We live in a time when the world faces many global issues. Many of these threaten our fundamental existence, such as climate change and food security. How will we be able to feed an ever increasing global population at the same time as reducing our impact on the environment? This is a fundamental question and it is vital that we find a way of solving it.
Scientists in Russia believe that they have an answer that can at least help us on our way to a solution. They believe that the answer lies in light technology, specifically lasers. It might sound like science fiction but it is in fact science fact. Agricultural research coming out the Michurinsk State Agrarian University in Tambov in western Russia has suggested that, by creating the right sort of light conditions, crop yields could be more than doubled, by using a relatively simple technology.
The benefits go further than boosting yield
The scientists discovered that the laser technology can be used for much more than just increasing the size of the crop. The robots working the technology are able to monitor the plants and make decisions as to whether they are suffering from a disease. If this is the case, they will simply give them a burst of light and they will become healthy once again. Indeed, the monitoring of pests and diseases is a critical reason behind the boost in yield in the first place. Healthy plants will be much more likely to grow to be bigger come harvest time. Even better, no pesticides or herbicides are required. The light is completely natural and does not require any other inputs. In the long run, this would be a really good thing for the environment.
How does it work?
The scientists have not released full details of how the technology works as this is currently top secret information. However, in essence the prototype equipment moves up and down the rows of plants, constantly monitoring them for problems. If it spots a problem a beam of light will be blasted at the plant. The increase in the amount of light is good for the plant as a whole as it enables it to create more food for itself. Under natural conditions the plant would not be exposed to light for such long amounts of time, which is a major reason why their growth is usually limited.
How could the technology be applied?
Whilst it is only a prototype at this stage, and the technology is in its early stages, it is thought that it could be rolled out on a broad basis to help increase yields for a wide variety of plant species. During the experiments, the scientists have been working with and monitoring radishes, cucumbers, dill and tomatoes, but there is no reason why it could not be applied to cereals such as wheat and barley, or indeed fruit trees, or vines. A lot more research needs to be done before this stage is reached but the critical thing that has happened is that the theory has been proven to work in reality.
The scientists have shown that food can be easily grown indoors and the technology does not need any special conditions for it to work well. One of the global problems we face is how to conserve biodiversity and so we need to use less land for producing food. This technology would allow urban areas and buildings that are currently redundant to play a part in food production on a large scale.
Clearly, this is a very exciting new technology which has the potential to change the way our food is produced. If yields can be doubled across the board, for a wide range of different crops, then a lot more food could be produced using a fraction of the land that we currently put down to agriculture. It is easy to despair in today’s world but with technologies like this, we should be confident in our abilities to face the future in a positive way. Commercial engraving services might know a bit more about laser technology and its potential. It’s certainly a good idea to check out what they’ve come up with.