For Vikings, pork was preferred over beef or any other type of meat.  And today you can buy bacon-flavored vegan soy products and even bacon flavor shakers to make everything taste like bacon.  The point is: Vikings like it, Vegans like it, and the rest of us like it so much we’d make everything taste like it if we could – I’m talking about pigs.

In the wild pigs would forage for stuff to eat on the forest floor and – much like us humans – they eat just about anything.  Domesticated pigs are fed nutritious feed so they grow nice and big.  They’re fed things like corn, barley, soybeans and other stuff.  Problem is that, much like us humans, usually what comes out the other end of pigs doesn’t exactly smell like roses.

Pig poop and swine farts are no laughing matter.  The flatulent feces of a conventional Yorkshire pig doesn’t just smell bad.  This poop is packed with high concentrations of phosphorus, which can cause problems for soil and waterways.

Given that there are about a billion live pigs in the world right now - half a billion in China alone – as you can imagine this is a big problem.  Yes – for some people becoming vegan or vegetarian is an option.  But for some folks pork may be one of the few sources of high-quality protein available to them.  And you can’t ignore the fact that a lot of people have a strong personal preference to eat meat products.

Luckily, about a decade ago some smart scientists at the University of Guelph in Canada developed a new genetically enhanced pig called (dun-dun-dun-duuuun) the Enviropig!  No, this pig doesn’t have super powers and can’t climb walls.  What it does do is produce a special enzyme in its saliva (the drool in its mouth) that makes it much easier for the pig to fully digest food such as cereals which are a core staple in a pig’s diet.  Since the pig can better digest its food significantly less phosphorous ends up in its manure, which is not only much better for the environment in general but it makes the manure much more useful as a fertilizer for growing crops.

You can kind of think of it in terms of how some people don’t tolerate dairy products or beans that well.  In some cases you can take an enzyme tablet that helps your body break down the food.  In the case of Enviropigs they have been genetically engineered to be able to better digest their food on their own without the need for dietary supplements.

Upon reading this you likely fall into one of two camps:
1) This is disgusting! I’m never gonna eat any frankenstein pork!  I’m calling the governor!
2) Woohoo!  Pass the pork chops please.  After all, they're eco-friendly.

Right now Enviropigs are still in the testing and approval stages.  For years now these pigs have been the subject of numerous tests to determine if they are safe for human consumption as well as other issues such as animal welfare, nutrition and if there are any differences between the make-up of a transgenic pig versus a ‘regular’ pig.  So meat from Enviropigs is not is our food supply yet, but there has been nothing so far to indicate that these little piggies won’t be approved to go to market at some point in the near future.

Human beings have been raising domestic pigs for centuries.  We’ve bred them in all sorts of shapes and sizes to suit our specifications and they’ve come a long way genetically from their wild ancestors.  Now modern science is stepping in with a genetic change that could significantly lessen the environmental impact of the Earth’s billion pigs.  It’ll be interesting to see what other types of environmentally beneficial innovations will be coming our way in the coming years.  Better pig poop may not be as sexy as a new electric car engine, but it’s still an important part of becoming a more environmentally friendly society.

» Vancouver Sun

Scientific American recently re-released an article from 1960 that examined the challenges facing agriculture in Israel.

When settlers came to the land of milk & honey in the mid 1900’s they were confronted with major issues regarding usable farmland.  Israel is basically a desert and desert farming requires a great deal of planning and maintenance.  Israel has a climate very similar to California with rainy winters and long dry summers – conditions that have remained virtually unchanged since Roman times.  The desertification of Israel is actually a man-made phenomenon, not a natural one.  Centuries of poor water management and ancient farming practices rendered all but protected lands useless.

Desert farming is a delicate operation.  Not only do you have issues like water management to deal with – erratic rainfall, water storage and irrigation – but you also have to worry about soil quality issues and erosion.  These are challenges even for agriculture in non-desert regions.

In Israel back in the 1960’s they drained marshlands, redesigned irrigation systems and rebuilt hillside terraces.  They also seeded a variety of special grasses and plants to help rebuild the soil by retaining water, releasing nutrients and protecting the soil from the elements.

Some of these efforts are controversial from our perspective today.  Draining wetlands certainly doesn’t sound like an environmentally conscious long-term solution, nor does the introduction of alien species of grass, brush and trees.  But these were still major steps in Israel’s reclamation of the desert soil.

The challenges facing Israel are not isolated to the Middle East.  From China to Australia to the Southern United States there are thousands and thousands of acres of farmland facing desertification, some of it already rendered useless through poor management and outdated (or inappropriate) farming practices.  The popular logic is that this desertification is caused simply by “over farming” and that the obvious solution is to stop farming the land and it will restore itself.  This solution has two major problems: 1) no farming = no food and that’s good for anybody and 2) there is no evidence the land will simply restore itself without some help.

