Threats

Nibbles: Conference, Debate, Review, Radio, Conserve, Film, Label, Threats, Subsidies, Academics, Backyard Breeder

The 2nd Global Conference on Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change “Hunger for Action” (Hanoi, Vietnam).
Barder and Kinder Debate London Health Summit and Food Security Policy, so we don’t have to!
A review of a review of restoration ecology for ecosystem services. Ag?
The Seed Underground: listen to a radio interview with US author Janisse Ray. Ag!
Or, if that fails to excite, listen to Save the axolotl! Um, sure, but why? and tell us whether there’s any ag in that.
There’s definitely ag in More than Honey, a new documentary movie.
FDA slaps down misleading claims of fortification (in chocolate syrup)
Cassava mosaic and banana bacterial wilt add to the food security woes of DR Congo.
Rice growers get all the goodies, complain Sri Lankan vegetable growers.
Ivorian agricultural scientists to open access to their research results.
A backyard breeder documents his search for a better bean.

More US drought data and some insights into the drought’s impact: it’s affecting the Black Sea region too.
Another reason to improve childhood nutrition – it improves Olympic medal prospects.
Grist gets stuck into the GMO potatoes debate. It’s about diversity, Dummie. Not that anyone cares.
Brewing stone age beer. “The minor details make beer brewing exciting.” I’ll bet.
The long, straight dope on a food industrialist’s approach to better fast food.
Diversifying inputs increases Rwandan coffee farmers’ profits.

Discover taxonomic names in files, websites, etc…
Chinese genebank collecting wild species in Tibet.
Touring a non-government genebank. And running another one.
Not a community one, though.
Everybody talking about scaling up. Here’s how you do it. Probably need the media involved, right?
Scaling up did for the bison.

The National Fungus of Japan explains itself.
The aurochs recreated in fact and fiction. And more.
Yes, that’s what we need to make good on all those GM drought-resistance promises: a new model system. And now for something a little more serious.
Some protected areas don’t work terribly well. Here comes the science.
Darwinian Agriculture explained by the man himself.
Ancient diets deduced from teeth crap and crap crap.

You’ve heard of alternative lifestyles? Now read all about alternative pollinators.
Why should we spend money digitizing natural history collections?
Not all quinoa cultivars may be good for celiacs.
The largest comparative growth experiment ever. Hope some of the 600+ species are crop wild relatives.
Mangroves trap heavy metals. And sequester a lot of carbon. But they are moving. Thank goodness there’s lots of ways to value the services they provide.
CABI’s Plantwise Knowledge Bank is online.
Kew boffins blow up coffee. The genus, settle down.