Agriculture
This starchy wondercrop could help alleviate food insecurity
Enset, a perennial banana-like fruit cultivated in southwestern Ethiopia, is an underexploited starch crop with significant potential.
Where does the plastic in our oceans come from?
Which countries and rivers emit the most plastic to the ocean? What does this mean for solutions to tackle plastic pollution?
Chinese robot clones pigs with no human help
A robot that automates a common technique for animal cloning has been used to produce a litter of pigs in China.
New harvesting robots are gentle enough to pick this fruit
A pair of harvesting robots are picking raspberries in Portugal, demonstrating the ability of tech to help combat seasonal labor shortages.
MIT grads demonstrate first ammonia-powered tractor
Amogy, a startup founded by four MIT grads, has transformed a John Deere into the world’s first zero-emission, ammonia-powered tractor.
Scientists grow plants in real lunar soil for the first time
Lunar soil was used to grow plants for the first time, suggesting that we may be able to produce food for astronauts off-world.
An ancient enzyme could supercharge photosynthesis
Researchers have resurrected an ancient version of the enzyme Rubisco in the hope of supercharging photosynthesis in today’s plants.
Smart sensor tells you exactly when fruit will ripen — or spoil
Inside vast warehouses, millions of fruits sit and slowly ripen. To help packers know when fruit has got to go, a biotech startup is turning to small sensors.
Silencing one gene with CRISPR boosts crop yields by 10%
Using CRISPR to knock out a single gene in corn and rice increased crop yields by up to 10% in field trials.
One breed of honey bee can survive its deadliest threat
A line of honey bees bred to resist the Varroa mite parasite has proven itself in a large-scale trial involving more than 350 bee colonies.