Mahendra Rai · Caue Ribeiro Luiz Mattoso · Nelson Duran Editors Nanotechnologies in Food and Agriculture Nanotechnologies in Food and Agriculture ThiSisaFMBlankPage Mahendra Rai (cid:129) Caue Ribeiro Luiz Mattoso (cid:129) Nelson Duran Editors Nanotechnologies in Food and Agriculture Editors MahendraRai CaueRibeiro DepartmentofBiotechnology LuizMattoso SGBAmravatiUniversity BrazilianAgriculturalResearch Amravati Corporation-Instrumentation Maharashtra EmbrapaInstrumentation India SaoCarlos Brazil NelsonDuran InstituteofChemistry BiologicalChemistryLaboratory UniversidadeEstadualdeCampinas Campinas Brazil ISBN978-3-319-14023-0 ISBN978-3-319-14024-7 (eBook) DOI10.1007/978-3-319-14024-7 LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2015935273 SpringerChamHeidelbergNewYorkDordrechtLondon ©SpringerInternationalPublishingSwitzerland2015 Thisworkissubjecttocopyright.AllrightsarereservedbythePublisher,whetherthewholeorpart of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation,broadcasting,reproductiononmicrofilmsorinanyotherphysicalway,andtransmissionor informationstorageandretrieval,electronicadaptation,computersoftware,orbysimilarordissimilar methodologynowknownorhereafterdeveloped. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publicationdoesnotimply,evenintheabsenceofaspecificstatement,thatsuchnamesareexempt fromtherelevantprotectivelawsandregulationsandthereforefreeforgeneraluse. Thepublisher,theauthorsandtheeditorsaresafetoassumethattheadviceandinformationinthis book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained hereinorforanyerrorsoromissionsthatmayhavebeenmade. Printedonacid-freepaper Springer International Publishing AG Switzerland is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com) Foreword In 1970, Norman Borlaug won the Nobel Peace prize for his role in transforming agricultureinwhatbecameknownasthe“GreenRevolution.”Thegreenrevolution occurredafterWorldWarIIandinvolvedadvancesinplantbreedingprogramsthat selectedfordiseaseresistant,highyieldingvarietiesofstaplecropssuchaswheat, rice and maize. It also involved the development and increased use of synthetic pesticides, chemical fertilizers, and mechanization. Borlaug was known as “the man who saved a billion lives.” Countries with impoverished populations that traditionally imported staple crops became self sufficient or even exporters themselves. Borlaugrecognizedthatwhilethegreenrevolutionusheredintheeraofmodern agriculture,furtheradvanceswouldbenecessarytomeettheever-growingworld- widedemandforfoodcommodities.Hispredictionisprovingtrue.Accordingtoa UnitedNationsreport,theworldpopulationsurpassedsevenbillionin2011andis expected to increase almost 30 % by the year 2050. Nearly all of the population growth is projected to occur in developing nations where resources are already stretched to their limits. Maintaining the current level of agricultural production willbechallengingenoughformanycountriesbutincreasingcropyieldsby30% maybeimpossiblewithoutthehelpofnewtechnologies. Further complicating the issue is the fact that many of the intense farming practicesintroducedduringthegreenrevolution,whileproductive,areconsidered unsustainable over the long-term. For example, some estimates indicate that only 30 % of the chemicals applied by conventional means is actually utilized by the crop. Much of the fertilizer and pesticides applied in the field by conventional meansislostthroughvariousmechanismsincludingspraydrift(wind),volatiliza- tion,leachingintogroundwater,andinwaterrunofffromirrigationorrainfall.The poor efficiency of conventional field applications of agricultural chemicals is a growingconcernduetothecostofthematerialsandtheirfateintheenvironment. Agricultureisoneoftheprimarysourcesofpollutionfromchemicalsfoundtohave leached into groundwater. It is also a primary source of chemicals discovered in waterrunoffthatenterintorivers,lakes,andestuaries.Fertilizerrunoffcontaining nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus can cause eutrophication of lakes, rivers, v vi Foreword streamsandestuaries.Theimpactofheavypesticideuseonfishes,birds,andother wildlifepopulationshasbeenwelldocumented.Environmentalistshavecalledfora reductionintheuseofagriculturalchemicalsinordertodecreasepollutionofour groundwater and waterways and to conserve resources. Many consumers also demandlesschemicaluseinagricultureasasteptowardreducingpesticideresidue onfarmproduce. Responding to these and other challenging issues in food and agriculture will require new, impactful technologies. Nanotechnology is one of the exciting new fieldsofresearchthatholdsgreatpromiseinaddressingmanyofthepressingneedsin thefoodandagriculturesectors.Nanomaterialstypicallyhaveatleastonedimension that is in the size range of 1–100 nm. The small size confers unique beneficial propertiesthatcannotbematchedbysimilarmaterialsthathavealargersizerange. Severalcountrieshaverecognizedthepotentialimpactofnanotechnologycouldhave