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Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems
Research Division

Food Research Theme

Safe and sustainable food provision


In a world increasingly shaped by factors including climate change and a growing population, the provision of sufficient, sustainable food is becoming ever more important.

We explore the science underpinning production to address the challenges of producing safe, nutritious food and ensuring people have a healthy diet. We also consider the impact of food production on the environment around us, including its use of the planet’s finite resources.

Researchers in our Agri-Environment Group use their expertise in agro-ecosystems, and plant and animal ecology to address the challenges posed by our ever-growing demand for food. The Crop Production Group works on the sustainable intensification of crop production systems through the study of plant physiology, crop modelling and seed science.

Our Animal Dairy and Food Chain Sciences Group expands our knowledge of the links between animal-derived foods and consumer health and broadens our understanding of the environmental cost of using animals as food producers.

We collaborate with colleagues in other research divisions as well as with leading bodies in industry nationally and globally as we continue to cement our position as a centre for excellence in our field.

Contact us

For specific enquiries, please contact:

Dr John Hammond

Research Division Lead

Email: j.p.hammond@reading.ac.uk

Telephone: +44 (0)118 378 8093

For more information on how the University of Reading can work with your business, please contact:

Email: frontdoor@reading.ac.uk

Telephone: + 44 (0)118 378 5380

Find out how we can support your business

Research highlights

WHO dietary fat guidelines challenged

World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines on saturated fat consumption may unintentionally increase risk of heart diseases according to research on health effects of dairy products co-authored by Reading’s Professor Ian Givens.
As part of an international team of researchers, Professor Givens collated evidence from peer-reviewed papers on the effect of different types of dairy products and on different health risks. The findings, published in the BMJ, suggest that WHO guidelines that suggest reducing saturated fat intake to 10% of total energy intake is not evidence-based. The advice may actually put people at risk around the world by encouraging them to replace dairy in their diet that could actually have a positive health effect. Read more

The bees' needs

Pollinators are in decline around the world. That's a problem, not only for pollinating species, like bees, butterflies and hoverflies, but for all the other species that depend on pollination for their future - including us. A research team from the University of Reading led by Professor Simon Potts known as the Reading Bee Team work globally to highlight the value of pollinators, find out which species are in trouble and what's causing them to decline and work with anyone who wants to find solutions and help save the bees. For the past 30 years, Professor Potts has worked closely with researchers, industry and policymakers on pollinator conservation and the management of pollination services in Europe, Africa, Asia and North and South America. He chaired the UN Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services Pollinator, Pollination and Food Production report. Find out more about the Reading Bee Team.

Protecting the nation’s fruit 

In April 2019, Reading was awarded a £2.2m contract from Defra to continue to maintain and curate the National Fruit Collection - the UK’s largest bank of fruit species and one of the largest fruit genetic resource collections in the world. The collection supports global research efforts to advance the productivity, sustainability and resilience of food crops worldwide.

Recent research by Professor Matt Ordidge is comparing the genetic diversity held in the collection with collections held in Europe and historical links between some of the most well-known apple varieties are being unravelled, some dating back to the 18th century. 

Professor Richard Ellis’s research is also using the collection to explore if the longer growing season brought about by climate change could allow popular imported species such as Australia’s Granny Smith and West Virginia’s Golden Delicious to be more widely grown in the UK in future.  

Despite evidence showing that drinking milk brings health benefits including providing up to 60 per cent of vital nutrients such as calcium and phosphorus, consumption of the white stuff in the UK is falling.

By working with Marks & Spencer, our academics have made whole milk a much healthier proposition. Crucially, the research tallies with the Government’s recommendation to tackle heart disease – the UK’s single biggest killer, responsible for more than 88,000 deaths each year – by reducing saturated fat.

Ian Givens, Professor of Food Chain Nutrition, explained: “There is evidence that replacing a proportion of the saturated fats in milk with mono or polyunsaturated fats improves human cholesterol levels once consumed. Our research could be the answer to a global problem.”

Read more
Cows

Global elite

Agriculture at the University of Reading has been ranked among the global elite and is the top UK institution in the QS World Rankings by subject for 2021. Find out more.

Reading research has led to healthier and greener milk.

healthier, greener milk

Our researchers are working with the dairy industry to change the diet of cattle so that they make healthier milk and produce less planet-warming methane.

Follow Us

Get the latest news about research via:

Facebook: Agriculture, Policy & Development

Facebook: Animal Science

Twitter: Agri-environment


Study opportunities

Graduate Institute of International Development and Applied Economics

Crop Research Unit

Selected publications


Ellis, R. H. (2019) Temporal patterns of seed quality development, decline, and timing of maximum quality during seed development and maturation. Seed Science Research. 

Woodcock, B. A., Garratt, M. P. D., Powney, G. D., Shaw, R. F., Osborne, J. L., Soroka, J., Lindström, S. A. M., Stanley, D., Ouvrard, P., Edwards, M. E., Jauker, F., McCracken, M. E., Zou, Y., Potts, S. G., Rundlöf, M., Noriega, J. A., Greenop, A., Smith, H. G., Bommarco, R., van der Werf, W., Stout, J. C., Steffan-Dewenter, I., Morandin, L., Bullock, J. M. and Pywell, R. F. (2019) Meta-analysis reveals that pollinator functional diversity and abundance enhance crop pollination and yield. Nature Communications, 10 (1). 1481. 

