A Kenyan farmer sends a text message to enquire about the latest maize prices from her maize fields in Thigio 35km (22 miles) from the capital Nairobi. Mobile phones have become the most essential work item for Kenya's small businesses. In June 1999, Kenya had only 15,000 mobile phone subscribers but by the end of 2004, the country had 3.4 million subscribers, according to Kenya's telecom regulator, Communication Commission of Kenya (CCK). REUTERS/Antony Njuguna

 

Can Mobile Phone Data Answer Global Development’s Call?
Mobile network operators are gathering a tremendous amount of data every hour of every day. How they might use that data to support society is something they are still trying to figure out. Many, both at mobile network operators and in development, have recognized that the data from mobile phones can help in tracking critical challenges—from the spread of disease, to migration patterns, to poverty rates—but they have now reached a critical junction where they need to translate that knowledge into action.

More Evidence that Soda Taxes Cut Soda Drinking
A new study out of Berkeley, California, adds to the evidence that taxing sugary drinks causes people to eat less of them. Researchers followed residents of several low-income communities in Berkeley, San Francisco, and Oakland around the time that Berkeley voters passed the country’s first big soda tax in 2014. The study found that, in the four months after the tax took effect last year, self-reported consumption of sugary drinks fell by 21% in the Berkeley neighborhoods, but rose by 4% in the other two cities.

Make Healthy Food Taste Better by Making it Smell Like Junk Food, Scientists Say
French researchers have built a device that makes healthy food taste better by adding junk food smells to it. Testing indicates this could help in the production of foods that are intended to be "healthy alternatives" but suffer in the "objective tastiness" department.

Climate Change: Trade Liberalization Could Buffer Economic Losses in Agriculture
Global warming could create substantial economic damage in agriculture, a new study finds. Around the globe, climate change threatens agricultural productivity, forcing up food prices. As the additional expenditure for consumers outweighs producers' gains, increasing net economic losses will occur in the agriculture and food sector towards the end of the century. However, economic losses could be limited to 0.3% of global GDP—depending on agricultural trade policies.