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I feel lucky that I had the chance to spend time with scientists researching malaria during my recent trip to Kenya.

At icipe’s Mbita campus on the shores of Lake Victoria, Dr. Syeda Tullu Bukhari and her colleagues are working closely with communities to better understand how malaria is spreading and how to stop it. The region’s islands are home to fishing communities that depend on the lake for their livelihoods. It is also one of the areas hardest hit by malaria in Kenya.

And according to Tullu, the situation is getting worse.

“Malaria is not just a health problem,” she told me. “It is a development problem.”

When large numbers of children miss school because of malaria or farmers are too sick to work during planting and harvest season, the impacts ripple through entire communities. Some infections can sideline people for months and require multiple rounds of treatment before recovery.

“The economic cost to households is enormous,” Tullu says. “And it compounds over time.”

The connection between malaria and food insecurity is direct. If a farmer cannot work during a critical growing season, families can lose both income and food for the year. And when this happens across thousands of households, it becomes a barrier to education, livelihoods, and long-term economic growth and resilience.

The climate crisis is only making these challenges worse.

Tullu has spent nearly two decades studying malaria in western Kenya and says rainfall patterns have shifted dramatically. Traditionally, there were distinct long and short rainy seasons separated by a dry period. Now, those seasons are blending.

“In 2025, there was really no gap between the long rains and short rains,” she explains. “There were almost eight months of rain.”

Standing water creates ideal breeding conditions for mosquitoes. A longer rainy season means a longer malaria season. Even more concerning, malaria is spreading into parts of northern Kenya that historically experienced only seasonal outbreaks.

“Different mosquito species survive under different environmental conditions,” Tullu explains. “As the climate changes, the species composition shifts too.”

Understanding those shifts requires an enormous amount of fieldwork and surveillance.

Before visiting icipe, I naïvely imagined mosquito trapping was fairly straightforward. It’s not.

Tullu’s team uses CDC light traps equipped with small fans to collect adult mosquitoes, aspirators to gather insects from indoor and outdoor resting areas, solar-powered traps in remote locations, and dippers to collect mosquito larvae from standing water. Those dippers are like long soup ladles that community health workers use to collect larvae from puddles, drainage areas, and other places where standing water collects. The mosquitoes are then brought back to the laboratory where scientists use PCR testing to identify species and determine whether they are carrying Plasmodium, the parasite that causes malaria.

The work is painstaking, technical, and expensive. And according to Tullu, funding cuts are already weakening surveillance systems across Kenya.

“When national surveillance systems are underfunded, researchers are forced to collect baseline data themselves,” she says. “We end up trying to answer scientific questions without reliable national data.”

At the same time, icipe scientists are also studying mosquito genetics to better understand why some mosquito populations are more likely to carry malaria or develop resistance to control measures.

This research could have important implications for communities in Mbita and far beyond.

If a mosquito population develops resistance to an insecticide, that tool can become useless within a few years,” Tullu explains. “Genetic surveillance helps us anticipate this and adapt before resistance becomes widespread.”

Scientists are also studying microsporidia, naturally occurring microbes found in some mosquitoes that appear to significantly reduce malaria transmission. icipe researchers are collecting mosquito samples from across Africa to better understand how these microbes function and whether they could eventually become part of future malaria control strategies.

“On the surface, the mosquitoes all look the same,” Tullu says. “But genetically, they may not be.”

The implications extend far beyond Kenya. As mosquito populations shift into new geographies due to climate change, genetic surveillance could help scientists predict outbreaks before they happen.

But Tullu emphasizes that science alone is not enough.

One of the things that most impressed me during my visit was how deeply icipe works with communities. After a somewhat harrowing, but exhilarating hour-long speedboat ride on Lake Victoria, we landed on the island of Mgingo and met with community health workers. These volunteers help researchers build trust, reach vulnerable households, and adapt interventions to fit people’s day-to-day lives.

“Solutions have to be co-created,” Tullu says. “You cannot hand them down.”

Tullu says one of the biggest barriers to malaria prevention is not just funding, but awareness. Simple interventions like screened windows, improved housing, repellents, and bed nets can significantly reduce transmission, but many communities lack access to information, supplies, or long-term support.

And even successful interventions come with unexpected complications. Among fishing communities around Lake Victoria, Tullu says the misuse of bed nets is “quite prevalent.” But contrary to popular belief, community members are not using them for fishing nets. Instead, households often repurpose the nets to protect vegetable gardens from pests.

While talking with Tullu both in Kenya and later on Zoom, she also expressed frustration with the abrupt disappearance of the U.S. Agency for International Development-funded programs in the region.

“So much money was spent without sustainability plans,” she told me. “As a scientist, I have to include long-term sustainability in every grant I write.”

Tullu herself brings both authority and humility to this work. Originally from Pakistan, she says she always excelled in science growing up. Culturally, daughters were expected to become doctors, she joked, but she did not score highly enough on her exams for medical school and instead studied zoology and entomology. Thankfully for the future of malaria research, she did.

Spending time with scientists like Tullu and her colleagues left me with a sense of hope. Hope that we can learn the importance of interconnectedness—poverty, poor public health, lack of food and nutrition security, and the climate crisis are all inextricably linked. And the solutions will need to be linked as well.

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The post On the Ground with Dani Nierenberg: Chasing Malaria in Mbita, Kenya appeared first on Food Tank.

The International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food) recently published a special report warning that rising food prices will persist alongside global geopolitical instability. They call for nations to build “resilient self-reliance” across global food and agriculture systems to ensure greater food security and economic sovereignty.

In an increasingly interconnected global market, food commodities are exposed to supply chain volatility risk caused by geopolitical instability, the report says. Retaliatory tariffs, military conflict, and the recent reduction in foreign food aid packages have exacerbated economic issues facing farmers today. The report notes that attacks in the Gulf region threaten global food security due to volatile energy markets: “Over one-third of global urea and sulfur exports—key ingredients for nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers, respectively—pass through the Strait of Hormuz.” Such disruptions “will likely have global consequences due to rising oil prices that could spill over into food and fertilizer prices,” the report asserts.

“The impact of high energy prices will likely drive up the cost of food more than fertilizer alone because our food systems are so fossil fuel-dependent,” says Jennifer Clapp, a member of the IPES-Food panel and lead author of the special report. In places like the United States, these additional costs come as farmers are projected to experience an approximate 2.6 percent loss in real income (inflation-adjusted dollars) relative to last year.

The report discusses the efficacy of supply management policies—market intervention strategies including quotas and importation limits—in high-income nations like Canada. “The food system has become so volatile, and we are so vulnerable to food price inflation that we feel like we need to do something,” says Clapp. In Canada, for example, public management of dairy products helps to insulate local farmers from global market volatility by allowing them to sell their commodities at profit-generating prices.

But rising food insecurity rates in Canada indicate that diversifying the range of supply-managed commodities can help improve local resilience. Clapp, who serves as a Professor and Research Chair at the University of Waterloo, Canada, tells Food Tank that “as one in four [Canadians] face food insecurity, diversification is a really important policy for us to ensure access to more fresh fruits and vegetables.”

