POSTnote
New Plant Breeding Techniques
This note outlines some of the new plant breeding techniques developed recently and looks at their applications and the regulatory challenges they raise
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POSTnote
Dietary Advice, Pregnancy & Breastfeeding
This note focuses on the latest UK dietary advice given to women from family planning through pregnancy and into breastfeeding.
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POSTnote
Environmental Crime
Environmental crime is generally used to describe any illegal activity that harms the environment. It can also have serious human health and social impacts. This POSTnote outlines the different types of environmental crime and options for tackling them.
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POSTnote
Reform of Freshwater Abstraction
In some parts of the UK, high levels of water abstraction are reducing the quantity and quality of surface water (rivers, lakes) and groundwater (water accumulated in spaces in soil and rocks). This POSTnote sets out the challenge of balancing competing requirements for freshwater, and summarises proposed reforms to the abstraction system in England and Wales and their implications
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POSTnote
The Water-Energy-Food Nexus
The term nexus describes the key interactions between parts of a system or systems. This POSTnote summarises current understanding of the interactions between water, energy and food production and examines how nexus approaches can be used to inform policy decisions.
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POSTnote
Genome Editing
This POSTnote covers current and future uses of genome editing, how it is regulated and the potential concerns it raises.
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POSTnote
Rewilding and Ecosystem Services
This POSTnote explores the consequences of increasing the role of natural processes within landscapes. Evidence from the UK and abroad suggests that rewilding can benefit both wildlife and local people, but animal reintroductions could adversely affect some land-users.
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POSTnote
Marine Microplastic Pollution
Plastic pollution is accumulating rapidly in the world’s oceans. The potential effects of microplastics on the environment and human health are an area of active research. This POSTnote summarises their sources and spread, the evidence that they present a risk and possible strategies to reduce plastic pollution.
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POSTnote
Intellectual Property and Plants
This POSTnote considers the different intellectual property rights approaches available to plant breeders.
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POSTnote
Trends in the Environment
Human activities interact with natural systems in complex ways; they can cause long-term damage to systems humans are dependent on. This POSTnote summarises a range of such pressures on the environment. It also identifies a number of trends and their effects on the UK.
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POSTnote
Precision Farming
Precision farming uses technology to improve efficiency. It offers benefits for yields, profits and the environment. However, uptake by farmers has been slow. This POSTnote describes precision farming methods, adoption and factors influencing it, and future practices.
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POSTnote
Securing UK Soil Health
2015 is the United Nations International Year of Soils. Soils underpin the global food system and regulate water, carbon and nitrogen cycles but are subject to pressures from population growth and climate change. In England & Wales, soil degradation costs around £1bn per year. This POSTnote outlines the evidence for measures that sustain soils and existing policies affecting soil health.
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POSTnote
Herbicide Resistance
Increasing resistance to herbicides, coupled with a lack of new types of herbicides, has the potential to reduce crop yields. The UK Government’s commitment to increase yields over the next 25 years will require the development of alternative crop protection methods. This POSTnote outlines the challenges of herbicide resistance and reviews the possible approaches to long-term weed control strategies.
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POSTnote
Novel Food Production
Food production systems worldwide may have to adapt radically to meet the rising global demand for food. Emerging approaches in the food sector include controlled-environment farming, alternative animal feeds, edible insects, and lab-cultured meat. This POSTnote considers these new technologies and summarises their respective advantages and limitations.
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POSTnote
Emissions from Crops
Agriculture contributes 9% of the UK’s greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions burden and 10-12% globally. Although there is a long-term declining trend from UK agriculture, the sector may account for a larger share of overall emissions in the future as other sectors reduce emissions. This POSTnote focuses on reducing GHG emissions from growing and storing arable and horticultural crops.
Total results (page 4 of 8)