Of course, need to look out out of box. As many of agricultural research projects are mostly field-basd, it is a bit hard to handle it in right time and place. Remote sensing, GIS, Drones and other digital tools may help us to cope such challenges

Reconsideration of the food chain to ensure food security in crisis (pandemic, economic or others).

Transplanting of rice will be a greater challenge in coming month due to labour shortage...So, probably direct seeding of rice could have the potential to overcome said issue..

Of course, need to look out out of box. As many of agricultural research projects are mostly field-basd, it is a bit hard to handle it in right time and place. Remote sensing, GIS, Drones and other digital tools may help us to cope such challenges

A saúde planetária oferece uma oportunidade sem precedentes para a defesa de reformas em diferentes escalas: globais, locais e individuais. Que o alimento volte a ser a essência de nossa existência humana, que nos reconecte com o cuidado com a terra, a água, a biodiversidade, com a saúde do corpo e do espírito. Que as práticas alimentares, voltem a ser do “fazer em comum”, com o outro, para dignificar nosso modo de sentir e viver, e do nosso próprio sentido de conceber a densidade política da vida. Deslocar o paradigma da escassez para o paradigma da abundância e da prosperidade para todas as formas de vida que compartilham esta grande casa comum, a Terra.

Nataraj S K

During the Pandemic, million and million pounds of agricultural products are throwing away. Crops left in the fields to rot without harvesting, due to lack of workers. Dairy farmers dump away their milk on the spots. Now, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) are trying to reduce wasted food by feeding hungry people. They launched a program called 'Farmers to Families". In the program, the federal government buy the products, and the farmers box them up and donate to food banks and such to feed the needy.

Mirian Strate

Yes, the Mother Earth provides us foods. We need to take care our Mother Earth.

Don't waste food. Don't junk the environment.

I did a Google translation. I hope it is correct.

" Planetary health offers an unprecedented opportunity to advocate for reforms at different scales: global, local and individual. May food be the essence of our human existence again, reconnect us with caring for the land, water, biodiversity, with the health of the body and spirit. Let eating practices, once again, be “doing in common”, with the other, to dignify our way of feeling and living, and of our own sense of conceiving the political density of life. Shifting the paradigm of scarcity to the paradigm of abundance and prosperity for all forms of life that share this great common home, the Earth."

Silvius Stanciu and Nataraj S K

I agree. The meat 'food chain' is almost broken in the US. Several large meat-processing factories were shut down due to active cases of novel coronavirus. Trump had issued an executive order to make the factories re-open , so the meat food chain won't break.

" Americans on Cusp of Meat Shortage With Food Chain Breaking Down "

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-27/americans-face-meat-shortages-while-farmers-are-forced-to-cull

Anil Kumar Could you elaborate what are the differences of these two rice-farming practices: Transplanting of rice vs. Direct seeding of rice. Thanks.

I guess that after the virus global issue new research programmes will be launched with the focus on food security to try to address the several weaknesses of the current food chain. There are many other challenges that could affect food availability and distribution and we have to face with.

Maybe as agronomist and food researcher we will get some more attention about natural resource conservation, fertility, agrobiodiversity and many other relevant research goals that are anyway linked to food security.

But is up to us to bring new vision on several round tables and to the decision makers and people to increase awareness about the primary sector.

I think research should be collecting infomation/data on how much the food/agricultural system is currently being affected by COVID-19. This should be done systematically, like others have said following the food value chain. But we should not forget the smallholder farmers. Research should assist the smallholder farmers to recover. Its likely that most of them have lost their livelihoods and production means and they will need help to start again. Governements need to take this into consideration in formulating recovery policies..

There is a challenge to create more integrated value chains which are inclusive (which also integrate small and marginal farmers) and which can create a win win situation for all the stakeholders.

I agree @Uma, we always have parallel systems, which unfortunately leave out the poor and marginalised. We need integration models, which can enable the smallholder farmers to transition and become commercial.

Nataraj S K

EPA has a chart about how to reduce wasted food and feed the needy, especially amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Feed Hungry People is the second tier of EPA’s Food Recovery Hierarchy. In 2017, almost 41 million tons of food were generated in the United States. While Americans dispose of millions of tons of food, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that 11.8 percent of American households - about 15 million households - had difficulty providing enough food for all their members due to a lack of resources at some time during 2017. In many cases, the food tossed into our nation’s landfills is wholesome, edible food. "

Nataraj S K < .. strengthening of marketing channels,......>

The meat food-supply-chain is almost broken in the US. There are several major pork-processing factors were shut down, due to workers were tested COVID-19. Many factors with several hundreds of workers tested positive. And, most of them were symptom-less (1). To ensure the food-supply chains safe, the workers need to be tested, masks need to worn, and the companies also need to provide personal help when workers get sick. These also go to the food truck drivers. Truck drivers complained (on TV) that companies did not provide any personal protection equipment (PPE). They have to find a way to do that themselves.

(1) Nearly 400 employees at a Missouri pork plant tested positive for COVID-19. None of them had symptoms.

https://www.businessinsider.com/hundreds-food-plant-workers-tested-positive-for-covid-19-asymptomatic-2020-5

Obviously, agricultural researchers cannot do much, but those dedicated to precision farming where they use sensors to detect diseases at a distance can do a lot by studying this pandemic since animals transmitted it to man and due to the fact that human doctors They are being unable to solve the problem, because they are corrupt and cowards since the dead until now are their fault, so the vets must make their effort.

# Yuan-Yeu Yau sir, transplanting of paddy (rice) crop is a common practice, where nursery of paddy seed is sown in the field and after 35-40 days seedlings (depending on variety) are transplanted in field prepared after puddling. Whereas in case of Direct Seeded Rice (DSR) field preparation by puddling is not followed nor nursery is transplanted. Here in DSR paddy seed is directly sown in the field with the help of seed drill (likewise wheat). In DSR practice the farmers are getting good results and obtaining similar yields with transplanted one.

Regards

See below our reflections about COVID-19 and food issues during cities lockdown. Can disruptive solutions in urban agriculture help to solve food security problems in the near future?

Article Food First: COVID-19 Outbreak and Cities Lockdown a Booster ...

Giuseppe Pulighe Great insight!

Mohammed A. Mohammed here you can find also my reflections. I believe this situation is favorable for experimenting social innovative initiatives on food provisioning Article Social Innovation and Food Provisioning during Covid-19: The...

Valentina Cattivelli Thanks for sharing us.