Food security in Ukraine today's conditions.

The system-forming element of national security is food security, which guarantees effective management of the food system, ensuring the food needs of the appropriate quantity and quality of each country's citizen. Despite the significant potential of the agricultural sector, which forms the basis of food security, the need to analyse the state of food security in the current situation is due to military operations on the territory of Ukraine, which led to its negative global results. In this regard, the need to develop effective strategies and legal regulation is essential to ensure national and global food security, which in turn requires coordination of efforts of all countries and international organisations through international cooperation. The study aims to establish a pattern regarding the current state of food security by analysing the impact of availability, access, usefulness and stability of food supply on food security. Research methods: comparative analysis; taxonomic analysis; systematisation, generalisation. The survey found that Ukraine's position in the Global Food Security Index (FSI) among 113 countries in 2022 worsened by 13 points, where the worst indicators for domestic food security are sustainability and adaptability (43.5 points out of 100 and 94th place globally) and economic affordability of food (48.1 points out of 100 and 93rd place in the world). It was found that the actual consumption of vegetables, melons, potatoes, and oil in 2021 was slightly higher than the rational norm, indicating sufficient consumption of these products, while the actual consumption of products that are lower than the rational norm includes meat and meat products, milk and dairy products, fish and fish products, and fruits, berries, and grapes. It has been determined that since 2016, the number of kilocalories in the daily diet of the population of Ukraine has not reached the minimum norm of consumption of basic foodstuffs for the working population. It has been established that in 2020 and 2021, the value of the taxonomic indicator for assessing the level of food security (I) has been decreasing, i.e. the distance to the reference vector has been increasing, which indicates a decrease in the level of food security. The forecasting results suggest a downward trend in the food security index for the period 2022-2027, and there is an urgent need to take measures to eliminate this trend and improve the value of the index, which is extremely important for the security of the state, especially in times of war.

Exploring driving factors in employing waste reduction tools to alleviate the global food security and sustainability.

To align with the SDG 12.3 target and ensure global food security and sustainability, it is crucial to prioritize the reduction of food loss and waste. This paper aims to synthesize previous research on waste reduction tools like lean manufacturing in the agro-food processing industry and identify areas that require further investigation to assurance worldwide food security and promote sustainability. The study uses a systematic literature review that was proposed by Denyer and Tranfield. This research work provides a descriptive analysis of the evolution of lean manufacturing in agro-food processing and identifies research gaps. The review highlights the importance of demand forecasting, managing variable raw materials and products, increasing management involvement, promoting partnership among supply chain members, and addressing supply and demand seasonality and uncertainty to apply the approach to food waste reduction. Based on the findings, the paper suggests further research areas for future investigation that will help create a more sustainable and equitable food system. Reducing food loss and waste can ensure that everyone has access to safe, nutritious, and affordable food while protecting the planet's resources and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This study may contribute to the theory of waste minimization, specifically in post-harvest food loss and waste minimization. The findings will help researchers conduct research work interested in minimizing food loss and waste to ensure global food security.

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz): A Systematic Review for the Pharmacological Activities, Traditional Uses, Nutritional Values, and Phytochemistry.

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is considered one of the essential tuber crops, serving as a dietary staple food for various populations. This systematic review provides a comprehensive summary of the nutritional and therapeutic properties of cassava, which is an important dietary staple and traditional medicine. The review aims to evaluate and summarize the phytochemical components of cassava and their association with pharmacological activities, traditional uses, and nutritional importance in global food crises. To collect all relevant information, electronic databases; Cochrane Library, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Preprint Platforms were searched for studies on cassava from inception until October 2022. A total of 1582 studies were screened, while only 34 were included in this review. The results of the review indicate that cassava has diverse pharmacological activities, including anti-bacterial, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, anti-diarrheal, anti-inflammatory, hypocholesterolemic effects, and wound healing properties. However, more studies that aim to isolate the phytochemicals in cassava extracts and evaluate their pharmacological property are necessary to further validate their medical and nutritional values.

