Cultivating Better Health Download PDF

Just as you have a microbiome, the soil beneath your feet has one too. And promising new research suggests it may have a surprising influence on food and human wellness.

It’s late December in Boulder, Colorado, and I’m on the University of Colorado campus walking toward the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES) lab. The native flora here is dormant, in a deep winter slumber, rendering the landscape in monochromatic tans. Almost nothing is growing outdoors. Continue reading →

Down on the Smart Farm Download PDF

Berry-picking robots. Tablet-controlled tractors. Weed-sensing drones. How farms are going high-tech to produce more food and a healthier environment.

Trevor Scherman is getting more
rest these days, thanks to his iPad. Scherman is a farmer who grows
wheat, peas, canola and lentils near
Battleford, Saskatchewan. Like
legions of farmers in both Canada and the
United States, he uses precision agriculture technology—cutting-edge tools like drones
and satellite imagery—to keep a careful
watch on his crops. The sensors positioned around Scherman’s farm provide
instant feedback on all sorts of conditions
that could impact his crops, such as heavy rain or a sudden frost. He also gets digital satellite images of his fields delivered by email. A company called Farmers Edge analyzes the data with sophisticated mathematical algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI). In addition to identifying major issues, the software can even pinpoint a minor weed outbreak or a few acres where plants are withering, problems that large-scale farmers like Scherman likely would have never discovered on their own until they were rampant. Continue reading →