UK

3.7M JOBS PAID BELOW THE REAL LIVING WAGE IN FIRST RISE SINCE 2020

20 Feb 2024

200,000 MORE LOW-PAID JOBS THAN IN 2022

• 1 in 8 (12.9%) of UK jobs are now paid below the real Living Wage. 

• Hospitality has the highest rate of low pay, with nearly half (48.1%) of all jobs in the sector paid below the real Living Wage.  

• North East England has the highest rate of low pay of any region, with 1 in 6 (15.9%) of jobs paid below the real Living Wage. 

• The real Living Wage, as set by the Living Wage Foundation, is the only wage rate based on the cost of living. It is currently £12 in the UK and a higher rate of £13.15 in London.   

• Over 14,000 UK businesses are accredited with the Living Wage Foundation, including Aviva, Everton FC, Burberry, IKEA, LUSH and Nationwide. 

New analysis of the latest Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), by the Living Wage Foundation, reveals that the number of low paid jobs has risen for the first time since 2020, with 3.7 million UK jobs, or 1 in 8, paid below the real Living Wage in April 2023, 200,000 more than a year earlier. 

The hospitality sector has the highest rate of low paid jobs, with nearly half (48.1%) of all jobs in the sector paid below the real Living Wage. This is roughly twice as high as the next two sectors with the highest rate of low pay; ‘arts, entertainment and recreation’ (24.7%) and ‘retail and wholesale’ (23.2%). Hospitality has been the sector with the highest level of low paid jobs for 12 years running.  

Recent Living Wage Foundation research shows hospitality businesses could benefit from paying staff the real Living Wage, with 66% of Londoners polled saying they would be more likely to choose such venues and 60% willing to pay more for them. 

As Table 1 shows, the region with the highest rate of low paid jobs is the North East (15.9%), closely followed by East Midlands (15.7%) and Northern Ireland (15.6%). 

The ten local authorities with the highest levels of low pay are: Haringey (32.7%), Brent (29.5%), Waltham Forest (28.8%), Bexley (28.5%), Redbridge (28.2%), Hyndburn (26.3%), Harrow (26.1%), Mansfield (25.3%), East Lindsey (25.0%), and Thanet (24.7%). 

The level of low paid jobs in the UK was lower than expected in 2023 due to higher-than-expected levels of nominal wage growth and sharp increases to the National Living Wage. 

Recent research published by the Living Wage Foundation found that despite easing inflation, the cost-of-living crisis is far from over for low paid workers. 39% of those earning less than the real Living Wage report regularly skipping meals for financial reasons during the year to August 2023. 32% have been unable to heat their homes and 27% have fallen behind on their rent or mortgage payments. 52% said that earning less than the real Living Wage during the cost-of-living crisis has negatively impacted their mental health. 

The real Living Wage is the only wage rate calculated based on what people need to live on. It currently stands at £12.00 (UK) and £13.15 (London). For a full-time worker, that represents £3,081 more than someone earning the government’s National Living Wage. A worker on the London Living Wage would be £5,323.50 better off than someone on the National Living Wage.   

In the past two years record numbers of employers have signed up to pay the real Living Wage, including to their third-party contractors like cleaners and security guards, with 1 in 9 employees now working for an accredited Living Wage Employer. Over 14,000 UK businesses are accredited with the Living Wage Foundation, including Aviva, Everton FC and LUSH, as well as thousands of small-to-medium sized businesses. Over 460,000 UK workers receive an annual pay rise to the real Living Wage rates because of their commitment to always paying the real Living Wage. 

Over 130 accredited Living Hours employers, including abrdn, Aviva, and West Brom Building Society, go beyond payment of the real Living Wage to also provide a guaranteed minimum of 16 hours work a week, a month’s notice of shift patterns and a contract that reflects hours worked. 

Nearly 30 employers, including Aviva, Wealthify, Phoenix and Herbert Smith Freehills are leading the way in tackling low pension saving amongst their workers through Living Pension accreditation. 