Differential response of nano zinc sulphate with other conventional sources of Zn in mitigating salinity stress in rice grown on saline-sodic soil.

Salinization causes the degradation of the soil and threatening the global food security but the application of essential micronutrients like zinc (Zn), improve the plant growth by stabilizing the plant cell and root development. Keeping in view the above-mentioned scenario, an experiment was conducted to compare the efficiency of conventional Zn fertilizers like zinc sulphate (ZnSO4), zinc ethylene diamine tetra acetic acid (Zn-EDTA) and advance nano Zn fertilizers such as zinc sulphate nanoparticles (ZnSO4NPs), and zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) (applied at the rate of 5 and 10 mg/kg) in saline-sodic soil. Results revealed that the maximum plant height (67%), spike length (72%), root length (162%), number of tillers (71%), paddy weight (100%), shoot dry weight (158%), and root dry weight (119%) was found in ZnSO4NPs applied at the rate of 10 mg/kg (ZnSO4NPs-10) as compared to salt-affected control (SAC). Similarly, the plants physiological attributes like chlorophyll contents (91%), photosynthesis rate (113%), transpiration rate (106%), stomatal conductance (56%) and internal CO2 (11%) were increased by the application of ZnSO4NPs-10, as compared to SAC. The maximum Zn concentration in root (153%), shoot (205%) and paddy (167%) found in ZnSO4NPs-10, as compared to control. In the body of rice plants, other nutrients like phosphorus and potassium were also increased by the application of ZnSO4NPs-10 and soil chemical attributes such as sodium and sodium adsorption ratio were decreased. The current experiment concluded that the application of ZnSO4NPs at the rate of 10 mg/kg in salt-affected paddy soil increased the growth, physiology, up take of essential nutrients and yield of rice by balancing the cationic ratio under salt stress.

Whether curse or blessing: A counterintuitive perspective on global pest thrips infestation under climatic change with implications to agricultural economics.

The improvement and application of pest models to predict yield losses is still a challenge for the scientific community. However, pest models were targeted chiefly towards scheduling scouting or pesticide applications to deal with pest infestation. Thysanoptera (thrips) significantly impact the productivity of many economically important crops worldwide. Until now, no comprehensive study is available on the global distribution of pest thrips, as well as on the extent of cropland vulnerability worldwide. Further, nothing is known about the climate change impacts on these insects. Thus the present study was designed to map the global distribution and quantify the extent of cropland vulnerability in the present and future climate scenarios using data of identified pest thrips within the genus, i.e., Thrips, Frankliniella, and Scirtothrips. Our found significant niche contraction under the climate change scenarios and thrips may reside primarily in their thermal tolerance thresholds. About 3,98,160 km2 of cropland globally was found to be affected in the present scenario. However, it may significantly reduce to 5530 Km2 by 2050 and 1990 km2 by 2070. Further, the thrips distribution mostly getting restricted to Eastern North America, the North-western of the Indian sub-continent, and the north of Europe. Among all realms, thrips may lose ground in the Indo-Malayan realm at the most and get restricted to only 27 out of 825 terrestrial ecoregions. The agrarian communities of the infested regions may get benefit if these pests get wiped out, but on the contrary, we may lose species diversity. Moreover, the vacated niche may attract other invasive species, which may seriously impact the species composition and agricultural productivity. The present study findings can be used in making informed decisions about prioritizing future economic and research investments on the thrips in light of anticipated climate change impacts.

The effects of Covid-19 pandemic on food safety between Indonesia and Bangladesh: A comparative study.

The recently emerged Covid-19 pandemic is greatly impacting every corner of human society throughout the world including human health. This study aimed to provide important insights into the response of food safety system on the perspective of preventing Covid-19 pandemic effect. A survey was conducted in Indonesia and Bangladesh to collect information from food companies about food safety preparedness associated with Covid-19, priorities in the prevention of pandemic effect on food companies, and the effect of the pandemic on the food supply chain. Hygiene and the use of masks and gloves are the two most significant attributes to prevent and combat the pandemic situation in terms of food safety, effective distance maintenance between persons, and restrain or limit visits to the object are considered as attributes with less significance. The retail part of the food supply chain was figured out as mainly affected by the pandemic as opposed to food storage was identified as least affected. The development of attitude in the food sector that not to compromise food safety at any moment is the strength to combat the pandemic crisis to retain the food safety standard globally.

