Will food security go nuclear?

By Professor Chris Elliott

Very recently, I had the pleasure and privilege to attend and act as the facilitator for an important food security event in South East Asia. The focus was on the peaceful use of nuclear science and technology to support sustainable agriculture and food productivity in the South East Asia and Pacific regions. The event was attended by 150 other delegates from 21 different countries and was funded by the United States Department of State (DOS), the UK Department of Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and a not-for-profit organisation called the Civilian Research and Development Foundation.

I have attended many food security events over quite a long career, but I think this one will stick in my memory more than any other. This is due to a number of different factors. Firstly, because I learned of many new challenges to food security that were specific to the regions that I hadn’t encountered before. One example of this was the presentations and follow up discussions given by the delegates from the Pacific Islands, a grouping of 14 different countries. I intend to write a much larger article on this topic for New Food in the not too distant future, but a fair summary is to say that the people of these countries face massive challenges in terms of climate change and food security, and seem to go largely ignored by the rest of the world. The second factor is the fact that there is clearly an abundance of very good ideas and talented researchers who could tackle some of the massive food security issues of the region. However, great frustrations were evident that, in many cases, there is a lack of sufficient infrastructure, funding and regional coordination to deliver highly impactful research outcomes. The third and final factor was the enormous role that nuclear science and technology could play in helping to drive global food security. I have worked with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for many years and am now a senior advisor to the organisation on food safety, but the scope of opportunities on the wider food security front are enormous.

Not surprisingly, when I have talk with people about the role of nuclear science in food safety, over the years, there has been a mix of surprise and concerns. Who wants to eat radioactive food? But, actually, this is many miles from the truth, and it’s clear that far more dialogue, education and understanding is needed to really understand all of the potential positive impacts that there could be. I have to say, I am also on that journey!

What I thought might be useful is to give a few examples of food security research using nuclear science that are already underway, and highlight how the techniques could transform how food is produced and kept safe. As a young scientist (many years ago!), food irradiation was a very hot topic. A technique that uses gamma rays to irradiate food (which reduced the risk of foodborne illness and extended the shelf life of foods without detriment to health) was seen as a major advance. However, despite being endorsed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), it was not viewed as acceptable to consumers in Europe and only allowed to be used in a very limited number of cases. But, here we are, now four decades later, and a milder form of radiation known as E-beam technology, or ‘cold pasturisation’, is showing huge promise. Pioneering work conducted in the US is now being trialled in other regions of the world, and I believe that it will be a very important tool for providing food which is safe and has a longer shelf life.

A second potentially game changing technique is referred to as ‘Superwater Absorbents’. These materials can absorb massive amounts of water and, when added to soils, slowly release the water to provide it to growing crops, even in times of severe drought. Some polymers have been developed which achieve this, but I saw data presented to show that E-beam-treated food waste can achieve the same effects but at a much lower cost. The opportunity to use such materials in arid regions is something that requires substantial investment in large scale trials, in my opinion.

I could add quite a few other techniques based on nuclear science but, with limited space, I will have to follow up in future articles!

What is clearer to me is that, despite the many challenges to global food security, there are present and future science and technologies – including from nuclear sources – that will provide a wide range of solutions. For the South East Asia and Pacific regions, the dialogue about what the major food insecurity challenges and opportunities are must continue and result in large scale, well coordinated, multi-national projects. One exciting outcome from the meeting was the launch of an initiative to form a ‘Talent Academy’ for these regions. The aim is to provide a ‘one stop SE Asian shop’, where researchers can obtain expert advice on a host of food security topics. We believe that the academy will help to drive food security technology and  knowledge exchange across the regions, and support the development and mentoring of future food security leaders. This is an initiative that I am very happy to be part of, and I invite any New Food readers who want to support the initiative to contact me to see what might be possible.