So can desertification be reversed?  Can we reclaim desert lands and maintain them for future generations?  There is no single “big fix” for the issue, but there are a lot of contributions modern technology is making to make this a reality.

1. New water management and irrigation technologies.  Desert areas often suffer from erratic rainfall.  Some areas get little rain, some get a fair amount and if either area gets too much rain they risk soil erosion and have no way to store that water for a future dry spell.  And for crops, not only do you needs to “water the plants” as it were but you also need to retain moisture in the soil itself.  Modern water management technologies can be managed in near real-time to account for rainfall conditions, soil moisture can be accurately monitored on any farm and new methods of distributing water to crops ensure that water waste is kept to a minimum.  These practices are not universal, but their use is growing.

2. Environmental monitoring and forecast.  One of the underappreciated benefits of the massive growth in computing power and data storage over the past few decades is in the environmental sciences.  Never before have we been able to monitor and model our environment with the level of detail we do today.  Everything from real-time reporting of amount of water flowing through rivers to modeling the probability of a drought is now possible.  Being able to handle vast amounts of historic and current data, as well as modeling future conditions allows for better planning, preparation and reaction in desert environments.

3. Improved crop selection and new varieties of crops.  Scientists now have the ability to match the specific characteristics of a piece of land with the crops best suited to be grown there.  That, combined with detailed monitoring of weather conditions has lead to improved crop selection by farmers in desert areas.  Also, there have been big strides in the use of biotechnology to change the characteristics of plant seeds over the years, with more on the way.  Scientists are working on new types of crops that require less water and are more ‘hearty’, that is – better able to tolerate less-than-ideal growing conditions.  For farmers in arid regions these types of crops could well be a key to continuing to produce food.

As with so many of the problems we face today regarding our future and the environment, it’s easy to throw our arms up in the air when a single simple solution doesn’t present itself.  However, human ingenuity and scientific innovation should give us reason to be optimistic.

» Scientific American

Scientists have recently announced the completion of two projects that sequenced both pig and cucumber genomes. According to the reports, this scientific achievement stands to have a tremendous impact on future research, particularly in the areas of human medicine and agriculture. As I read through the article my first question was, and probably that of most people, what the heck is genome sequencing anyway?

After a quick trip to my favourite search engine and a visit back to my days in high school biology (who knew I would use this stuff again?!), here is what I learned:
All living matter is made up of millions of cells that are directed to perform various functions by their genetic makeup or DNA. The DNA strand is made up of millions of its four component parts, called nucleotides, which determine the genetic sequence of the organism’s DNA.

Identifying the study subject’s particular genome sequence can tell us details about how the animal or plant grows, defends itself from disease and produces the characteristics and behaviours that we identify the plant or animal with.

While I think I will leave this type of work to the professionals, I was most intrigued about the part of the announcement that describes the possible impacts this research will have on human medicine and the agricultural sector. What will this understanding do to our Sunday pork loin roasts or my grandmother’s cucumber sandwiches?

A link to agriculture

As scientists now have an understanding of how plants and animals express certain characteristics, they can genetically modify organisms to express more of the desired characteristics and less of those that are not so desirable. Being able to help organisms express their most desired characteristics will reduce waste, increase productivity of an organization, save producers time and money and produce higher yielding, higher quality food products necessary to feed a growing and starving world.

As the latest organisms to contribute to the ongoing research in genetic sequencing, the genomes of pigs and cucumbers hold the secret to more than a great tasting roast and a refreshing crunch. For example, in a swine breed that commonly develops leg problems, scientists will be able to isolate the sequence that controls leg conformation and be able to modify that gene to lower or even eliminate the occurrence of that type of problem. Pig producers, particularly those in dry areas, will be able to raise livestock who use water more efficiently and have a resistance to parasites and zoonotic diseases, such as H1N1, which also happens to affect humans. As pork represents about 40% of the world meat production, overcoming these common challenges should have a pretty huge effect on the global economy. Being pretty health conscious, I get pretty excited at the prospect of increased food quality and the promises of lower fat pork products. And since pig organs are commonly used for transplantation into humans, the more information we have about them, the better chance of transplant success.

Similarly, in cucumbers, understanding how the plants defend themselves from something like the mosaic virus, scientists can help develop a plant that expresses those characteristics and thus reduce the amount of crop lost to this common cucumber disease or any other type of pest. They will also be able to develop varieties that germinate faster, have a greater cold tolerance, have larger yields and have the potential to grow in a wider variety of climates. As the cucumber is a representative of the cucurbit family, which includes pumpkins, melon, squash and watermelon, this research will extend to a large variety of crops that have economic consequences worldwide.