The report highlights public food stockholding programs as pragmatic policy options for nations at risk of food insecurity. By pooling agronomic resources from primarily small producers, West African nations are able to collaboratively store food to quickly disseminate based on the needs of municipalities within the region.

To decouple local food production systems from global markets, nations must reconcile the demand of consumers with systemic policy transitions. “Thinking about diversity of diets is important because it can change those demand patterns. If people were eating more beans, tofu [etc.], there’s a way in which we can envision dietary change helping to facilitate more diverse production systems,” Clapp tells Food Tank.

For example, U.S. livestock production depends on corn and soybeans as inputs, two crops that currently serve as the largest users of nitrogen fertilizers and herbicides. Because of this structural reliance, Clapp argues that a diverse, plant-based diet puts eaters “already way ahead” in terms of both ecological impact and resilience to energy shocks.

This need for resilient self-reliance is even more urgent in the global South. As the special report notes, “The impacts of rising food prices are highly uneven. Net food-importing countries in the Global South have been hit the hardest, with inflation peaks reaching up to 30% in May 2023.”

While these nations have a massive opportunity to insulate themselves from global market turmoil by pioneering localized, self-reliant food strategies, doing so effectively requires international debt relief. Ultimately, as the report emphasizes, “the most vulnerable countries have the most to lose from the way the current system is organized, they also have the most to gain from leading the transition towards self-reliance and protection from dependency.”

Central to this transition is a food sovereignty approach that prioritizes equity, diversity, and local agency. By using market management tools to protect smallholders, nations can transition away from cash-crop dependence and cultivate traditional crops. The report highlights that these mechanisms “act as stabilizing buffers, support smaller-scale and more diverse producers, and improve access to food for marginalized and vulnerable people,” building deep ecological and economic resilience against future global shocks.

Meanwhile, recent U.S. dietary guidelines recommend increased protein intake for healthy adults, which many interpret as a push for greater meat and animal product consumption. This focus on animal protein runs counter to calls for the diverse, plant-based systems needed to build global food resilience.

While geopolitics remain complicated and uncertain, structural shifts in consumption patterns could redefine agricultural dependency. As Clapp emphasizes to Food Tank, modifying these foundational demand patterns is essential: “If it’s going to be protein, it needs to be more plant-based protein.”

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Mill Industries and Amazon are partnering to keep grocery store food waste out of landfills. Mill’s recycling systems will roll out in Whole Foods Market stores in 2027, turning discarded food scraps into chicken feed for the retailer’s private-label egg suppliers.

The Mill grounds will make up 5 to 10 percent of suppliers’ total feed, and Whole Foods hopes to offer it at a lower cost than traditional feed, says Caitlin Leibert, Vice President of Sustainability at Whole Foods Market. The pilot will begin in the produce department, but Leibert notes the opportunity for expansion to other food waste streams. Whole Foods is working closely with farmers and cross-functional teams to validate the model and prepare for launch.

According to ReFED, food retailers in the United States generated an estimated 4.63 million tons of surplus food, worth US$30.3 billion. Despite donation and composting pathways, nearly 30 percent of that food ended up in landfills or incinerators.

Mill Co-Founder & President Harry Tannenbaum sees both an economic and environmental opportunity in reducing retail-level food waste. He tells Food Tank, “When we waste food, we’re wasting the water, energy, labor, land, and time it took to grow it, along with the opportunity to put those resources to better use. Tackling this issue head-on is a massive opportunity for impact.”

ReFED estimates that only 11.4 percent of surplus food was repurposed for animal feed. Adoption has been constrained by food safety concerns, logistical complexity, and limited infrastructure. But with proper processing, food waste can be converted into safe, nutritious, and cost-effective animal feed.

In South Korea, government-supported operations help divert more than 90 percent of the country’s food waste and turn over 42 percent into animal feed. “That really shows that with the right infrastructure, regulatory frameworks, monitoring systems, and government investment, you can manage some of the risks,” Sharyn Murray, Director of Impact Capital Programs at ReFED, tells Food Tank.

There is a common misconception that waste-feeding reduces production or compromises quality, says Ryan Martens, Livestock Director at Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in New York. But the Center has operated a waste-feeding program for over a decade, and Martens reports they have not seen any decline in lay-rate or hen health. “We do blind tastings with the chefs and farmers and consistently the waste-fed eggs score higher on flavor compared to premium supermarket options,” he tells Food Tank.

Martens says that many farmers in the U.S. practice waste-feeding, but they must individually source, process, and formulate the feed. “In order for the U.S. to implement waste-feeding projects on a larger scale, we need to start formalizing and creating efficient processes for collecting, processing, and balancing waste-feeds,” he says.

Processing waste directly in stores could ease some of the logistical constraints that have limited waste-to-feed programs. Tannenbaum notes frequent collection and downstream management at centralized processing facilities as challenges Mill could help address. “By embedding decentralized infrastructure within stores, we can enable new recycling pathways that would have otherwise been economically or logistically inconceivable,” he says.

While preventing waste and donating food remain the best options for reducing hunger, converting unavoidable scraps into feed may become an increasingly important option for retailers.

Mill’s recycling systems are designed to turn discarded scraps into feed while helping stores identify and prevent waste upstream. The technology uses AI and computer vision to track waste types and volumes in real-time, offering retailers insights into inventory losses and waste drivers. “It’s not about simply processing food waste—it’s to prevent it from happening in the first place,” says Tannenbaum.

Murray emphasizes that retailers like Whole Foods occupy a unique position in the food value chain. “They are an important intersection point,” she says. “They’re connected to their suppliers, consumers, and ultimately to the farmers.”

If waste-feeding expands, it could reshape feed supply chains and improve margins for farmers. And the environmental upside may be substantial. In the U.S., decomposing food waste in landfills contributes greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to the annual emissions of 15 coal-fired power plants. “Even something as small as a 5 percent substitution of conventional feeds with waste-feed would take the burden off of millions of acres of corn and soy production while removing millions of pounds of food waste from our landfills in returning that food waste back to the soil,” Martens tells Food Tank.

“The reality is, this really isn’t waste at all,” Leibert tells Food Tank. “It’s a super valuable, nutrient-rich commodity.”

The project’s results may serve as an example for the industry’s potential to make waste-to-feed systems viable at scale, and to reframe the narrative around food waste.

“It’s an exciting opportunity to put a circular model on display,” Leibert says. “Nature and climate don’t work in a silo, and neither should we.”

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The post A Circular Solution for Retail Food Waste Takes Shape in U.S. Grocery Stores appeared first on Food Tank.

A recent United Nations report declares the world is facing a state of water bankruptcy that will force food and agriculture systems to adapt.  

Across the globe, surface waters and glaciers are shrinking, wetlands have been liquidated, and groundwater has been depleted, the report states. As water insecurity grows, agricultural heartlands are running off a diminished supply, and water quality is decreasing. According to the U.N., current expectations around water governance are no longer relevant. 

