Agriculture sciences

The two-phase sale of Icon Genetics was completed on August 21. Icon Genetics previous owner, German plant biotechnology company NOMAD Bioscience GmbH, already sold 51% of Icon's shares to Denka in August 2015. Now, the Japanese company has acquired the remaining 49% of shares, resulting in Icon Genetics becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of Denka. According to a press release, the total acquisition amount to be paid by DENKA is a maximum of €75 million.

“Environmental policy is part of agriculture.” This was a clear message by Christian Schmidt, the Federal Minister of Agriculture, at the recent  “Dialogue for the future: Agriculture and Food”. Thus far this sector is under a lot of pressure due to its high CO₂ Emissions. The demands for more sustainability in terms of farming and animal husbandry have been at the top of the political agenda for some time now. However, there are already a number of farms that fully embrace a resource-saving and environmentally conscious production.

Fossil resources are becoming scarce and their use is a burden on the environment. Therefore new technologies to replace these resources are needed. Part of the replacement can be achieved by employing electrical power production based on renewable resources, such as wind and solar energy. Additionally, renewable feedstocks and waste streams have to be considered as valuable precursors for the production of commodities and fuels.

An international consortium including scientists from the Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK) in Gatersleben has published the genome sequence of the pearl millet, a drought resistant crop plant that is one of the main food sources in arid and semi-arid areas.

Global warming and climate change are driven by greenhouse gasses such as carbon dioxide. During photosynthesis, plants and algae act as natural air filters, removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and replacing it with oxygen. About half of the photosynthesis on Earth is performed in the ocean by single-celled algae. Plants and algae both use the enzyme Rubisco to bind carbon dioxide.

Due to climate change more and more arable land is drying out, and subsequently requires irrigation in order to grow crops. However, steady and heavy irrigation causes soil salination, because the salts that are dissolved in the water are diffused into the soil and remain there after the water has evaporated. The salt in turn stunts the growth of the crops and, if left untreated, can even turn soils infertile.

Once the takeover of Monsanto by the Leverkusen-based chemistry giant Bayer is finalised, there will only be three major players left on the field of agricultural chemistry. This has caused suspicion and caution from the cartel authority. Thus, to smoothen the transition Bayer has announced to sell parts of its agricultural chemistry business. BASF has since signed an agreement to acquire significant parts of Bayer’s seed and non-selective herbicide businesses for approximately €5.9 billion.

An estimated significant drop in the insect population has been a news topic for some time but could never be statistically proven. However, a study by researchers at the Radboud University in the Netherlands, the University of Sussex in Britain and dozens of amateur entomologists at the Entomological Society Krefeld in Germany now quantified the change as a 75% loss over the last 27 years.

Biochar is a carbon-rich, charcoal-like substance made from oxygen-deprived plants or other organic material. It can store large amounts of carbon and when applied as a fertilizer it slowly releases nutrients into the ground. However, the exact mechanisms how biochar stores nutrients and promotes plant growth have not been identified yet, which also severely limits its commercial potential. An international team of researchers, led by the University of Tübingen in Germany, deciphered the storage and release mechanisms of biochar.

Air pollution is most commonly associated with traffic and car emissions. However, there are a number of other sources for pollution, such as agricultural emissions due to fertiliser use. According to researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Mainz, Germany, reducing ammonia (NH₃) emissions by 50% could avoid the deaths of more than 250,000 people each year that are caused by air pollution worldwide.