A continuing challenge

While this story is encouraging, it can’t be finished without mentioning that there are many concerns about using biotechnology to change the way we raise or grow our food supply. Even as the genome sequencing of these organisms leads to a greater understanding of how they work, pigs and cucumbers are just a small part of a larger natural system. Genome sequencing research and biotechnology have the amazing potential to change our economy, human health and agricultural systems in many positive ways, we just have to be prepared to address the challenges that this new technology will bring along the way.

» Science Fair

Last October, in his first major address on the subject, Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates announced $120 million US in grants to support nine agricultural projects in Africa and India. This latest donation brings his Foundation’s support for agricultural development to $1.4 billion. According to Gates, this is just the beginning...

Speaking in Des Moines, Iowa on the eve of World Food Day, Gates praised Nobel Prize-winning scientist Norman Borlaug, who developed a disease resistant variety of wheat that saved “hundreds of millions” of lives. Fueled by Borlaug’s success and Rockefeller family money, the ensuing “Green Revolution” was, according to Gates, “one of the greatest achievements of the 20th century”, that “didn’t go far enough. It didn’t go to Africa.”

Brainchild of a trip to Mexico in the early ‘40’s by Nelson Rockefeller and Henry Wallace (founder of Pioneer Hi-Bred Seed, also US Secretary of Agriculture and Vice President under F.D. Roosevelt), the Green Revolution was based on solving world hunger though the development of hybrid seeds for emerging markets. Mexico had asked the US for help to develop a new variety of wheat for its growing population. After that trip, Rockefeller funded it and hired Borlaug to get it done. According to Borlaug “We spent nearly 20 years breeding high-yield dwarf wheat that resisted a variety of plant pests and diseases and yielded two to three times more grain than traditional varieties. “

Picking up from where Rockefeller left off, Gates is convinced that the future for agriculture — not only Africa but also the rest of the world — lies in genetically modified crops.

“We have to develop crops that can grow in a drought; that can survive in a flood; that can resist pests and disease. We need higher yields on the same land in harsher weather. And we will never get it without a continuous and urgent science-based search to increase productivity.”

Endowed with $34.6 billion, the Gates Foundation must donate at least $1.5 billion a year to charitable projects to maintain its tax status; 2008 grant payments were almost double that and their donation budget for the health sector exceeds that of the World Health Organization.

According to the FAO, 85 percent of the world’s farmers farm less than two hectares. Together with their families, they represent one-third of the world’s population. Of those farmers with one or more hectares of GM crops, 90 percent are smallholders in developing countries. In Africa, 4 out of 5 farmers are smallholders, the majority women.

Gates believes that helping the world’s poorest smallholder farmers grow more crops and get them to market “is the world's single most powerful lever for reducing hunger and poverty…”

The recently announced funding for Africa will support the following projects:

• funding for legumes that fix nitrogen in the soil,
• development of higher yielding varieties of sorghum and millet;
• development of new varieties of sweet potatoes that resist pests and have a higher vitamin content;
• funding to ACRA (The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, heavily supported by both the Gates and the Rockefeller foundations) to support the creation of government policies for small farmers and provide “training and resources” to African governments as they develop laws and regulations concerning the use of biotechnologies;

Impressive, yes. We are losing the fight against poverty. In 2005, 15 years of consecutive poverty reductions came to a sudden halt, and poverty and hunger has been on the rise ever since. Africa, home to over 200 million chronically malnourished people, desperately needs assistance.

But Gates philanthropic support to Africa is not without controversy.

For many, “Green Revolution” is synonymous with large scale mono-cropping, high levels of pesticide and chemical use, loss of biodiversity, a high degree of mechanization, the depletion of soil nutrients, water erosion, loss of domestic food supplies as land shifts to production of non-food and export crops, and alienation of peasant farmers from the land. Gates acknowledges this but says he wants to do things differently in Africa.

What Gates remains committed to is the Green Revolution’s core belief that the solution to world hunger lies in genetically modified seeds. And therein lies the real controversy.

Gates and his colleagues at the Rockefeller Foundation, the World Bank, the United Nations World Food Program, the International Rice Institute argue that genetic modification of plants allows for reduced pesticide use, drought and flood tolerance, higher yields and the ability to incorporate nutrients not naturally occurring, thereby helping to boost production and alleviate hunger. Companies like Dupont/Pioneer Hi-Bred, Monsanto, Syngenta and others who produce and sell genetically modified seeds agree.