Katherine Chapman, Living Wage Foundation Director, said: 

“The campaign for a real Living Wage has had a huge impact tackling in work poverty, with over 460,000 workers now receiving an annual pay rise thanks to the commitment of 14,000 accredited Living Wage employers. However, today’s findings show there is more to do with 3.7 million workers not earning a wage in line with the cost of living.  

With the cost-of-living crisis far from over, earning a real Living Wage has never been more important. Employers who want to do the right thing and protect their staff from rising prices can do so, by joining the 14,0000 Living Wage employers who are committed to always paying a wage in line with the cost of living.”  

Nigel Derrett, owner of Newington Fish Bar, the only Living Wage accredited hospitality venue in Thanet, said:  

"When you have a staff team that works well together, interacts with the customers and makes them feel welcome, that when it gets busy go that extra mile to keep all the customers happy and served efficiently, you need to show that they are appreciated and paying them a Living wage or higher is just one of the best ways of doing this. When your workers feel valued it makes them more eager to do their best. Customers will soon pick up on contented workers which ultimately helps the business flourish. I feel if you don't reward staff properly, they will look elsewhere for a better rate and I would lose a valuable employee.” 

Summer Scholes, employee at Newington Fish Bar, said:  

“Last summer I spent 7 days a week on low pay trying to pay my bills, leaving me unable to buy many essentials throughout the month. However, this year whilst being paid by a real Living Wage employer I have been able to pay my bills, get the essentials I need and save some for my future studies. Above all I feel I'm a valued member of the team.” 

Ed Mason, our Director and Co-Founder of The Five Points Brewing Company: 

“The Five Points Brewing Company was the first UK brewery to be an accredited Living Wage Employer, and we remain committed to paying the London Living Wage as a base rate to our staff in our brewery as well as at our hospitality venues: The Five Points Taproom & Courtyard and The Pembury Tavern. Good wages bring good people into the business, and being paid a fair wage increases staff morale, investment and retention.” 

Jon Sibley, Landlord of the Town Mouse Ale House in Newcastle, said:

"Ensuring my staff receive a living wage is a top priority because I want to pay a salary that they can actually live on. I genuinely appreciate the dedication my team shows. Hospitality is about long shifts, physically and mentally intensive graft and people working within our industry deserve to be recognised for the work they do, and not be forced out of a career they love due to poor pay and conditions. We are a small community pub where our employees' relationship with our customers is incredibly important, customers recognise this and keep coming back. At a time where pubs and hospitality is struggling as an industry, retaining experienced staff that customers love to see is all important."

Peter Gibbs, Manager of the Volunteer Tavern in Bristol, said: 

"Being a Real Living Wage employer has increased sales because customers have told me they go out of their way to support an ethical business. Staff are happier working here which means we have a high retention rate meaning we did not suffer when all other businesses were struggling to get staff. But mainly, it's just the right thing to do for a functioning society". 

Seb, 34, employee at Meetini, a sustainable mobile cocktail bar company based in in Haringey, said: 

“Getting the real Living Wage at Meetini has made a big difference for me. It's more than a paycheck; it's feeling valued and less stressed. Now, I can focus on work without worrying about bills. It's a small change that means a lot.” 

 

Table 1. Employee jobs paid below the real Living Wage by region: April 2023 

 

Notes on data:   

Data on the proportion and number of jobs paid below the Living Wage comes from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE). Carried out in April each year, ASHE is the most comprehensive source of information on the structure and distribution of earnings and hours worked among employees in the UK. ASHE is based on a 1 per cent sample of employee jobs taken from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) Pay As You Earn (PAYE) records. 

 

Companies sell medical tests with feminist rhetoric  

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF GOTHENBURG

 

IMAGE: 

MINNA JOHANSSON, SAHLGRENSKA ACADEMY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF GOTHENBURG.

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CREDIT: PHOTO BY FREDRIK JOHANSSON

Being able to give birth, and predict breast cancer. These are areas where tests and treatments, often lacking scientific support, are marketed using feminist rhetoric. University of Gothenburg is contributing to a critical analysis of this marketing.

