Comparative life-cycle sustainability assessment of centralized and decentralized remediation strategies at the city level

Remediation of contaminated soil at industrial sites has become a challenge and an opportunity for sustainable urban land use, considering the substantial secondary impacts resulting from remediation activities. The design of soil remediation strategies for multi-site remediation from a regional perspective is of great significance for cities with a large number of brownfields. Centralized and decentralized facilities have been studied in different environmental fields, yet limited research has focused on centralized soil remediation, specifically the treatment of contaminated soil from different sites through the construction of shared soil treatment facilities. This study proposes a framework for comparing centralized and decentralized strategies for contaminated soil remediation based on the integration of life-cycle sustainability assessment and multi-objective optimization. With Zhuzhou, an industrial city in China, serving as an example, results show that after optimization, the centralized scenario can reduce total environmental impacts by 25%–41%. In addition, the centralized scenario can reduce economic costs by 27%–39%, saving up to 176 million USD. The advantages of the centralized soil remediation strategy include: (1) increased use of soil washing, (2) reduced use of off-site disposal, and (3) reduced construction and efficient utilization of soil treatment facilities. In conclusion, the centralized strategy is relatively suitable for cities or areas with a large number of medium or small-sized contaminated sites. The built framework can quantitatively evaluate multiple sites soil remediation at both the city and individual site level, allowing for a straightforward and objective comparison with the optimal remediation design

Culture Clash? What cultured meat could mean for UK farming

Headlines It may one day be possible to substitute meat grown through cell culture imperceptibly for meat from livestock. Farmers’ concerns about cultured meat go beyond the impact on their bottom line, including that it is: ■ Uncertain: there are still too many unanswered questions. ■ Unreliable: unbiased data is hard to come by. ■ Unrealistic: work is needed to map how new supply chains could work in practice. ■ Unintended: having many potential knock-on effects. ■ Unfair: questioning who benefits from this further industrialisation of our food system. ■ Unnatural: in contrast to the ‘real’ food the farmers produced. Factors such as business diversification, tenure, assets and contractual relationships affect farmers’ resilience or precarity to this potentially disruptive technology. Yet, under the right circumstances, cultured meat could present opportunities for some UK farmers: ■ Sharpening their competitive edge for selling high-value ‘real meat’. ■ Developing potential new markets such as supplying animal cells or raw materials. ■ Generating income from processing crop or animal by-products as ingredients. ■ Harnessing private investment to produce cultured meat on their own farm. ■ Developing new, fairer supply-chain relationships. Initial analysis suggests that using crop and animal by-products as amino acid sources for cultured meat production could reduce its cost and environmental footprint, while farm-scale production would cost about 30% more than factory-scale. While some farmers were interested in exploring these possibilities further, caring for livestock remained central to their identity. Moving beyond a polarised debate would benefit the cultured meat industry, but it may also benefit farming. Advocates of cultured meat can support this through more inclusive communication: acknowledging uncertainties, celebrating farmer innovation and working with honest brokers. The cultured meat industry and farmers could build common ground through: ■ Joint research and innovation, particularly into waste valorisation and on-farm production. ■ Developing practical partnerships and mechanisms for continued dialogue, such as a platform for interested farmers to connect with cultured meat businesses and a short guide to cultured meat for farmers. ■ Investors expecting cultured meat companies to include farmers in their Environmental, Social and Governance commitments to support a ‘just transition’

Farmer preference for macadamia varieties and constraints to production in Malawi

Macadamia nuts constitute a vital component of both nutrition and livelihoods for smallholder producers in Malawi. We conducted a comprehensive mixed-methods study, combining qualitative and quantitative analyses, to explore varietal preferences and production challenges among these farmers. Leveraging cross-sectional data from 144 members of the Highlands Macadamia Cooperative Union Limited, our study underscores several significant findings. Our findings reveal that the majority of smallholder macadamia farmers (62%) are aged over 50, with farming as their primary occupation. Varied preferences are driven by yield-related traits, including high yield potential (38%), nut quality (29%), and extended flowering patterns (15%). Among the macadamia varieties, the top five choices, grown by over half of the farmers, include HAES 660 (18%), 800 (10%), 791 (9%), 816 (8%), and 246 (7%). Additionally, our study identifies five primary constraints faced by smallholder macadamia farmers: insect pests (81%), diseases (34%), limited market access (33%), wind damage (25%), and inadequate agricultural advisory services (17%). Based on these findings, we propose two policy recommendations to enhance smallholder macadamia production and productivity in Malawi and other regions. Specifically, we advocate for informed breeding programs that align with farmer preferences to promote greater adoption of macadamia varieties. Additionally, we emphasize the crucial role of the Malawian government in the macadamia value chain, suggesting active participation in providing extension services and marketing support, akin to its support for other cash crops

