The expression of a single protein located in the subcellular organelles of the tomato was found to help speed up or slow down its fruit ripening, providing a novel opportunity for crop improvement. Scientists from the University of Oxford focused on the role of plastids, or the sub-cellular organelles in fruits, in the ripening process of the tomato because the plastids are responsible for giving color to the fruit.

In South Africa, white maize is the only staple food crop produced using genetically modified (GM) cultivars. From 2001 to 2018, GM white maize has brought welfare benefits amounting to ~US$695 million, according to a study conducted by experts from the University of Arkansas and published in the Global Food Security journal. GM white maize is produced on a widespread commercial basis for direct human consumption in South Africa. To estimate the total welfare benefits of this GM crop in the country, the researchers computed the economic and environmental impact from 2001 to 2018.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations launched a new Corporate Environmental Responsibility Strategy that aims to reduce the Organization’s total Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) by 45 percent by 2030. The ambitious new emissions reduction strategy focuses on improving the sustainability of daily operations, including the introduction of energy efficiency measures in facilities, updating travel policies to reduce travel-related emissions, and improving water use and recycling schemes.

In the high Andes of Peru, rural farmers are becoming sustainable stewards of the ecosystems on which they depend – bolstering the region’s water security and their own livelihoods. IFAD is supporting these rural farmers the Conservation and Sustainable Use of High-Andean Ecosystems project, through compensation of environmental services for rural poverty alleviation and social inclusion.

“We go to look for oysters in the mangroves to feed our families and for business. This is how I make a living. If I work for two to three days, I can earn money to cover my expenses,” says Fatou Sarr, President of the Women Transformers Group of Diamniadio, a cooperative and producers’ organization that supports small-scale oyster producers. Entrepreneurs like Fatou are on a quest to save natural habitats, like the species-rich mangroves located in the Siné Saloum Delta – a UNESCO World Heritage site – in central Senegal.

A study conducted by an international research team from Belgium, the Netherlands, United States, and the United Kingdom reveals the fundamental molecular insights into the ways that plants respond to high temperatures. The researchers have identified the protein kinase MAP4K4/TOT3 as a light signaling-independent regulator of this process.

An international team of researchers conducted a study to explore the effects of advertisement framing on health and environmental benefits, sources of perceived risk reduction, and domain-specific knowledge on the acceptance of genetically modified foods. Its findings offer strategic directions to policymakers, marketing personnel, and food technologists in increasing awareness and acceptance of GM food products.

A study led by Penn State University Professor of Biology Hong Ma has revealed a history of whole-genome duplications in the legume family tree which includes beans, soybeans, peanuts, and other economically important crops. The study also helped uncover the evolution of genes involved in nitrogen fixation, a key trait likely important in the evolutionary spread and diversification of legumes and vital for their use as "green manure" in agriculture.

Following a public comment period that closed on March 5, Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MAFF) amended the handling procedures for feed and feed additive products derived from the crossbreeding of genome-edited varieties previously notified to MAFF with conventional varieties, other previously notified genome-edited varieties, and genetically engineered products for which MAFF has granted feed safety approval.

Time devoted to science communication is a valuable investment that can have a tremendous societal impact, according to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Assistant Professor Esther Ngumbi. The statement was discussed in A Comprehensive Guide on Science Communication edited by Fani Kelesidou and Eclodie Chabrol and published by Hindawi.