Crop yields are projected to decrease under future climate conditions, and recent research suggests that yields have already been impacted. However, current impacts on a diversity of crops subnationally and implications for food security remains unclear. Here, we constructed linear regression relationships using weather and reported crop data to assess …
Due to efforts undertaken by Madhya Pradesh government, 148-kg per hectare increase has been registered in farm productivity in the state during the last four years. For this, the state government provided better agricultural resources to farmers including certified and better seeds which proved to be the most important factor. …
Biotechnology proponents claim that genetically modified (GM) crops are good for consumers, farmers and the environment, and that they are growing in popularity around the world. This report attempt to provide a nuanced, fact-based assessment ofGMcrops around the world, and to clear up common misconceptions about their nature and impacts. …
Biotechnology proponents claim that genetically modified (GM) crops are good for consumers, farmers and the environment, and that they are growing in popularity around the world. Unfortunately, journalists often report such claims as fact, without first subjecting them to critical scrutiny. As in past editions of
The United States is the world's leading producer of soy. However many U.S. farmers are shifting from soy to corn in order to qualify for generous government subsidies intended to promote biofuel production. The rising price for soy has important consequences for Amazonian forests and savanna woodlands. (Letters)
Bowing to pressure from consumer and environmental groups, Brazilian soy traders have stopped buying soybeans grown in the Amazon basin for the time being. The move is an effort to preserve the world's largest rainforests, the Amazon. The moratorium will continue for two years and apply to soybeans planted in …
The Amazon rainforests have a new enemy: soya bean. According to deforestation figures released by the Brazilian government recently, a huge forest area of 26,130 square kilometres (sq km) was destroyed in the year ending August 2004, mainly by soya bean farmers. The destruction was almost six per cent higher …
sarikah atreya A popular traditional food of the eastern Himalayan region is the kinema. It is nothing more than fermented soybeans, but is a good source of vitamins and minerals. Most importantly, it is the cheapest source of protein in the region. It also helps digest other foodstuff. It is …
Soak soyabean seeds overnight. Then boil them till they become soft. Drain the water and mash the beans with a wooden pestle. The mashing helps accelerate fermentation as it increases the surface area available for the growth of aerobic spore-forming bacteria. Thereafter, place grits in a bamboo basket lined with …
australia: Three of the country's eight states recently halted the cultivation of genetically modified (GM) food crops. Another state, Tasmania, had already placed a moratorium on such cultivation in 2001, which was extended last year till 2008. On April 1, New South Wales (NSW) shot down trials of GM canola …
Going against the grain of a September 9 federal appeals court directive, Brazil has allowed farmers to grow genetically modified (gm) soya bean this year. In the process, the country has temporarily legitimised large-scale cultivation of the legume in its southern states. Farmers of this region had, for some years …
dupont scientists have discovered that soyabeans grown in space are similar to crops grown on the Earth. A 97-day long research, conducted on the International Space Station, was the first project during which a crop's growth cycle was completed in space
Monsanto Corporation has been granted exclusive monopoly over all genetically transformed soyabean varieties. The Munich-based European Patent Office (epo) upheld a patent held by Monsanto on transgenic research on soyabean. The patent covers the process that describes genetic transformation of plants and soyabean seeds as well as tissues obtained by …
A recent draft measure by the new Brazilian government to control the country's rampant illegal transgenic soya trade has created a storm among those for and against genetically modified (gm) soya. There is widespread support as well as antagonism towards such varieties of the crop in Brazil (see: Down To …
the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (geac) categorically rejected for the second time in five months a request by two North-based aid agencies to allow the import of 23,000 tonnes of genetically modified (gm) corn-soya blend into India. Permission was denied because it was felt that the consignment could be contaminated …
an unprecedented legal battle is being fought in Pakistan's Lahore High Court. Responding to a petition filed by two food rights groups against the import of genetically modified (gm) soyabean from the us, the Pakistan government has declared that the transgenic variety is safe in terms of its impact on …
a recent study could have broad implications for farmers' ability to stop pests from becoming resistant to pesticides. Scientists from the us-based North Carolina State University have found that in the us, cotton pests mature feeding on corn all summer before moving towards south to munch cotton in the autumn. …
Prodigene Inc, a Texas-based biotechnology company, is at the centre of a row after its soyabean produce was found to be contaminated with genetically engineered corn grown earlier in the same field. The us government has ordered the company to destroy 500,000 bushels of soyabean, estimated to be worth millions …