FUTURE SMART FOOD


Book Description

This publication demonstrates the benefits of neglected and underutilized species, including amaranth, sorghum and cowpea, and their potential contribution to achieving Zero Hunger in South and Southeast Asia.







Medicinal Plants


Book Description

This book offers a fresh look on a variety of issues concerning herbal medicine - the methods of growing and harvesting various medicinal plants; their phytochemical content; medicinal usage; regulatory issues; and mechanism of action against myriad of human and animal ailments. ‘Medicinal Plants: From Farm to Pharmacy’ comprises chapters authored by renowned experts from academics and industry from all over the world. It provides timely, in-depth study/analysis of medicinal plants that are already available in the market as supplements or drug components, while also introducing several traditional herbs with potential medicinal applications from various regions of the world. The book caters to the needs of a diverse group of readers: plant growers, who are looking for ways to enhance the value of their crops by increasing phytochemical content of plant products; biomedical scientists who are studying newer applications for crude herbal extracts or isolated phytochemicals; clinicians and pharmacologists who are studying interactions of herbal compounds with conventional treatment modalities; entrepreneurs who are navigating ways to bring novel herbal supplements to the market; and finally, natural medicine enthusiasts and end-users who want to learn how herbal compounds are produced in nature, how do they work and how are they used in traditional or modern medicine for various disease indications.




Mathematical Sciences with Multidisciplinary Applications


Book Description

This book is the fourth in a multidisciplinary series which brings together leading researchers in the STEAM-H disciplines (Science, Technology, Engineering, Agriculture, Mathematics and Health) to present their perspective on advances in their own specific fields, and to generate a genuinely interdisciplinary collaboration that transcends parochial subject-matter boundaries. All contributions are carefully edited, peer-reviewed, reasonably self-contained, and pedagogically crafted for a multidisciplinary readership. Contributions are drawn from a variety of fields including mathematics, statistics, game theory and behavioral sciences, biomathematics and physical chemistry, computer science and human-centered computing. This volume is dedicated to Professor Christiane Rousseau, whose work inspires the STEAM-H series, in recognition of her passion for the mathematical sciences and her on-going initiative, the Mathematics of Planet Earth paradigm of interdisciplinarity. The volume's primary goal is to enhance interdisciplinary understanding between these areas of research by showing how new advances in a particular field can be relevant to open problems in another and how many disciplines contribute to a better understanding of relevant issues at the interface of mathematics and the sciences. The main emphasis is on important methods, research directions and applications of analysis within and beyond each field. As such, the volume aims to foster student interest and participation in the STEAM-H domain, as well as promote interdisciplinary research collaborations. The volume is valuable as a reference of choice and a source of inspiration for a broad spectrum of scientists, mathematicians, research students and postdoctoral fellows.




Looking east looking west


Book Description

This book represents a unique collection of European and Asian perspectives on the production, trade and consumption of high quality food. The rapidly growing demand for organic and quality food in Europe imposes new challenges on competing food value chains. Europe, as the biggest worldwide food importer, attracts many developing and developed countries in Asia. Prospering Chinese and Thai food markets offer new opportunities for European operators. Wealthy and informed consumers on both continents search for trustworthy high quality food products. Farmers, operators and retailers from distant cultures are coping with different standards, facing the ever increasing necessity for mutual understanding. This publication is the output of Bean-Quorum, a European funded Asia-Link project. Bean-Quorum represents a consolidated network of researchers working together with the business sector and NGOs to enhance European Asian understanding about organic and quality food. This book describes global trends in organic and quality food trade and connects them with recent developments in Asian and European market structures. Selected case studies illustrate the impact of organic and quality food production on topics ranging from sustainable rural development, to the potential of exotic new plant varieties to purchase decisions of European or Asian retail managers. Selected European markets are mirrored by the situation in Chinese and Thai markets. Finally, environmental issues concerning global trade of quality food are addressed.







Protecting Biological Diversity


Book Description

During the last ten years the enormous global loss of biodiversity has received remarkable attention. Among the numerous approaches undertaken to stop or lessen this process, access and benefit-sharing (ABS), a market-based approach, has emerged as among the most prominent. In theory, ABS turns biodiversity and genetic resources from an open access good to a private good and creates a market for genetic resources. It internalizes the resources’ positive externalities by pricing the commercial values for research and development and makes users pay for it. Users’ benefits are shared with the resource holders and set incentives for the sustainable use and the conservation of biodiversity. Carmen Richerzhagen, however, finds that in practice there are significant questions about the effectiveness of the approach in the protection of biodiversity and about the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the commercialization. Utilizing the empirical findings of three case studies of biodiversity-providing countries - Costa Rica, the Philippines and Ethiopia - and one case study of a community of user countries, the European Union (EU), Richerzhagen examines the effectiveness of ABS through the realization of its own objectives.




Orphan Crops for Sustainable Food and Nutrition Security


Book Description

Orphan Crops for Sustainable Food and Nutrition Security discusses the issues, challenges, needs and opportunities related to the promotion of orphan crops, known also as neglected and underutilized species (NUS). The book is structured into six parts, covering the following themes: introduction to NUS, approaches, methods and tools for the use enhancement of NUS, integrated conservation and use of minor millets, nutritional and food security roles of minor millets, stakeholders and global champions, and, building an enabling environment. Presenting a number of case studies at the regional and country levels, the chapters cover different but highly interlinked aspects along the value chains, from acquisition and characterization of genetic diversity, cultivation and harvesting to value addition, marketing, consumption and policy for mainstreaming. Cross-cutting issues like gender, capacity building and empowerment of vulnerable groups are also addressed by authors. Representatives from communities, research for development agencies and the private sector also share their reflections on the needs for the use enhancement of NUS from their own perspectives. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of food security, sustainable agriculture, nutrition and health and development, as well as practitioners and policymakers involved in building more resilient food and production systems.