Systematic review on ensuring the global food security and covid-19 pandemic resilient food systems: towards accomplishing sustainable development goals targets.

Covid-19, one of the most critical and widespread global pandemics, has resulted in extraordinary risk corollaries engulfing millions of people's lives and has caused an unprecedented economic downturn while amplifying food insecurity. A systematic review of 132 scientific communications was performed over a 15-year period, using articles from the ScienceDirect and Web of Science databases (2006-2021). In addition, 24 policy briefs, country papers, and publications from the UN, WHO, FAO, and OECD were cited. The aim of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of existing literature on the adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on agricultural food systems, as well as potential strategies for building robust, resilient, and sustainable food systems to ensure global food security, safety, and endeavors regarding future global emergencies, as well as new research policies while achieving SDG targets. This would fill a research gap while also having long-term implications for health, agricultural, and food resilience policy development in a rapidly changing world. Covid-19 demonstrates how human, animal, and environmental health are all interconnected, emphasizing the need for one health legislation and a paradigm shift in planetary health. Furthermore, it identifies potential mechanisms for rebuilding better systems by shifting priorities toward policy coherence, innovative food system governance, re-engineering market access, and nexus thinking in the food system approach. According to our findings, the COVID-19 posed unavoidable impediments to achieving SDG targets for food security and household poverty.

Solanimycin: Biosynthesis and Distribution of a New Antifungal Antibiotic Regulated by Two Quorum-Sensing Systems.

The increasing emergence of drug-resistant fungal infections has necessitated a search for new compounds capable of combating fungal pathogens of plants, animals, and humans. Microorganisms represent the main source of antibiotics with applicability in agriculture and in the clinic, but many aspects of their metabolic potential remain to be explored. This report describes the discovery and characterization of a new antifungal compound, solanimycin, produced by a hybrid polyketide/nonribosomal peptide (PKS/NRPS) system in Dickeya solani, the enterobacterial pathogen of potato. Solanimycin was active against a broad range of plant-pathogenic fungi of global economic concern and the human pathogen Candida albicans. The genomic cluster responsible for solanimycin production was defined and analyzed to identify the corresponding biosynthetic proteins, which include four multimodular PKS/NRPS proteins and several tailoring enzymes. Antifungal production in D. solani was enhanced in response to experimental conditions found in infected potato tubers and high-density fungal cultures. Solanimycin biosynthesis was cell density dependent in D. solani and was controlled by both the ExpIR acyl-homoserine lactone and Vfm quorum-sensing systems of the bacterial phytopathogen. The expression of the solanimycin cluster was also regulated at the post-transcriptional level, with the regulator RsmA playing a major role. The solanimycin biosynthetic cluster was conserved across phylogenetically distant bacterial genera, and multiple pieces of evidence support that the corresponding gene clusters were acquired by horizontal gene transfer. Given its potent broad-range antifungal properties, this study suggests that solanimycin and related molecules may have potential utility for agricultural and clinical exploitation. IMPORTANCE Fungal infections represent a major clinical, agricultural, and food security threat worldwide, which is accentuated due to the difficult treatment of these infections. Microorganisms represent a prolific source of antibiotics, and current data support that this enormous biosynthetic potential has been scarcely explored. To improve the performance in the discovery of novel antimicrobials, there is a need to diversify the isolation niches for new antibiotic-producing microorganisms as well as to scrutinize novel phylogenetic positions. With the identification of the antifungal antibiotic solanimycin in a broad diversity of phytopathogenic Dickeya spp., we provide further support for the potential of plant-associated bacteria for the biosynthesis of novel antimicrobials. The complex regulatory networks involved in solanimycin production reflect the high metabolic cost of bacterial secondary metabolism. This metabolic regulatory control makes many antibiotics cryptic under standard laboratory conditions, and mimicking environmental conditions, as shown here, is a strategy to activate cryptic antibiotic clusters.

