"This study into changing food practices during the pandemic will give valuable insights into how and why people make decisions relating to food, leading to greater understanding about how policy and public communication can most effectively influence those decisions with regard to environmental sustainability and social justice in the future" The James Hutton Institute and Robert Gordon University (RGU) are carrying out research on how COVID-19 restrictions impacted behaviours around food related practices. The study will look at the nature and extent of these changes across different social
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āThis advancement highlights that varying light treatments could have a direct impact on plant health and the ability to respond to pathogen attackā Daylight is made from a spectrum of wavelengths and plants possess receptors that can detect red and blue light. Blue light is important for plant growth and yet inhibits the immune response of potato plants to Phytophthora infestans, making them more susceptible to potato late blight, a research team featuring plant scientists from the James Hutton Institute has discovered. Related content Cell and Molecular Sciences Eleanor Gilroy Press and
Protein from gorse, a widely-cleared plant in Scotland, could be used to provide a food source for millions of people, according to the Rowett Institute's Professor Wendy Russell.
āNew thinking and believing in our own ingenuity can get us through many crises. Science is now clear that we, too, need to re-think our relationship with the natural world, if weāre going to avoid the worst consequences of climate change and avoid pandemics" Society needs to re-think its relationship with the natural world if we are to avoid the worst consequences of climate change and pandemics, the James Hutton Institute has urged in the 2022 episode of BBC Scotlandās Resolutions programme. In the broadcast, filmed at the Instituteās Glensaugh Research Farm and at IGS Limited in Invergowrie
āScience was at the heart of COP26, providing evidence of how much damage was being done due to climate warming from greenhouse gases but there are still contested issues about exactly how much GHG are being produced from land and a need to know if planned mitigations will workā Following on the back of COP26, planning proposals are being put forward to build the UKās first purpose-built tall tower for directly measuring greenhouse gases from land at the James Hutton Instituteās Balruddery Farm, in Angus near Dundee. The state-of-the-art facility is designed as a Ā£1m, 100-metre-tall tower. It
"We hope that Chikoka, Chitute, Khutula, Phindu and Tinyadile will contribute to economic prosperity and increased food security in Malawi and beyond, and are very grateful to our project partners and funders for their continued support" Five climate and disease resilient potato varieties developed by the James Hutton Institute-led Quikgro research project have been approved for release in Malawi by the Agriculture Technology Release Committee of the Malawian Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development. Itās hoped that the new varieties will contribute to economic growth and
"Producing resistant varieties that are attractive to growers and processors is incredibly important if weāre to protect the future of potato production across the UK. However, resistance is only half the battle, and we need to be considering tolerance too. Resistance will reduce PCN multiplication, whilst tolerance will protect yields." Researchers at the James Hutton Institute and James Hutton Limited are exploring ways to reduce the losses caused by potato cyst nematodes (PCN) in commercial potato production. PCN is an increasing challenge to the UK fresh and processing potato markets, and
"There is an old adage that says if it aināt broke, donāt fix it. The first task for policymakers is to understand that, in spite of the mask of resilience it wears, our food system is broken and highly vulnerable" By Mike Rivington Will there be turkeys for Christmas? In spite of some likely strains due to Brexit, labour shortages and the familiar yet ever-evolving disruptions of COVID-19, the answer is a fairly safe yes. Yet this is perhaps surprising. Press and media enquiries: Bernardo Rodriguez-Salcedo, Media Manager, James Hutton Institute, Tel: +44 (0)1224 395089 (direct line), +44 (0
The GMP commits one hundred countries to reduce their methane emissions by at least 30% (based on 2020 levels) by 2030. Although carbon dioxide (CO2) tends to get the headlines, methane is more potent (1 kg methane is equal to 27 kg of CO2 in terms of the warming it causes) and shorter-lived greenhouse gas (half-life of 12 years rather than centuries). The majority of global methane emissions stem from human activities: fossil fuels (35%), landfills and waste (20%), and agriculture (40%). For the latter, ruminant livestock, such as cows and sheep, and slurry storage are responsible for most of
"The global analysis of soil seed bank diversity and density strongly suggests that the biodiversity of sub-tropical and tropical forests is particularly vulnerable to large-scale climatic or land-use disturbances" Soil seed banks are a hidden stock for plant diversity and are critical for the recovery of disturbed ecosystems. A new study co-authored by Prof Robin Pakeman, a senior scientist within the James Hutton Instituteās Ecological Sciences department, has brought together research on the density and diversity of seed banks in an effort to try and understand their global patterns. Press