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Evan Fraser

Evan Fraser

Director of the Arrell Food Institute at the University of Guelph; Professor; Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Global Food Security, University of Guelph
Evan started thinking about agriculture and food systems while spending summers working on his grandfather’s fruit farm in Niagara. There, he watched his stock-broker grandmother rake in an unconscionable amount of money on commissions from her clients’ investments while the farmers around were letting their crops rot because the cost of harvesting was higher than the cost of importing from the Southern US and Mexico. He decided, however, it was easier to write and talk about farming than actually try to make a living on it so passed on inheriting the family farm, opting instead for grad school. He did degrees in forestry, anthropology and agriculture at UBC and UofT. Since graduating, he worked in a policy institute with the Hon. Dr. Lloyd Axworthy, and began his academic career in 2003 in the UK where he worked on farming and climate change at the University of Leeds. He is the author of approximately 70 scientific papers or book chapters on these topics, has written for the Guardian.com, CNN.com, ForeignAffairs.com, the Walrus and the Ottawa Citizen, and has two popular non-fiction books about food and food security including: Empires of Food: Feast, Famine and the Rise and Fall of Civilizations that was published by Simon and Schuster and shortlisted for the James Beard Food Literature Award. Currently, he is the director of the Arrell Food Institute, holds the Tier I Canada Research Chair in Global Food Security and is a fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographic Society.

Space Science Series

The food systems that will feed Mars are set to transform food on Earth

Jan 24, 2023 05:32 am UTC| Technology

Could we feed a city on Mars? This question is central to the future of space exploration and has serious repercussions on Earth too. To date, a lot of thought has gone into how astronauts eat; however, we are only...

3 technologies poised to change food and the planet

Feb 20, 2021 12:23 pm UTC| Technology

Agricultures impact on the planet is massive and relentless. Roughly 40 per cent of the Earths surface is used for cropland and grazing. The number of domestic animals far outweighs remaining wild populations. Every day,...

100 days of coronavirus has sent shock waves through the food system

Jun 21, 2020 04:02 am UTC| Insights & Views Business

The COVID-19 lockdown has exposed a large number of problems in the food system. Whether it was the panic buying or workers in meat-packing plants testing positive for the virus, serious concerns have been raised about...

Insects, seaweed and lab-grown meat could be the foods of the future

Feb 04, 2020 12:18 pm UTC| Health

The world is facing a major food crisis where both obesity and hunger are rising in the context of rapidly changing environments. The Food and Agriculture Organization has presented alternative food sources such as...

How digital technologies can help Africa's smallholder farmers

Jul 12, 2019 09:58 am UTC| Insights & Views Technology

Digitisation could change the game for agriculture in Africa. Thats a key message in a report recently released by an international institution that enhances smallholder farming in African, Caribbean and Pacific...

Canada's new food policy means everyone's at the table

Jul 03, 2019 21:06 pm UTC| Insights & Views Politics

Marie-Claude Bibeau, Canadas agriculture and agrifood minister, recently announced that, after years of consultations, Canada finally has a national food policy. Developing the policy had been one of the ministrys...

A Canadian food policy moves closer to becoming a reality

Sep 13, 2018 13:15 pm UTC| Insights & Views Law

One of the key commitments the federal government made upon taking office was to establish a food policy for all Canadians. The rationale was simple. Although, or perhaps because, food intersects so many aspects of life...

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Economy

Copper Prices Hit Record Highs as Metals Rally Gains Momentum on Geopolitical Tensions

Copper prices surged to record levels on Thursday, extending a powerful rally across global metals markets as investors increased exposure to physical assets amid escalating geopolitical risks and ongoing supply concerns....

Indonesian Stocks Plunge as MSCI Downgrade Risk Sparks Investor Exodus

Indonesian stocks suffered a dramatic selloff on Thursday, putting the market on course for its largest two-day decline on record as fears of a potential downgrade to frontier market status rattled investors. The benchmark...

Asian Currencies Trade Flat as Dollar Retreats After Fed Decision

Asian currencies traded in a mostly flat-to-lower range on Thursday, while the U.S. dollar weakened after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged and struck an optimistic tone on the U.S. economy. Currency...

