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Sustainability is a hot topic in almost every field that touches the environment, including agriculture. A group of interdisciplinary researchers from the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources at the University of Connecticut published a paper in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Research outlining the current state of research into sustainable food production.
The group includes Yanchao Luo, associate professor of nutritional sciences; Zhenglei Xiao, associate professor of nutritional sciences; and Abhinav Upadhyay, assistant professor of animal sciences. Luo's doctoral student, Bai Qu, is the lead author of the paper.
Sustainable food production focuses on creating food systems that are environmentally sound, economically viable, and socially just.
“We focus on the entire food supply chain, from farm to fork, ensuring each step is sustainable, waste is minimized and carbon emissions are reduced,” Luo said.
The paper outlines the key characteristics of sustainable food production, including environmental stewardship, economic vitality, innovation and adaptation, and social responsibility.
The paper also looks at green technologies such as urban agriculture, food nanotechnology and plant-based foods, all of which play a role in reducing the negative impacts of food production.
“This is not a new concept, but with the development of emerging technologies, there's a lot going on right now, so I think it's very important to revisit this concept,” Luo said.
This publication provides a holistic and interdisciplinary perspective on the subject.
“Sustainable food production is a very collaborative topic,” Luo says. “You can't do it all by yourself.”
Sustainable food production includes the concept of a circular economy, where waste from one process or product can be reused elsewhere.
“People haven't cared about the waste generated, the impact on the environment, or whether it's sustainable,” Luo said. “They just care about profit. Now we have to change the whole concept, or the whole agricultural industry will not be sustainable.”
The paper reflects the university and the University of Connecticut’s broader commitment to sustainability, Lu explained.
“There's a lot of stuff across the university, across the college, that relates to this field, and that's really piqued my interest to delve deeper into the subject,” Luo said.
Luo, co-chair of CAHNR's Sustainable Agriculture and Food Production Committee, is currently working with a group of students to develop an organic poultry feed additive made from microalgae.
“You can't think of sustainable agriculture from a single perspective,” says Lu, “It has to be a highly collective and collaborative approach from all three perspectives: social, environmental and community health. You have to bring all three angles together.”
Further information: Bai Qu et al, Prospects for sustainable food production systems: characteristics and green technologies, Journal of Agriculture and Food Research (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.jafr.2024.100988
