Agriculture News and Research

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First Edition: September 2, 2009

Baucus-Grassley Bipartisan Partnership Frays Under Health Reform Pressures For nearly a decade, the cross-aisle team of Democrat Max Baucus and Republican Charles Grassley has shaped dozens of tax cuts, trade measures and health bills on the Senate Finance Committee. That led many to predict that the partnership would be strong enough to broker bipartisan health care legislation this year (Kaiser Health News).

2 Sep 2009

Monsanto sings a non-exclusive research and commercial license agreement with Cellectis

Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) today announced a non-exclusive research and commercial license agreement with France-based Cellectis S.A. (Paris:ALCLS), a biotechnology company specialized in genome engineering, for broad use of its meganuclease technology in plants.

2 Sep 2009

World Climate Conference calls for global weather surveillance system, says could help predict disease outbreaks

The U.N. World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Monday opened the World Climate Conference - a week of talks in Geneva aimed at establishing a better global weather surveillance system to provide countries with "earlier, more accurate warnings about hurricanes, droughts and floods," the Associated Press reports.

2 Sep 2009

The Leverhulme Trust funds researchers for understanding the relationship between agricultural production and population health

Pioneering researchers coordinated by the London International Development Centre (LIDC) have won approximately £3.5m to address the global food security crisis by investigating the neglected links between agriculture and health. Their programme, funded by The Leverhulme Trust, bridges traditional disciplines and aims to create a new holistic paradigm for understanding the relationship between agricultural production and population health.

2 Sep 2009

Senator Bob Dole urges a 'fresh start' on the issue of health care reform

In today's Washington Post, Senator Bob Dole urges a 'fresh start' on the issue of health care reform and said it is "the vital issue of our time, and Obama should be out front with his specific plan on this make-or-break issue."

1 Sep 2009

University of California's entomology professors selected as fellows of ESA

Brian A. Federici and Alexander S. Raikhel, distinguished professors of entomology at the University of California, Riverside, have been selected as fellows of the Entomological Society of America (ESA).

29 Aug 2009

Free-living microalgae be used as broad-spectrum automated biosensor systems for continuous monitoring of drinking water

A method to detect contaminants in municipal water supplies has undergone further refinements by two Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers whose findings are published on line in Water Environment Research.

29 Aug 2009

H1N1 virus detected in turkeys

The detection of an H1N1 virus in turkeys in Chile raises concern that poultry farms elsewhere in the world could also become infected with the pandemic flu virus currently circulating in humans, FAO said today.

27 Aug 2009

Transgenic fish can entail risks and undesirable effects on natural environment

Fast growing transgenic fish can revolutionise commercial fish farming and relieve the pressure on overexploited fish stocks. But what happens in the natural environment if transgenic fish escape? Researchers at the University of Gothenburg have studied transgenic fish on behalf of the EU and are urging caution: Until further notice transgenic fish should be bred in closed systems on land, says Fredrik Sundström at the Department of Zoology, University of Gothenburg, Sweden.

27 Aug 2009

Myths and facts about food safety explained

Recipes can be handed down from generation to generation and so can myths surrounding food safety -- sometimes with sickening consequences. September is National Food Safety Education Month and the Partnership for Food Safety Education (PFSE), in cooperation with the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is marking the occasion with an outreach to consumers aimed at debunking four common food safety myths.

27 Aug 2009

Virginia Tech researchers to help pre-diabetic adults begin resistance training for preventing diabetes

Systematic, progressive resistance training - also called strength training - is a safe and efficient way for middle-aged and older adults to improve their health. A Virginia Tech led research team that includes experts in behavior, exercise, physiology, and medicine is designing a program to help pre-diabetic adults begin and, most important, maintain resistance training in order to prevent diabetes.

26 Aug 2009

Vertical farms could solve food production problems, opinion piece says

"If climate change and population growth progress at their current pace, in roughly 50 years farming as we know it will no longer exist," which means that the "majority of people could soon be without enough food or water," Dickson Despommier, a professor of public health at Columbia University, warns in a New York Times opinion piece

26 Aug 2009

Malaysian biotechnology industry expected to grow by revenue at an average rate of 15 percent per year

Malaysia's plans for its biotechnology sector remain ambitious even with the recent global meltdown. By 2020 the government envisages this sector will employ up to 160,000 people and will contribute to 5% of Malaysia's GDP.

25 Aug 2009

USDA donates funds for teaching food safety awareness to AIDS patients

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health have received a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to educate AIDS patients on food safety.

25 Aug 2009

Innovotech reports year-on-year revenue increase for second-quarter 2009

Innovotech Inc. (TSX VENTURE:IOT) today announced its unaudited financial and operational results for the three and six month periods ended June 30, 2009.

21 Aug 2009

WFP says more than 1M Kenyans need food aid due to drought; India increases food distribution to deal with drought

More than 1 million Kenyans living in prolonged drought conditions are not getting the food aid they need, Gabrielle Menezes, a spokeswoman for the U.N.'s World Food Program (WFP), said recently, the Associated Press reports. She said WFP already provides emergency food aid to about 2.5 million people in Kenya, but another 1.3 million still need help.

21 Aug 2009

RBC Life Sciences reports on patent-pending, nutritional supplement

RBC Life Sciences, Inc., a provider of proprietary nutritional supplements and wound care/pain management products, announced today the debut of NeuroBright(TM), a patent-pending, nutritional supplement that improved test subjects' learning and memory skills by 50 percent during a recent laboratory trial.

20 Aug 2009

Asia needs irrigation, farming reform to avoid 'chronic food shortages'

To avert "chronic food shortages and social unrest," Asia must improve its irrigation and farming processes, according to a study, issued by the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), Agence France-Presse reports. The study found that by 2050, Asia is expected to have an additional 1.5 billion people, which would put "more pressure on already scarce food supplies," the news service writes.

19 Aug 2009

Asia's food and feed demand is expected to double by 2050 bringing shortages

A comprehensive new study of irrigation in Asia warns that, without major reforms and innovations in the way water is used for agriculture, many developing nations face the politically risky prospect of having to import more than a quarter of the rice, wheat and maize they will need by 2050.

17 Aug 2009

Alticor and Metagenics enters into joint venture agreement

Alticor and Metagenics today announced that they have entered into a joint venture agreement. Under the terms of the agreement, Alticor will obtain a substantial ownership interest in Metagenics, and the current Metagenics shareholders will continue to retain a significant interest in the company. The agreement is subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by Metagenics shareholders and antitrust clearance.

12 Aug 2009