Species protection, ecosystem change, and habitat loss.
Li Pengyue, a former IT professional now running an ecological orchard in Weihai, Shandong, compares crop losses from birds and rabbits to a trapped snow leopard and nine dead sheep, and the real question is who pays when wildlife damages crops and livestock.
Foodthink Says As May arrives, it is once again the season for foraging mushrooms in the mountains of Yunnan. In recent years, wild vegetables and wild fungi have become increasingly popular. Not only are various premium wild greens and mushrooms appearing in mainstream supermarkets, wet markets, and online fresh produce…
Foodthink’s Perspective Today is the International Day for Biological Diversity. This year’s theme is “Biodiversity for Sustainable Development” (Be part of the plan). For the average person, the most direct way to get involved is through eating. By doing so, we can appreciate the beauty brought by biodiversity, but we…
More than 20 years ago, a group of pioneer farmers and social organisations blazed a trail for “ecological agriculture” in China. Driven by a desire to ensure food safety and a commitment to protecting the environment, they began experimenting with cultivation free from pesticides, chemical fertilisers, and herbicides. Whether they…
“When the yellow croaker arrives, ten thousand taels of gold follow.” Wild large yellow croakers are traditional banquet staples and auspicious dishes in Zhejiang and Shanghai. Along the Chinese coastline, perhaps no fish has experienced a more turbulent fate than the large yellow croaker. In October this year, I witnessed…
The Forest and Farm Facility and IIED report that 1,800-plus smallholders in 13 countries spend, on average, 5,866 yuan out of pocket a year for climate adaptation. Most practices benefit ecosystems, yet international adaptation funding remains far below need. Can Dubai’s COP28 take them seriously?
Those who have studied permaculture will likely be familiar with the name Sepp Holzer. As a pioneer of permaculture in practice, Holzer is almost a household name in Austria, and his book, *Permaculture*, has served as an introductory guide for enthusiasts across the globe. This June, I travelled deep into…
Yue Xiaoxiao of the Beijing Xuanwu Youth Science and Technology Museum is leading primary and secondary school students to study Italian cocklebur’s invasive damage through questionnaires, interviews and field visits, inviting farmers in and around Beijing to join and farmers elsewhere to complete the questionnaire.
From 6 April, sand has been blowing almost every day in Damao Banner, Baotou, in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The worst was on the 10th, when a sandstorm lasted for nearly five hours; outside, the wind and sand blotted out the sun, leaving the indoors dim and dark. “We…
Highlights from the 10th annual Farmer’s Seed Network meeting at China Agricultural University in Suzhou, where farmers, researchers and local agriculture officials discussed community seed banks, heirloom varieties, organic seed certification, climate adaptation and seed exchange.
