Food + Science Valpuri Sovero

Have you seen a brown marmorated stink bug? If you live in most of the US, the answer is probably yes. Since first being observed in 1998, it has spread to at least 43 states and Washington, D.C. An all-purpose pest, it damages crops and gets inside our houses to keep warm over the winter. Besides that, it is particularly resistant to many insecticides simply based on its body shape. So what can we do?
In this episode, we talk with Peter Jentsch, an entomologist at Cornell University's Hudson Valley Laboratory, about the project he's involved in looking for natural enemies of the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug, with a mission to reduce their populations and the damage they cause. The answer, and tiny wasp with a fierce name, the Samurai Wasp.

Have you ever thought about the connection between the food we eat, how we grow it, and the environment around it? Or even further afield, like does how we farm in Nebraska have an impact on life in the Gulf of Mexico? In this episode, we talk to Professor Harold van Es from Cornell University's School of Integrative Plant Science, Soil and Crop Sciences Section about how we can better manage the amount of nitrogen fertilizer to reduce runoff. This has the potential to prevent dead zones in the Gulf of Mexico that develop when nitrogen is in excess. Professor van Es and his colleagues developed ADAPT-N, a tool that allows a farmer to precisely apply only the amount of nitrogen needed, reducing excess nitrogen in the system. We also talk with a farmer, Robert Donald, who has been using ADAPT-N and how it affects his farming. In December 2017, Tulane University announced that ADAPT-N won its Tulane Nitrogen Reduction Challenge, aimed at preventing or reducing hypoxia, a lack of oxygen mainly caused by overgrowth of phytoplankton, in the Gulf of Mexico.

Cider is booming. The market for cider has grown nine fold since 2010, and New York state is spearheading this growth, with more than 70 cider producers, more than in any other state. But what does it take to make good cider? As Gregory Peck, assistant professor of horticulture at Cornell University says, more than ever, producers and growers “need science-based recommendations” in order to most effectively produce the best apples for the best cider. In this episode, we talk to Greg Peck, Chris Gerling, an enology extension associate and manager of the Vinification & Brewing Laboratory at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, NY, and apple breeder Susan Brown, professor of horticulture and plant breeding & genetics at Cornell University. We’ll find out what it takes to make and grow a cider apple, and how the cider industry is growing and changing.

Coming soon! This is a podcast about the stories behind the science of how food gets to your table. Brought to you by Cornell University’s School of Integrative Plant Science in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. With support from Cornell Agritech at the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, NY and Cornell Cooperative Extension.