more sustainable farming, the partnership also highlights the growing trust in agricultural technology. [Read more here].
Optimal growing regions for key cash crops set to shift
A team of researchers from Zurich University of Applied Sciences, Switzerland have recently published results from a new analytical study which suggests a dramatic shift in the current suitable regions for growing cash crops. Published in PLOS ONE, the researchers discuss the growing impact of climate change on global crop production, primarily its impact on the production of coffee arabica - the most profitable coffee species. The researchers utilised climate change projections and soil factors to computationally model the suitability of growing regions. [Read more here].
Developing stress resistant crops in the face of climate change
Scientists from Nagoya University, Japan have examined the internal structure of wetland plants in an attempt to understand the traits which make the plants resilient to a variety of environmental stresses, primarily flooding. Wetland plants are equipped with air tunnels which help the plant transfer gases to roots submerged in water. These air tunnels also support the plant through periods of drought and instances of nutrient deficiency. The researchers suggest that the study's results can be used to develop new crop varieties resistant to abiotic stresses. [Read more here].
Is sustainable groundwater use detrimental to crop production?
An estimated 52% of irrigated land in the US is used to farm key crops for the nation, such as soybean, maize and winter wheat. The water which fuels these irrigation systems are typically unsustainably sourced through the extraction of groundwater from aquifers. Despite the fact that the agricultural sector is facing mounting pressure to improve its sustainability, a team of researchers from Dartmouth College, US have claimed that production of these key crops will be damaged as a result of shifting to sustainable groundwater use. [Read more here].