The Danger of Pesticides and Pig Transplant Research

This week, we learned how to make cheese, about a listeria outbreak, that more than 500 organizations want a new Farm Bill, that pigs are being raised to grow kidneys and a new early wildfire detection method.

Read on to learn what else the week had to offer.

Pigs Raised To Grow Kidneys And Hearts For Humans

Wide-eyed piglets rushing to check out the visitors to their unusual barn just might represent the future of organ transplantation – and there’s no rolling around in the mud here. The?first gene-edited pig organs ever transplanted into people came from animals born on this special research farm in the Blue Ridge mountains – behind locked gates, where entry requires washing down your vehicle, swapping your clothes for medical scrubs, and stepping into tubs of disinfectant to clean your boots between each air-conditioned barn. Read more about it in our Meet Some of the World’s Cleanest Pigs, Raised to Grow Kidneys and Hearts for Humans article.

CDC Investigating Multistate Outbreak of Listeria Infections

Twenty-eight people infected with the outbreak strain of Listeria monocytogenes have been reported from 12 states. Twenty-eight people have been hospitalized and two deaths have been reported, one from Illinois and one from New Jersey. In interviews with sick people, 16 of 18 (89%) reported eating meats sliced at deli counters. The investigation is ongoing to determine which deli meat may be contaminated. Read more about it in our CDC Investigating Multistate Outbreak of Listeria Infections article.

More Than 500 Organizations Unite To Call for New Farm Bill

Programs that benefit every family in America are too important to put off any longer. That’s the message from the American Farm Bureau Federation and more than 500 other groups representing agriculture, nutrition, conservation, the environment, rural development, and several other sectors who united on July 22, 2024, to send a letter to congressional leaders calling for the passage of a new, modernized farm bill. Read more about it in our More Than 500 Organizations Unite to Call for New Farm Bill article.

Pesticides Potentially as Bad as Smoking for Increased Risk in Certain Cancers

In modern-day agriculture, pesticides are essential to ensure high enough crop yields and food security. These chemicals, however, can adversely affect plant and animal life as well as the people exposed to them. Now, in a population-based, nation-wide study, researchers in the US have put increased cancer risk through agricultural pesticide use into context with smoking, a better-understood cancer risk factor. The results were published in?Frontiers in Cancer Control and Society. Read more about it in our Pesticides Potentially as Bad as Smoking for Increased Risk in Certain Cancers article.

Sustainable Agriculture

A newly engineered type of soil can capture water out of thin air to keep plants hydrated and manage the controlled release of fertilizer for a constant supply of nutrients. Underpinning this exciting smart soil system is a hydrogel material developed by researchers at The University of Texas at Austin. In experiments, the hydrogel-infused soil led to the growth of larger, healthier plants, compared to regular soil, all while using less water and fertilizer. Read more about it in our Smart Soil Can Water and Feed Itself article.

In other news, homeowners have a real and unique opportunity to benefit the ecosystem around them, especially the delicate bee population. Converting lawns into wildlife habitats can combat the pitfalls of non-native grasses and plant life, such as higher water consumption and emitting toxins, which can?negatively impact bee communities. Knowing what to swap out and which plants can help the habitat thrive is key. Read more about it in our Rewilding the Front Lawn: Bee-Friendly Gardens and Sustainable Landscaping article.

Also, researchers analyzed the financial and environmental costs and benefits of four biofuels crops used to produce sustainable aviation fuels in the U.S. They found that each feedstock — corn stover, energy sorghum, miscanthus, or switchgrass — performed best in a specific region of the rainfed United States. Their study will help growers and policymakers select the feedstocks most suited to meeting goals like reducing production costs, lowering greenhouse gas emissions, and building soil carbon stocks. Read more about it in our Best Bioenergy Crops for Sustainable Aviation Fuels by US Region, Policy Goals article.

Crop and Food World

“Test plots help me evaluate new hybrids and compare them to mature ones,” says LG Seeds Agronomist Jorge Guzman. That evaluation of hybrids also aids farmers, which is why he values this hands-on training.

Farmer involvement helps put the farmer and agronomist on the same page. “Farmers aren’t waiting for an agronomist to recommend a hybrid,” Guzman says. “Come decision time, they already have hands-on experience with how hybrids look and perform in their growing area.” Read more about it in our A Hands-on Approach to Field Evaluations Benefits article.

In other news, microRNAs can make plants more capable of withstanding drought, salinity, pathogens, and more. However, in a recent study published in?Nature Plants,?Texas A&M AgriLife Research scientists showed just how much we didn’t know about the intricate processes plants use to produce them. Read more about it in our MicroRNA Study Sets Stage for Crop Improvements article.

