Agriculture

The flavor of chocolate depends on numerous factors, from the soil the cacao plant was grown in, to the length of time the cocoa beans are fermented.

The Science of Good Chocolate

Meet the sensory scientist who is decoding the terroir of chocolate—and working to safeguard the cacao plant that gives us the sweet dark treat

Carbon-dating techniques have now identified this ancient maize cob at about 950 to 1,000 years old.

What Ancient Maize Can Tell Us About Thousands of Years of Civilization in America

It took millennia, but America’s founding farmers developed the grain that would fuel civilizations—and still does

Europe's First Dogs Disappeared After Neolithic Farmers Arrived With Their Own Pups

Genetic analysis shows ancient canines from the Near East slowly replaced indigenous dog populations of that period

How Fish Farms Can Use Facial Recognition to Survey Sick Salmon

A Norwegian aquaculture company plans to combat sea lice and other problems by monitoring individual salmon in a high-tech fish farms

These deficiencies are just the starting point for much bigger problems.

Climate Change Could Lead to Nutrient Deficiency for Hundreds of Millions

Carbon dioxide decreases zinc, iron and protein in food crops, which could add millions of people to the billions who don't get enough nutrition

Hemp harvest at Mount Vernon

Hemp Makes a Return to George Washington's Farm

The first crop of industrial hemp grown in centuries was recently harvested at Mount Vernon

Egyptian Papyrus Reveals This Old Wives' Tale Is Very Old Indeed

The "Wheat and Barley" pregnancy test described in a recently translated medical text has been practiced for thousands of years

Emmer wheat

Sequencing of Wheat Genome Could Lead to a Breadier Future

It took 200 scientists 13 years to finally figure out the complex genome of the important grain

A butcher in Meizhou, China

Will China's Growing Appetite for Meat Undermine Its Efforts to Fight Climate Change?

The country consumes 28 percent of the world's meat—twice as much as the United States. And that figure is only set to increase.

Luisa Moreno, born to a wealthy Guatemalan family, struck out on her own at a young age, eager to alter the world around her for the better.

Guatemalan Immigrant Luisa Moreno Was Expelled From the U.S. for Her Groundbreaking Labor Activism

The little-known story of an early champion of workers’ rights receives new recognition

A male bee releasing its seminal fluid at the USDA bee lab in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The male does not survive the process.

Is the Key to Saving Pollinators … Honey Bee Semen?

In the hopes of preserving their genetic diversity, entomologists are collecting and freezing this valuable fluid

Archaeologists unearthed the 14,400-year-old breadcrumbs while excavating a pair of stone fireplaces in northeast Jordan

Archaeologists Discover Evidence of Bread Baked Before Advent of Agriculture

The bread, which was found in northeast Jordan, dates back about 14,400 years and likely resembled modern-day wraps

Emirates Flight Catering and Crop One Holdings announced plans this week for what would be the world’s largest vertical farm, to be based in Dubai. This is another one of Crop One’s vertical farms, which don’t use pesticides and are more water-efficient than their soil counterparts.

Dubai Will Be Home To the World’s Biggest Vertical Farm

An indoor megafarm might be the best way for the United Arab Emirates—a country that imports an estimated 85 percent of its food—to attempt to feed itself

The remains of this medieval castle at Castell Llwyn Gwinau, Tregaron, were almost completely plowed over, but they show clearly under parched conditions.

A Heat Wave is Revealing Centuries-Old Sites in Wales

Hot, dry weather creates perfect conditions for crop marks to form above historic settlements

The Pickup Truck's Transformation From Humble Workhorse to Fancy Toy

From 'rusty rattletraps' to 'big black jacked-up' rides, the vehicles symbolize blue-collar identity while flaunting bourgeois prosperity

Say hello to SMAP

This NASA Satellite Can Map the Planet's Soil Moisture Content In Just Three Days

The speedy collection of this data will help with crop management and flood prediction

Painting of four species of rat, including the Polynesian rat (right).

Rat Bones Reveal How Humans Transformed Their Island Environments

Rodent remains prove an ideal tool for investigating changes on three Polynesian island chains

Grape breeding PhD student Laise Moreira collects flower tissue for analyzing sex trait in grapevine as part of the VitisGen2 project at the University of Minnesota Horticultural Research Center in Excelsior, MN.

The Quest to Grow the First Great American Wine Grape

Genetics might be the key to creating vineyards that both resist disease and don’t taste like skunk

A very happy World Bee Day to you. Let's talk pollinators.

How to Protect Your Local Pollinators in Ten Easy Ways

As the first annual World Bee Day looms, insect and garden lovers are abuzz with excitement

Sixty-eight percent of meadow pipits have disappeared from the French countryside.

Pesticides Have Led to a ‘Catastrophic’ Decline in France’s Bird Populations

The chemicals have decimated the insects that birds rely on for food

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