In the 'Carnivore's Dilemma', part of National Geographic’s special series on The Future of Food, Robert Kunzick (National Geographic’s senior environmental editor) contributes to the current meat debate by discussing his visit to 'Cactus Feeders', the company that operates 9 feed yards in Kansas, USA. He explores the role of pharmaceuticals and hormones for the health and productivity of the animals and also discusses environmental issues including water supply, beef’s carbon footprint and feedlots.  For the complete article with infographics and photographs, see here.

Crop, food, and feed composition studies are considered an essential part of the safety assessment of new crop varieties, including those developed through biotechnology. Information obtained from such studies is used to assess similarities and differences in important nutrients and anti-nutrients. This database created by International Life Sciences Institute, was generated from crop composition data obtained from studies conducted over a number of years at multiple worldwide locations.

Food Ethics: The Basics  provides an introduction to the ethical dimensions of the production and consumption of food. 

In this report commissioned by Center for Global Development, researchers at Chalmers University, Linköping University and Vienna University describe how international trade with agricultural and wood products is an increasingly important driver of tropical deforestation. More than a third of recent deforestation can be tied to production of beef, soy, palm oil and timber.

The latest survey by the Food Standards Agency presents results on reported behaviours, attitudes and knowledge relating to food safety issues. It provides data on people’s reports of their food purchasing, storage, preparation, consumption and factors that may affect these, such as eating habits, influences on where people choose to eat out and experiences of food poisoning.

This report, Closing the door on HFCs, documents the continued shift away from hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in the supermarket refrigeration sector. Now in its sixth year, EIA’s Chilling Facts reports have become an important resource used to disseminate information about progress in the shift away from HFC-based technology.

A study on the impact of climate change on fish stocks by scientists from the UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) has identified ocean hotspots for fish extinction and a link between rising temperatures and fish movement.

This fact sheet from Green Facts deals with antibiotic resistance, drawing upon and summarising several leading scientific reports.  It discusses questions such as ‘What has caused this resistance and how can the spread of it be limited?’ There is a short section on antibiotics use in the livestock sector. Read the full fact sheet online here. Find more resources on antibiotic resistance on our website.