This report from the John Hopkins Center for a Livable Future addresses a common concern among urban farming communities: is food grown in the city safe to eat? Focusing on Baltimore, it finds that soil, water and produce from the urban farms and gardens studied have safe levels of harmful metals, with some rare exceptions. TABLE staff member Matthew Kessler contributed to this project. 

On 11 May 2021, TABLE and LEAP facilitated a dialogue between Ken Giller (Wageningen University) and Yichao Rui (Rodale Institute) on the topic of Regenerative Agriculture. We asked: why is it taking the world by storm and what are the broader implications for farmers and food systems?

This report from Cambridge Consultants examines the technologies and data science techniques that can be used to measure soil carbon cheaply and accurate, enabling farmers to sell carbon sequestration credits.

This white paper, funded by Our Land and Water (one of 11 National Science Challenges run by the New Zealand government) and the NEXT Foundation, explores what regenerative agriculture means in the context of New Zealand and identifies 17 topics where more research is required. It acknowledges the alignment between regenerative agriculture and Māori food practices and knowledge.

This paper describes a method for irrigating agricultural soils in areas that are prone to drought or do not have access to water supplies. The system is based on a “super moisture absorbent gel” (SMAG), which absorbs moisture from the atmosphere and then releases it to the crops when heated by the sun. 

This paper, co-authored by Table member Ken Giller, investigates the soil organic carbon stocks of oil palm plantations in Sumatra, Indonesia under a variety of management practices. Plantations using “best management practices” were found to have the highest soil carbon stocks, at 68 t ha−1. Plantations with smallholder management practices had the lowest soil carbon stocks, at 46 t ha−1, while those with current standard management practices had stocks of 57 t ha−1.

This feature from Oxford’s Our World In Data project investigates the figures behind the often-heard statistic that the world has only 60 harvests left because of soil erosion. It concludes that although this figure is not correct, soil erosion is a problem. Globally, 16% of soils are estimated to have a remaining lifespan of less than 100 years; half are expected to last over 1000 years; and one-third are expected to last over 5000 years. The feature recommends cover cropping, minimal or no tillage, and contour cultivation to extend soil lifespans.

This paper presents a global analysis of the greenhouse gas balance of the world’s grasslands - both managed and natural - between 1750 and 2012, aiming to separate the direct effects of management by humans and the indirect effects of climate change. It finds that in most world regions, managed grasslands (those grazed by livestock or mown for grass forage) have a net warming effect on the climate, while sparsely grazed grasslands (natural grasslands not affected by livestock, but which may be grazed by wild animals) have a net cooling effect.