TABLE | TableDebates

Study: Impacts of genetically engineered crops on pesticide use in the U.S. – the first sixteen years

A study published this week by Charles Benbrook of Washington State University finds that the use of herbicides in the production of three genetically modified herbicide-tolerant crops (cotton, soybeans, and corn) has actually increased over the last sixteen years. Benbrook writes that there is a strong correlation between the emergence and spread of glyphosate-resistant weeds and the upward trajectory in herbicide use. We are particularly keen to hear your comments on these findings. How well do you think the study was designed? How do these findings compare to other studies in other regions of the world?

UK report: Ecosystem services from Environmental Stewardship that benefit agricultural production

This report details the results of a study commissioned by Natural England – it looks at how some of the options under the UK’s Environmental Stewardship scheme provide various ecosystem services which are important to agricultural production and productivity.

Paper: food losses and waste in the US

This paper starts with a summary of why food waste is an issue, from an environmental and economic perspective, reviews other developed country estimates of food waste losses, and then calculates the volume and economic value of retail and consumer stage food losses in the US, looking at this at an aggregate and individual consumer level (it doesn’t quantify environmental impacts).

Study: Organic versus conventional foods – health comparisons

Study: health and GHG implications of reduced red and processed meat consumption in the UK

This study is in keeping with a range of others that consider the effects, to health and GHG emissions of reducing consumption of red and processed meats.

Paper: biodiversity and environmental stress

A paper published in Ecology Letters finds that ecosystems with a high degree of biodiversity can cope with more stress, such as higher temperatures or increasing salinity, than those with less biodiversity.

Biofuels and livestock report by FAO

This report by the FAO examines the important issue of the relationship between biofuel production and livestock: there can be synergies (ie. the use of biofuel co-products as animal feed) and trade offs (such as biofuel production effects on the price of grains).

Study: A model-based quantitative assessment of the carbon benefits of introducing iLUC factors in the European Renewable Energy Directive

This modelling study, published in Global Change Biology, finds that if indirect land use change (iLUC) factors are not accounted for when assessing the GHG balance of biofuels, then “the Renewable Energy Directive could be expected to deliver only a 4% carbon saving compared to fossil fuel, with a 30% chance that it would actually cause a net emissions increase.”

Biofuels and EU policy developments

The EU is considering plans to limit crop-based biofuels to 5% of transport fuel.