AGRI NEWS NET

Headlines of the week Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An international team of scientists, including from the Universities of Bristol and Oxford, and the Natural History Museum, have discovered that a well-preserved fossilised worm dating from 518-million-years-ago resembles the ancestor of three major groups of living animals.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Despite efforts to pivot toward renewable sources of energy, oil remains the backbone of modern society. It provides fuels for heat and transportation, and chemicals for everything from plastics to pharmaceuticals. But all these uses require separating crude oil into its various components. That separation process—which traditionally relies on heat—takes a tremendous amount of energy and accounts for roughly 1% of global greenhouse gas emissions each year. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Agriculture has disrupted the planet more than anything we have ever done, including burning fossil fuels. A sustainable future depends on recognizing this fact – and radically changing how we farm and eat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Nuts, long known for their health benefits, have always been associated with holiday indulgence and the Spring Festival period in China generally sees explosive growth in sales.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Researchers from the Marine Ecology Group in UCC in Ireland collected feathers from Manx shearwaters, a seabird species thought to be at risk from oil pollution. The researchers examined the feathers to see how quickly water would pass through after exposure to increasing concentrations of oil. Feathers were also assessed under high-powered microscopes to examine structural changes after contamination. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Agricultural rewilding" can also help to overcome concerns about the impact of rewilding on livelihoods and produce "win-win" environmental and human benefits, according to the researchers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Wood is the wonder fibre of the world. Multifunctional and renewable, when used sustainably, wood and its components are an indispensable part of the everyday life. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Water security remains one of the biggest challenges facing South Africa, with the country’s supply facing many threats amid increasing demand and relatively low water availability. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Headlines of the week. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On quiet nights across large swaths of the African bush, you may hear a series of whooping calls in the distance. This unique sound is the long-distance vocalisation used by spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta) to communicate with each other.For hyenas, it’s advantageous to know who is calling before deciding to respond. They don’t treat every member of their group the same – and the caller could even be an intruder in their territory. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Climate change has already increased global temperatures, greatly increasing extremes. This will continue unless greenhouse gas emissions are reduced to “net-zero”. The 1.5°C target of the Paris Agreement requires emissions reductions of around 50% in the next 10 years. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

During the northern hemisphere summer of 2022, yet another round of extreme heat waves roasted Eurasia, North America and northern Africa – a stark reminder that these conditions are becoming the new normal. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Headline news of the week. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As farmers protest across Europe, blockading cities, smashing through police barricades, and dumping manure, European politicians are falling over themselves to promise increased trade barriers against African food and agriculture imports. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There is a growing global interest in producing high-quality protein products from simple flies or fly larvae, to be specific. And two Cape Town companies are making food while the sun shines. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

More than half of federal funding for “climate-smart” agriculture in the US goes to farming practices that are unlikely to reduce greenhouse gas emissions – and in some cases, would even increase them, according to a new report by the non-profit Environmental Working Group (EWG). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Agricultural producers face dual challenges of increasing output for a growing world population while reducing negative effects on the environment. Digital technologies and artificial intelligence can facilitate sustainable production, but farmers must weigh opportunities and risks when deciding whether to embrace such tools. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Headlines of the week. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Compared to conventional practices and bare soil, plant covers generated by intercropping between the alleys of olive groves increase carbon sequestration and reduce soil losses due to erosion. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Imagine a world where iconic African raptor species like the secretarybird, Wahlberg’s eagle, African harrier-hawk and brown snake eagle, amongst others, are no longer around – vanished from the landscape. While this may sound like a doomsday prediction, without intervention, this might one day be a reality – especially in the west of the African continent. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

News Headlines of the week.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Grown-up giraffes just aren’t huggy, cuddling, demonstrative animals. So it took identity-recognition software grinding through five years of data to reveal that female social life matters to survival.--- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/johannpretorius/message Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Agriculture involves a difficult balance between food production and environmental impact. For example, fertilisers can help to achieve good crop yields, but over-using them produces greenhouse gas emissions andpollution. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Crop micronutrients refer to essential elements that plants require in small quantities for proper growth, development, and overall health. While plants need these nutrients in smaller amounts compared to macronutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, they are nonetheless critical for various physiological processes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Farming and Agriculture Head lines of the week. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The U.S. marijuana industry is booming as states all across the country continue to legalize medical and recreational cannabis. U.S. marijuana sales are reportedly set to jump over 20% to $33 billion in 2022, which is up from just $9 billion five years ago and $3 billion in 2015. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Across Europe, tens of thousands of farmers have been coming out in force to air their grievances, ranging from the cost-of-living crisis to the EU’s sustainability policies, and the fallout from the Russia-Ukraine war. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

News head line news of the week. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A small team of researchers with members from the University of Toulouse, the University of Lausanne, and the University of Padova has found evidence that honeybees have a mental number line in their tiny brains. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This statement alone reveals a misunderstanding of global ecology, and an ignorance of how essential livestock is to 1.3 billion people. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A new scientific review article in Nature Reviews Chemistry discusses how carbon dioxide (CO2) converts from a gas to a solid in ultrathin films of water on underground rock surfaces. These solid minerals, known as carbonates, are both stable and common. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A bay-breasted warbler weighs about the same as four pennies, but twice a year makes an extraordinary journey.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Scientists are sounding the alarm about the extreme increases in the Earth’s temperature. A new report by UNICEF warns that 2022 could be the “coldest year of the rest of our lives”. Heatwaves are becoming stronger and lasting longer. These increases are threatening the limits of human survival. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In what year will the human population grow too large for the Earth to sustain? The answer is about 1970, according to research by the World Wildlife Fund. In 1970, the planet's 3 and a half billion people were sustainable. But on this New Year's Day, the population is 8 billion. Today, wild plants and animals are running out of places to live.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s no secret that air pollution is a serious problem facing the world today. Just how serious? A new study on global daily levels of air pollution shows that hardly anywhere on Earth is safe from unhealthy air.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

AGRI WEEKEND RUSH – with AGRI NEWS NET and Farming portal.News Headlines of the week.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chicken feathers are made up of 90 percent keratin, a fibrous protein also found in hair, hooves, and horns. They are considered a byproduct of the poultry industry and, unlike goose or duck down, lack the necessary fluff and length to stuff pillows and jackets. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A scientific study of pitcher plants species that use the same complex ‘springboard’ mechanism for insect capture has revealed an explanation for how complex traits requiring multiple components may evolve. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

AGRI WEEKEND RUSH – with AGRI NEWS NET and Farming portal.News Headlines of the week.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Faster, cheaper, and more transparent cross-border payment services have the potential to improve many lives by supporting economic growth, international trade, global development, and financial inclusion. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The world could still, theoretically, meet its goal of keeping global warming under 1.5 degrees Celsius, a level many scientists consider a dangerous threshold. Realistically, that's unlikely to happen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Heavy farm machinery Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

AGRI WEEKEND RUSH – with AGRI NEWS NET and Farming portal.News Headlines of the week.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dung beetles are found on every continent except Antarctica, in forests, grasslands, prairies and deserts. And now, like many other species, they are coping with the effects of climate change. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Headline News of the week Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Generative AI can address some of SA’s most pressing challenges and help to transform the lives of many citizens, particularly in healthcare, education, financial inclusion and agriculture. But for this to be effective, SA’s public and private sectors will need to engage in constant open dialogue, concerted action and cross-functional collaboration. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A large-scale study of 47 species of monkeys and lemurs has found that climate change and deforestation are driving these tree-dwelling animals to the ground, where they are at higher risk due to lack of preferred food and shelter and may experience more negative interaction with humans and domestic animals. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.