Minna Johansson, a specialist physician in general medicine and researcher at the University of Gothenburg, is one of the authors behind the scientific analysis published in The BMJ journal. The publication also involves researchers from the University of Sydney and the University of Queensland in Australia.  

“It is provocative that women's health is exploited by commercial interests in this manner. Messages about women's right to control their own bodies are used to sell unscientific tests and treatments with risks of harm, without informing women about the uncertainty surrounding their effectiveness.,” says Minna Johansson. 

False sense of control 

In their analysis, the researchers highlight two recent examples indicating how feminist descriptions are used to promote treatments for women with questionable evidence.  

The first example relates to female fertility, which promotes a blood test for a hormone called anti-Müllerian hormone that can be linked to the number of eggs in a woman’s ovaries. However, there is no scientific evidence that this is capable of predicting a woman’s chances of getting pregnant. Even so, the test is sold to women in general by fertility clinics and online companies with advertising claims such as “Knowledge is power and lets you take control of your fertility". 

The second example concerns breast density. Women who undergo mammography examinations are usually not provided with information about their breast density. However, voices are being raised asserting that it is a woman's right to know, as dense breasts are one of several risk factors for breast cancer. 

Brooke Nickel, a researcher at the University of Sydney in Australia, is the last author for the analysis. 

“To be informed about having dense breasts can increase women's anxiety and cause confusion. Often, this leads to seeking further screenings and additional tests. However, measuring breast density is unreliable. The evidence supporting the benefit of conducting multiple tests for women with dense breasts is far from robust,” says Brooke Nickel. 

Unnecessary for many 

Some women may benefit from the examination methods, tests and treatments available. But as advocates push and companies seek commercial gain, these medical interventions are reaching a much larger group of women, many of whom are unlikely to benefit from the intervention. 

The first author is researcher Tessa Copp from the University of Sydney in Australia: 

“This marketing behavior risks harming women. More people with conditions that are not really medical in nature may end up seeking medical treatment anyway as a result. This increased medicalization contributes to both overdiagnosis and overtreatment,” says Tessa Copp. 

“Women's health has historically been underprioritized. Both within healthcare and medical research, women's health needs more resources. However, companies profiting from selling unnecessary tests and treatments are not helping, “ says Minna Johansson.

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JOURNAL

The BMJ

DOI

10.1136/bmj-2023-076710 

ARTICLE TITLE

Marketing empowerment: how corporations co-opt feminist narratives to promote non-evidence based health interventions

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

14-Feb-2024

 

Protein-rich breakfast boosts satiety and concentration

Study explores the link between diet and cognitive function, and the results reveal that a protein-rich breakfast can increase satiety and improve concentration

AARHUS UNIVERSITY

A new Danish study has explored the link between diet and cognitive function, and the results reveal that a protein-rich breakfast can increase satiety and improve concentration. This is important knowledge in a society with increasing obesity rates and lifestyle-related diseases, says researcher.

"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day." This is a well-worn platitude that has never had much basis in scientific evidence.

But a new Danish study has explored how different types of breakfast affect satiety and concentration and it has added new fuel to the old cliché.

The study followed 30 obese women aged 18 to 30 for three days, during which the women consumed a protein-rich breakfast, a carbohydrate-rich breakfast or no breakfast at all. The women's sense of satiety, hormone levels and energy intake were measured at lunchtime. Their total daily energy intake was measured as well.

The participants also had to complete a cognitive concentration test during the study.

"We found that a protein-rich breakfast with skyr (a sour-milk product) and oats increased satiety and concentration in the participants, but it did not reduce the overall energy intake compared to skipping breakfast or eating a carbohydrate-rich breakfast," says Mette Hansen, associate professor and PhD at the Department of Public Health, and one of the authors of the study.

Possible strategy to combat obesity?

The number of overweight people is increasing both in Denmark and across the globe. Obesity is often accompanied by lifestyle-related diseases such as type 2 diabetes.

Previous studies have shown that people who eat breakfast have a lower BMI than people who do not eat breakfast, and protein-rich foods have generally been shown to have an increased satiety effect compared to carbohydrate-rich and high-fat foods with the same calorie content.

