UKCDS | New website explores food security challenge

News

screen shot of the new Food Security website

BBSRC wants people to engage in the food
security issue through its blog.

A new website exploring the challenge of food security has been launched by The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).

www.foodsecurity.ac.uk includes the first blog on the web dedicated to food security and related research in the UK.

Researchers, farmers, industry leaders and consumers can comment on blogs and even post their own.

Also featured is background information on the food security agenda, facts and figures, current research activity, global issues and the scientific challenges ahead.

The website has been designed to reflect the number of disciplines beyond BBSRC science that will need to work together to deliver safe, affordable and nutritious food for a growing global population expected to reach 9B by 2050.

By incorporating social media tools into the site, BBSRC hopes to generate provocative debate about different views on food security and different approaches to feeding the growing world population.

Prof Douglas Kell, BBSRC Chief Executive, said: “We can all recognise the importance of securing our food supplies but people disagree over the ways to do this and the approaches to take. The new blog on www.foodsecurity.ac.uk will be a place for those interested in this topic to provoke, engage, debate and discuss. If people have something important to say about food security we want to hear from them.”

BBSRC is leading the Research Councils UK food security initiative, a major multi-disciplinary programme involving nine of the 14 UKCDS members. Details of this programme will be announced early 2010.

UKCDS members involved are: