Agricultural and Biofuel News - ENN

Warm winter 'major threat' to crops

China Daily — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 09:52:00 EST

Prolonged periods of drought resulting from China's 23rd consecutive "warm winter" will pose a serious threat to the country's crop yields, the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) said in a report published Tuesday. Some regions could experience droughts until the spring, the report said, adding that the warm weather might even continue until summer.

As ethanol shipments grow, safety remains a concern

Reuters — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 08:14:00 EST

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Surging U.S. ethanol production may force the industry to step up transport safety measures in the face of growing concern that communities are ill-prepared to deal with the volatile, flammable liquid.

New bacteria discovered in raw milk

Society for General Microbiology — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 08:27:00 EST

Raw milk is illegal in many countries as it can be contaminated with potentially harmful microbes. Contamination can also spoil the milk, making it taste bitter and turn thick and sticky. Now scientists have discovered new species of bacteria that can grow at low temperatures, spoiling raw milk even when it is refrigerated. According to research published in the November issue of the International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology, the microbial population of raw milk is much more complex than previously thought.

Fruit and veg boom needed to feed Britain

http://www.guardian.co.uk — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 08:15:00 EST

It is an image worthy of a Keats poem or a Constable landscape: great orchards bursting with fruit, fields crammed with ripening vegetables and hillsides covered with sheep and cattle. But this is no dream of long-gone rural glories. It is a vision of the kind of countryside that Britain may need if it is to survive the impact of climate change and higher oil prices, according to leading agricultural experts.

OPINION: Chinese Farms A Growing Challenge

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 09:08:00 EST

For decades, researchers and policymakers have raised a worrying question about the world's most populous country: "Who will feed China?" Today, while concern about reaching 1.3 billion mouths remains paramount, the phrasing has changed slightly: "Who will feed China'spigs?"

Study Leaves Decision On Asian Oyster to States

Washington Post — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 09:17:00 EST

A U.S. government study of the risks and rewards involved in seeding the Chesapeake Bay with an Asian oyster has found, after four years and $15 million, that the plan could have both -- punting the controversial question back to officials in Maryland and Virginia.

Eight nations warn EU over biofuel barriers

http://www.reuters.com — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 09:19:00 EST

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Eight developing countries warned the European Union on Thursday they could file a World Trade Organization complaint over what they see as unfair barriers being raised against their biofuels. A draft letter seen by Reuters called on the EU to refrain from agreeing legislation that would instruct developing nations on which parts of their territory they could use for biofuels.