The idea was therefore to test whether a protein-rich breakfast could be a good strategy to achieving greater satiety during the day and thus reducing daily calorie intake.

However, the solution is not that simple, says Mette Hansen:

"The results confirm that protein-rich meals increase a sense of satiety, which is positive with regard to preventing weight gain. However, the results also suggest that for this nutritional strategy to be effective, it’s not enough to just eat a protein-rich breakfast."

Intriguing difference

The potential of replacing a carbohydrate-rich diet with a protein-rich diet can clearly be seen in the satiating effects measured in the study.

Several of the subjects had difficulty consuming the entire protein-rich breakfast consisting of skyr and oats.

"It’s intriguing that there can be such a big difference in the satiety effect of two different meals with the same calorie content. Had the women in the project been allowed to choose the size of the meal themselves, it’s likely that they’d have consumed more food and thereby more calories on the day

they were served bread and jam than on the day they were given skyr and oats," explains Mette Hansen.

Further research needed

According to the researcher, although the study has provided important insights, it also has its limitations because only overweight young women participated in the study. The study is also based on relatively short-term observations, leaving open the question of how long-term dietary changes can affect health and weight.

Mette Hansen therefore points out that the study underlines the need for further research to understand how different types of food affect health over time.

"We already have new data incoming from a trial where participants received either a high-protein breakfast or a low-protein breakfast. The objective was to study how the different types of breakfast affect body composition and other parameters such as microbiota and cholesterol levels," says Mette Hansen.

According to Mette Hansen, the results of these studies may result in the development of more targeted nutritional recommendations in the future.

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The research results - more information

Type of study: Randomised controlled cross-over study.

Partners: Department of Public Health, Aarhus University, Department of Food Science, Aarhus University, and Gødstrup Regional Hospital.

External funding: The Danish Dairy Research Foundation, Oda og Hans Svenningsens Fond.

Potential conflicts of interest: None

Link to the scientific article: https://doi.org/10.3168/jds.2023-24152

 

 

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JOURNAL

Journal of Dairy Science

DOI

10.3168/jds.2023-24152 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Randomized controlled/clinical trial

ARTICLE TITLE

A dairy-based protein-rich breakfast enhances satiety and cognitive concentration before lunch in young females with overweight to obesity: A randomized controlled cross-over study

 

Burnout: identifying people at risk

Preventing burnout is important for employers and employees. Early intervention is key – as long as you can detect the problem

Peer-Reviewed Publication

NORWEGIAN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

 

IMAGE: 

LEON DE BEER. 

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CREDIT: PHOTO: NTNU

It is not uncommon for people to “hit the wall” at work and experience burnout for short or long periods of time.

“We have found that approximately 13 per cent of Norwegian employees are at high risk of burnout,” says Leon De Beer, Associate Professor of Work and Organizational Psychology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) Department of Psychology.

De Beer has contributed to a new study on burnout published in the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology with colleagues from the Healthy Workplaces research group.

They are working on a new tool that can identify people at risk of burnout. (A simplified version can be found at the bottom of this article.)

Signs that you might be at risk of burnout

If you are facing demands and stress at work that seem to be intractable, and you have frequently experienced the following symptoms in recent weeks, it might be a sign that you are on the verge of burning out:

1. You feel mentally exhausted at work.
2. You struggle to feel enthusiastic about your job.
3. You have trouble concentrating when working.
4. You sometimes overreact at work without meaning to.

Early intervention is key

It is important to identify the early signs of burnout in order to mitigate the harmful effects. The warning signs are often present before things have gone too far, as long as we manage to identify them.

“Not addressing the risk of employee burnout in time can have long-term consequences,” says De Beer.

The physical and psychological effects of burnout include cardiovascular disease, pain related to musculoskeletal injuries, sleeping problems, and depression. Organisations can also lose talented employees and experience an increase in sickness absence and lost productivity.

A new tool may become standard

De Beer’s research group has trialled a new measurement tool to identify the early warning signs of burnout. In the past, it has not always been that easy.

