Is sauerkraut more than just a tangy topping? A new University of California, Davis, study published in Applied and Environmental Microbiology suggests that the fermented cabbage could help protect your gut, which is an essential part of overall health, supporting digestion and protecting against illness.

The UC Davis Olive Center is rolling out a new line of table olives – savory and ideal for snacking, culinary creations and cocktails. The center, known for its expertise in olive oil research and production, is now offering canned and packaged table olives, featuring both California-grown and internationally sourced varieties.

$5 cans of Classic Black or Fresh-cured Green
$13 jars of Kalamata or Martini
Available for purchase at:
 

Eight faculty from UC Davis – including three from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences – are among 471 scientists, engineers and innovators newly elected as fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the society announced today, March 27. AAAS fellows are recognized for their exceptional achievements in science, including research, teaching, administration and science communication.

Here are the new fellows from UC Davis, with their fellowship citations:

Recent testing of material distributed from the Foundation Plant Services Classic Foundation Vineyard at the University of California, Davis, detected zero cases of grapevine red blotch and grapevine leafroll associated virus-3 infections, after one positive result during annual testing last fall.

California produces 99% of the nation’s pistachios, generating nearly $3 billion in economic value in the state. But pistachios have been slightly understudied in part because of the lack of a high-quality map of their DNA. University of California, Davis, researchers have now generated the most comprehensive genome sequence of the pistachio, allowing plant breeders to create better — perhaps more nutritious — varieties. They’ve also detailed how pistachio nuts develop, which will help farmers manage their crop more sustainably.

Diet. Just the word alone can trigger an uneasy feeling and heated discussions with seemingly endless flavors of recommendations. Over the years, Americans have shifted in our general approach to food based on evolving guidance. In the span of a few decades we have gone from the “eat less fat, cholesterol and salt” model to a heightened focus on reducing sugar consumption, and most recently towards eating more natural foods and avoiding those that are heavily processed.

Now we are hearing a lot about ultra-processed foods.

University of California, Davis agricultural economists explore the reasons for reduced egg supplies and high egg prices in a recent article and assess what producers and consumers can expect now that the pathogen has spread through California dairies. The authors find that California egg production in December 2024 was 30% lower than in January 2022, while national production, which is the source of most of California’s retail supply, had declined by much less.

Scientists at UC Davis have developed a new genetic tool that makes it easier to breed wheat and triticale to grow more efficiently and to be better adapted to different environments. This new tool is pushing a second Green Revolution, as it bypasses some of the complications left from the first one.

The new method recognizes that, in grasses such as wheat, small and short are different.

Warming weather, water scarcity and a loss of winter fog threaten pistachio production in California’s southern San Joaquin Valley, potentially disrupting one of the state’s most valuable crops.  

The University of California, Davis, is enhancing and expanding its Pistachio Breeding Program after a generous gift from philanthropist and pistachio farmer Rod Stiefvater, who is donating more than $335,000 over three years to develop new rootstocks that thrive under changing climate conditions. 

From ducks and cranes to giant garter snakes and salmon, flooded rice fields in California’s Central Valley offer important — often vital — habitat to many wildlife species. Yet uncertainties around crop markets, water and climate can prompt some growers to fallow rice fields or change their management practices.

Will today’s rice acreage under current practices be enough to meet key species’ needs? If not, how much rice is needed? Where should it be planted? And what management practices offer the greatest benefit for species of concern?