March 2008
Farm input marketing in western Kenya: Challenges and opportunities
Widespread and increasing rural poverty in sub-Saharan Africa has been of great concern to development community. Low use of inputs by farmers, due to market constraints that reduce profitability of input use, is one of the factors responsible for the gap between potential and actual yields. Using questionnaire, this study interviewed 130 agro-input dealers in Kenya to analyze challenges and opportunities in...
March 2008
Impact of cocoa processing technologies in free fatty acids formation in stored raw cocoa beans
The quality of raw cocoa beans depends widely on their free fatty acids (FFA) content. High FFA content is a serious quality defect and reduces the technical and economic value of the cocoa beans. The work investigates the influence of cocoa processing technologies on FFA formation during storage of raw cocoa beans. Different samples of ferment dried cocoa beans purchased from Cote d’Ivoire were stored...
March 2008
Farmer participatory screening of maize seed varieties for suitability in risk prone, resource-constrained smallholder farming systems of Zimbabwe
The top down approach to hybrid seed production and variety selection in Sub-Saharan African countries has resulted in farmers being reduced to simple adopters of seed varieties mostly not suited to their pedo-climatic conditions and socio-economic circumstances. This has led to rates of take-up of these seed varieties being painstakingly slow, a situation that threatens to thwart efforts directed at the...
March 2008
Earthworm abundance related to soil physicochemical and microbial properties in Accra, Ghana
The introduction of vermicomposting as a cost effective method of managing organic waste in Ghana depends on the suitability of local earthworms. At nine locations across Accra, the capital of Ghana, the soil-litter layer was sampled to evaluate the occurrence and abundance of surface dwelling earthworms (0 - 10 cm depth) and to investigate the relationship between earthworm abundance and soil properties...
March 2008
Is the pH drop profile curvilinear and either monophasic or polyphasic? Consequences on the ultimate bovine meat texture
In meat science, pH has always been considered as an important determinant of meat quality including juiciness and tenderness. Muscle acidification is generally believed to be a linear continuous and monophasic process. From examples provided in the literature, we showed that this was not the case and concluded that the pH profile is either exponential or sigmoidal but never linear. In addition these examples...
March 2008
Survey of insect species associated with cashew (Anacardium occidentale Linn.) and their distribution in Ghana
Knowledge of the insect complex associated with any crop is essential for developing pest control strategies for the crop. Literature on cashew insects is lacking in Ghana. Field surveys were conducted from July 2003 to October 2005, to collect and identify the insect fauna on cashew. The surveys were conducted in 13 major cashew growing areas within ten districts of the Northern, Upper West, Brong-Ahafo and...
March 2008
Survey on dairy cattle milk production and milk quality problems in peri-urban areas in Burkina Faso
A survey study was carried out around two large cities in Burkina Faso to contribute to the understanding of the situation of local milk production and milk processing. Twenty-two dairy farms associated with nine dairy processing units were selected for the study. Two separate questionnaires were used to investigate the prerequisites for animal production and milk processing and the interviews were carried...
March 2008
The impact of tillage systems on soil microclimate, growth and yield of cassava (Manihot utilisima) in Midwestern Nigeria
Cassava is the most widely cultivated root crops among traditional farmers in the Midwestern Nigeria. Majority of the traditional farmers employ the zero tillage system. It is unclear if zero tillage is the best practice for optimizing yield? This study investigates the impact of tillage types on soil microclimatic condition, growth and yield of cassava in Midwestern Nigeria. An experimental area that...
March 2008
Effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal inoculation on the growth and the development of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.)
Sesame (Sesamum indicum L) has recently been introduced into cropping system in Senegal in the context of crop diversification and poverty alleviation. A pot experiment was conducted to study the response of sesame plants to arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) inoculation. The experiment was carried out in greenhouse in a complete randomized block with two factors, the variety on 3 levels (32-15, Jaalgon...
Advertisement
Advertisement
