After a successful guest lecture in 2024, I was invited by the coordinators of the course ‘Becoming Food: Cellular Agriculture beyond the Lab’ at Wageningen University to deliver a guest lecture on the future of food safety in September 2025. My talk was titled ‘Beyond lab tests and regulations: The need for a holistic understanding […]
Read more
Written for the Good Food Movement as part of my monthly column ‘The Plate and the Planet’. Published in September 2025. Header image credit: Alia Sinha for the Good Food Movement. Walk into any grocery store today, and you’re likely to find shelves stacked with shiny packets, instant mixes, and colourful snacks that promise taste, […]
Read more
Published in Tijdschrift voor Levensmiddelenrecht in July 2025. The full text can be found here. If you are interested in the article but do not have institutional access, please reach out to me via the contact page. Image credit: Maria Verkhoturtseva. Title Artisanal fermentation as a regulatory grey area in EU food law Abstract Artisanal […]
Read more
Written for the Good Food Movement as part of my monthly column ‘The Plate and the Planet’. Published in June 2025. Header image credit: Kaushani Mufti for the Good Food Movement. Across India, it is not uncommon to find people relying on nature and its signs to determine the course of their own actions, from […]
Read more
In October 2024, I participated in FoodRevolution 2024 – a conference that focused on a holistic approach towards the future of food. The three day conference explored the interconnections between sustainability, safety, and health via lively panel discussions, research presentations, and lectures by renowned experts. During the session on food waste, I gave an invited […]
Read more
Written for eufic.org. Published in August 2024. In Europe and around the world, the safety and regulatory status of glyphosate, a commonly employed herbicide, remain subjects of ongoing debate. Despite its effectiveness in weed control and utility in modern agriculture, concerns persist about its presence in food and potential health risks. While conflicting conclusions emerge […]
Read more
Written for eufic.org. Published in August 2024. As the population grows and agricultural land remains limited, it is important to ensure that farms are as productive as they can be. In modern agriculture, pesticides are critical for the productivity of farming systems and for safeguarding consumers from the ill effects of pest-damaged foods. However, if used in […]
Read more
Written for eufic.org. Published in July 2024. Picture this: you just finished a delicious meal, and in a fight against food waste, you are eager to store your leftovers in a convenient plastic container. Most plastics these days are labelled ’BPA-free’; but what exactly does this mean and why does it matter? This article explores […]
Read more
Written for eufic.org. Published in July 2024. Caffeine is a natural stimulant that belongs to a class of compounds called xanthines. The most well-known source of caffeine is the coffee bean, the seed of the Coffea plant. Other natural sources include the tea leaf, kola nut, cacao pod, and guarana berries. Caffeine can also be […]
Read more
Originally published on FoodUnfolded.com in December 2023. Header image by Cait Mack for FoodUnfolded. With its low melting point, high density, and excellent conductivity, mercury has several industrial and scientific applications. But the unsafe use of this metal can result in severe health and environmental implications, especially through bioaccumulation in seafood. Mercury enters the atmosphere […]
Read more
Madhura Rao 