The term water crisis has been used to refer to systemic issues in water systems, explains Kaveh Madani, Director of the U.N. University Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH) and author of the report. But he says it’s no longer appropriate for the current reality. “The term “water crisis” implies a temporary shock and deviation from the baseline,” he tells Food Tank. “But we are dealing with a new normal—a post-crisis state of failure.”

The report reveals that humanity’s use of freshwater has surpassed the Earth’s limits. Withdrawals from many aquifers and basins are greater than what the planet can afford. This requires terminology that reflects this new reality, Madani argues. 

“Water bankruptcy reminds us that some of the damages are irreversible and that we require investing in adaptation to a new normal,” he says.

The agriculture sector—responsible for nearly 70 percent of freshwater withdrawals globally, according to the report—is particularly vulnerable to water shortages. In countries where agriculture constitutes a large fraction of the workforce, the impacts of water bankruptcy are intensified. Yields decline, livestock systems become dysregulated, the income of farmers and farm workers suffers. In turn, food prices rise.

But Madani says there is still a sustainable path forward for humanity’s relationship with water, and it begins with telling the truth and using the right language. “Declaring water bankruptcy, just like financial bankruptcy, is a difficult admission for anyone to make,” Madani tells Food Tank. “The language of water bankruptcy, when used by decision-makers, is meant to liberate them of their past lack of transparency and overreliance on short-term, unsustainable measures.”

Farmers are trying to manage water shortages by reducing the size of irrigated land and ramping up the use of water-efficient technology and crops, Madani explains. But they need support from policymakers to help fund their efforts. “Governments must offer alternative economic modes of life to farmers…which entails diversifying national economies and offering compensation for stranded investments.”

A just transition framework is central to planning, Madani argues. Those with the least amount of economic and political power are most likely to bear the brunt of water bankruptcy’s harms, the report explains. That’s why it argues that the restructuring of water governance must ensure legal safeguards, compensation, livelihood diversification, and social protection for societally disenfranchised populations.

The report also calls on nations to prevent further irreparable harm. This means ensuring that remaining wetlands, aquifers, soils, glaciers, ecosystems, and species are protected through government policy.

But water bankruptcy offers an unexpected opportunity, the report states. If recognized as the crisis it is, it can be a “catalyst for renewed cooperation. 

“Water is not a resource like any other. It is the crux of human security, global food systems, biodiversity, public health, and peace,” Madani tells Food Tank.

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Photo courtesy of Elibet Valencia Munoz

The post The Path Forward from Global Water Bankruptcy appeared first on Food Tank.

Iroquois Valley Farmland Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) recently launched a new program that grants equity shares to organic farmer partners. The approach, called the Farmer Success Sharing Plan, aims to support producers’ livelihoods and protect the land.

Farmland investors have long profited from rising real estate values but the farmers stewarding the land have not typically seen those capital gains, according to Iroquois Valley Farmland REIT. The organization’s new program is working to change this by treating farmers as true partners, leading the evolution of the farmland investment sector.

“As stewards of the organic farmland within Iroquois Valley’s portfolio, farmers play a central role in creating long-term value for the company and its shareholders,” says Drew Blankenbaker, Vice President of Farmer Relations at Iroquois Valley. 

The plan gives farmers a way to own a piece of the company they work with. To qualify, farmers must lease land from Iroquois Valley and maintain organic standards to prove they are improving the soil. When the company is profitable, it issues equity shares to farmer partners, which allows producers to become legal shareholders. They earn the opportunity to own a piece of the rising land value that they co-created through years of hard work.

Adam Roberts, a farmer partner with Iroquois Valley, tells Food Tank that the program allows him to build long-term wealth without needing a huge upfront investment. He is already investing his time and paying for the land, which means the plan is rewarding that commitment by giving him a share of the company’s value. This is an opportunity that farmers don’t often receive, Roberts says. “The REIT shares are a great way to indirectly invest in the land you farm and directly invest in a company that has invested in you.”

While Iroquois Valley stewards a portfolio of organic farmland in 20 U.S. states, a group of 18 farmers in six states—Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, Ohio, and West Virginia—received the first equity awards. Collectively, they represent more than 170 years of partnership and steward over 9,600 acres of organic farmland.

Blankenbaker comes from an agricultural background and knows what it takes to regenerate the land through organic farming. He has also had to confront the long-standing challenges of land access and ownership. “Land access isn’t really a grit or an effort problem, it’s a system problem,” he tells Food Tank.

A lot of time went into designing this program because it relies on long-term relationships, Blankenbaker says. He takes time finding and connecting with farmer partners who align with Iroquois Valley values—those that are ready for long-term commitment.

Farmers earn equity gradually, and their gains are based on specific criteria around tenure, certified organic stewardship, and long-term partnership. The REIT grants awards in profitable years when the company can reward both investors and farmers, and this ensures financial strength into the future.

Farmer partners care about protecting soil health, water quality, biodiversity, and ecosystem resilience. And Iroquois Valley looks to support organic stewardship as well as farmer viability, long-term relationships, and financial structures that all support rather than undermine farmers. Farmers are not asked to take on any governance responsibility. This, Blankenbaker says, creates a real economic alignment.

In his commitment to farmers’ long-term wellness, Blankenbaker explains that he is responsible for staying farmer-focused. He collects feedback and works on farmer improvement systems. He has realized that even though farmers invest their lives into improving the earth, they usually have no financial tie to the land’s long-term success. He hopes the program will change that narrative as it grows.

“We absolutely see this as scalable. But this is not a one-size-fits all-way,” Blankenbaker tells Food Tank. “The challenge is that most farmland finance systems aren’t built around relationships and long-term horizons. We feel there is a mindset shift required—that farmers are recognized as co-creators of value and not just operators on the land.”

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The post Organic Farmland Investment: Turning Farmers into Owners appeared first on Food Tank.

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Let me dispel a common myth about biodiversity. When we think about biodiversity, we often picture lush rainforests, colorful birds, or pollinators buzzing from flower to flower, not the world’s drylands. But these water-scarce, desert-like regions are actually home to more than one-third of the planet’s biodiversity hotspots.

The health of plant life in the world’s dryland regions—and the ability of farmers who cultivate these lands to feed the world—is particularly misunderstood. A recent study in the journal Science notes that, when it comes to protecting biodiversity, people tend to focus first on animals and overlook plants. But drylands encompass 45 percent of the Earth’s surface and 44 percent of global food systems, per CGIAR data. Drylands are where the nourishing crops of the future are taking root!

“Drylands are not marginal or forgotten spaces, but strategic landscapes—rich with opportunity, ecological intelligence, and the potential to drive resilience, economic vitality, and sustainable prosperity for millions,” says Éliane Ubalijoro, the CEO of CIFOR-ICRAF, a global agroforestry research collaborative.

