The industry ties and policy backgrounds of these officials and cabinet nominees are varied – and often contradictory
Trump plots healthier America but deregulation likely to feature on menu
As Donald Trump returns to the White House, food and agriculture policy are shaping up to be key pieces of his agenda. To start to understand how he might tackle these issues, we’re digging into the industry ties and policy backgrounds of his senior officials and nominated cabinet members, who have varied – and often contradictory – positions on food and agriculture. The way they handle immigration, labor, environmental regulations and the social safety net will shape how Americans eat for the next four years.
Continue reading...
Breaking Waves: Ocean News
01/31/2025 - 08:00
01/31/2025 - 08:00
Preliminary research provides rare insight in to the reptile’s habits and movement across urban landscapes
New research has revealed surprising details about the secret lives of crocodiles swimming through Florida’s waterways, including the long distances some travel in search of food and shelter, and their ability to slither unnoticed through populous neighborhoods.
The preliminary study provides rare insight into the habits and habitat of the species in a state more commonly associated with its estimated 1.5 million alligators. Florida has a non-hatchling population of about only 2,000 American crocodiles, the researchers say, which made it difficult initially to find and tag a sufficient number of the reptiles in urban areas in order to observe them.
Continue reading...
01/31/2025 - 08:00
President’s cabinet picks suggest help for big companies and regulatory rollbacks will take precedence in food policy
Trump will change the face of US food policy. These are the players to watch
When Robert F Kennedy Jr. suspended his campaign for the presidency in August 2024, throwing his support behind Donald Trump, he promised to continue fighting to “make America healthy again”. Kennedy’s criticism of ultra-processed foods and big food companies became a central feature of the Trump campaign. And after Trump was elected, he nominated Kennedy to be his secretary of health and human services.
Yet, just days before naming Kennedy, Trump nominated another senior official to his administration: Susie Wiles, a longtime lobbyist whose clients have included the same big food companies Kennedy has critiqued for their role in pushing ultra-processed foods into kitchens and grocery stores across the US. The two stood in stark contrast: a critic and a lobbyist for the food industry standing side-by-side the president-elect.
Continue reading...
01/31/2025 - 07:00
Agreement between farmers, politicians and environmental groups led to a €170m action fund for plant based food
“Plant-based foods are the future.” That is not a statement you would expect from a right-wing farming minister in a major meat-producing nation. Denmark produces more meat per capita than any other country in the world, with its 6 million people far outnumbered by its 30 million pigs, and it has a big dairy industry too. Yet this is how Jacob Jensen, from the Liberal party, introduced the nation’s world-first action plan for plant-based foods.
“If we want to reduce the climate footprint within the agricultural sector, then we all have to eat more plant-based foods,” he said at the plan’s launch in October 2023, and since then the scheme has gone from strength to strength. Backed by a €170m government fund, it is now supporting plant-based food from farm to fork, from making tempeh from broad beans and a chicken substitute from fungi to on-site tastings at kebab and burger shops and the first vegan chef degree.
Continue reading...
01/31/2025 - 03:00
The decision to expand Heathrow is just the latest evidence that my party is chasing policies that serve profit, not people
Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s recent “big growth agenda” speech wasn’t just the expression of a vision for the economy. It was also a warning shot to wavering Labour MPs. The message was blunt: get on board with the government’s economic strategy or step aside. Growth, we were told, is the non-negotiable mission.
This was not a sudden shift but a reaffirmation of her stance at Davos, where she made clear that “the answer can’t always be no”. That answer, now firmly codified, prioritises GDP growth above all else. Heathrow airport expansion is in; net zero, bats and newts are out. The promise? A revitalised economy, busy high streets and more bobbies on the beat – a Labour-friendly vision of progress designed to bolster morale and stuff leaflets with “good news” ahead of the next election.
Clive Lewis is the Labour MP for Norwich South
Continue reading...
01/31/2025 - 03:00
The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world
Continue reading...
01/31/2025 - 01:00
Minister to announce consultation that will exclude certain areas from housing, solar panels and onshore wind
Valuable farmland will be protected from housing, solar panels and onshore wind under a new land use framework, the government has announced.
The environment secretary, Steve Reed, will announce a consultation into how the limited land in England should be used and where is best to farm, restore nature or build infrastructure.
Continue reading...
01/30/2025 - 17:30
Tiny plastic pollution more than 50% higher in placentas from preterm births than in those from full-term births
A study has found microplastic and nanoplastic pollution to be significantly higher in placentas from premature births than in those from full-term births.
The levels were much higher than previously detected in blood, suggesting the tiny plastic particles were accumulating in the placenta. But the higher average levels found in the shorter pregnancies were a “big surprise” for the researchers, as longer terms could be expected to lead to more accumulation.
Continue reading...
01/30/2025 - 14:05
Sharks and rays have populated the world's oceans for around 450 million years, but more than a third of the species living today are severely threatened by overfishing and the loss of their habitat. Palaeobiologists have now investigated whether and how global warming influences the diversity of sharks based on climate fluctuations between 200 and 66 million years ago. According to the study, higher temperatures and more shallow water areas have a positive effect, while higher CO2 levels have a clearly negative effect.
01/30/2025 - 13:53
The productivity of cacao trees decreases with time, forcing farmers to renew their plantations by either cutting down the old trees or establishing a new crop elsewhere. Frequently, new plantations are established in areas of the forest that are thinned out to accommodate new, young cacao trees. However, this comes with high economic and ecological costs. An alternative approach is to graft highly productive and native cultivars onto the existing older cacao trees. An international team found that cacao grafting is a useful measure to rejuvenate cacao plants, increasing their yield and profits with minimal impact on biodiversity.
