Food safety issues and increases in food borne illnesses have promulgated the development of new sanitation methods to eliminate pathogenic organisms on foods and surfaces in food service areas. Electrolyzed oxidizing water (EO water) shows promise as an environmentally friendly broad spectrum microbial decontamination agent. EO water is generated by the passage of a dilute salt solution (approximately 1% NaCl) through an electrochemical cell. This electrolytic process converts chloride ions and water molecules into chlorine oxidants (Cl2, HOCl/ClO-). At a near-neutral pH (pH 6.3-6.5), the predominant chemical species is the highly biocidal hypochlorous acid species (HOCl) with the oxidation reduction potential (ORP) of the solution ranging from 800 to 900 mV. The biocidal activity of near-neutral EO water was evaluated at 25 °C using pure cultures of Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhimurium, Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes, and Enterococcus faecalis. Treatment of these organisms, in pure culture, with EO water at concentrations of 20, 50, 100, and 120 ppm total residual chlorine (TRC) and 10 min of contact time resulted in 100% inactivation of all five organisms (reduction of 6.1-6.7 log10 CFU/mL). Spray treatment of surfaces in food service areas with EO water containing 278-310 ppm TRC (pH 6.38) resulted in a 79-100% reduction of microbial growth. Dip (10 min) treatment of spinach at 100 and 120 ppm TRC resulted in a 4.0-5.0 log10 CFU/mL reduction of bacterial counts for all organisms tested. Dipping (10 min) of lettuce at 100 and 120 ppm TRC reduced bacterial counts of E. coli by 0.24-0.25 log10 CFU/mL and reduced all other organisms by 2.43-3.81 log10 CFU/mL.

Fat accumulation by blackcaps (Sylvia atricapilla) is a prerequisite for successful migratory flight in the autumn and has recently been determined to be constrained by availability of drinking water. Birds staging in a fruit-rich Pistacia atlantica plantation that had access to water increased their body mass and fat reserves both faster and to a greater extent than birds deprived of water. We conducted a series of laboratory experiments on birds captured during the autumn migration period in which we tested the hypotheses that drinking water increases food use by easing limitations on the birds' dietary choices and, consequently, feeding and food processing rates, and that the availability of drinking water leads to improved digestion and, therefore, to higher apparent metabolizable energy. Blackcaps were trapped in autumn in the Northern Negev Desert, Israel and transferred to individual cages in the laboratory. Birds were provided with P. atlantica fruit and mealworms, and had either free access to water (controls) or were water-deprived. In experiment 1, in which mealworm availability was restricted, water-deprived birds had a fourfold lower fruit and energy intake rates and, consequently, gained less fat and total mass than control birds. Water availability did not affect food metabolizability. In experiment 2, in which mealworms were provided ad libitum, water availability influenced the birds' diet: water-restricted birds ate more mealworms, while control birds consumed mainly P. atlantica fruit. Further, in experiment 2, fat and mass gain did not differ between the two treatment groups. We conclude that water availability may have important consequences for fat accumulation in migrating birds while they fatten at stopover sites, especially when water-rich food is scarce. Restricted water availability may also impede the blackcap's dietary shift from insectivory to frugivory, a shift probably necessary for successful pre-migratory fattening.

This reports summarizes and synthesizes activities and achievements of the CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food (CPWF) through the end of 2007. The CPWF is an intiative of the CGIAR designed to take on the global challenge of water scarcity and food security. It is an international, multi-institutional researchfor- development initiative that brings together scientists, development specialists and river basin communities, and seeks to create and disseminate international public goods (IPGs) helpful in achieving food security, reducing poverty, improving livelihoods, reducing agriculture–related pollution, and enhancing environmental security. The CPWF conducts its research on water and food in nine ‘benchmark’ river basins, organized around five different themes. This work is being implemented through competitive-call projects, Basin Focal Projects (BFPs), small grant projects and synthesis research. This report is one example of the latter. Projects and outputs Part of the CPWF’s work has focused on increasing water productivity in rainfed environments. Achievements include the further development of conservation agriculture for no-till sowing into crop residues; “slash and mulch” to replace “slash and burn” practices in hillside agriculture; water harvesting systems for dryland locations; understanding livelihood vulnerability and farmers’ coping strategies; and developing and encouraging the distribution—through community ‘participatory’ varietal selection and seed schemes—of drought-tolerant sorghum, wheat, and other crops. Progress has also been made in increasing water productivity in irrigated and salt-affected environments, especially where water is scarce and there are opportunities to increase its productivity. Examples include the development and testing of salt-tolerant germplasm for rice and other crops to make more effective use of salt-affected areas; understanding how to use wastewater in irrigated peri-urban agriculture to produce safe and nutritious vegetables; and developing aerobic rice germplasm and management practices to produce more rice with less water.

In recent years, the global economies have been faced with steeply rising prices. The members of World Bank and the United Nations including WFP (World Food Program) appeal to the world for necessary food emergency aid programs so that people in poverty might be prevented from being troubled by food shortages. Developed countries, such as Japan, the EU and the United States, comply with the world demand. One of the causes of the steeply rising price of food are the money inflow into the commodity futures market from the oil market and the investment market for housing at the United States. The changing food demand of BRICs, in which Brazil, Russia, India and China are involved, and emerging economies is the biggest factor of steep rising price of food. This will bring the structural change into the world food market. The fourth report of IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) indicates the possibility of drought, temporary flooding, water shortage and transition of suitable land on agricultural production in the future. Agricultural production is not only carried through under these global environmental problems but also the effects of agricultural production on the global environment have to be minimized. The aim of this paper is to consider the possibility of attaining the sustainable agricultural production, which may minimize the influence of agricultural production on the global environment and which may keep pace with changing food demand and population increase by reviewing present studies, especially those focusing on biofuels and water issues. The sustainability science perspective is appropriated in order to consider the shape of sustainable agricultural production.