Here at Food Tank, we place emphasis on researching and highlighting solutions, rather than letting ourselves marinate in hopelessness and despair. And rather than maligning or lamenting drylands, I want to argue that we currently find ourselves facing an opportunity—and a responsibility!—to build on the actual biodiversity of dryland ecosystems as a path forward toward a climate-resilient food system.

Tomorrow, May 22, is the International Day for Biological Diversity, and there’s no sugar-coating the fact that we’re facing a biodiversity crisis. Three-quarters of land-based environments and about two-thirds of marine environments have been significantly altered by human actions, per United Nations analysis, and this diminishing ecological vibrancy is an inextricable driver of the broader climate crisis.

This is why it’s so critical to see work being done to support dryland communities by organizations like CIFOR-ICRAF, the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), and CGIAR’s Global Strategy for Resilient Drylands. In December, for example, CIFOR-ICRAF signed a major partnership agreement with the European Union to accelerate sustainable dryland management practices and elevate the position of dryland issues on broader food security and economic agendas.

When the future of plants is unstable, “it can also affect human food security and access to basic materials,” according to Rosa Scherson and Federico Luebert, biologists at the University of Chile. “Maintaining the current conditions that support human life requires urgent action.”

Food systems are a particularly influential tool for building climate resilience in drylands—and a delicious one, too. This week, Food Tank’s research team is helping us highlight 10 of the many dryland- and arid-adapted crops we should know about!

Durum Wheat is called the 10th most important crop produced on the planet by CGIAR, which makes sense: The heat-tolerant grain is rich in protein fibers, carbohydrates, and key minerals and is used to make couscous, bread, and pasta. Researchers led by ICARDA Morocco are introducing several new varieties of the crop that are tolerant to increasingly severe droughts, to boost dryland livelihoods.

Faba Beans excel under most climatic conditions and have a wide adaptability to a range of soil environments, according to the African Journal of Agricultural Research. They are rich in protein and essential micronutrients and serve as a break crop in continuous cereal rotations, which helps improve the productivity of soils, strengthen land structure, and contribute to wild pollinator maintenance.

Groundnuts/Peanuts are central to the financial and nutritional well-being of hundreds of millions of farmers and consumers across the semi-arid tropics. The crop is a major source of edible oil and vegetable protein, plus they provide over 30 essential nutrients including excellent quantities of niacin, fiber and vitamin E.

Jujubes—fruits that can be consumed fresh, processed into beverages, or preserved by drying or candying—are important components of dryland agroforestry systems not just for food but also soil health and live fencing. They’re native to Central and South Asia but widely distributed across arid and semi-arid regions of the world, and are a good source of vitamin C, key sugars, and minerals like iron.

Mesquite Pods are quite adaptable to different soils and terrains, making them particularly prominent among agroforestry research into drought-resistant desert legumes. In fact, they’re recognized by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) as one of the most important species for the afforestation of arid and semi-arid regions. The pods are traditionally ground into a nutritious, gluten-free flour that’s rich in protein, fiber, and minerals including calcium and magnesium.

Millet is a collective term referring to small-seeded annual grasses that are cultivated as subsistence grain crops for local consumption. Certain species of millets are particularly well-adapted to dry soils compared to other crops, so they’re more able to be cultivated in high temperatures, with low or erratic precipitation, during short growing seasons, or in otherwise too acidic or water-poor soils.

Nopales are prickly pear cacti whose fruits are eaten fresh and pads are consumed as an antioxidant-rich vegetable. ICARDA calls them one of the most promising ‘under-utilized species’ of the dry regions, especially to help sustain livelihoods of potentially vulnerable smallholder farmers.

Pigeonpea is commonly used as a green vegetable and food grain, and is widely adapted to drought conditions. The legume is high in protein, dietary fiber, iron, and folate. According to research conducted by the FAO in Malawi, the crop supports nitrogen fixing and enhances soil fertility. It requires low inputs and can be intercropped with traditional crops such as maize.

Sorghum appears to have been domesticated in Ethiopia about 5,000 years ago and has a number of factors that make it drought- and heat-resistant. ICARDA has identified sorghum as an important underutilized crop that has significant potential for nutrition, climate resilience, and economic stability.

Tepary Beans are an important source of protein native to arid regions of North and Central America. Particular varieties of these beans perform especially well across a variety of moisture stress levels, making them adaptive and resilient to dry conditions.

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Photo courtesy of Dileesh Kumar

The post The 10 Crops That Can Turn Arid Lands Into Biodiversity And Food Security Hotspots appeared first on Food Tank.

Each week, Food Tank is rounding up a few news stories that inspire excitement, infuriation, or curiosity.

The Dismantlement of USAID Continues to Impact Communities as Global Crises Intensify

Headlines this week highlighted a series of escalating global crises. These are not isolated events. They are interconnected symptoms of larger systemic pressures: climate change, political instability, economic inequality, and weakening global humanitarian infrastructure.

In Somalia, worsening drought and aid reductions are pushing communities toward catastrophe. Because Somalia imports much of its food and agricultural inputs, global supply chain disruptions from the Iran conflict are rapidly translating into higher prices and worsening hunger for ordinary families.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda where Ebola cases have risen significantly, the WHO has declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

This week in an interview with ABC News, Dr. Amesh Adalja from Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, who spoke with Dani on Episode 495 of Food Talk with Dani Nierenberg, said in response to the WHO declaration, “This outbreak needs to have a lot of resources brought to bear to prevent it from getting bigger, to prevent it from killing more people, to prevent it from spreading to neighboring countries.”

USAID was created to address exactly these kinds of global emergencies. As humanitarian needs grow, the dismantlement of USAID leaves vulnerable communities with fewer resources to respond and recover.

In Kenya last month, Dani experienced this gap firsthand. Changing rainfall patterns due to climate change have contributed to rising malaria cases and growing food insecurity. The link between health and hunger is direct: when farmers are unable to work during critical growing seasons, families lose both income and food security. Scaled across entire regions, these disruptions become barriers to education, livelihoods, economic growth, and long-term resilience.

Millions of vulnerable people are being pushed deeper into hunger and poverty while the international system that once responded to humanitarian emergencies is shrinking.

The Fuel Crisis in Cuba is a Food Systems Crisis

The ongoing war in Iran continues to disrupt global fuel markets. In Cuba, the fuel shortage is no longer just an energy crisis but a food systems one.

Shortages of oil and diesel are disrupting every stage of Cuba’s food supply chain. Without reliable fuel, getting food from the field to the table becomes increasingly difficult, resulting in shortages, inflation, and food insecurity across the country.

A lack of diesel has left tractors, harvesters, irrigation systems, and transportation vehicles unusable. Farmers are increasingly forced to rely on manual labor, dramatically slowing production and reducing yields.

Farmers like Obiols Sobredo in the Cuban town of Las Minas produces crops like tomatoes, sorghum, and cassava. Farm work that used to take him 15 minutes with fuel now takes him three days by hand, significantly impacting his ability to feed his community.