“Previously, we have not had a detailed enough measurement tool for use in both the field of practice and research that identifies workers who are at risk of burnout,” says De Beer.

There is currently no international standard for assessing burnout.

The new tool is called the Burnout Assessment Tool, or BAT among researchers who have a penchant for amusing abbreviations. The BAT consortium, of which the researchers are a part, is now testing the instrument in more than 30 countries.

 

https://burnoutassessmenttool.be/start_eng/

“Our studies show that BAT is a good tool for identifying the risk of burnout,” says De Beer.

Burnout is the body’s response to stress

BAT measures four main groups of risk factors: exhaustion, mental distancing, cognitive impairment and emotional impairment.

Burnout is not really an illness, but a feeling of being mentally or physically exhausted – the body’s response to a lasting, demanding situation. (See the fact box.)

Burnout is normally defined as a work-related syndrome, but there is evidence that work–life balance also plays a role. Stress and burnout don’t necessarily stop when you go home at the end of the day, as these effects often extend into other areas of life and vice versa.

Some people may experience years of burnout

For some people, burnout can be stopped in its tracks and solutions found to improve their situation. For others, however, burnout can last for years if the problem isn’t addressed.

“We can deal with burnout through individual treatment, but it is of little use if people return to a workplace where the demands are too high and there are few resources. It is then highly likely that the employee will become ill again. Therefore, it is important to create good working conditions and structures that safeguard the health of employees,” says Professor Marit Christensen at NTNU’s Department of Psychology.

 

Studied 500 workers

The researchers studied a representative sample of 500 Norwegian workers. Norway is roughly on par with the EU average when it comes to mental health, but somewhat better when it comes to work-related matters.

A lower percentage of the Norwegian population struggles with exhaustion in connection with work. Somewhat fewer people than the EU average report health hazards at work, and we experience a better work–life balance.

“Using a recognised method, we found that around 13 per cent of the 500 surveyed workers were at high risk of burnout,” says Professor Christensen.

The tool can help identify who requires the most urgent follow up so that the risk of burnout can be reduced.

Uncertain whether Norwegian numbers are high

We do not yet know whether the prevalence of burnout in Norway is high in an international context. The Norwegian study is among several BAT studies that are currently taking place, so these answers will be available at a later date.

The tool is intended to be culturally independent, and it certainly works well in Norway. The researchers also found that the tool works regardless of gender.

“For entertainment and educational purposes, interested parties can use our online tool to test if they are at risk of burnout,” says Professor Christensen.

The tool can be found here: https://theburnout.app/?mod=no

“Please note that the tool only gives an indication of risk and does not provide any type of formal diagnosis or medical advice. If you are concerned about your levels of work-related stress, we encourage you to visit a health care provider to discuss the matter,” says Professor Christensen.

References: De Beer, L.T., Christensen, M., Sørengaard, T.A., Innstrand, S.T. and Schaufeli, W.B. (2023), The psychometric properties of the Burnout Assessment Tool in Norway: A thorough investigation into construct-relevant multidimensionality. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1111/sjop.12996

 

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JOURNAL

Scandinavian Journal of Psychology

DOI

10.1111/sjop.12996 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

The psychometric properties of the Burnout Assessment Tool in Norway: A thorough investigation into construct-relevant multidimensionality

 

A new design for quantum computers

Peer-Reviewed Publication

DELFT UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

 

IMAGE: 

ILLUSTRATION OF A QUANTUM SIMULATOR WITH ATOMS TRAPPED INTO A SQUARE LATTICE WITH LASERS. THE SMALL SPHERES AT THE CORNERS ARE ATOMS IN THEIR LOWEST ENERGY STATE. THE ONES INSIDE A BLUE SPHERE ARE EXITED (HIGHER IN ENERGY) BY THE FIRST LASER, THE ONES INSIDE YELLOW SPHERES ARE EXCITED BY THE SECOND LASER (EVEN MORE HIGHER IN ENERGY).