ontheireconomiesandinvestingheavilyinresearch.Insomecases,theresearchis done through initiatives such as with the National Nanotechnology Initiative that bringstogetheracollaborativeteamof20departmentsandindependentagenciesin the USA. In most cases, however, nanotechnology research is accomplished at researchcenters,universities, and governmentlaboratoriesscattered throughoutthe world. Periodic reviews that compile the research advances in particular fields are neededtodeterminethestateofthetechnologyandtospurfurtherinterest. Althoughstillinitsinfancy,theimpactofnanotechnologyisalreadybeingfelt in diverse fields of science including medicine, physics, materials science, and agriculture.Productssuchasfuelcells,batteries,solarpanels,sensors,andmedical devices are beginning to enter the marketplace. In agriculture, nanoencapsulation technologyischangingthewayagriculturalchemicalswillbeappliedinthefuture. Conventionalmethodsofapplyingagriculturalchemicalsinthefieldoftenresultin overdosinginordertoensurethatsufficientactiveagentisdeliveredtowhereitis needed.Environmentalproblemsarecreatedwhentheexcesschemicalsendupin waterways. Nanoencapsulation makes it possible to reduce chemical dosage becauseitcanbeappliedmoreefficientlytoadesiredtargetarea. An example of nanoencapsulation has been demonstrated with starch micro- spheres that can encapsulate active agent within a nanoporous matrix. The microbeads are small enough to attach to the hairs on bees similar to pollen. Once they attach, they slowly release the active agent that repels the parasite, thus providing maximum protection using a minimal amount of active agent. Another exampleis theuse ofnanogels for thecontrolled releaseofinsect phero- mones that target specific pests. Nanoencapsulation is also being used to improve theefficiencyoffertilizerapplicationsandreducethevolumeofchemicalspollut- ingourgroundwaterandwaterways. In food applications, nanosensors and nanobiosensors are being explored as a meansofdetectingfoodpathogensandimprovingfoodsafety.Nanotechnologyis also being used in food packaging as a means of prolonging shelf life of produce and decreasing bacterial counts. These are only a few examples of the use of nanomaterialsinfoodandagriculturebut,newnanomaterialsandapplicationsare beingreportedonacontinualbasis. Foreword vii Thispublicationisnotmeanttobeacomprehensivetreatisesincethefieldisstill evolvingandnewapplicationsarebeingreportedonaregularbasis.However,itis intendedtoprovideaninvaluableresourceonsomeofthecurrentapproachesand applications of nanotechnology in food and agriculture. It is also intended to provide a platform for establishing collaborations, formulating strategies, and spawningnewideasandapproachesthatwillhelpresolvesomeofthemostvexing challengesfacingfoodandagricultureinagrowingworld. UnitedStatesDepartmentofAgriculture GregoryGlenn 800BuchananStreet Albany,CA94710,USA ThiSisaFMBlankPage Preface Inthetwenty-firstcentury,nanotechnology(NT)hasbeenplayingacrucialrolein food and agriculture. It is a new science with emerging technologies in different fieldsingeneralandagricultureinparticular.Thenanoparticleshavelargesurface area to the volume ratio, which provides better opportunity for interaction. The technology has a great potential to solve various issues, which have been a great problem so far. This technology may open up new avenues in agricultural production. The various emerging technologies include nanoagrochemicals (nanofertilizer, nanopesticides, herbicides), nanobiosensor, food processing and storage, food packaging and labeling, fruit preservation, food quality (nutritional supplement and nutritional drinks), plant growth promoters, crop improvement (nanoparticles-mediated gene transfer), role of nanocarriers in delivery of nitric oxide,nano-enhancedbiotreatmentforagriculturalwastewater,etc. Theseemergingnanotechnologiesneedtobeevaluatedforsafetytotheenviron- mentandlivingbeings.Themainissueistoxicityoftheagrochemicalsinsoilsand ultimately infood chains.Thenew and emerging technologies has a wide knowl- edge gap and understanding of the toxicity. Due to inadequate knowledge, it is muchdifficulttoassesstherisksposedbynanoparticles.Thereisagreaterneedto developadequateriskmanagementstrategies. This book has been divided into three parts: Part I incorporates emerging nanotechnologies, Part II deals with nanotechnologiesused in detection, delivery, andtreatment,PartIIIaddressesthetoxicityissuesandacceptance ofthistechno- logybypublic. The book on emerging nanotechnologies would be immensely useful for a diversegroupofreadersincludingphysicists,chemists,microbiologists,biotechno- logists, food technologists, agriculture engineers, nanotechnologists, lawyers and thosewhoareinterestedinthesenewertechnologies.Thestudentsshouldfindthis bookuseful. We thank the staff of Springer for helpful suggestions and patience during the editingwork. ix