Milk from Sobredo’s goats was once delivered to nearby schools, but fuel shortages now make transportation unreliable and refrigeration difficult, increasing the risk of spoilage before the milk can reach children.

The crisis highlights a broader global reality: food security depends on stable energy infrastructure. When fuel systems fail, the effects ripple across agriculture and public health.

The U.S. House Advances Year-Round Sale of Ethanol Blend, E15

In response to the ongoing fuel crisis, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would allow the year-round sale of E15, a fuel blend that contains 15% ethanol produced from U.S. corn.

The bill passed in a narrow bipartisan vote and now moves to the Senate.

Supporters argue the measure could lower fuel prices for consumers, strengthen rural economies, increase demand for U.S. corn, and reduce dependence on imported energy during a period of heightened global oil market volatility. Expanding year-round E15 sales would likely increase domestic demand for corn-based ethanol, creating an additional market for American corn growers at a time when many farmers are struggling.

Critics, however, argue that expanding corn ethanol could increase fertilizer runoff, water pollution, and land-use pressures while delivering only modest climate benefits.

The Senate is expected to become the key battleground for the legislation. The bill will likely need 60 votes to overcome procedural hurdles, and opposition from senators representing refinery interests.

China Restores Trade for U.S. Agriculture Products

Donald Trump met with Xi Jinping in Beijing last week where agricultural trade was front and center in negotiations. The meeting pointed to a renewed effort to stabilize trade relations between the world’s two largest economies after years of volatility that heavily impacted farmers.

The U.S. and China finalized an agricultural trade framework aimed at expanding Chinese purchases of American farm products, primarily U.S. beef, poultry, and soybeans. China has committed to purchasing at least $17 billion in U.S. agricultural products each year, marking one of the largest agricultural purchasing agreements between the two countries in recent years.

As part of the agreement, China has restored market access for U.S. beef and approved hundreds of beef processing facilities for export eligibility. The country has also resumed imports of American poultry from states deemed clear of bird flu, and renewed their commitment to purchase at least 25 million tons of U.S. soybeans.

American farmers are cautiously optimistic, following years of uncertainty, retaliatory tariffs, and supply chain disruptions.

The agreement last week may give some hope to farmers and rural communities hoping for stabilization, though long-term uncertainty remains as U.S.-China relations continue to evolve.

Undamming Across the U.S. is a Win for Fish, Ecological Systems, and Native Communities

More miles of American rivers were reconnected through the removal of dams last year than ever before. This represents a big win for fish, ecological systems, and native communities.

Dam removal projects improve biodiversity, healthier waterways, and migratory fish patterns. They also help restore river access to the local communities who have longstanding relationships with these once-dammed rivers.

Indigenous communities are leading these efforts. This month, the largest American dam removal project was successfully completed on California’s Klamath River, led by a coalition of Yurok, Karuk, Klamath, Hoopa Valley, and Shasta tribes.

This project represented decades of advocacy to restore salmon populations that are central to these communities’ cultures, food systems, ceremonies, economies, and livelihoods.

There is still work to do but the Klamath project is being seen as a national model for future river restoration efforts spearheaded by Native communities alongside environmental organizations, scientists, and policymakers.

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Carlo Petrini, founder of Slow Food and pioneer of the global movement for good, clean, and fair food for all, has died at the age of 76 in his hometown, Bra, in Italy’s Piedmont region.

Petrini was one of the most influential voices in redefining food as an issue of environmental sustainability, cultural identity, and social justice, as well as nourishment. In a statement, Slow Food describes Petrini as “a visionary leader and public intellectual with a profound commitment to the common good, human relationships, and the natural world.” His work connected “communities, farmers, food artisans, cooks, activists, and young people across the world,” the statement says.

In 1986, Petrini founded Arcigola—which would later become Slow Food—in response to McDonalds opening its first location in Italy, in Rome’s Piazza di Spagna. At demonstrations against the opening, Petrini and other activists handed out plates of pasta while saying, “We don’t want fast food. We want slow food.”

Under Petrini’s leadership, Arcigola evolved from a small grassroots movement in the Italian countryside, into an internationally renowned global network active in more than 160 countries. He was elected as Slow Food’s President in 1989, in Paris, when more than 20 delegations from around the world signed the Slow Food Manifesto. He served as President until 2022.

Petrini dedicated his life to imagining, realizing, and nurturing what Slow Food has become today, the organization says. He was instrumental in developing key initiatives that transformed the movement’s vision into concrete action.

Petrini founded Terra Madre in 2004. A global network, Terra Madre seeks to connect small-scale farmers, fishers, and food artisans to promote sustainable, equitable food systems and preserve traditional food heritage and knowledge.

In 2004, Petrini also founded the University of Gastronomic Sciences, the first academic institution dedicated to the multidisciplinary study of food and food culture. The University, located in Piedmont, has trained around 4,000 food professionals from 100 countries.

Alongside Bishop of Verona, Monsignor Domenico Pompili, Petrini founded the Laudato Si’ Communities (LCS) in 2017. LCS is a network of around 80 local groups dedicated to furthering Pope Francis’s encyclical letter, “Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home,” the first-ever papal encyclical devoted to the crisis of our planet.

In 2004 Petrini was named a ‘European Hero’ by Time magazine, and in 2008 he was the only Italian on The Guardian’s list of ‘50 People Who Could Save the World.’ Petrini was named United Nations Environment Programme Champion of the Earth 2013, honoring him for taking bold steps to inspire positive change, and United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization Special Ambassador to Zero Hunger for Europe in 2016.

Petrini authored numerous books, including Slow Food: The Case for Taste. Published in 2001, The Case for Taste features a foreword by Alice Waters, chef, author and advocate. In 2005 Petrini published Slow Food Nation: Why Our Food Should Be Good, Clean and Fair. A response to the dangers highlighted in the book Fast Food Nation, Slow Food Nation outlines various means of taking back control of the global food system. Terra Madre: Forging a New Global Network of Sustainable Food Communities explores the value of alliances between food producers and food consumers.

Terrafutura: Dialogues with Pope Francis on Integral Ecology, published in 2020, features three original dialogues between Pope Francis and Petrini, exploring themes of biodiversity, the economy, migration, education, and community. In the 2025 book A Taste for Change: The Ecological Transition As a Way to Happiness, Petrini argues for a new paradigm for developing a sustainable solution for the economy and the food chain.

“Carlo inspired us all to think not only about what we eat, but the farmers, ranchers, fishers, foragers and other food producers who make life delicious. His passion will continue to inspire all of us who eat,” says Food Tank President Danielle Nierenberg.

Carlo Petrini’s death leaves a great void, not only in the world of food and science, but throughout society, Italy’s President, Sergio Mattarella says. “His insights and constant advocacy for sustainability, the need to preserve traditions, the enhancement of local cultures and respect for the environment have generated a new awareness of food culture and its production.”

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Photo courtesy of Slow Food

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As adoption of GLP-1s grows, food waste experts expect these drugs to alter food waste patterns. This creates an opportunity for restaurants, retailers, and hotels to adapt and help keep food out of landfills. 