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CREDIT: TU DELFT

Creating a quantum computer powerful enough to tackle problems we cannot solve with current computers remains a big challenge for quantum physicists. A well-functioning quantum simulator – a specific type of quantum computer – could lead to new discoveries about how the world works at the smallest scales. Quantum scientist Natalia Chepiga from Delft University of Technology has developed a guide on how to upgrade these machines so that they can simulate even more complex quantum systems. The study is now published in Physical Review Letters.

“Creating useful quantum computers and quantum simulators is one of the most important and debated topics in quantum science today, with the potential to revolutionise society”, says researcher Natalia Chepiga. Quantum simulators are a type of quantum computer, Chepiga explains: “Quantum simulators are meant to address open problems of quantum physics to further push our understanding of nature. Quantum computers will have wide applications in various areas of social life, for example in finances, encryption and data storage.”

Steering wheel

“A key ingredient of a useful quantum simulator is a possibility to control or manipulate it”, says Chepiga. “Imagine a car without a steering wheel. It can only go forward but cannot turn. Is it useful? Only if you need to go in one particular direction, otherwise the answer will be ‘no!’. If we want to create a quantum computer that will be able to discover new physics phenomena in the near-future, we need to build a ‘steering wheel’ to tune into what seems interesting. In my paper I propose a protocol that creates a fully controllable quantum simulator.”

Recipe

The protocol is a recipe – a set of ingredients that a quantum simulator should have to be tunable. In the conventional setup of a quantum simulator, rubidium (Rb) or cesium (Cs) atoms are targeted by a single laser. As a result, these particles will take up electrons, and thereby become more energetic; they become excited. “I show that if we were to use two lasers with different frequencies or colours, thereby exciting these atoms to different states, we could tune the quantum simulators to many different settings”, Chepiga explains.

The protocol offers an additional dimension of what can be simulated. “Imagine that you have only seen a cube as a sketch on a flat piece of paper, but now you get a real 3D cube that you can touch, rotate and explore in different ways”, Chepiga continues. “Theoretically we can add even more dimensions by bringing in more lasers.”

 

Simulating many particles

“The collective behaviour of a quantum system with many particles is extremely challenging to simulate”, Chepiga explains. “Beyond a few dozens of particles, modelling with our usual computer or a supercomputer has to rely on approximations.” When taking the interaction of more particles, temperature and motion into account, there are simply too many calculations to perform for the computer.

Quantum simulators are composed of quantum particles, which means that the components are entangled. “Entanglement is some sort of mutual information that quantum particles share between themselves. It is an intrinsic property of the simulator and therefore allows to overcome this computational bottleneck.”

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JOURNAL

Physical Review Letters

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Computational simulation/modeling

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Tunable quantum criticality in multicomponent Rydberg arrays

 

Potassium depletion in soil threatens global crop yields

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON

Potassium deficiency in agricultural soils is a largely unrecognised but potentially significant threat to global food security if left unaddressed, finds new research involving researchers at UCL, University of Edinburgh and the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology.

The study, published in Nature Food, found that more potassium is being removed from agricultural soils than is being added, throughout many regions of the world. It also gives a series of recommendations for how to mitigate the issue.

Potassium is a vital nutrient for plant growth that helps with photosynthesis and respiration, the lack of which can inhibit plant growth and reduce crop yields. Farmers often spread potassium-rich fertilisers over their fields to replenish the depleted nutrient, but supply issues can inhibit its use, and there are lingering questions about its environmental impact.

The researchers report that globally, about 20% of agricultural soils face severe potassium deficiency, with particular regions likely to experience more critical shortages, including 44% of agricultural soils in South-East Asia, 39% in Latin America, 30% in Sub-Saharan Africa and 20% in East Asia, largely due to more intensive agricultural practices.

Co-author Professor Mark Maslin (UCL Geography) said: “Potassium is critical to sustaining the crop yields that keep the world fed, and its depletion poses a significant threat to the food security of millions of people around the world. This is an overlooked issue that needs to be addressed with a range of actions as the world population continues to grow.”

Farmers often rely on potash as a fertiliser to replenish their field’s potassium, but the price of the mineral can be quite volatile. Potash production is highly concentrated, with just twelve countries dominating the nearly £12 billion international market for potassium fertilisers, with Canada, Russia, Belarus and China producing 80% of the world’s total raw potash.

