News

Vegan diets are clearly best for planetary health, potentially leading to 75% less climate-heating emissions, water pollution and land use than meat-rich ones according to recent analysis of the diets of 55,000 people in the UK, but are they as good for human health? The answer is that a conventional vegan diet lacks some vital nutrients, notably v…

A paper co-authored by Jacob Gawel, Prof David Aldridge and Dr David Willer of the Department of Zoology, proposes ways in which sustainable meat from bivalve molluscs (otherwise known as mussels, clams and oysters) could become part of our everyday diets. Bivalve aquaculture has a lower environmental footprint than most protein sources, requiring …

In this specially written article, Dr Charlotte Kukowski a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Cambridge Social Decision-Making Lab and the Conservation Science Group (Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge) considers the obstacles and opportunities for reducing meat consumption in the UK.We are eating more meat than the planet can suppo…

Cambridge Global Food Security Interdisciplinary Research Centre, Wolfson College Interdisciplinary Research Hub on Sustainability & Conservation, and the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership have submitted written evidence in response to the House of Common’s Science, Innovation and Technology Committee’s call for evidence on insect d…

This Food4Thought on-line panel discussion on Monday 17th April was focussed on the cost of food, not just in terms of the price the consumer pays, but the toll our current system takes on human health, the environment and the implications for future generations. Chaired by Professor Giles Yeo the event covered the very complex problems of our c…

Yasemin Kor is Beckwith Professor of Management Studies at the Cambridge Judge Business School.  Professor Kor studies strategy formulation and renewal, top management teams, and corporate governance.  Her industry-focused research has ranged across multiple businesses from medical devices, biotechnology, professional service firms (law firms), to …

The Fens in Cambridgeshire, UK is home to half of all Grade 1 farmland in England.  Its farming industry generates £3 billion and employs tens of thousands of people, producing a significant portion of England's vegetable and salad crops. This fertility is thanks to its peat-rich soil; a quarter of all lowland peat in England and Wales is found the…

This well-attended public webinar, was organized with University of Cambridge Decarbonisation Network as part of the Cambridge Festival in March 2023.The event was chaired by Professor Sarah Bridle, author of 'Food and Climate Change without the Hot Air', with speakers from the University of Cambridge including Professor Andrew Balmford, Dr Charlot…

Industrialised animal agriculture is among the most significant contributors to environmental issues including greenhouse gas emissions, degradation of air and water quality and biodiversity loss. Alternative proteins (plant-based meat, cultivated meat, fermentation) offer an opportunity to mitigate the environmental impact of our food system witho…

Research published this week conducted by members of the Cambridge Global Food Security network marks an advance in measuring animal welfare and could contribute to making farming more sustainable.  Dr Harriet Bartlett, the paper's lead author was a researcher at the University of Cambridge’s Department of Veterinary Medicine when she conducted the…

Dr Radzman is a Research Associate at the Sainsbury Laboratory University of Cambridge, whose work is focussed on improving the productivity of legumes, a sustainable source of protein.  We last interviewed her in 2020, below she reflects on how her work has progressed since then, on a very important female role model and how the Global Food Securi…

Dr Daniel Borch Ibsen, Research Associate, MRC Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge, writes in response to recent findings.Plant-based meat alternatives are marketed as a direct replacement of meats, but a new study from Chalmers University, Sweden, puts this into question.The study examined the nutritional composition of many plant-based mea…

To mark World Pulses Day on Friday 10th February, Dr Nadia Radzman, Research Associate at the Sainsbury Laboratory, University of Cambridge, explains why pulses deserve our attention.Each year on February 10, the United Nations commemorates what probably sounds to many like a strange occasion: World Pulses Day.But, as a researcher focused on forgot…

Research led by University of Cambridge scientists, including Dr David Willer  (Department of Zoology), published in Nature Food, shows that tropical small-scale octopus fisheries offer a sustainable source of food and income to communities that face food insecurity, where the prevalence of undernourishment can exceed 40% and stunting in children u…

This panel event, organised by Cambridge Global Food Security and Cambridge Infectious Diseases IRC, looked at how consumers, industry and regulators can reduce food waste, with a particular focus on the role of labelling.  Please find the event recording here. Speakers:   Caroline Conroy, Sustainability Sector Specialist, WRAP Chris Meadows, Mar…