Sustainable development goal 2: improved targets and indicators for agriculture and food security

The pursuit of global food security and agricultural sustainability, the dual aim of the second Sustainable Development Goal (SDG-2), requires urgent and concerted action from developing and developed countries. This, in turn, depends on clear and universally applicable targets and indicators which are partially lacking. The novel and complex nature of the SDGs poses further challenges to their implementation on the ground, especially in the face of interlinkages across SDG objectives and scales. Here we review the existing SDG-2 indicators, propose improvements to facilitate their operationalization and illustrate their practical implementation in Nigeria, Brazil and the Netherlands. This exercise provides insights into the concrete actions needed to achieve SDG-2 across contrasting development contexts and highlights the challenges of addressing the links between targets and indicators within and beyond SDG-2. Ultimately, it underscores the need for integrated policies and reveals opportunities to leverage the fulfillment of SDG-2 worldwide

Aeromonas media in compost amendments contributes to suppression of Pythium ultimum in cress

Soil-borne diseases such as damping-off caused by Pythium sp. are responsible for high yield losses in organic vegetable production and are difficult to control. Compost amendments have been shown to improve in many cases survival and growth of plants in soils infested with soil-borne diseases. Yet, not all composts are disease suppressive and suppressiveness of composts can be pathogen-specific. Cress (Lepidium sativum L.) was grown in a standard peat substrate amended either with coco fiber (conducive control) or with composts differing in their suppressiveness towards Pythium ultimum. Bacteria were isolated from the rhizoplane and the most abundant species identified by MALDI-TOF MS. The bacterial composition in the rhizoplane of plants grown in non-suppressive substrates and in the suppressive compost was essentially different. Aeromonas media was the main species isolated from the rhizoplane of plants grown in a suppressive compost, whereas Enterobacter cloacae was the dominating species in the less suppressive compost and in the conducive control. A. media was then added to all substrates to evaluate its role in disease suppression. Addition of A. media improved suppressiveness against P. ultimum in all substrates. The effect was most pronounced in the substrate amended with the compost with low suppressiveness, resulting in levels of suppressiveness comparable to the highly suppressive compost. We conclude that presence of A. media in composts can contribute to disease suppression and might provide a useful marker for qualitative analysis of composts

Development of disease-suppressive organic growing media

Vigorous seedlings are an important base for vegetable production. Beside the availability of appropriate amounts of nutrients, the health of seedlings is decisive. Soil-borne diseases are a challenging problem in organic seedling production. Here, we present results on the development of disease-suppressive growing media. Three aspects were examined: (i) use of different components of growing media (peat, coconut fiber, wood fiber, compost), (ii) influence of selected organic nitrogen fertilizers and (iii) use of different microorganisms (including commercial biocontrol agents (BCA)). Three plant-pathogen systems were used in this study: cucumber-Pythium ultimum, cress-Pythium ultimum and basil-Rhizoctonia solani. Green waste compost showed a good capability to protect cress against P. ultimum. This effect was improved by using a chitin-containing N-fertilizer. However, an inappropriate storage of the compost diminished its efficacy. In contrast to coconut fibers, wood fibers showed a suppressive activity against P. ultimum when used as partial substitutes of peat. None of five tested commercial BCAs could improve the suppressiveness of the substrates against P. ultimum. However, one of newly tested strains of Trichoderma sp. was very suppressive against P. ultimum. The tested growing media showed only small differences in suppressiveness against R. solani on basil. In contrast, two of the new strains of Trichoderma sp., which were intermediately active against P. ultimum, could efficiently protect basil against R. solani. At the moment, we test combinations of different Trichoderma strains, compost, different types of peat and peat substitutes. The aim is to determine whether it is feasible to manufacture growing media which allow the production of healthy and robust seedlings also in the presence of high levels of pathogens

Cost and affordability of healthy diets in Vietnam

Abstract Objectives: To estimate the cost and affordability of healthy diets recommended by the 2016–2020 Vietnamese food-based dietary guidelines (FBDG). Design: Cross-sectional analysis. The Cost of a Healthy Diet (CoHD) indicator was used to estimate the lowest cost of healthy diets and compare the cost differences by food group, region and seasonality. The affordability of healthy diets was measured by further comparing the CoHD to food expenditures and incomes. Setting: Food prices of 176 food items from January 2016 to December 2020 were derived using data from monthly Consumer Price Index databases nationally and regionally. Participants: Food expenditures and incomes of participants from three latest Vietnam Household Living Standard Surveys were used. Results: The average CoHD between 2016 and 2020 in Vietnam was 3·08 international dollars using 2017 Purchasing Power Parity (24 070 Vietnamese Dongs). The nutrient-rich food groups, including protein-rich foods, vegetables, fruits and dairy, comprised approximately 80 % of the total CoHD in all regions, with dairy accounting for the largest proportion. Between 2016 and 2020, the cheapest form of a healthy diet was affordable for all high-income and upper-middle-income households but unaffordable for approximately 70 % of low-income households, where adherence to the Vietnamese FBDG can cost up to 70 % of their income. Conclusions: Interventions in local food systems must be implemented to reduce the cost of nutrient-rich foods to support the attainment of healthier diets in the Vietnamese population, especially for low-income households