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Background: The global palm oil market experienced a remarkable boom since the year 2000. Since palm oil can be used for biodiesel production, the global expansion of oil palm cultivation has been associated with the global biofuel boom. Biofuel policies—especially those adopted in the European Union (EU)—have been blamed for the socio-environmental impacts of oil palm expansion. We explore how the global biofuel boom interacts with national geographies and social-economic and political processes to produce country-specific trajectories of biofuel crops expansion. We analyse the expansion of oil palm cultivation in Colombia between 2000 and 2010 from a political ecology perspective. Methods: The analysis is based on a framework that positions expansion of commodity frontiers within the ‘space-of-flows’ and the ‘space-of-place’. Through this approach, we identify the markets and geographies that define the country-specific trajectories of expansion of oil palm in Colombia, and their connections with general patterns of land control. The empirical analysis is based on primary data collected during fieldwork, and on an extensive review of secondary data about the palm oil sector and the socio-environmental effects of oil palm expansion in the country. Results: The contemporary oil palm expansion in Colombia was not specifically influenced by the international biofuel market. Expansion was characterized by an increasing production of palm oil for biodiesel, to supply a policy-driven national biofuel market controlled by national palm oil producers. The evidence shows that this oil palm expansion proceeded through a variety of land control practices that constitute forms of ‘accumulation by dispossession’ and ‘assimilation’. These are embedded in contextual factors that include the agrarian history of Colombia, the armed conflict, and government policies. Conclusions: Our study shows that the ways in which expansion of biofuel crops unfold in each producing country depend not only on the global biofuel market. They are also shaped by the country-specific geographies and political economies. Therefore, research and policies on the global expansion of energy crops should account for the complex and interrelated factors that mediate the specific ways in which the global demand for biofuels creates biofuel crop booms at country level.

Zooplankton treatment: HZ: zooplankton added, LZ: Zooplankton removedCarbon treatment: 0C: No glucose addition, 0.5: 0.5 x Redfield. 1: 1xRedfield, 2: 2xRedfield, 3: 3XRedfieldpH Treatment:NpH: Normal pH, LpH: Low pH

Sustainable agriculture is the backbone of food security systems and a driver of human well-being in global economic development (Sustainable Development Goal SDG 3). With the increase in world population and the effects of climate change due to the industrialization of economies, food security systems are under pressure to sustain communities. This situation calls for the implementation of innovative solutions to increase and sustain efficacy from farm to table. Agricultural social networks (ASNs) are central in agriculture value chain (AVC) management and sustainability and consist of a complex network inclusive of interdependent actors such as farmers, distributors, processors, and retailers. Hence, social network structures (SNSs) and practices are a means to contextualize user scenarios in agricultural value chain digitalization and digital solutions development. Therefore, this research aimed to unearth the roles of agricultural social networks in AVC digitalization, enabling an inclusive digital economy. We conducted automated literature content analysis followed by the application of case studies to develop a conceptual framework for the digitalization of the AVC toward an inclusive digital economy. Furthermore, we propose a transdisciplinary framework that guides the digitalization systematization of the AVC, while articulating resilience principles that aim to attain sustainability. The outcomes of this study offer software developers, agricultural stakeholders, and policymakers a platform to gain an understanding of technological infrastructure capabilities toward sustaining communities through digitalized AVCs.

Hydrochar, carbon-rich material produced during the thermochemical processing of biomass, is receiving increased attention due to its potential value as soil amendment. It can increase agroforestry systems’ productivity through direct and indirect effects on growth and soil quality. Hydrochar may also directly help mitigate climate change by sequestering stable carbon compounds in the soil and perhaps indirectly through increased C uptake by trees. In this research, we aim to evaluate how the application of hydrochar produced by two feedstock types, Cynara cardunculus L. (Hc) residuals and sewage sludge (Hs), and in two different doses (3 and 6 kg m−2) could improve the growth and water use efficiency of Populus alba L., a fast-growing tree species largely used in agroforestry as bioenergy crops and in C sequestration. We considered five plants per treatment, and we measured apical growth, secondary growth, leaf area and intrinsic water use efficiency in each plant for the whole growing season from February to October 2022. Our results highlighted that hydrochar applications stimulate the growth and water use efficiency of plants and that the double dose (6 kg m−2) of both hydrochars, and particularly Hc, had positive effects on plant performance, especially during extremely hot periods. Indeed, the year 2022 was characterized by a heat wave during the summer period, and this condition allowed us to evaluate how plants, growing in soils amended with hydrochar, could perform under climate extremes. Our findings showed that the control plants experienced severe damage in terms of dried stems and dried leaves during summer 2022, while hydrochar applications reduced these effects.

Model projections show that production of high-value products from microalgae could be profitable nowadays and commodities will become profitable within 10 years.

