Il ruolo della ricerca scientifica nell’innovazionee sostenibilità delle filiere alimentari

Prof. Claudia Sorlini - Presidente Comitato Scientifico per EXPO – Comune di Milano

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State of nutrition in the world

805 million people suffer from hunger.

About 2 billion suffer from hidden undernutrition because of mineral and vitamins deficiency (iron, zinc, vitamin A…).

30% food is lost and wasted.

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The challenge is hard because…

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Food demand is increasing more rapidly than food offer because of • the expansion of world population • the increasing demand for animal

proteins (which required a higher quantity of vegetal proteins)

Moreover, the agricultural production does not grow with the same trend of the past.

2050 Forecast• 9 billion people• Food Demand +70%• Water Consumption +71%

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La sfida

La sfida per i prossimi decenni è di produrre cibo sufficiente per tutta l’umanità senza compromettere le risorse indispensabili perché le generazioni future possano continuare a produrre cibo.

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The major issues

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Fresh water in the world69% is consumed by agricultureAlmost 800 million people drink not sanitized water; 1,2 billion live in areas with water shortage.

Biodiversity Nowadays, only about 30 plant species supply 95% of the global demand for food; over 75% of genetic diversity has been lost in the nineteenth century (FAO, 2010).

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The major issues

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Energy and arable soilsIt is estimated that they could be only slightly enlarged , while now a lot of fertile soils are cultivated for energy biomass and not for food.

Climate changeAgriculture is responsible for 14%-17% of the Greenhouse Gasses emissions.

Food waste and losses30% food is lost.

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The contribution of scientific research

We are aware that scientific reseach cannot find a solution to all the problems of hunger, poverty and iniquity , to which politics and governments must give an answer. However the research can give an important support to resolve these problems.

One of the most important scientific contributions can come from the investigations on the genome of plants and animals: that allows a sustainable improvement of the productions. With the biomolecular techniques it is possible to identify, among the existing organisms, (also without genetic modification) the most resilient to the environmental conditions.

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Reducing water consumption in agriculture

Identification of genes responsible for drought resistance has allowed the researchersto find varieties of rice able to grow with a common irrigation and not under water.

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Traditional rice culture in underwater New variety cultivated in “dry”

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Reducing the use of agrochemicals

By identification of• plants with a high efficiency in the

absorption of nutrients. (they grow well also in nutrients deficient soils).

• Plants able to accumulate active biomolecules (such as polyphenols) against pests and microbial infections.

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Reducing the use of agrochemicals

By Plant Growth Promoting Rizobacteria (PGPR)

• Biofertilizers: to provide nutrients

• Biostimulants: to modulate the hormonal balance

• Biocontrol: to protect the plants from the phytopatogens

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Increasing the food quality and nutrition value (biofortification)

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Orange Potatoes (Mozambico)

Variety obtained by breeding with potatoes from Uganda. Resistant to biological agents and rich in pro-vitamin (beta-carotene).

Blue Maize

Rich of flavonoids, more resistant to fungi attacks, it protects against cardiovascular diseases.

Both products are useful against hidden undernutrition.

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Improving Food Nutritional Values

The wild ancestral tetraploid wheat, Triticum turgidum ssp. Dicoccoides has the allel Gpc-Bl, associated to iron, zinc and proteins bioaccumulation. This variety could be a potential gene donor to other plants.

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Detecting and disseminating the use of plants resilient to climate change (drought, soil salinity, increase of temperature...)

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In northern Africa recent researches showed the presence of some leguminoses (peas and beans) varieties with a good adaptability to drought and climatic variability and the capacity to activate a mechanism for iron adsorption, also under conditions of iron-deficiency in the soil.

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The region of the Med basin

The heritageFacing the problems arising from climate change, the countries of the southern Mediterranean basin and other regions with the same climate characteristics have exceptional resources: they are owners of a heritage represented by plants and microbial genes of resistance to drought and climate variability. The genes of this biodiversity still need to be discovered, investigated and exploited.

The risksTo be invaded by new phyto-pathogens and parassites (Phytoplasma).

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Bioenergies

We need to increase both food production and renewable energy sources sfrom biomass and at the same time to reduce the carbon footprint. An alternative to maize is thevegetal biomass cultivated on marginal soils not adapted to food plants, such as Arundo donax (PlosOne, 2014), and other cellulose sources (Nature, 2011).

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Other interesting fields of scientific research

• ICT and precision agriculture• Robotics• Fertility soil and culture rotation

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Reducing emissions of greenhouse gasses

• Agriculture is responsible for 14 to 17% of total greenhouse gas emissions and concurs to the climate change which brings to an increasing drought and desertification.

• Ruminants belching contribute significantly with their methane emissions.Interesting researches showed that an appropriate diet led to a reduction of methane production.

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The food of the future

To face demand of proteins without destroying natural resources.

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Reducing food losses and waste

Research and technology to improve conservation (cold chain) and distribution systems in developing countries to improve packaging systems (“smart” and “intelligent” packaging) to extend the food shelf life for all countries.

New ways of processing: novel thermodynamic cycles and non-thermal to reduce water and energy consumption and GHG emissions (food irradiation, high-pressure processing, pulsed electric fields, membrane processing andsupercritical fluid processing) novel heating processes.

Reuse of by-productsNanotechnologies

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L’impegno del Parlamento e della Commissione Europea - La Steering Committee for Expo

1. Migliorare la salute pubblica attraverso la nutrizione

2. Migliorare food safety e qualità

3. Ridurre gli sprechi

4. Gestione sostenibile della terra per uno sviluppo sostenibile delle aree rurali

5. Incremento sostenibile della produzione di alimenti

6. Mercato globale degli alimenti

7. Incrementare l’equità dei sistemi alimentari

Evento 20 luglio 2015Convegno Ager Comitato Scientifico per EXPO 2015

In occasione dei nuovi bandi AGER.

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