Asia digs deep to upgrade its agriculture.

Asia digs deep to upgrade its agriculture as a perfect storm of population growth and climate change spurs farming innovation. Asian crops were devastated by a severe drought this year, highlighting the urgent need to stabilise farm output and brace for the consequences of climate change. And with the region's population projected to continue growing over the long term, this is no easy task. The good news is that answers are starting to emerge. Agribusinesses are harnessing information technology. Organic farms and so-called plant factories are becoming hothouses for innovation. International investors are keen to water the seeds. These are some cutting-edge facilities to show a glimpse into the future of Asian farming.Spread is a company, which is taking a different approach in innovative farming. It wants to win in the mass market such as in supermarkets — and that means competing against veggies grown in the field. The secret of the company is volume,yes more production in a small enclosure. The company packs a lot of lettuce into its 3,000 sq m factory in western Kyoto, Japan's ancient capital. The heads grow on rows upon rows of shelves under fluorescent lights. The factory has the capacity to ship 21,000 of them per day — enough to make the lettuce profitable even if it sells for Y198 ($1.79). The average price in Tokyo as of November was Y251, according to Numbeo, which tracks the cost of living in big cities. Whether by growing crops indoors or other means, Asia needs to boost yields and mitigate extreme weather. Consumption in big markets like China and India is likely to continue growing steadily. “Asia cannot produce enough to support itself,” the Netherlands' Rabobank wrote in its Asia-Pacific: Agricultural Perspectives report. The bank noted that “limited arable land, inadequate water and poor resource management” are constraining production. That is at the best of times. This year, vast swaths of Asia were hit by drought linked to the El Niño weather phenomenon, resulting in massive crop failures. To feed itself, Asia needs solutions, and Singapore's Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory aims to provide some.The non-profit research institute is funded by Temasek Trust — the philanthropic arm of sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings. TLL, as the lab is known, spent eight years developing Temasek Rice, a resilient breed capable of withstanding extreme weather conditions and producing higher yields. Temasek Rice was created using a modern technique known as marker-assisted selection. This allows scientists to zero in on desired traits and breed new, improved crops. Yin Zhongchao, TLL's senior principal investigator, said this type of breeding can enhance food security by increasing production “in a more efficient and sustainable manner”.Since land is limited in Singapore, TLL’s rice is being grown in Indonesia, and the lab wants to partner with more companies to boost production. The spread of mobile communications gives farmers quite a lot of knowledge at their fingertips. Even without souped-up seeds, detailed weather data and other information can help them to cope with climate change, and other threats that come their way. The Vietnamese state telecom company VinaPhone started a service called Nong Thon Xanh, or Green Country. Basically, it turns mobile phones into farm assistants. Through a social network, farmers can subscribe to three packages. For 10,000 dong ($0.45) per month, they get access to an agricultural warning package that includes a range of information: weather forecasts, prices, plant disease alerts, guidelines on relevant state policies, advisories on abnormal conditions affecting agriculture and so on. Coffee and rice packages, available for 31 cents and 22 cents a week, respectively, offer tailored guidance to help farmers prevent diseases from wiping out their crops.more

Squid delicacy more common in UK as seas are warmer.

Climate changes and actions changing food preferences in the UK. The seas are getting warmer so more of squids are are now being caught at 60% of survey stations in the North Sea, compared with 20% in the 1980s. Squid and fish that thrive in warmer waters, such as sardines and anchovies, are flourishing around the North Sea, according to fisheries data while the likes of cod are heading north, away from British waters. Dr John Pinnegar, of the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas), which has been monitoring North Sea fish populations for more than 100 years, said models for 2025 and beyond suggested that seawater temperatures off the UK may continue to rise. Fishing boats are now catching species that have not been caught in the area before. Dr Pinnegar, programme director for marine climate change at Cefas, said summer squid fisheries had expanded around the Moray Firth in north-east Scotland, as part of efforts to reduce over-fishing of more traditional species such as haddock and cod. "A lot of the things we see increasing in abundance around the UK are marine animals that would probably originally [be] thought of as being Mediterranean or characteristic of the Bay of Biscay, or around Portugal or Spain," he added. "They're now increasing in UK waters because the waters are getting more conducive for those sorts of species, whereas other species are shifting the center of their distribution towards the north of the UK." A recent research found that squid appeared to be benefiting from climate change, at the expense of finned fish, and they have been identified as a valuable alternative fishing target particularly in the North Sea. Worldwide catches of squid, octopus and cuttlefish (cephalopods) have increased considerably over the last two decades.more

Arctic reindeer shrinking in size.

A new research has shown that arctic reindeer's are shrinking in size due to climate action on food supplies.Scientists say Arctic reindeer are shrinking in size due to the impact of climate change on food supplies. Scottish researchers, working with colleagues from Norway, have been studying the animals in a group of islands near the North Pole.The weight of the reindeer over a 16-year period has gone down by around 12%, from 55 kilogrammes to just over 48. Professor Steve Albon, from the James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen, told the BBC the difference climate change makes to the animals.watch

Terminally ill boy dies in Santa's arms.

A US man who dresses up as Santa Claus fulfilled a dying boy's Christmas wish by visiting him at his bedside, before the youngster passed away in his arms. Eric Schmitt-Matzen rushed to a local in Tennessee hospital after receiving a call about a terminally ill five-year-old boy who wanted to see Santa Claus. The 60-year-old impersonator said he gave the child a present and a big hug before holding him as he died.The boy's family watched on from the hallway as they cried, he told the BBC."When I felt the life go from him, I looked up, tears running down my face, and looked over at the window and that's when mom started screaming," he said.continue

Methane surge needs urgent attention.

Methane surge needs urgent attention. Scientists say they are concerned at the rate at which methane in the atmosphere is now rising. After a period of relative stagnation in the 2000s, the concentration of the gas has surged. Methane (CH4) is a smaller component than carbon dioxide (CO2) but drives a more potent greenhouse effect. Researchers warn that efforts to tackle climate change will be undermined unless CH4 is also brought under tighter control. "CO2 is still the dominant target for mitigation, for good reason. But we run the risk if we lose sight of methane of offsetting the gains we might make in bringing down levels of carbon dioxide," said Robert Jackson from Stanford University, US. Prof Jackson was speaking ahead of this week's American Geophysical Union (AGU) meeting in San Francisco where methane trends will be a major point of discussion. "Methane has many sources, but the culprit behind the steep rise is probably agriculture," Prof Jackson told BBC News."We do see some increased fossil fuel emissions over the last decade, but we think biological sources, and tropical sources, are the most likely." Agricultural sources would include cattle and other ruminants, as well as rice paddies. Emissions from wetlands are almost certainly a significant part of this story as well. But so too could be the role played by the chemical reactions that normally remove methane from the atmosphere. One of the most important of these is the destruction process involving the so-called hydroxyl radical.The concentration of this chemical species in the atmosphere might also be changing in some way.Continue

Burger King breaks into Bangladesh market

Burger King breaks into Bangladesh market: US fast food chain Burger King has opened its first outlet in Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka, predicting expansion amidst the country’s fast-growing economy and promising to target local meat procurement.

United Nations wants Mozambique goat meat recognition

United Nations wants Mozambique goat meat recognition: Mozambique goat meat is one of 13 products from the world’s poorest countries that have been backed by the United Nations to secure coveted Geographical Indication (GI) status.