UPDATE February 2012 — The Food Crises: Predictive validation of a quantitative model of food prices including speculators and ethanol conversion. Www.necsi.edu New England Complex Systems Institute 238 Main Street Suite 319, Cambridge, MA 02142 Phone: 617-547-4100 Fax: 617-661-7711 Cite as: M.
Lagi, Yavni Bar-Yam, K.Z. Bertrand, Yaneer Bar-Yam, UPDATE February 2012 — The Food Crises: Predictive validation of a quantitative model of food prices including speculators and ethanol conversion.arXiv:1203.1313, March 6, 2012. Future_of_food_report_2011_lr. MPs call for wider food strategy. 12 May 2012Last updated at 21:47 ET MPs said obesity and diet related illness were on the increase while food security was under threat The government needs to tackle the UK's "failing food system" by linking its policies on health, environment and education, a committee of MPs has said.
How to design more resilient, food producing systems (without money and fossil fuels) Last week I started to discuss those common cultural barriers and mental blocks that have hindered our progress in preparing for an uncertain future on our small family farm. We realised these barriers fall into four categories and I started with 'Received Wisdom'. This week I thought I'd try tackling the next two on our list. These two are very much intertwined so I've grouped them together – available money and fossil fuel power Available money Culturally we've been led to believe that lack of sufficient funds hinders progress, but the question to ask is 'progress towards which goal'? We've never been particularly wealthy but it takes surprisingly little money to mess up your thinking.
Little garden shed of consumer horrorsLooking out the window right now I can see a poorly built garden shed with a leaky roof. Basically, having money in our pockets enabled us to out-source the need to use our own brains. Can We Make Enough Food To Eat Without Cutting Down All The Trees? Brazil has pulled off an environmental coup.
Amazon deforestation is down 78% from its 2004 peak, while agricultural production continues to climb. How does a country that lost millions of hectares of forest every year to cattle ranchers and soy farmers turn things around in less than a decade? Enforcement of conservation laws, smart agricultural policies, and environmentalist-led boycotts take much of the credit.
Yet those are unlikely to be enough, according to a new analysis. The pressure to clear the world’s forests is mounting again, as commodity demand for food and biofuels picks up. An initiative to do so is known as Roundtable-REDD. By making "sustainable" agricultural projects more attractive and competitive than their conventional agribusiness counterparts, the initiative are intended to save forests while feeding the world, particularly in tropical rainforest nations. Not everyone is embracing the new approach. Reports from the Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change. The Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change has reviewed the scientific evidence to identify a pathway to achieving food security in the context of climate change.
Food systems must shift to better meet human needs and, in the long term, balance with planetary resources. This will demand major interventions, at local to global scales, to transform current patterns of food production, distribution and consumption. Investment, innovation, and deliberate effort to empower the world's most vulnerable populations will be required to construct a global food system that adapts to climate change and ensures food security while minimizing greenhouse gas emissions and sustaining our natural resource base. Final Report (March 2012) Final Report from the Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change Summary for Policy Makers (November 2011) English Francais Espanol Português Background Studies Evidence from Major Assessment Reports on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change.
2011 Global Food Policy Report. Www.ase.tufts.edu/gdae/Pubs/rp/ResolvingFoodCrisis.pdf. Global Strategy - cacaonet. Global Strategy out now!
CacaoNet is pleased to announce the publication of the Global Strategy for the Conservation and Use of Cacao Genetic Resources. A summary is also available in the form of a booklet (PDF 2.5Mb) A Global Strategy launch event will be held during the COPAL conference in Cameroon on the Thursday the 18th of October following the poster session. Please join us if you are participating in COPAL! A Global Strategy for the Conservation and Use of Cacao Genetic Resources, as the Foundation for a Sustainable Cocoa Economy Abstract The future of the world cocoa economy depends on the availability of genetic diversity and the sustainable use of this broad genetic base to breed improved varieties.
At the centre of the Global Strategy is the Global Strategic Cacao Collection (GSCC): a “virtual genebank” of accessions of highest priority for conservation, wherever they are physically located. Asian economies seek food security to boost growth. 11 September 2012Last updated at 12:06 ET By Saira Syed Business reporter, BBC News, Tianjin There are concerns about food security for children in poor areas in emerging economies in the region Where the next meal will come from is not a worry for the participants in the Summer Davos in Tianjin, China, where delicious fare is on offer.
