Posts tagged "tomato"

TomTato – The plant that is half tomato and half potato

 A British company, Thomson and Morgan, made the news last month when they announced a new botanical creation, the “Tomtato”, a Frakenstein plant that produces both tomatoes and potatoes.  The company affirms that it is not a product of genetic Engineering as one might think at first hand but the result of a natural grafting...

Global warming report: Humans “dominant cause”

The earth will not be able to keep its temperature below 2°C   and it will probably increase by a further 4,8°C by the end of this century if greenhouse emissions are not tackled aggressively according to the IPCC report published this friday.  The earth is getting irreversibly hotter and more evidence is mounting confirming...

Sustainable agriculture in China

The economic growth that China has experienced during the past 40 years has in more recent years raised public’s attention on resource conservation and environmental protection, food security as well as employment and income generation. The concept of sustainable development has been formulated in an international context and has been recognized by most countries around the...

Tomatoes that will change the economy

Normally we associate tomatoes with sauces, ketchup, pizza, ragout and so on, the applicable uses of tomato in gastronomy are almost infinite. Others however are beginning to see other applicable uses for tomatoes such as Bioplastics, or biodegradable plastics.  The road to a sustainable agriculture is beginning to engage chemistry at as new agricultural practices  are...

Argentina tomato shortages

Last week the Domestic Trade Secretary has asked the Argentines to “reduce tomato consumption” because of a projected fall in production caused by poor weather conditions. Moreno recommends consumer to look for alternative vegetable crops for the next two months. Prices of tomatoes have risen sharply and this is affecting Argentines diet by and large influenced by...

Organic V conventional tomatoes

Organic tomatoes contain more vitamin C and oxidative components  according to a study “the impact of  Organic Farming on  Quality of Tomatoes is Associated to Increased Oxidative Stress during fruit development” . produced by Federal University of Ceara in Brazil and published on PloS One.  Biological agriculture exposes the tomato plant to more stress during its...

The Water footprint

We are all aware of the importance of water in everyday life. We see water as an unlimited resource and most of all it is free. Or is it?  The majority of us use water for washing, cooking and drinking and general household use but we are not aware that this is only a small...

Food security in China

The medical  journal Lancet published an extensive article on  food security in China. Rapid industrialization and social transformation is affecting food supply as well as food safety. And the picture that emerges from this is that in spite of progress made since 2006 to reach acceptable standards of food security the situation is still unclear....

Tomato: Fruit or Vegetable

On the 10th of May 1893,  in the case of Nix.C Hedden, the United states supreme court ruled that tomatoes are vegetables and not fruits. The dispute began 10 years previously when American congress approved a new law on tariffs  according to which imported vegetables were subjected to higher taxes. Fruits on the other hand...

Gm purple tomato tastier and healthier

A genetically modified purple tomato that is richer in antioxidants and that is tastier than the normal variety. This is what scientists have been working on and what have been able to produce. The tomatoes were genetically modified by researchers at the John Innes Centre in Norfolk UK. They have discovered that a specific compound...

Europe’s policies on climate change

A recent study by the Stockholm environment institute (SEI) in collaboration with friends of the earth demonstrates that Europe is able to comply with its environmental justice responsibility. The study demonstrates that it is possible to reduce green house emission by at least 40% by 2020 and by 90% in 2050  with the use of...

Waste management

According to FAO, by 2050 the world’s population will reach 9.1 Billion. Most of this will take place in developing countries, in order to feed this larger population food production must increase by 70%. Annual cereal production will need to increase by to about 3 billion tonnes from the 2.1 billion of today. However the European commission...