Future technologies and systemic innovation are critical for the profound transformation the food system needs. These innovations range from food production, land use and emissions, all the way to improved diets and waste management. Here, we identify these technologies, assess their readiness and propose eight action points that could accelerate the transition towards a more sustainable food system. We argue that the speed of innovation could be significantly increased with the appropriate incentives, regulations and social license. These, in turn, require constructive stakeholder dialogue and clear transition pathways. Main To date, the future sustainability of food systems, the role of changing diets, reducing waste and increasing agricultural productivity have been mainly studied through the lens of existing technologies. Regarding the latter, for example, a common research question concerns what level of yield gain could be achieved through new crop varieties, livestock breeds, animal feeds, or changes in farming practices and the diffusion of technologies such as irrigation and improved management 7-13. Yet, as studies have shown, even with wide adoption of existing agricultural technologies,

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SummaryTaking the case of Dutch agriculture as an example, this paper examines the role of innovation brokers in stimulating innovation system interaction and innovation capacity building, and reflects upon their potential role in developing countries' agriculture. It concludes that innovation brokerage is likely to be relevant in emerging economies, that public or donor investment may be needed to overcome inherent tensions regarding the neutrality and funding of such players in the innovation system, and that stimulating the emergence of innovation brokers requires a policy that supports institutional learning and experimentation to ensure that the brokers become contextually embedded.

Epidemiological studies in developing countries suggest that intestinal parasite infection may reduce the risk of asthma. Because this evidence is all derived from adults and older children, we have investigated the relation between parasite infection, wheezing, and allergen skin sensitization in nested case-control studies drawn from a survey of 7,155 children aged 1 to 4 years living in urban and rural areas of Jimma, Ethiopia. Infection with parasites was common, predominantly with Trichuris (54%), Ascaris (38%), and hookworm (10%). Wheezing in the past year was significantly more prevalent in urban (4.4%) than rural children (2.0%), and was less prevalent in those infected with Ascaris (age, sex, and urban/rural adjusted odds ratio, 0.5; 95% confidence interval, 0.3 to 0.9), particularly in relation to high-intensity infection. Similar, although nonsignificant, associations were found for hookworm (adjusted odds ratio, 0.6; 95% confidence interval, 0.2 to 1.8), but there was no suggestion of any relation to Trichuris infection. Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and cockroach (Blattella germanica) skin sensitization was more prevalent in rural than urban children, and was unrelated to wheeze. We conclude that Ascaris and possibly hookworm infection protects against wheeze in young Ethiopian children, and that this effect is not mediated by inhibition of allergen sensitization.