Assessing effective deterrence of theft in transboundary water systems

Analysis of water theft remains challenging given poor data and limited cases, restricting assessments to higher levels where attempted. However, high level research within key transboundary contexts can offer evidence for improved theft deterrence and critical legislative change requirements, along with institutional insights for other jurisdictions. For example, Federal water regulators of Australia’s Murray–Darling Basin (MDB), which is a significant transboundary water system, have called for consistency in compliance and certainty across State jurisdictions to help protect water market confidence and resource reallocation outcomes that are critical in drought periods. This paper explores the complex legal processes for penalty setting in water theft cases that may drive ineffective compliance when the value of legal harm is procedurally downgraded under the legitimate consideration of mitigating factors. We aim to identify applied certainty and severity deterrence principles for reducing environmental and economic harm, as well as how to incorporate alternate water values in penalty setting to inform a future framework to analyse MDB legislative consistency and institutional transparency with lessons for other countrie

Straight from the horse’s mouth: The effect of different feedstuffs on oral pH in horses and ponies

Feedstuffs, especially ensiled forage, may be detrimental to equid oral health by exposing the oral cavity to low pH. This study aimed to identify if salivary pH was altered by 1) a range of different feedstuffs and (2) specifically by feeding haylages with differing nutrient profiles. Two studies were conducted. The first measured oral pH following five feedstuffs, (hay, haylage, unmolassed sugarbeet pulp, unmolassed alfalfa chaff and rolled oats), tested individually over five days. Saliva (≥1ml) was collected in triplicate, prior to feeding, directly after ingesting 500g of each feedstuff, then 15 minutes and 30 minutes post-prandially. Oral pH was determined (pH meter) within 10 minutes of collection. In study two, eight ponies, were fed as their total diet, four different haylages over four 15-day periods. Saliva was collected, prior to feeding and immediately after ingesting 500g of forage on day 1, day 6, and day 12 of each period. Samples were collected and analysed as per study one. All data were analysed by repeated measures ANOVA, and in study two linear regression was used to attempt to predict nutrients that influenced oral pH. All statistics were conducted in Genstat 20th Ed. Only feeding unmolassed sugarbeet caused a reduction (p<0.001) in oral pH. There were differences in oral pH depending on the type of haylage fed in study two but at all times oral pH post-feeding was the same or greater than basal pH. These studies suggest any feed associated modulation of oral pH in horses may only be short-lived and quickly buffered by saliva. However, these studies only reflect oral pH within the oral cavity around the feeding occasion and may not reflect gingival pH or the effects of different feeds over longer time periods

Macadamia Nuts as a Supplement to Cereal-Based Diets in Malawi

Macadamia is a high value tree crop with rising global demand. As a leading producer, Malawi has seen rapid expansion of macadamia orchards, indicating the crop’s growing economic and nutritional importance. Macadamia nuts serve as a means of income generation and provision of high-quality nutrition among producers and consumers. As a consequence of these benefits, macadamia nut production is rising within the country. Rising domestic and international demand suggests macadamia production will help in economic growth in production areas. Integrating macadamia nuts into local diets could also provide nutritional benefits, allowing Malawi to simultaneously improve well-being and prosperity. To fully utilize this potential, Malawi needs strategic expansion plans for the crop. A comprehensive assessment of current and future suitable production areas is necessary. By matching production capacity to area’s ecological conditions, yields can be optimized within sustainable limits. With mindful, coordinated support for the nascent macadamia industry, Malawi can leverage this crop for healthier, more resilient communities

Characterization of the extracellular proteases from Bacillus inaquosorum strain E1‐8 and its application in the preparation of hydrolysates from plant and animal proteins with antioxidant, antifreeze and anti‐browning properties