Philippine Economy Slows in Late 2025, Raising Expectations of Further Rate Cuts

The Philippine economy posted weaker-than-expected growth in the final quarter of 2025, reinforcing concerns about slowing momentum and increasing speculation over further monetary policy easing by the central bank....

South Korea Industry Minister Heads to Washington Amid U.S. Tariff Hike Concerns

South Koreas Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan is set to visit Washington on Thursday to hold high-level talks with U.S. officials following President Donald Trumps announcement of plans to raise tariffs on South Korean...

Politics

Trump and Schumer Explore Deal on New Limits for Federal Immigration Agents

U.S. President Donald Trump and Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer reportedly took steps Wednesday night toward a potential agreement to negotiate new restrictions on federal immigration agents, according to a report by the...

Federal Reserve Faces Subpoena Delay Amid Investigation Into Chair Jerome Powell

The Federal Reserve has not yet complied with grand jury subpoenas tied to an ongoing criminal investigation involving Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, according to a report by CNBC citing a source familiar with the...

Trump Warns Minneapolis Mayor as Immigration Raids Continue Amid Rising Tensions

U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday warned Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey that he was playing with fire by insisting local police would not enforce federal immigration laws, even as the White House sent mixed messages...

Starmer’s China Visit Signals New Era in UK–China Economic Relations

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is set to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday in a high-profile diplomatic engagement aimed at strengthening UKChina economic relations after years of strained ties....

Jerome Powell Attends Supreme Court Hearing on Trump Effort to Fire Fed Governor, Calling It Historic

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell revealed on Wednesday that he personally attended last weeks Supreme Court arguments related to President Donald Trumps attempt to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, underscoring...

Science

NASA and SpaceX Target Crew-11 Undocking From ISS Amid Medical Concern

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Neuralink Plans High-Volume Brain Implant Production and Fully Automated Surgery by 2026

Elon Musks brain-computer interface company Neuralink is preparing for a major expansion, announcing plans to begin high-volume production of its brain implant devices and transition to a fully automated surgical procedure...

Jared Isaacman Confirmed as NASA Administrator, Becomes 15th Leader of U.S. Space Agency

The U.S. Senate has officially confirmed billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman as the new NASA administrator, making him the 15th leader in the agencys history. The confirmation, which took place on Wednesday, marks...

Senate Sets December 8 Vote on Trump’s NASA Nominee Jared Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee announced it will vote on December 8 on President Donald Trumps renewed nomination of private astronaut and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman, known for his...

NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead

NASA has significantly scaled back Boeings Starliner program after years of technical issues and delays, announcing that the next Starliner mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will fly without astronauts. The...

Technology

NVIDIA, Microsoft, and Amazon Eye Massive OpenAI Investment Amid $100B Funding Push

NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA), Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), and Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) are reportedly in discussions to invest as much as $60 billion combined into artificial intelligence powerhouse OpenAI, signaling a major...

Meta Stock Surges After Q4 2025 Earnings Beat and Strong Q1 2026 Revenue Outlook Despite Higher Capex

Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ: META) shares jumped sharply in after-hours trading after the company delivered better-than-expected Q4 2025 earnings and issued a strong revenue forecast for the first quarter of 2026, easing...

Samsung Electronics Posts Record Q4 2025 Profit as AI Chip Demand Soars

Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (KS:005930) delivered record-breaking revenue and profit in the fourth quarter of 2025, driven largely by booming demand from the artificial intelligence industry for advanced memory chips. The...

Microsoft AI Spending Surge Sparks Investor Jitters Despite Solid Azure Growth

Microsoft rattled investors after reporting record artificial intelligence spending alongside slower-than-expected cloud growth, raising concerns about when its massive AI investments will meaningfully pay off. Following...

Advantest Shares Hit Record High on Strong AI-Driven Earnings and Nvidia Demand

Advantest Corp. (TYO:6857) shares surged to a record high on Thursday after the Japanese semiconductor testing equipment maker posted strong fiscal third-quarter earnings and raised its full-year guidance, driven by robust...
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