Acheampong, K., Daymond, A. J., Adu-Yeboah, P. and Hadley, P. (2019) Improving field establishment of cacao (Theobroma cacao) through mulching, irrigation and shading. Experimental Agriculture. 

Manzoor, S. A., Griffiths, G., Latham, J. and Lukac, M. (2019) Scenario-led modelling of broadleaf forest expansion in Wales. Royal Society Open Science. ISSN 2054-5703 (In Press)


Ordidge, M.
, Kirdwichai, P., Baksh, M. F., Venison, E. P., Gibbings, J. G. and Dunwell, J. M. (2018) Genetic analysis of a major international collection of cultivated apple varieties reveals previously unknown historic heteroploid and inbred relationships. PLoS ONE, 13 (9). 

Guo, J., Astrup, A., Lovegrove, J. A., Gijsbers, L., Givens, I. and Soedamah-Muthu, S. S. (2017) Milk and dairy consumption and risk of cardiovascular diseases and all-cause mortality: dose-response meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. European Journal of Epidemiology, 32 (4). pp. 269-287. 

Khalid, S., Barfoot, K. L., May, G., Lamport, D. J., Reynolds, S. A. and Williams, C. M. (2017) Effects of acute blueberry flavonoids on mood in children and young adults. Nutrients, 9 (2). 158. 

Baldock, K. C. R., Goddard, M. A., Hicks, D. M., Kunin, W. E., Mitschunas, N., Morse, H., Osgathorpe, L. M., Potts, S. G., Robertson, K. M., Scott, A. V., Staniczenko, P. P. A., Stone, G. N., Vaughan, I. P. and Memmott, J. (2019) A systems approach reveals urban pollinator hotspots and conservation opportunities. Nature Ecology & Evolution. 

Lovegrove, Julie A; Edwards, C. H.; De Noni, I.; Patel, H. LU ; Petris, S N; Grassby, T.; Zielke, C. LU ; Ulmius, M. LU; Nilsson, L. LU and Butterworth, P. J., et al.(2017) Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition 57(2). p.237-253

Potts, S. G., Imperatriz-Fonseca, V., Ngo, H. T., Aizen, M. A., Biesmeijer, J. C., Breeze, T. D., Dicks, L. V., Garibaldi, L. A., Hill, R., Settele, J. and Vanbergen, A. J. (2016) Safeguarding pollinators and their values to human well-being.Nature, 540 (7632). pp. 220-229. ISSN 0028-0836

Tsiafouli, M. A., Thebault, E., Sgardelis, S. C., de Ruiter, P. C., van der Putten, W. H., Birkhoder, K., Hemerik, L., de Vries, F. T., Bardgett, R. D., Brady, M. V., Bjornlund, L., Jorgensen, H. B., Christensen, S., D'Hertefeldt, T., Hotes, S.,Hol, W. H. G., Frouz, J., Liiri, M.,  Mortimer, S. R., Setala, H., Tzanopoulos, J., Uteseny, K., Pizl, V., Stary, J., Wolters, V. and Hedlund, K. (2015) Intensive agriculture reduces soil biodiversity across Europe. Global Change Biology, 21 (2). pp. 973-985. ISSN 1365-2486
 
Kleijn, D., Winfree, R., Bartomeus, I., Carvalheiro, L. G., Henry, M., Isaacs, R., Klein, A.-M., Kremen, C., M'Gonigle, L. K.,Rader, R., Ricketts, T. H., Williams, N. M., Lee Adamson, N., Ascher, J. S., Báldi, A., Batáry, P., Benjamin, F., Biesmeijer, J. C., Blitzer, E. J., Bommarco, R., Brand, M. R., Bretagnolle, V., Button, L., Cariveau, D. P., Chifflet, R., Colville, J. F.,Danforth, B. N., Elle, E., Garratt, M. P.D., Herzog, F., Holzschuh, A., Howlett, B. G., Jauker, F., Jha, S., Knop, E.,Krewenka, K. M., Le Féon, V., Mandelik, Y., May, E. A., Park, M. G., Pisanty, G., Reemer, M., Riedinger, V., Rollin, O.,Rundlöf, M., Sardiñas, H. S., Scheper, J., Sciligo, A. R., Smith, H. G., Steffan-Dewenter, I., Thorp, R., Tscharntke, T.,Verhulst, J., Viana, B. F., Vaissière, B. E., Veldtman, R., Westphal, C. and Potts, S. G. (2015) Delivery of crop pollination services is an insufficient argument for wild pollinator conservation. Nature Communications, 6. 7414. ISSN 2041-1723


Webb, A., Cottage, A., Wood, T., Khamassi, K., Hobbs, D., Gostkiewicz, K., White, M., Khazaei, H., Ali, M., Street, D., Duc, G., Stoddard, F., Maalouf, F., Ogbonnaya, F. C., Link, W., Thomas, J. and O'Sullivan, D. M. (2016) A SNP-based consensus genetic map for synteny-based trait targeting in faba bean. Plant Biotechnology Journal, 14 (1). pp. 177-185. ISSN 1467-7652

Rabiey, M. and Shaw, M. W. (2015) Piriformospora indica reduces Fusarium head blight disease severity and mycotoxin DON contamination in wheat under UK weather conditions. Plant Pathology. ISSN 0032-0862

Givens, I. (2015) Manipulation of lipids in animal-derived foods: can it contribute to public health nutrition? European Journal of Lipid Science and Technology, 117 (9). pp. 1306-1316. ISSN 1438-9312

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