A new face of food security: A global perspective of the COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 has impacted the world economy and food system in many aspects. We conducted a comprehensive examination of global food security during the COVID-19 pandemic by considering the food security index and its four key pillars (affordability, availability, quality and safety, and natural resources and resilience) for 102 countries. In addition to the fixed effect panel data estimator, the Method of Moments Quantile regression is useful for disaggregating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to inflation, economic growth, urbanization, and agricultural land on global food security among countries with different levels of food security. We found that COVID-19 has negatively affected food security globally, especially in countries with a low food security level. The effect of income per capita and urbanization rate on the food security index is positive and statistically significant across all quantiles. Inflation rate and agricultural land, however, adversely affect food security, and this effect is stronger for countries with lower levels of food security. The results of affordability, availability, quality, and safety, and natural resources and resilience models provide meaningful implications for governments and policymakers to build resilience in food systems and to be better prepared for future crises and disruptions in the food supply.

Photoantimicrobials in agriculture.

Classical approaches for controlling plant pathogens may be impaired by the development of pathogen resistance to chemical pesticides and by limited availability of effective antimicrobial agents. Recent increases in consumer awareness of and/or legislation regarding environmental and human health, and the urgent need to improve food security, are driving increased demand for safer antimicrobial strategies. Therefore, there is a need for a step change in the approaches used for controlling pre- and post-harvest diseases and foodborne human pathogens. The use of light-activated antimicrobial substances for the so-called antimicrobial photodynamic treatment is known to be effective not only in a clinical context, but also for use in agriculture to control plant-pathogenic fungi and bacteria, and to eliminate foodborne human pathogens from seeds, sprouted seeds, fruits, and vegetables. Here, we take a holistic approach to review and re-evaluate recent findings on: (i) the ecology of naturally-occurring photoantimicrobials, (ii) photodynamic processes including the light-activated antimicrobial activities of some plant metabolites, and (iii) fungus-induced photosensitization of plants. The inhibitory mechanisms of both natural and synthetic light-activated substances, known as photosensitizers, are discussed in the contexts of microbial stress biology and agricultural biotechnology. Their modes-of-antimicrobial action make them neither stressors nor toxins/toxicants (with specific modes of poisonous activity), but a hybrid/combination of both. We highlight the use of photoantimicrobials for the control of plant-pathogenic fungi and quantify their potential contribution to global food security.

Emerging infectious disease: An underappreciated area of strategic concern for food security.

Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) increasingly threaten global food security and public health. Despite technological breakthroughs, we are losing the battle with (re)emerging diseases as treatment costs and production losses rise. A horizon scan of diseases of crops, livestock, seafood and food-borne illness suggests these costs are unsustainable. The paradigm of coevolution between pathogens and particular hosts teaches that emerging diseases occur only when pathogens evolve specific capacities that allow them to move to new hosts. EIDs ought to be rare and unpredictable, so crisis response is the best we can do. Alternatively, the Stockholm Paradigm suggests that the world is full of susceptible but unexposed hosts that pathogens could infect, given the opportunity. Global climate change, globalized trade and travel, urbanization and land-use changes (often associated with biodiversity loss) increase those opportunities, making EID frequent. We can, however, anticipate their arrival in new locations and their behaviour once they have arrived. We can 'find them before they find us', mitigating their impacts. The DAMA (Document, Assess, Monitor, Act) protocol alters the current reactive stance and embodies proactive solutions to anticipate and mitigate the impacts of EID, extending human and material resources and buying time for development of new vaccinations, medications and control measures.

Recent advances and future perspective of essential oils in control Colletotrichum spp.: A sustainable alternative in postharvest treatment of fruits.

