Technologies or projects promoted as sustainable solutions but ineffective in practice.
Recently, the news that delivery platforms have softened their stance and pledged to cover social security contributions for riders has sparked heated debate. Only time will tell how many couriers will actually stand to benefit, and whether this will genuinely improve their working conditions. In the latest episode of Foodthink’s…
Foodthink Says In response to the climate crisis, many advocate harnessing capitalist market mechanisms to cut carbon emissions. The model discussed here operates on one such premise: companies pay for carbon credits, with the proceeds directed towards reducing deforestation and fostering alternative livelihoods in a given region, thereby offsetting their…
Foodthink Commentary Some media outlets have dubbed 2024 “the inaugural year of GMO commercialisation” in China. In 2023, 37 genetically modified maize varieties and 14 GM soybean varieties passed varietal approval, while 26 companies were granted production and operation licences for GM maize and soybean seeds. In 2024, regional roll-outs…
Foodthink Says “Fungi are everywhere, yet remarkably easy to overlook.” Distinct from plants and animals, these life forms exist as mysterious, powerful, and often overlooked presences, quietly guiding humanity’s quest to live in harmony with nature. How do fungi and plants flourish together? What crucial role do mycorrhizal fungi play…
Foodthink Says 16 October marks the 44th World Food Day, with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) designating this year’s global theme as: “Food Security for All, Building a Better Life, Creating a Brighter Future.” Advocates and promoters of GM technology have long packaged it as the premier solution…
Is genetically modified rice truly safe? Why can it not be commercialised without scrutiny? On 18 April, a Philippine court ruled that the commercial promotion of Golden Rice is unconstitutional, once again reflecting society’s cautious stance towards GM staple crops. The court also ordered the Philippine government to revoke the…
“Save our rice!” “IRRI, get out!” In October 2023, these furious chants echoed across several Filipino farmer protest rallies. The demonstrations took direct aim at the Sixth International Rice Congress, hosted by the International Rice Research Institute (hereafter IRRI). Against the backdrop of climate change and the drive to cut…
Picture a plate of vegetables before you, not harvested by muddy-handed farmers out in the fields, but cultivated as a technological feat within a vertical farming tower built of metal and plastic. How would you react? In 2018, while in Berlin, I found myself utterly captivated by the vertical farming…
Power generation above the panels, crop cultivation below: a single plot of land yields two streams of income. “Agrivoltaics” claims to deliver multiple benefits—including clean electricity, efficient land use, agricultural modernisation, and rural development—and is frequently hailed as a win-win technological innovation that simultaneously addresses food, energy, and climate challenges.…
