A new study in Food Control examines mycotoxins produced by fungi in plant-based foods and beverages. The study found that most of the products were contaminated with Aflatoxins, a Class 1 carcinogen. There are significant gaps in the food safety assessment for unregulated contaminants.
Office of Inspector General (OIG) released report on EPA's fiscal year (FY) 2026 top management challenges. The report identifies what OIG considers to be the six most serious management and performance challenges facing EPA in FY 2026. EPA’s ability to identify the risks of using chemicals and pesticides is challenged by ongoing resource constraints, inefficient review processes and stringent statutory deadlines.
Transnational agribusinesses increasingly shape food policies worldwide. Food policies in the Global South have evolved since World War Two. After WWII, colonial powers weaponised food supplies for counterinsurgency and population control purposes. The International Fund for Agricultural Development was established in the 1970s. Neoliberalism undermined government fiscal capacities, import-substituting industrialisation, and food security efforts. Donald Trump’s weaponisation of economic policies and agreements, including food supplies, has ominous implications for countries trying to assert some independence.
At least 16.5% of human-generated greenhouse gas emissions come from meat and dairy production. Many companies claim to be tackling this, but 98% of their claims could be considered greenwashing. Cargill pushed its baseline year for evaluating deforestation ahead by 12 years. Danone promised to have no deforestation across its primary deforestation-linked commodities by 2025.
Regenerative California is working to build a regenerative economy that uplifts communities, advances sustainability, and strengthens the state of California’s food and agriculture system. Kristin Coates and her team have developed a 70-acre demonstration farm in Monterey County. The farm is a demonstration site for regenerative organic agriculture training.
Grocery prices rose in April at the fastest rate in nearly four years. Inflation reached its highest level in nearly three years. The effects of the war in Iran and the global oil market turmoil are pushing up prices for groceries. Beef prices have been rising for more than two years and are now up nearly 15%.
Oil supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz are causing a surge in fuel prices and fertilizer shortages in South Asia. India imported more than half of its total fertilizer from the Persian Gulf in 2024. India uses roughly 60 million tonnes of fertilizer nutrients annually. Pakistan and Bangladesh use about 10 million and 6 million tonnes respectively.
Trump administration wants to rescind 2024 regulations for toxic ethylene oxide (EtO) pollution. EtO is about 60 times more carcinogenic than thought when the last regulations were developed in 2006. If the Trump EPA is successful in the legal fight, the 2024 regulations would be rescinded, resulting in nearly 8 tons of EtO being released into the air. It would also permanently make it more difficult for the EPA to protect people from toxic air pollutants.
New VA study examines the mental health symptoms of veterans who self-reported toxic exposures from military service, from pre-Vietnam War through post-911 conflicts, including wars in the Middle East. Veterans who reported multiple toxic exposures are more prone to suicidal thoughts and behaviors than veterans who did not report exposures. The study stopped short of linking toxic exposure to genetic changes.
Bayer has spent more than ten billion euros on legal proceedings and settlements since it bought its American competitor Monsanto for $63 billion in the summer of 2018. The DAX group is currently worth just under 39 billion euros and at around 40 euros, the share now costs two thirds more than it did a year ago.