The world population growth has raised concerns about food security. Agricultural systems are asked to satisfy a growing demand for food with increasingly limited resources, and simultaneously still must reduce the impacts on the environment. This scenario encourages the search for safe and sustainable production strategies. Reducing losses in the production process can be one of the main ways to guarantee food safety. In fruticulture, it is estimated that more than 50% of the production can be lost between harvest and the final consumer due to postharvest diseases caused by phytopathogenic fungi. The fungi of the genus Colletotrichum are opportunistic and are associated with several diseases, being the anthracnose the most relevant in terms of the quality and yield losses in fruit species around worldwide. To control these diseases, the use of synthetic fungicides has been the main instrument utilized, however, because of their phytotoxicity to human health, the environment, and strong selection pressure imposed by continuous applications, the fungicides have caused resistance in the pathogen populations. So reducing the excessive application of these products is indispensable for human health and for sustainable Agriculture. Towards this purpose, research has been carried out to identify the phytopathological potentiality of essential oils (EOs) extracted from plants. Therefore, this review aims to contribute to the formation of knowledge bases, about the discoveries, recent advances, and the use of EOs as a strategy to alternatively control fungal disease caused by Colletotrichum spp. in postharvest fruits. Here, we provide valuable information exploring the application potential of essential oils as commercially useful biorational pesticides for food preservation, contributing to sustainable production and global food security.

Global Food Security under COVID-19: Comparison and Enlightenment of Policy Responses in Different Countries.

(1) Background: COVID-19 has exacerbated global food security risks, and the global food supply chain, especially in developing countries, has become more vulnerable. (2) Methods: In this paper, we discussed the current security of global food, response measures, and potential impacts, and analyzed the characteristics and evolution of food security policies in four representative countries: China, Italy, Malawi, Argentina. (3) Results: The results showed that most countries give priority to ensuring food access. Most underdeveloped countries adopt humanitarian intervention measures such as food distribution and transfer payments, while developed countries tend to implement development intervention policies such as supporting small- and medium-sized enterprises and guaranteeing employment. (4) Conclusions: Despite the ample global supply, developing countries still face long-term food security risks, highlighting the importance of strengthening global food security governance and risk management. Finally, a food security risk response policy framework was built to provide suggestions for effectively handling COVID-19 and similar public health emergencies in the future.

The Impact of Blast Disease: Past, Present, and Future.

Rice blast disease is both the most explosive and potentially damaging disease of the world's rice (Oryza sativa) crop and a model system for research on the molecular mechanisms that fungi use to cause plant disease. The blast fungus, Magnaporthe oryzae, is highly evolved to sense when it is on a leaf surface; to develop a pressurized cell, the appressorium, to punch through the leaf cuticle; and then to hijack living rice cells to assist it in causing disease. Host specificity, determining which plants particular fungal strains can infect, is also an important topic for research. The blast fungus is a moving target, quickly overcoming rice resistance genes we deploy to control it, and recently emerging to cause devastating disease on an entirely new cereal crop, wheat. M. oryzae is highly adaptable, with multiple examples of genetic instability at certain gene loci and in certain genomic regions. Understanding the biology of the fungus in the field, and its potential for genetic and genome variability, is key to keep it from adapting to life in the research laboratory and losing relevance to the significant impact it has on global food security.

Warm nights disrupt transcriptome rhythms in field-grown rice panicles.

In rice, a small increase in nighttime temperature reduces grain yield and quality. How warm nighttime temperatures (WNT) produce these detrimental effects is not well understood, especially in field conditions where the typical day-to-night temperature fluctuation exceeds the mild increase in nighttime temperature. We observed genome-wide disruption of gene expression timing during the reproductive phase in field-grown rice panicles acclimated to 2 to 3 °C WNT. Transcripts previously identified as rhythmically expressed with a 24-h period and circadian-regulated transcripts were more sensitive to WNT than were nonrhythmic transcripts. The system-wide perturbations in transcript levels suggest that WNT disrupt the tight temporal coordination between internal molecular events and the environment, resulting in reduced productivity. We identified transcriptional regulators whose predicted targets are enriched for sensitivity to WNT. The affected transcripts and candidate regulators identified through our network analysis explain molecular mechanisms driving sensitivity to WNT and identify candidates that can be targeted to enhance tolerance to WNT.

