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crops

05/16/2018 / By Carol Anderson

State-owned chemical company in China found to be illegally dumping toxic chemical waste

If it is frustrating that many privately-owned chemical companies across the globe are damaging the environment and threatening our health, it’s even more distressing to find out there are state-owned businesses who are notoriously contributing to the aggravating case of pollution. Shanxi Sanwei Group Co. Ltd., is under hot waters for another environmental violation issue. Two […]

05/03/2018 / By David Williams

New soil science study shows how plants release specific metabolites that enrich productivity

It’s well-understood that most plants rely heavily on the condition of the soil on which they are planted, and that the microbes that are present in the soil itself affect the overall health of the plant as it grows. Now a new study performed by scientists from the Department of Energy‘s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory […]

04/30/2018 / By Janine Acero

A more diverse farm land provides better conditions for pest control

Crop diversity was shown to have a positive impact on the natural predators of aphids, which are common crop pests. Farmers can utilize this insight to keep aphids at bay and reduce the need for pesticides. In addition, greater crop diversity in agricultural landscapes is said to be better for pest control because a varied landscape provides better […]

04/25/2018 / By Ethan Huff

Thousands of tons of New York’s human sewage is stuck on a train in Alabama… say what?

The 982 residents who live in the tiny town of Parrish, Alabama, have been stuck with a stinky, poop-filled freight train that’s been sitting on its tracks for several months now, and nobody seems to know where or when it might be removed. The train had reportedly been sent from New York City carrying tons of […]

04/05/2018 / By David Williams

New Jersey indoor farm can grow plants all year long while using 95 percent less water than outdoor farms, with no pesticides at all

There’s something special about a new farm in Kearny, New Jersey. Headed by a former techie turned farmer, Bowery Farming is uniquely poised to serve as the blueprint for future farms with a focus on sustainability and reliability. More specifically, by applying clever new methods, the CEO and founder of Bowery Farming, Irving Fain, has created […]

02/13/2018 / By David Williams

More proof biodiversity reduces the need for chemicals: Leaving strips of wildflowers across fields of crops reduces pesticide use

It’s a well-established fact that pesticides can have many adverse effects not just to humans but to the very crops that they are supposed to protect as well. And as far as current efforts to reduce pesticide use go, one of the known ways to do so involves planting wildflowers right around the perimeter of […]

02/05/2018 / By Ralph Flores

Upcycled: Wastewater from olive mills can be transformed from a pollutant into a biofuel and bio-fertilizer

Researchers have developed an environment-friendly process to convert wastewater from producing olive oils into biofuel and fertilizer, as published in the journal ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering. The study, led by researchers from the Institut de Science des Matériaux de Mulhouse and RITTMO Agroenvironment in France and the Water Research and Technologies Centre and the Higher Institute of Sciences and Technology for […]

01/29/2018 / By Russel Davis

BEAUTIFUL CO2: Higher carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere linked to more flowers blooming in tropical forests

The increasing levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) brought about by climate change resulted in an increase in flower production in remote tropical forests across of the globe, according to a study published in the journal Global Change Biology. A team of researchers at Florida State University examined plant materials obtained from tropical forests of Panama’s Barro Colorado Island to […]

10/16/2017 / By Isabelle Z.

Industrial agriculture practices likely to threaten world food supply through heightened risk of crop disease, study finds

Have you ever stopped to think about what would happen if wheat production ground to a halt across the world? It’s something that few people worry about, but it’s more likely than you think thanks to modern industrial agriculture practices. Many of the planet’s most widely grown varieties of wheat have been affected by new […]

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