The researchers highlight how in April 2022, the price of potash increased 500% above the previous year following a “perfect storm” of factors, including rising fertiliser demand, escalating fuel prices, recovery from the pandemic, a range of government actions around the world, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Russia and Belarus together export about 42% of the word’s potash supply, but following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the UK, US, Canada and the EU imposed import sanctions on the two countries, disrupting global supplies and exacerbating the price spike.

Since the initial price spike, the cost of potash has fallen by about 50%, but remains elevated, raising concerns that farmers will not be able to access sufficient fertiliser to maintain food supplies under the current system.

Co-author Dr Peter Alexander of the University of Edinburgh said: “The volatility of potash prices has major implications across the global food system. Access to potassium is vital for farmers to maintain their crop yields, but the recent high cost of potash makes it more difficult for the most vulnerable to obtain.”

This market concentration and vulnerability is one of the reasons the researchers have called for better potassium management and a robust intergovernmental coordination mechanism. Currently there are no national or international policies or regulations governing the sustainable management of soil potassium akin to the systems that are being established for other vital crop nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus.

In 2021, global potash consumption reached 45 million tonnes, with global production projected to rise to about 69 million tonnes in 2025 with new projects starting up in Belarus, Canada, Russia, Australia, Eritrea and the UK. However, potash mining has raised human rights concerns and has significant impacts on the environment. Potash mining generates millions of tonnes of refuse mostly composed of sodium chloride salts, which can leach into soils and salinise soil and water tables, harming plants and animals.

The impacts of potassium fertiliser runoff into local ecosystems are poorly understood, and the researchers recommend more study about its effects.

Lead author Will Brownlie of the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, said: “The environmental impact of potash mining and use in agriculture is something that needs greater scrutiny. There’s much that we still don’t understand about the effects that artificial potassium enrichment has on nearby ecosystems. By wisely handling nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium together, we can reap multiple benefits, prevent pollution, boost crop yields, and minimise nutrient loss. It's about coordinating our approach for better farming outcomes.”

The researchers put forward six recommendations for policies and practices to prevent potential crop yield declines, safeguard farmers from price volatility and address environmental concerns. The recommendations include:

1. Setting up a global assessment of current potassium stocks and flows to identify the most at-risk countries and regions
2. Establishing national capabilities for monitoring, predicting and responding to potassium price fluctuations
3. Helping farmers maintain sufficient soil potassium levels with further research about the yield implications of limited potassium in various crops and soils
4. Evaluating the environmental effects of potash mining and developing sustainable application practices
5. Developing a global circular potassium economy that minimises the use and maximises the reuse and recycling of the nutrient
6. Increasing intergovernmental cooperation through the UN and other agencies to develop global policy coordination akin to what’s been developed for nitrogen

 

Notes to Editors

For more information or to speak to the researchers involved, please contact Michael Lucibella, UCL Media Relations. T: +44 (0)75 3941 0389, E: m.lucibella@ucl.ac.uk

Will J. Brownlie, Peter Alexander, Mark Maslin, Miguel Cañedo-Argüelles, Mark A. Sutton, Bryan M. Spears, ‘Global Food Security Threatened by Potassium Neglect’ will be published in Nature Food on Monday 19 February 2024, 10:00 UK time/05:00 US Eastern Time and is under a strict embargo until this time.

The DOI for this paper will be: 10.1038/s43016-024-00929-8.

After publication, the paper will be available at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s43016-024-00929-8

Additional material

• Professor Mark Maslin's academic profile
• Dr Peter Alexander’s academic profile
• Dr Will Brownlie’s academic profile
• UCL Geography
• UCL Social & Historical Sciences
• University of Edinburgh
• UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology

 

About UCL – London’s Global University

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JOURNAL

Nature Food

DOI

10.1038/s43016-024-00929-8 

ARTICLE TITLE

Global Food Security Threatened by Potassium Neglect

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

19-Feb-2024

 

Why two prehistoric sharks found in Ohio got new names

Research leads to rediscovery of forgotten fossils

Peer-Reviewed Publication

OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY

 

IMAGE: 

TOOTH OF THE XENACANTHIFORM SHARK ORTHACANTHUS LINTONENSIS BABCOCK, 2024, FROM THE UPPER FREEPORT COAL (CARBONIFEROUS) OF LINTON, OHIO. THE TOOTH IS ABOUT 13 MM LONG.