Physiological and Multi-Omics Approaches for Explaining Drought Stress Tolerance and Supporting Sustainable Production of Rice.

Drought differs from other natural disasters in several respects, largely because of the complexity of a crop's response to it and also because we have the least understanding of a crop's inductive mechanism for addressing drought tolerance among all abiotic stressors. Overall, the growth and productivity of crops at a global level is now thought to be an issue that is more severe and arises more frequently due to climatic change-induced drought stress. Among the major crops, rice is a frontline staple cereal crop of the developing world and is critical to sustaining populations on a daily basis. Worldwide, studies have reported a reduction in rice productivity over the years as a consequence of drought. Plants are evolutionarily primed to withstand a substantial number of environmental cues by undergoing a wide range of changes at the molecular level, involving gene, protein and metabolite interactions to protect the growing plant. Currently, an in-depth, precise and systemic understanding of fundamental biological and cellular mechanisms activated by crop plants during stress is accomplished by an umbrella of -omics technologies, such as transcriptomics, metabolomics and proteomics. This combination of multi-omics approaches provides a comprehensive understanding of cellular dynamics during drought or other stress conditions in comparison to a single -omics approach. Thus a greater need to utilize information (big-omics data) from various molecular pathways to develop drought-resilient crop varieties for cultivation in ever-changing climatic conditions. This review article is focused on assembling current peer-reviewed published knowledge on the use of multi-omics approaches toward expediting the development of drought-tolerant rice plants for sustainable rice production and realizing global food security.

The COVID-19 pandemic: A time for veterinary leadership in one health.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a wake-up call for leaders of the North American veterinary profession. Veterinary professionals constitute an invaluable workforce capable of delivering public services essential to weathering the current pandemic and preventing future pandemics. Yet North American veterinary professionals are often underutilized in efforts that could maximize their contributions to public health and research. Misguided public perception about the utility of the profession might hinder One Health partnerships between veterinary professionals and diverse collaborators. Society in general demands that leadership across several levels of the profession expand and diversify efforts aimed at greater public service while preserving societal benefits stemming from companion animal care. The pandemic's most deeply rooted effects could lie in its potential degradation of global food security, which can be better preserved if more veterinarians embrace their public health foundations. The pandemic is an opportunity and obligation for change. Failing to seize this moment could undermine public health and global security for generations.

Marine wild-capture fisheries after nuclear war.

Nuclear war, beyond its devastating direct impacts, is expected to cause global climatic perturbations through injections of soot into the upper atmosphere. Reduced temperature and sunlight could drive unprecedented reductions in agricultural production, endangering global food security. However, the effects of nuclear war on marine wild-capture fisheries, which significantly contribute to the global animal protein and micronutrient supply, remain unexplored. We simulate the climatic effects of six war scenarios on fish biomass and catch globally, using a state-of-the-art Earth system model and global process-based fisheries model. We also simulate how either rapidly increased fish demand (driven by food shortages) or decreased ability to fish (due to infrastructure disruptions), would affect global catches, and test the benefits of strong prewar fisheries management. We find a decade-long negative climatic impact that intensifies with soot emissions, with global biomass and catch falling by up to 18 ± 3% and 29 ± 7% after a US-Russia war under business-as-usual fishing-similar in magnitude to the end-of-century declines under unmitigated global warming. When war occurs in an overfished state, increasing demand increases short-term (1 to 2 y) catch by at most ∼30% followed by precipitous declines of up to ∼70%, thus offsetting only a minor fraction of agricultural losses. However, effective prewar management that rebuilds fish biomass could ensure a short-term catch buffer large enough to replace ∼43 ± 35% of today's global animal protein production. This buffering function in the event of a global food emergency adds to the many previously known economic and ecological benefits of effective and precautionary fisheries management.