Farm animals consume over a third of global crops but only deliver 12% of the world population’s calories. This is not just an inefficient use of crops but can also carry huge environmental costs when land is cleared and forests are cut down to make way for livestock feed crop production. For example, a whopping 88 % of soybeans in the UK are imported from Brazil, with virtually all of soybean meal eaten by livestock (97% globally). Possibly even more worrying is that fish that is perfectly good to be eaten by people in West Africa is taken out of local markets that cannot compete with the prices Western feed producers pay for the local catch.

Mapping and dissecting the sustainable diet problem is among the ultimate interdisciplinary scientific tasks of today. I don’t say that lightly. For the last 20 or so years, the evidence that diet is a driver of some of the major challenges facing humanity has grown, not diminished. And the scale of the task has quietly dawned on all who monitor and explore the nature of food’s impact on society, ecosystems and economy.

There’s a new kid on the block of scientific breakthroughs with potentially revolutionary applications: the CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing system. But what is it, how might it be applied in agriculture and what are the implications of this application? Below we provide a summary of the many potential applications and implications of CRISPR-Cas9 technology, a brief overview of the science behind it, and most importantly a guided tour of what we think are the most useful resources on this topic, tailored towards FCRN members seeking to find out more about CRISPR-Cas9 in agriculture.

In our recent study, Life cycle assessment of cricket farming in north-eastern Thailand, we found that cricket farming has fewer environmental impacts than broiler chicken farming. This finding does not come as a surprise since crickets are biologically and physiologically different from vertebrate livestock species, and other studies have drawn similar conclusions (see for example journal papers here, here and here). However, this study is the first of its kind to conduct a life cycle assessment on insect farming for human consumption on a commercial scale.

While one patty sizzles on the grill, another bleeds onto your plate – but neither contains any beef. Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods are two start-up companies making waves for their recent innovations in plant-based “meatlike” burgers.

Summer and the BBQ season are just about still here. By tradition, meat is the obvious choice for most – it is tasty, rich in protein and micronutrients, and available in an abundance of forms at a reasonable price.  However, knowledge and understanding of the negative environmental and health impacts of meat is spreading. But is all meat bad or are some forms preferable over others?This piece is written by FCRN member and previous blog contributor Elin Röös and her colleague Sara Spendrup at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.

In this piece, Dr. Tim Benton reflects on the latest report by the FCRN: Grazed and confused?Tim Benton is a Professor of Population Ecology and dean of strategic research initiatives at the University of Leeds. From 2011-16, he was the 'champion' of the UK’s Global Food Security programme, a multi-agency partnership of the UK’s public bodies with interest in the challenges around food. He is currently a Visiting Fellow at Chatham House.

In this piece, Adrian Muller introduces a widening discourse on sustainable agriculture. Adrian Muller is an FCRN member and senior researcher at FiBL (Research Institute of Organic Agriculture) and ETH Zurich.

In this piece, Sue Dibb introduces opportunities for food policy change in the UK.FCRN member Sue Dibb is Executive Director of Eating Better, the UK civil society alliance of over 50 organisations working together to help people move towards eating less meat and dairy and more sustainable alternatives.