Around 12 percent of adults in the United States have tried a GLP-1 drug like Ozempic and Wegovy, according to a study published in JAMA. The nonprofit ReFED reports that their uptake is driving a decrease in demand for groceries, a desire for small portion sizes, and a shift in eaters’ food preferences. As this happens, levels of surplus food are changing as well.

Dana Gunders, ReFED’s Executive Director describes these drugs as “a life change moment.” Adopting is not unlike learning to cook after first leaving home or having a child, she explains. All of these alter the way eaters interact with food.

GLP-1 users tend to be more mindful of surplus food on their plates, ReFED finds. “When people go on GLP-1s, their waste tends to go up,” Gunders tells Food Tank. She adds that it’s not surprising as eaters get used to a new appetite. “But over time, they do tend to get a little bit better and in some cases, waste has gone down a little bit.”

But as eaters shop differently, it may take some time for grocers to adapt. “It’s like an earthquake in the food sector and that’s probably even more true in the retail space,” Emily Broad Leib, a Clinical Professor of Law and Director of Harvard Law School Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation, tells Food Tank. 

Eventually, Broad Leib believes that retailers will catch up because “they want to be selling the right things and making the money they can make. But she thinks that incentivizing policies can encourage them to act faster and find ways to manage surplus without sending it to the trash. 

Restaurants also have an opportunity as they work to meet the needs of this new demographic. “I anticipate we will see a lot more restaurants coming out with menus and offerings that offer more flexible or customizable portion sizes. And we know there’s a lot of interest in that,” Gunders says. 

ReFED’s research shows that three-quarters of people on GLP-1s would prefer one restaurant over another if they can choose their portion size. And restaurants are noticing the trend. But when it comes to hotels and other businesses offering large buffets, the transition may take longer, Gunders and Broad Leib say.

“I feel like that sector has been talked about a lot less,” Broad Leib says. “That message is a lot harder to get directly up the chain in the hospitality sector because individual consumers aren’t the ones paying necessarily.”

Listen to or watch the full conversation with Emily Broad Leib and Dana Gunders on Food Talk with Dani Nierenberg to hear about the business case to help hotels tackle this challenge, policy opportunities to reduce waste, and long-term implications of GLP-1s.

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Earlier this year, I spent a week with researchers at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe) at their headquarters in Kenya. icipe is an Africa-based research institution that uses insect science to address challenges related to food security, public health, agriculture, and the environment.

I’ve known icipe’s Director General, Abdou Tenkouano, since 2009, when I met him in Tanzania at the World Vegetable Center, and later in the 2010s when he worked with the West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development (CORAF) in Senegal. He is someone I deeply admire and respect, and it’s always an honor to learn from his work.

During my visit, I met dozens of researchers, farmers, and community members who are co-creating solutions to food insecurity, malaria, and poverty in Kenya and beyond. And I was lucky to document some of this work alongside Food Tank filmmaker Haven Worley. You can watch our icipe video here and stay tuned for more On the Ground with Dani Nierenberg articles.

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This article is part of Food Tank’s primer series, “Food Tank Explains.” Each installment unpacks the ideas, innovations, and challenges shaping today’s food and agriculture systems, offering clear insights into complex topics. To explore more articles in the series, click here.

The farm bill is a package of legislation governing topics including U.S. agriculture, nutrition, and conservation policy. Renewed about every 5 years for the past century, the legislation provides lawmakers with periodic opportunities to address national food and farming issues.

Over time, the farm bill has steadily expanded to reflect shifting political, economic, and agricultural priorities. It has evolved from an act providing immediate economic relief into an omnibus compendium of laws shaping everything from food access and land management to rural economies and agricultural innovation.

The first farm bill, the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1933, was prompted by a drop in crop prices following World War I and the Great Depression. The legislation was a part of the New Deal and sought to reduce surplus crops and raise farm income. Farmer support and agricultural price controls have been core functions of the 17 farm bills that followed.

After the 1933 farm bill, in an era that came to be known as the Dust Bowl, large areas of the U.S. faced severe, multi-year droughts that caused soil erosion, dust storms, and distress migration on scales not previously seen. To address the devastation, the 1938 farm bill included soil conservation measures, introducing programs that paid farmers to adopt practices aimed at reducing soil erosion and improving soil health.

Farm bills during the 1950s primarily focused on stabilizing the agricultural sector after years of war. World War II-era farm policy had offered farmers high-value fixed-rate loans to boost production levels and protect farmer income. After World War II and the Korean War, wartime demand fell and technological advances sharply increased agricultural output.

Despite rising supply levels, the government maintained many of its wartime loan policies. The result was massive agricultural surpluses. To stabilize supply and demand, the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 authorized the use of surplus crops for foreign aid, creating the program now known as Food for Peace.

In the 1960s, Great Society reforms leveraged U.S. agriculture to combat domestic hunger, linking food assistance programs with farmer subsidies. Mirroring this approach, the Agricultural and Consumer Protection Act of 1973 became the first farm bill to include a nutrition title and food assistance programs. Later legislation continued to modify farm bill nutrition programs, including changes to food stamp eligibility in the Food and Agriculture Act of 1977 and the program’s rebranding as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in 2008. All farm bills since have reauthorized funding for food assistance.

By including a nutrition title, the 1973 bill became the first omnibus farm bill. The subsequent farm bills covered a wider set of topics and involved a broader range of stakeholders in the negotiation process. The 1985 bill incorporated new conservation laws, protecting highly erodible land and wetlands. The 1990 bill included the Global Climate Change Prevention Act and the first forestry title.

The first energy title was enacted in the 2002 farm bill, which created programs to support the research, development, and adoption of bioenergy and renewable energy systems. The 2008 bill enacted the first horticulture title, laying the foundation for federal support of local food systems and specialty crops.

The most recent farm bill, the Agriculture Improvement Act of in December 2018, is structured across 12 titles including commodities, trade, nutrition, and energy. The law largely preserved the framework of the prior bill while expanding support for issues including conservation, organic agriculture, local and regional food systems, and new, socially disadvantaged, and veteran farmers and ranchers.

The 2018 farm bill expired in October 2023, but Congress has not finalized a replacement. “They typically are on an every five year timeline,” Kathleen Merrigan, Executive Director of the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems at Arizona State University, tells Food Tank. “We’re very much overdue at this point.”

Negotiations have repeatedly stalled over politically contentious issues including SNAP funding, conservation spending, and farm subsidies. Instead, lawmakers have enacted three consecutive one-year extensions to keep some farm bill programs operating. Other programs have lost funding or legal authorization to operate.

After the 2024 election, lawmakers shifted portions of farm policy into the budget reconciliation process through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R.1). The legislation included historically deep cuts to SNAP and conservation programs, and major changes to farmer support programs like disaster assistance, crop insurance, and access to land and farm credit.