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CREDIT: MODIFIED FROM BABCOCK (2024), AFTER NEWBERRY (1875).

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Until recently, Orthacanthus gracilis could have been considered the “John Smith” of prehistoric shark names, given how common it was.

Three different species of sharks from the late Paleozoic Era – about 310 million years ago – were mistakenly given that same name, causing lots of grief to paleontologists who studied and wrote about the sharks through the years and had trouble keeping them apart.

But now Loren Babcock, a professor of earth sciences at The Ohio State University, has finished the arduous task of renaming two of the three sharks – and in the process rediscovered a wealth of fossil fishes that had been stored at an Ohio State museum for years but had been largely forgotten.

In order to change the names, Babcock had to go through a process governed by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN). He had to document the need to change the names, propose new names and submit them to an ICZN-recognized journal for peer review and then have the ICZN officially accept the names.

“It was one of the most complex naming problems we have had in paleontology, which is probably one reason no one attempted to fix it until now,” Babcock said.

“A lot of scientists in the field have written, thanking me for doing this. We are all happy it is finally done,” he said.

One measure of the impact the renaming has had on the field: Babcock’s paper announcing the new names was just published in the journal ZooKeys on Jan. 8, but it has already been referenced on seven different Wikipedia pages.

The original Orthacanthus gracilis fossil was found in Germany and named in 1848. That species gets to keep the name.

The remaining two fossils were found in Ohio and named by the famous American paleontologist John Strong Newberry in 1857 and 1875.

Babcock renamed the Ohio sharks Orthacanthus lintonensis and Orthacanthus adamas, both based on the name of the place where they were originally found.

Why did Newberry give the two Ohio sharks the same name?

“He probably just forgot. It was nearly 20 years between the time the two species were named,” Babcock said.

And as far as giving it the same name as a German species: “In those days, it was really difficult to search for names that were already in existence – they did not have the internet.”

The sharks themselves were fascinating creatures, Babcock said.  They were large and creepy, nearly 10 feet long, and looked more like eels than present-day sharks, with long dorsal fins extending the length of their backs and a peculiar spine extending backward from their heads.

They lived in the fresh or brackish water of what are known as “coal swamps” of the late Carboniferous Period (323-299 million years ago) during the late Paleozoic Era. They belong to an extinct group of chondrichthyans (which includes sharks, skates and rays) called the xenacanthiforms.

Newberry was for a time the chief geologist at the Geological Survey of Ohio. He played an important role in the early growth of what is now the Orton Geological Museum at Ohio State.

Babcock, who is the current director of the Orton Museum, decided to begin the renaming process after reviewing the museum’s collection. He was surprised to see how many fossils the museum had that had been collected by Newberry, including the two prehistoric sharks.

Babcock wrote about Orton’s Newberry collection in a new article published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.

Through the years, scientists have written about how various Newberry specimens had been lost. It turns out many had been at the Orton Museum.

“No museum has a larger collection of Newberry’s fossils except for the American Museum of Natural History in New York City,” Babcock said.

“Not a lot of people are aware of that – I did not even know the extent of our collection. If you’re looking for part of the Newberry collection and can’t find it in the American Museum of Natural History, it is probably going to be here.”

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JOURNAL

ZooKeys

DOI

10.3897/zookeys.1188.108571 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Observational study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

Replacement names for two species of Orthacanthus Agassiz, 1843 (Chondrichthyes, Xenacanthiformes), and discussion of Giebelodus Whitley, 1940, replacement name for Chilodus Giebel, 1848 (Chondrichthyes, Xenacanthiformes), preoccupied by Chilodus Müller & Troschel, 1844 (Actinopterygii, Characiformes)