New dissertation within One Health: We congratulate Tove Ortman!

What is your research about (the “big idea”) and how does it relate to One Health?

"My PhD thesis was about how old types of cereals – so-called landraces – can be of interest for a future, more sustainable and robust food production. To overcome the challenges to farming posed by climate change and loss of biodiversity, there is a need to use a more diverse range of crops that can be more robust to environmental stresses, and these landraces seem to have traits that can help us improve food security. My work contributes to the broader One Health framework by addressing farm diversification in a changing climate, ultimately enhancing food security and promoting resilience".

What problem does your research help to solve in the short and long term?

"We need to ensure both enough food to feed the world’s population, at the same time as farming needs to be done in a way that doesn’t harm our environment. This means that farming has to provide more services than yield, e.g. carbon storage, and to give habitats for different species, something that puts large pressure on our agricultural production. At the same time, here in the Nordic countries we have larger areas of agricultural soils that are underutilized because of harsh climatic conditions and/or low soil fertility, which can potentially be included in more active, multifunctional farming."  

How can your research contribute to a more sustainable world / what impact at the societal level can the results contribute to?

"Landraces have long been perceived as a niche crop, but actually, landraces of cereals have traits that can be valuable in future plant breeding for climate-smart agriculture, and can also be of direct use for organic farmers, or farmers located on less optimal agricultural lands, especially if developed further, for example by so-called evolutionary plant breeding. At the same time, the historical landraces can be of interest to local markets specialised in products such as sourdough baking, and b part of offering a more diverse range of products for consumers, and for example, encourage higher consumption of whole grain products."

What are your plans now after your PhD?

"I have just started working at a Norwegian research institute, NIBIO, as a researcher in soil health and climate-smart agriculture, and will continue to work with different measures that can increase the sustainability of farming systems. At the moment I am working on projects within the EJP-SOIL program."

We wish Tove the best of luck in her future career!

• Link to thesis: New potential in old varieties : Using landrace cereal to meet food production challenges.