BACKGROUND: Bacillus inaquosorum strains is widely recognized for their plant-growth-promoting and biocontrol capabilities, yet their roles in protease production remain unclear. This study aims to comprehensively assess the protease-producing performance of B. inaquosorum strain E1-8, while also exploring the novel application of agricultural Bacillus proteases in the preparation of protein hydrolysates for fresh-cut fruits preservation. RESULTS: Firstly, genomic sequencing revealed the diversity of E1-8 proteases, indicating 15 putative extracellular proteases. Subsequently, the fermentation conditions for E1-8 protease production were optimized, with sweet potato powder and soybean meal identified as the most suitable carbon and nitrogen sources, respectively, resulting in a maximum protease activity of 321.48 U/ml. Upon culturing the strain under these optimized conditions, only an S8 family serine protease and an M48 family metalloprotease were revealed by secretomic analysis and protease inhibitor assays. Additionally, the optimal protease conditions for generating protein hydrolysates from soy, pea, fish, and porcine proteins were determined. The molecular weight of the hydrolysates primarily ranged from 2000 to 180 Da, with a total of 17 amino acids identified. The application of these hydrolysates demonstrated a DPPH scavenging activity ranging from 58.64% to 84.12%, significantly reducing of the melting peaks and the freezing points. Furthermore, the browning index of apple slices stored at 4oC decreased by 14.81% to 22.15% on the second day, and similar effects were observed in fresh-cut banana stored at 4oC for 7 days. CONCLUSION: The protein hydrolysates obtained exhibit remarkable antioxidant, antifreeze, and anti-browning properties for fresh-cut fruits. Keywords: agricultural microorganism; extracellular proteases; animal and plant protein; protein hydrolysates; fresh-cut fruits; fresh-keeping activit

The Influence of the Fear of Failure on the Entrepreneurial Behaviour of Chinese and United Kingdom Agricultural Students

This paper determines whether fear of failure influences the relationship between perceived entrepreneurial opportunity and entrepreneurial action for students who study agriculture at universities in the UK and China. It uses the international Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) data as the baseline which provides the ability to compare national and international data for entrepreneurial attitudes. The study looks at 679 students from both Chinese and UK Agricultural Universities. The total early-stage entrepreneurship activity rate for these students is higher than the national averages demonstrating that agricultural students are more entrepreneurial. For Chinese students’ opportunity identification has a significant positive affect on their entrepreneurial behaviour. However, this was not seen in the case of the UK students. In both cohorts, the relationship between perceived entrepreneurial opportunity and entrepreneurial action was negatively mediated by fear of failure. The study contributes to the literature: firstly it challenges the core assumption that fear of failure is a premier obstruction to entrepreneurial action; secondly it provides a contextualised international study on the relationship between perceived entrepreneurial opportunity, fear of failure and entrepreneurial action. Thirdly, it calls for further contextualised education to experiential education to help develop the practice, behaviour and skills required to be entrepreneur

Understanding the interests of academics from diverse disciplines to identify the prospective focus for a UK-based transdisciplinary network involving farm-to-fork stakeholders on antimicrobial resistance in agrifood systems: An online survey

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) evolution and onward transmission of resistance genes is impacted by interrelated biological and social drivers, with evidence and impacts observed across human, animal and environmental One Health domains. Systems-based research examining how food production impacts on AMR in complex agrifood systems is lacking, with little written on management approaches in the UK that might prevent and respond to this challenge. One approach is the creation of a transdisciplinary network to enhance capacity, capability and collaboration between agrifood-focused disciplines and stakeholders. This co-creation platform for network-wide systems-based activities would reduce inefficiencies in AMR-related activities around agrifood, providing a cross-cutting, cohesive community to deliver transformational guidance on relevant, practical agrifood solutions that add value by reducing AMR, antimicrobial usage and associated costs, and decreasing resultant environmental contamination by prioritising challenges, sharing knowledge and best practice, and co-creating practical solutions with key stakeholders. An online survey determined prospective network focus, structure and priorities, with responses analysed using mixed methods. Survey results suggested respondents have interests in synthesising data using systems-approaches and using certain disciplines such as �social sciences� within network activities. There were disconnects in how and whom to work with on this, with generalised use of �social science/scientists� but lack of disciplinary understanding (e.g., anthropology, sociology) suggesting disciplinary differences awareness-training is useful. A similar generalisation is seen for mathematics/statistics. There are strong interests in working with food system practitioners (e.g., farmers/vets), providing opportunities for farm/field visits/knowledge exchange, and human health, reflecting the need for farm-to-fork understanding of impacts. There were notable mentions of policy/governance, emphasising translational research desires to create meaningful change. Disciplines/fields did not always align with identified interests e.g., systems and implementation science, suggesting the utility of network activity around introducing these disciplines e.g., methodology-focused rather than subject-focused conferences exploring lateral thinking about subjects. We suggest starting by developing understanding of the most important research questions by working with stakeholders, then working back to how we would achieve desirable project outcomes and who else is needed for this