Agricultural adaptation to climate change is critical for ensuring future food security. Social capital is important for climate change adaptation, but institutions and social networks at multiple scales (e.g., household, community, and institution) have been overlooked in studying agricultural climate change adaptation. We combine data from 13 sites in 11 low-income countries in East Africa, West Africa, and South Asia to explore how multiple scales of social capital relate to household food security outcomes among smallholder farmers. Using social network theory, we define three community organizational social network types (fragmented defined by lack of coordination, brokered defined as having a strong central actor, or shared defined by high coordination) and examine household social capital through group memberships. We find community and household social capital are positively related, with higher household group membership more likely in brokered and shared networks. Household group membership is associated with more than a 10% reduction in average months of food insecurity, an effect moderated by community social network type. In communities with fragmented and shared organizational networks, additional household group memberships is associated with consistent decreases in food insecurity, in some cases up to two months; whereas in brokered networks, reductions in food insecurity are only associated with membership in credit groups. These effects are confirmed by hierarchical random effects models, which control for demographic factors. This suggests that multiple scales of social capital—both within and outside the household—are correlated with household food security. This social capital may both be bridging (across groups) and bonding (within groups) with different implications for how social capital structure affects food security. Efforts to improve food security could recognize the potential for both household and community level social networks and collaboration, which further research can capture by analyzing multiple scales of social capital data.

More healthy and sustainable food are nowadays desirable to improve human health and protect the planet’s resources. From this perspective, the aim of this study is to investigate artichoke (Cynara scolymus L.) by-products as a potential source of phenolic compounds and to use these compounds to design new fresh egg pasta formulation. Sustainable extraction was carried out using ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) and chemometric techniques, such as the Response Surface Methodology (RSM). UAE process parameters (temperature and time) and solvent composition (ethanol aqueous mixtures) were optimized using a three-level Box–Behnken design, in order to carry out the maximum yield in phenols. Under the optimal conditions (temperature: 60 °C; time: 60 min; solvent: 50% ethanol:water), the amount of phenolics (TPC) was 22.4 ± 0.2 mg GAE g−1 d.w., characterized mainly by dicaffeoylquinic acid (32.8 ± 0.6 mg CAE g−1 d.w.) and chlorogenic acid (14.1 ± 0.2 mg CAE g−1 d.w.). Hence, the polyphenols extract was used as an ingredient to design a new formulation of functional fresh egg pasta. Four recipes with soft wheat and semolina (P1 and P2) and with soft wheat alone (P3 and P4) were prepared. Compared with control pastas (P1 and P3), the enriched ones (P2 and P4) showed a higher polyphenol content, especially for P4 (1.86 ± 0.03 mg GAE g−1 d.w. for P1, 2.05 ± 0.02 mg GAE g−1 d.w. for P2, 1.92 ± 0.03 mg GAE g−1 d.w. for P3, 2.04 ± 0.02 mg GAE g−1 d.w. for P4). A high decrease in TPC was observed as a result of the cooking process, especially for the two control formulations (−71% for P1 and −70% for P3) in comparison with P2 (−64%) and P4 (−55%). At last, to assess the antimicrobial effect of artichoke by-products on fresh pasta and to monitor its spoilage, we used image analysis. Corresponding to a higher TPC content, P2 and P4 showed an extended shelf life of 16% and 33%, respectively, probably due to the antioxidant activity of artichoke. The new fresh egg pasta enriched with polyphenols extracted from artichoke by-products showed very good nutritional and technological characteristics, even after cooking, confirming the good potentiality of artichoke by-products in the design of new, healthy, and sustainable food products.

The leaves of Aster yomena (Kitam.) Honda have long been used as a traditional herb for treating disorders including coughs, asthma, and insect bites. According to recent studies, A. yomena leaf extracts have several pharmacological properties, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-asthmatic activities. However, little information is available regarding their anti-obesity effect. In this study, we investigated the inhibitory effect of the ethanol extracts of A. yomena leaves (EEAY) on adipocyte differentiation and adipogenesis using 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. When 3T3-L1 preadipocytes were treated with various concentrations of EEAY (ranging from non-toxic), the number of lipid droplets, lipid content, and triglyceride production, the typical characteristics of adipocytes, were suppressed in a concentration-dependent manner. During this process, EEAY significantly reduced the expression of adipogenic transcription factors, including peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ, CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein α and β, and sterol regulatory element-binding protein-1c. In addition, EEAY was also found to potently inhibit the expression of adipocyte-specific genes, including adipocyte fatty acid-binding protein and leptin. In particular, EEAY treatment effectively enhanced the activation of the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) signaling pathway; however, the co-treatment with compound C, an inhibitor of AMPK, significantly restored the EEAY-induced inhibition of pro-adipogenic transcription factors and adipocyte-specific genes. These results indicate that EEAY may exert an anti-obesity effect by controlling the AMPK signaling pathway, suggesting that the leaf extract of A. yomena may be a potential anti-obesity agent.