Mealworms need a minimum level of protein to grow and become a sustainable food source, according to a new study that challenges the myth that insects have superpowers of taking plastic waste and converting it to a nutritionally valuable product. 

Setting aside at least 20% of agricultural landscapes for rewilding and adopting wildlife friendly practices on remaining farmland could reverse biodiversity declines while maintaining food production. That is according to scientists who have put forward a blueprint for integrating nature recovery and farming.

Cellulose-based textile material can make the clothing sector more sustainable. Currently, cellulose-based textiles are mainly made from wood, but a study headed by researchers from Chalmers University of Technology points to the possibility of using agricultural waste from wheat and oat. The method is easier and requires fewer chemicals than manufacturing forest-based cellulose, and can enhance the value of waste products from agriculture.

Osaka Metropolitan University researchers have successfully increased the production of D-lactic acid from methanol by exposing Komagataella phaffii yeast to ultraviolet irradiation.

Using national rural data, this study finds that adaptive behaviors in China's grain production mitigate 52.5%–63.5% of high-temperature impacts. But they can't effectively reduce excessive precipitation impacts. Tech progress and input adjustments are key adaptation mechanisms.

The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture (UTIA) AgResearch, in partnership with the Enterprise Sensor Systems LLC (EnSenSys) of Alamo, Tennessee, has been awarded a grant through the AI TechX Seed Fund to collaborate on “Rapid Identification of Cattle with Infectious Diseases Using AI and Hyperspectral Imaging.”

Land use change and the increased agrochemical use associated with agricultural intensification significantly alter farmland biodiversity and associated ecosystem services worldwide. Vineyards as ecologically, culturally, and economically important agroecosystems, are particularly vulnerable, facing numerous pests and diseases while only a small proportion adopt sustainable management practices. Nevertheless, under suitable conditions, vineyards can support diverse and abundant predator communities capable of delivering effective natural pest control services. The collaborative study conducted by researchers from the HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research and the University of Milan investigated the role of flying vertebrate predators – birds and bats – in vineyard natural pest control. Their findings, published in the Journal of Applied Ecology, demonstrate that these predators not only help regulate pest populations but also increase economic benefit to farmers.