But there are many respected policy-makers and scientists who make strong arguments against the introduction of genetically modified crops to Africa. They include genetic instability and cross contamination of genetic material (development of super weeds), development of pesticide resistant bugs, reduction in bio-diversity (e.g. Bt corn pollen is toxic to Monarch Butterfly), potential human health effects (peas in Bangladesh and India), ecological hazards associated with terminator gene technology, cost to farmers to annually purchase new seeds (cannot save seeds), impediments to future trade with Europe (which bans GMO’s) and ethical issues such as patenting genetic material, illegal extraction/expropriation of local genetic material and the resulting lack of fair and equitable distribution of resources.

Difficult questions. With no easy answers. Gates, through the magnitude of his targeted philanthropy, will undoubtedly change the face of African agriculture. Whether this will contribute positively to the long term sustainability of its communities remains to be seen.

Global agribusiness has used the green revolution as a trampoline to colonize the soils of Latin America. Africa is the dark continent about to light up. This time, it will begin with helping the small, local farmers. By offering to sell them magic seeds that may, in the end, wind up costing them the farm.

» AFP

Halloween is only two days away so if you don't yet have your costume lined up, you may be starting to sweat a bit. Have no fear though, the answer to your problem may just lie in the nearest thrift or secondhand store. Start by brainstorming some ideas of what you might like to dress up as and then break it down piece by piece to determine how feasible it will be to put such a costume together. The ideal green costume is one that either utilizes what you have already kicking around at home or reuses clothing and items found in thrift shops, as opposed to buying an armful of new things for one occasion. The more components to a costume, the more difficult it will be to piece together, so keep that in mind when you're thinking of ideas.

Just to get you started, here are four simple ideas using items I found in my local shop or already had at home.

Costume Idea #1: Waldo of "Where's Waldo"
What you'll need: Jeans, red-and-white striped shirt, red and white striped hat, brown shoes, dark-rimmed glasses.
Thrift store finds: Shirt and Hat, $5 for both.
Provided you can find all of the items for this costume, it's exceptionally simple to assemble. You likely already own a pair of jeans and if you don't have brown shoes, black or any other darker color can be substituted. No special makeup or extra props are needed, and chances are most of your peers will recognize the distinctive stripes and glasses and guess who you are without requiring much of an explanation.

Costume Idea #2: Retro Pin-Up Girl
What you'll need: Pretty cocktail dress, preferably 40s or 50s style, high heels, black feather boa, dramatic make-up
Thrift store finds: Black and pink cocktail dress, $10
Use a simple pair of your own black heels and look for a feather boa at the thrift store. For your make-up, use Total Beauty's Classic Pinup Girl Make-up How-to guide to get the right look!

Costume Idea #3: Tinkerbell
What you'll need: Green dress, flat shoes with bells to add to the toes, wand, wings. Sack with "pixie dust" is optional.
Thrift store finds: Green dress and wand, $8.50
Find a green dress that fits you and that you don't mind ripping up a bit. Cut out triangles at the bottom and you've got your dress. The wings will be the most time-consuming part of your outfit (unless you already own some). The easiest option is to cut some out of cardboard you already own, however you can also make a pair using wire hangers and tights!

Costume Idea #4: Sarah Palin
What you'll need: Power suit, collared shirt, dark pumps, dark-rimmed glasses
Already owned: Everything!
Sure you could say this outfit is sooo 2008 - or you say you're way ahead of the game since rumor has it the former vice-presidential candidate is planning to toss her hat in the ring for the position of Big Chief in the 2012 presidential election . If you don't already own a business suit, look for one at your secondhand store. Add an American flag or small American pin and a "Hello My Name Is....." nametag. Adopt your best "folksy" tone and voilà! If you can find a blow-up Levi Johnston doll to carry around and randomly punch, even better!

More than anything else, use your imagination and have fun thinking of creative characters you can be for one evening!

» Ecollo (Harvest and Halloween)

The Rhoades Car is an evironmentally-friendly idea so simple it's almost ludicrous.  Take a standard bicycle and give it 4 wheels and add the option to seat one, two, or evenfour passengers.  You can even get an electric motor assist.  The you can pedal your way around your neighborhood quietly and emissions-free!

While scientists the world over are busy trying to come up the next genius innovation in fuel cell technology, here is a great form of transportation right under our noses!

Does it look like the kind of dorky contraption your dad (or long gone ex-boyfriend) would rent and force you to ride in when you're on vacation somewhere?  Yeah, it does.  But it also looks fun and sensible, especially during these warm summer months. In a more rational world we'd all be scooting along in our city centers in Rhoades Cars instead of SUVs!

Hit the jump to learn more about these clever little emissions-free vehicles.

» Rhoades Car