Food

We've seen how lab-grown meats could help address the massive environmental costs associated with livestock production, and we're now seeing some interesting possibilities emerge around one of the world's most popular drinks – coffee.

The freezers found homes and restaurants play an invaluable role in preserving foods until they're ready to be eaten, but an alternative technology promises to not only use far less energy, but improve food quality at the same time.

Can the make-up of your gut microbiome affect the success of a weight loss intervention? A unique new study is indicating this is certainly possible, identifying several mechanisms by which gut bacteria can either help or hinder weight loss.

Infrared spectrometers are expensive and powerful instruments scientists use to analyze the chemical makeup of a sample, and a new research project has made a breakthrough that miniaturizes this technology so much it can be packed into a smartphone.

After years of court battles the EPA has announced it will ban agricultural uses of chlorpyrifos, a pesticide suspected of causing health problems in children. The ban comes into effect in six months, with a further review of non-food uses to follow.

Agriculture requires huge amounts of land and resources, and as the human population grows our food supply will be put under increasing stress. But a new study shows that farming protein from microbes could be a far more sustainable and efficient system.

A research review published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition argues popular low-carbohydrate ketogenic diets are unhealthy for most people. The review rekindles a long-standing debate over the dangers of high-fat/low-carb dietary strategies.

A new material from researchers in Spain and Portugal serves as another compelling example of bioactive plastic, making use of extracts from mango leaves to fend off food pathogens and ultraviolet light.

Food security is a major potential problem, especially in the face of climate change. New research has shown that manipulating RNA in plants can drastically boost the amount of food they produce, and make them more resistant to drought conditions.

Given how meat-like some plant-based meat substitutes have become, it's understandable that many people are considering simply switching over to them. According to new research, however, the two food types are far from being nutritionally identical.

From Singapore to the International Space Station, we're starting to see how lab-grown meat might soon make its way out of the lab and into everyday diets, and a newly opened factory in Israel should more than help things along.

Researchers digging into the science behind popcorn expansion have shed new light on the process, finding thickness of the coating around the kernel to be a key factor, which could inform the breeding of higher quality corn down the track.