International

URBANA, Ill. – During the Vietnam War, United States aircraft sprayed more than 20 million gallons of herbicides, including dioxin-contaminated Agent Orange, on the country’s rain forests, wetlands, and croplands. Agent Orange defoliated the thick jungle vegetation concealing Viet Cong fighters and destroyed a portion of the country’s food crops, but it was primarily the dioxin contaminant that harmed so many Vietnamese and U.S. military personnel.

URBANA, Ill. – Photosynthesis drives yields, but in cold conditions, this process that turns sunlight into biomass takes a hit. Miscanthus is a popular, sustainable, perennial feedstock for bioenergy production that thrives on marginal land in temperate regions.

URBANA, Ill. – Adding soy flour to school lunches in Ghana provides a cost-efficient way of increasing the protein level, according to a new study co-authored by a University of Illinois researcher.

Soy is known to be a low-cost protein source, says Peter Goldsmith, professor of agricultural and consumer economics at the U of I. “But the thesis that soy is a good ingredient in a national school lunch program had yet to be proven, though everyone assumed it.”

URBANA, Ill. – At the southern tip of the Himalayas, farmers in the Kangra region of India’s Himachal Pradesh graze cattle among rolling hills and forests. The forests, under management by the state or farmer cooperatives, are thriving. But a new University of Illinois study shows, unlike state-managed forests, farmer cooperatives directly benefit both forest health and farmers.

To increase student and faculty engagement in France, the Office of International Programs in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) hosted a delegation from the Consulate General of France’s Chicago office on January 24.

The delegation met with faculty and staff from ACES and the University of Illinois, including representatives from education abroad and international centers, to make personal connections that will facilitate additional student and faculty exchanges.   

The visiting delegation included:

Urging younger people “to join the agricultural field to save humanity,” the Director General of the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) Ruben G.

URBANA, Ill. – A team based in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at the University of Illinois will help Sierra Leone enhance its institutions of higher education by supporting outcome-based education and developing a framework for quality control as part of a project funded by the United Kingdom (UK)’s Department for International Development (DFID).

The following are reflections from Martin Overholt, a PhD student in Food Science and Human Nutrition, on his research project,  which was partially funded by an ACES International Graduate Grant: “Determination of sources of variability in pork quality in the Dutch swine production system." Martin's advisor is Dr. Anna Dilger. 

The following are reflections from Luis Ibarra Sanchez, a PhD student in Food Science and Human Nutrition, on his research project, which was partially funded by an ACES International Graduate Grant: “The effect of adding antimicrobials to Queso Fresco on Latino consumers’ acceptance." Luis's advisor is Dr. Michael Miller. 

The following are reflections from Hania Taha, a PhD student in Food Science and Human Nutrition, on her research project partially funded by an ACES International Graduate Grant: “Feasibility of a neoadjuvant modified-ketogenic diet clinical trial to improve cancer outcomes in gastrointestinal and head and neck cancers." Hania's advisor is Dr. Anna Arthur.