Livestock World

Some people who develop a weird and terrifying allergy to red meat after a bite from a lone star tick can still eat pork from a surprising source:?Genetically modified pigs created for organ transplant research. Don’t look for it in grocery stores. The company that bred these special pigs shares its small supply, for free, with allergy patients. Read more about it in our Pig Transplant Research Yields a Surprise: Bacon Safe for Some People Allergic to Red Meat article.

In other news, farmers add various seaweeds to cow diets as a source of protein, unsaturated fats, and other health-promoting ingredients that provide immediate energy, says?Dipti Pitta of the?University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, and a 2016 study in Australia found that feeding sheep a species of red seaweed called?Asparagopsis taxiformis (AT) eliminated methane emissions by 80%. Read more about it in our Understanding How Red Seaweed Reduces Methane Emissions From Cows article.

Also, a new Cornell University study provides evidence that a spillover of avian influenza from birds to dairy cattle across several U.S. states has now led to mammal-to-mammal transmission – between cows and from cows to cats and a raccoon. “This is one of the first times that we are seeing evidence of efficient and sustained mammalian-to-mammalian transmission of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1,” said Diego Diel, associate professor of virology and director of the Virology Laboratory at the Animal Health Diagnostic Center in the College of Veterinary Medicine. Read more about it in our New Study Confirms Mammal-To-Mammal Avian Flu Spread article.

Farming Economy/Policy

The U.S. has made a strong case in the dispute with Mexico over genetically engineered corn under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, a top official in the Biden administration told farmers this week during remarks at the National Corn Growers Association’s Corn Congress meeting in Washington, D.C. Read more about it in our NCGA: USTR’s McKalip Talks Mexico Corn Dispute, New Markets, at Corn Congress article.

In other news, The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) confirmed that efforts to prevent ultra-processed, lab-grown protein from showing up in the diet of the American armed forces were successful, following news that the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is not pursuing lab-grown protein projects for human consumption. Read more about it in our NCBA: Department of Defense Backs Off Feeding Lab-Grown Protein article.

Also, The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) released a?new economic contribution report detailing the significant impact America’s pig farmers have on the United States’ agricultural and overall economy. The report highlights the pork industry’s value chain contributions and trends in production and industry structure. Read more about it in our US Pork Industry Fuels American Jobs and Economic Growth: New Report Unveiled article.

Finally, more than 300 agricultural groups, including the American Soybean Association and American Sugarbeet Growers Association, have called on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to work with stakeholders to reform its Endangered Species Act processes for pesticides. In a letter signed by 318 organizations representing hundreds of thousands of farmers, the groups contend farmers and other pesticide users will face significant and costly restrictions without reforms. Further, EPA may not be meeting its own legal obligations in determining credible risks to those endangered species. Read more about it in our 300+ Agriculture Groups Call on EPA to Reform Endangered Species Act Processes article.

Other Top Stories

Scientists from RMIT University have led a world-first study on common food aromas that may help explain why astronauts report that meals taste bland in space and struggle to eat their normal nutritional intake. This research, which is published in the?International Journal of Food Science and Technology, has broader implications for improving the diets of isolated people, including nursing home residents, by personalizing aromas to enhance the flavor of their food. Read more about it in our Food Aroma Study May Help Explain Why Meals Taste Bad in Space article.

In other news, the Biden-Harris administration today announced it is taking additional steps to safeguard western communities in the face of increasingly dangerous and intense wildland fires by building advanced wildfire detection capabilities using satellite technology. Read more about it in our Administration Advances Early Wildfire Detection by Expanding Use of Satellites article.

Also, PepsiCo Foods North America today announced its Planting Pathways Initiative, charting an industry-leading and transformative course for expanding agricultural opportunities. Recent USDA Census of Agriculture data shows that farmers under the age of 35 make up just 9% of the U.S. farming industry. The initiative aims to provide opportunities for young people and people from various backgrounds to enter the agriculture sector. Read more about it in our PepsiCo Foods North America Launches New “Planting Pathways Initiative” article.

Finally, cheese is a relatively simple food. It’s made with milk, enzymes – these are proteins that can chop up other proteins – bacterial cultures and salt. Lots of complex chemistry goes into the cheesemaking process, which can determine whether the cheese turns out soft and gooey like mozzarella or hard and fragrant like Parmesan. Read more about it in our Cheesemaking Is a Complex Science – A Food Chemist Explains the Process From Milk to Mozzarella article.

Come Back Next Week!

Be sure to check in next week for our?weekly?national news roundup, and?don't?forget to follow us on all our socials! We?can't?wait to see what next week holds for agricultural news.