In countries where seasonal changes cause extreme weather conditions such as drought, rising temperatures, or famine, some nuclear techniques are being implemented to improve crops and make them more resilient.Read more
For decades, food irradiation has been used to disinfect and extend the shelf life of products such as spices, dried herbs and vegetable seasonings. Otherwise, insects could take up residence in these products and become "invaders" from other countries, causing damage not only to food production but also to the ecosystem at the destination.Read more
Using the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT), scientists from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are seeking to reduce the damage caused by the Mediterranean fruit fly to the coffee industry.Read more
Female Medflies cause damage by laying their eggs on fruits and vegetables, resulting in large economic losses and trade bans. A nuclear technology, known as the sterile insect technique, can be used in conjunction with other methods to deal with the pest.Read more
Nuclear magnetic resonance makes it possible to distinguish wines from different landsResearchers at the University of La Rioja have developed a method, using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), to distinguish wine made in wineries in the Rioja Qualified Designation of Origin (DOCa Rioja), through two alcohols, depending on the plots in which the vines have been grown.Read more
Soil erosion is a major contributor to land degradation, affecting 1.9 billion hectares of land worldwide, about two-thirds of the world's soil resources. It results in the loss of 75 billion hectares of fertile soil per year, at an annual economic cost of some 126 billion US dollars.Read more
It uses irradiation to sterilize male insects from species considered plagues. The sterilized insect mates with the female without impregnating her, which prevents the growth of the colony and the use of chemical insecticides.Read more
The tsetse fly is an insect that kills more than three million cattle in sub-Saharan Africa each year, costing the agricultural industry more than US$4 billion annually.Read more
Agriculture accounts for 70% of the use of freshwater resources, so the application of isotopic and nuclear techniques makes it possible to know the state and movement of water in soils and, therefore, to develop sustainable management strategies in agriculture, using cheaper and more efficient irrigation alternatives, such as drip irrigation.Read more
Animals are very important for food security, providing us with milk, eggs and meat, but as the world's population grows faster, so does the demand for animal products, putting pressure on both farmers and the environment.Read more