Food Security

Students have completed their 3, first semester compulsory courses and started their selected optional courses. The first optional course ‘Insects and Food Security’ runs in December and was taken by most of the students. This course introduces the positive and negative contributions of insects to food security, considering both crop production and animal agriculture. Positive impacts include pollination and insects as a food source, whereas the negative roles concern pests and disease vectors.

The principal lecturers of this course, Professors Julian Dow and Shireen Davies undertake leading international research involving insects, including the development of novel insecticide targets for food security. The students enjoyed the course and produced posters on a selected topic related to insects and food security for their assessment, which they needed to present and discuss with the lecturers. This year the poster presentations were particularly good, and most students were awarded high grades.

 

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First published: 20 May 2020