The next farm bill is expected to cover issues including SNAP, the H-2A program, pesticides, animal welfare for livestock, and commodity subsidies. It will have substantial implications for food assistance recipients at a time when food insecurity is rising, and for farmers, who are facing falling commodity prices and high input costs compounded by tariffs and war.

Before it can become law, the bill needs to pass both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. The House recently passed the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026, bringing the country one step closer to a new farm bill. The House’s bill removes a provision designed to shield pesticide manufacturers from health-related lawsuits tied to their products, which Merrigan describes as a victory.

But the organization Farm Aid, along with 300 other non-profit and farmers organizations, say the legislation fails to meet the moment or the needs of communities and farmers. Anti-hunger advocates had hoped the House would revisit changes to the SNAP seen in H.R.1, but those have remained in place. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities estimates that one in eight participants will lose access to some food relief as a result.

Veronica Mazariegos-Anastassiou, a young farmer at Brisa Ranch in California, tells Food Tank that she hopes the next farm bill will embrace approaches that connect environmental protections with agricultural policy. And according to Marion Nestle, author, nutritionist, and Professor Emerita at NYU, the current policy lacks an overarching framework centered on health and environmental protection, allowing the legislation to become a mess.

“There are voices missing from this farm bill,” Adrian Lipscombe, Founder of the 40 Acres Project, tells Food Tank. Lipscome explains that many of the people most affected by the bill, including immigrant workers and Black, Brown, and small-scale farmers, continue to be excluded from the conversation shaping the legislation.

The Senate expects to release its version of the bill in about a month.

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Photo courtesy of Scott Goodwill

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A new company YumLit is working to bring joy to family mealtimes through interactive light-up plates. As a social venture, they plan to share proceeds with nonprofit organizations committed to tackling food and nutrition insecurity in their communities and around the world.

The inspiration for the company came to Janet Lawson and her husband Seth Coan during a family dinner. After finishing his meal, their three-year-old son expressed excitement when he discovered the cartoon lion on his plate.

“It was a fun reward,” Lawson tells Food Tank. She and Coan wondered if they could inspire that same joy in other children by making plates come to life in some way.

This question led to the development of colorful, screen-free dishes that light up when a child reveals the design underneath. Lawson and Coan hope that the plates encourage children to build healthy eating habits while reducing stress at mealtimes.

“We created YumLit to make meals feel more fun and encouraging for kids,” Lawson says.

The launch of YumLit is a pivot for the couple, who recently moved to Washington State after living in Morocco. Lawson worked at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), where she focused on building more resilient food and agriculture systems. Coan, an environmental engineer, was focused on climate solutions and sustainability.

Funding cuts and the dismantling of USAID led to job losses and big transitions for the family. But even as she moves into the world of entrepreneurship, Lawson says that she is still driven by the same goals she’s always had: ending food and nutrition insecurity and advancing climate resilience.

“I was very interested in how…we could have some type of social impact,” Lawson says.

YumLit created the YumLit Luminaries Program, which allows organizations to convert the sale of a plate into a donation for their community. When anyone purchases a plate through a luminary’s unique link, 10 percent of proceeds will go to a nonprofit focusing on food access, hunger relief, or nutrition support. They are also planning to donate US$1 from every plate sold to nonprofit partners working to tackle childhood hunger.

“We know that a lot of organizations are experiencing the fallout not just from USAID grants, but other federal funding that has been reduced, and they are really struggling as well,” Lawson tells Food Tank.

The reception to the plates has been positive, says Lawson, with pediatric nutritionists and feeding specialists excited by the idea.

YumLit just launched a Kickstarter campaign to help the company scale and she expects plates will be in supporters’ hands toward the end of this year.

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Photo courtesy of YumLit

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Workers and management at Abundance Food Cooperative in Rochester, New York recently voted to ratify their first union contract.

Ratification took place less than a year after the Co-Op’s workers voted to form a union with representation from Workers United. The new contract guarantees just-cause protections, which means the co-op can’t fire employees without a fair and proven reason. It also focuses on worker wellbeing by improving health and safety rules, offering a flexible paid time off policy and cost-of-living wage increases, and changes to improve the daily work environment. 

The collaboration in drafting of the first contract illustrates the strength of the cooperative’s labor-management partnership, says the co-op’s Marketing Coordinator Debbie Smith. And as the cost of living in Rochester climbs, the store wants workers to feel valued and cared for.

“Cooperatives exist to serve our community, and the workers are a part of our community,” Abundance Interim General Manager Vince Ularich tells Food Tank.

The Abundance leadership team also sees this step representing a commitment to the wider Rochester community. “Our neighborhood…has been described by terms such as food apartheid, a food desert or a food swamp. Statistically, we serve areas that suffer from some of the greatest food insecurity in the country,” Ularich says.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that over 13.5 percent of households in the United States are food insecure. But in Rochester, the food insecurity rate is much higher, at 21.5 percent, according to Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap resource. 

Ularich says the co-op staff “strive to provide food access to all of the people in our neighborhood and the surrounding community.” He sees Abundance as more than a store, but a site that fosters community wellbeing and responds to the needs of local residents.

This means providing accessible, organic, locally sourced, and minimally processed goods. Pay-by-the-pound items are designed to improve economic accessibility. And Too-Good-To-Go bags preserve what could have otherwise been food waste, while allowing eaters to purchase products at a discount.

Special Projects Coordinator Francis Barrow tells Food Tank that the Co-Op has run into “disagreements between employees about what the union would bring and if it would benefit everyone.” But Barrow is optimistic the contract will lead to an increased sense of community. “My hope is that employees and management work hand in hand to make the co-op stronger: for the people who work here, the people who shop here, and the community as a whole.”

And Ularich has been encouraged by support for the labor movement: “Throughout this process we have been aligned in the goal of ensuring that our co-op is a business that supports workers’ rights.”

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Photo courtesy of Abundance Food Cooperative

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Each week, Food Tank is rounding up a few news stories that inspire excitement, infuriation, or curiosity.

Stronger Local Food and Farming Systems Needed to Stabilize Food Prices

A new report from the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food) warns that shifting global politics are reshaping food security, and unless we change course, food prices, hunger, and corporate concentration are set to worsen. 

Global food prices remain more than 35 percent above pre-pandemic levels, with conflict, trade tensions, aid cuts, and energy shocks disrupting supply chains and making food more expensive. 

The authors argue that a heavy dependence on volatile global markets, high food imports, and long supply chains that are controlled by just a few countries and companies have made our food and agriculture systems dangerously vulnerable. And they’re not only fragile — they’re unjust, says Shalmali Guttal, an IPES-Food Expert. 

But governments can chart a different path forward. The report argues for “resilient self-reliance” that is grounded in local supply chains and markets, support systems for farmers, and by reducing their dependence on these global markets. 

Mamadou Goita, another IPES-Food Expert says we already have solutions building this resilience. He points to the West African regional food security reserve, which shows that “cooperation and public tools can stabilize markets.” Other success stories can be found in India, Canada, and Norway. What we need to scale these solutions, Goita says, is the political will.

