Food & Agriculture Stories
How do we feed a growing and more affluent population without the environmental collateral damage? The Anthropocene’s coverage of food and agriculture digs deep into innovations in farming, aquaculture, filling the global protein gap, reducing the carbon footprint of supply chains, and more.
A vicious cycle of cows, disease, and climate change
Livestock welfare will be key in helping us reign in emissions
Can industrial aquaculture grow vegetarian fish?
A study found that a new algae-based fish feed formula not only cuts aquaculture’s environmental footprint, but also produces larger, healthier fish
Is the grass greener on the other side?
Drug legalization could both help and hurt the environment
On a mere 1% of farmland, solar panels could provide 20% of US electricity
Agrivoltaics could also provide jobs and boost rural livelihoods, while cutting carbon emissions
Water-Harvesting and Arid-Adapted Agrobiodiversity
A revival of rainwater harvesting is occurring around the world, as desert communities restore traditional systems known as rain gardens, ak-chin agriculture, floodwater farming, gavias, karez, qanats and fogarras.
Taming the Blue Frontier
Should the U.S. cultivate giant offshore fish farms in its piece of the sea or keep taking most of the fish we eat from foreign waters?
A new type of soil irrigates itself
Adding super-moisture-absorbent gels to arid soils could liberate farming from expensive irrigation and power systems
In the most comprehensive study to date, researchers found that greener farming methods don’t compromise yields
In 63% of cases, they found that eco-friendly farming boosted biodiversity without any cost to yields. In several cases, yields actually increased
Eyes on the High Seas
Illegal fishing is getting harder, thanks to public surveillance from space
A drastic revolution in the way we eat and farm could limit habitat lost to agriculture to a mere 1%
Alternatively, researchers found, if we don’t change our food systems, habitat losses will affect tens of thousands of species by 2050