Fiji Advances Organic Ag Policy

Fiji’s government is pushing a new national organic farming policy forward as part of a larger effort to improve food security and domestic food production.

According to Tomasi Tunabuna, the country’s Minister for Agriculture, Waterways and Sugar Industry, the National Organic Policy 2026-2030 isn’t just an agricultural framework. “It’s an economic resilience strategy, an environmental safeguard, and a public health investment.”

The government says the Plan is a direct response to increasing fuel and fertilizer prices as well the rising cost of living. They hope that, in the long term, it will help farmers save money, improve soil health, and boost climate resilience.The Ministry also sees this as an opportunity to strengthen their export markets, particularly for crops including turmeric, ginger, and coconut oil. 

“In a time of global uncertainty, Fiji is choosing resilience over dependency and local solutions over imported vulnerability,” Tunabuna says.

India Released Nearly 3,000 Climate-Resilient Crop Varieties

In the last decade, India has released close to 3,000 climate resilience crop varieties, according to a recent update from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR).

The Council launched the National Innovations on Climate Resilient Agriculture program in 2011 to develop and disseminate climate-resilience agricultural technologies.

To complement the new varieties, the program also includes training and field demonstrations to help farmers transition to stress-tolerant crops and adopt practices that build capacity and strengthen the sustainability of their farm. To amplify their work in these vulnerable areas, researchers have also set up climate-resilient villages in more than 440 villages across 150 districts. In these areas, the government says they are demonstrating effective technologies for wider implementation and replication.

This work is urgently needed: Of the 650 agricultural districts assessed through this research, around half are highly or very highly vulnerable to climate shocks including droughts, floods, and heatwaves.

Three-Quarters of USDA Researchers Won’t Relocate to Kansas City

Around three-quarters of researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) say they will not move from Washington D.C. as part of the agency’s relocation plans.

For the second time in seven years, USDA is pushing to move D.C.-based employees at the Economic Research Service (ERS) and National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) to Kansas City. The transition is expected to go into effect this summer.

An internal survey conducted by the union reveals that we will likely see a repeat of 2019, when hundreds of ERS and NIFA employees were asked to make the same move. Around 85 percent either quit or retired in response to the request.

USDA claims that no programs will be affected by the changes, but Dr. Kathleen Merrigan, Executive Director of the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems at ASU, is one of many critics worried about the resulting “brain drain.”

The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 3403 says, “By forcing this move on an accelerated timeline, with no promise of financial help or job security, the USDA is effectively dismantling decades of institutional knowledge, jeopardizing the very data and funding that farmers, policymakers and land-grant universities rely on.”

A Record High Investment to Transform School Meals

Last week, the World Food Programme (WFP) announced plans to strengthen home-grown school meals programs that reach hundreds of thousands of children in East Africa.

The support from Danish foundations Novo Nordisk Foundation (NNF) and Grundfos Foundation makes this the largest private sector commitment to school feeding in WFP’s history. The U.N. agency and the Foundations are entering into the third phase of a partnership, which will focus on models in Uganda, Kenya, and Ethiopia. The work will connect schools with local farmers and clean energy solutions while helping to build climate resilience.

Cindy McCain, WFP’s Executive Director calls school meals “one of the best investments a government can make in a nation’s future.”

WFP estimates that it will provide 366,000 children with nutritious, locally sourced meals while creating stable markets for more than 57,500 smallholder farmers over the next five years. The investment will also support the School Meals Accelerator, a global initiative from the School Meals Coalition, which helps governments with catalytic technical assistance scale national school feeding programs and improve meals for an additional 100 million children by 2030.

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If you want to see a model of successful progress in the global food system, just ask a kid about their school lunch tray.

In recent years, we’ve seen what the World Food Programme (WFP) calls “unprecedented expansion” of school meal programs, which reached some 466 million children worldwide in 2024. That was an increase of 80 million more kids fed within just the previous four years!

“School meals are one of the best investments a government can make in a nation’s future,” says Cindy McCain, WFP Executive Director.

Plenty of work still remains to be done to feed the next generation. The Rockefeller Foundation estimates some 300 million school-aged children worldwide go without a nutritious meal each day. And as we approach summer and the end of the school year here in the U.S., we’re reminded once again of the need to feed kids all year-round, especially when school is not in session.

Any school meal can be literally life-changing for an individual student, of course. But regenerative meal programs in particular can be especially impactful on a systemic level. Regenerative meal programs can unlock as much as US$3 trillion in global economic productivity, analysts with The Rockefeller Foundation estimate. And institutions like schools have tremendous power, through food procurement, to support local and sustainable growers.

Just last week, WFP announced the largest private-sector commitment to school feeding in the organization’s history, with the launch of Phase III of their partnership with Novo Nordisk Foundation (NNF) and Grundfos Foundation. The new efforts focus on sourcing food from regenerative, locally grown agriculture; improving the nutritional quality of meals; and making school kitchens more climate friendly.

An earlier phase of this program, in Rwanda, Uganda, and Kenya, is currently reaching more than 300,000 students in 375 schools. Now, the partnership will expand operations in those countries and into Ethiopia, reaching an estimated 366,000 additional children over the next five years—and supporting more than 57,000 smallholder farmers.

The Rockefeller Foundation is also redoubling its efforts around school meals: Last year, the Foundation unveiled a US$100 million commitment across more than a dozen countries to boost school meal programs and, in turn, build stronger nutrition security and support farmers.

“A regenerative school meal really starts with the farmers. The regenerative or agroecological transition is about building the climate resilience of those that would feed all of humanity,” says Sara Farley, Vice President of the Food Portfolio at The Rockefeller Foundation. These regenerative school meals “can be a source of growth, prosperity for farmers, nutrition, biodiversity, water and soil health. That’s the transition we want to see.”

Here at Food Tank, we’re tracking even more examples of progress all around the globe.

In Brazil, the National School Feeding Program is one of the world’s largest school meal programs and, as of this year, mandates that 45 percent of foods in the program come from smallholder farmers, preferably local. Since 2017, Guatemala has sourced 70 percent of school food from family farms, part of its commitment to local economies. In Luxembourg, a digital platform called Supply4Future connects schools directly with local farmers.

In Angola, leaders recently overhauled the country’s school feeding program to transition to a more sustainable, home-grown model, and 30 percent of the program’s budget is now allocated to procuring food from small farmers. In Kenya, leaders are ramping up toward universal school meals by 2030, with a holistic approach including clean cooking technologies, school gardens, and supports for smallholder farmers.

And worldwide, the School Meals Coalition consists of 113 country-level governments, 6 regional bodies, and 150+ on-the-ground partner organizations to bring nutritious school meals—and the research, communications, technical assistance, and procurement support those programs rely on—to every child.

Recent progress on school meals shows us unequivocally that collaborative investment works: When we break down silos to work together, conduct robust scientific research to inform our approach, and direct meaningful public and private funds toward sustainable food solutions, we can truly bring about wide-reaching and life-changing transformation.

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Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

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