Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Malawian Farmers on Pre- and Post-Harvest Crop Management to Mitigate Aflatoxin Contamination in Groundnut, Maize and Sorghum-Implication for Behavioral Change.

Seetha Anitha,Rosemary Botha,Takuji Tsusaka,Norah Machinjiri,Patrick Okori,Moses Siambi,Geoffrey Heinrich,Nelson Kumwenda,Lizzie Kachulu,Joseph Maruwo,Samuel Njoroge,Juma Masumba,Harry Msere,Angela Tavares

doi:10.3390/toxins11120716

Abstract

A knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) study was conducted in three districts of Malawi to test whether the training had resulted in increased knowledge and adoption of recommended pre- and post-harvest crop management practices, and their contribution to reducing aflatoxin contamination in groundnut, maize and sorghum. The study was conducted with 900 farmers at the baseline and 624 farmers at the end-line, while 726 and 696 harvested crop samples were collected for aflatoxin testing at the baseline and end-line, respectively. Results show that the knowledge and practice of pre- and post-harvest crop management for mitigating aflatoxin were inadequate among the farmers at the baseline but somewhat improved after the training as shown at the end-line. As a result, despite unfavorable weather, the mean aflatoxin contamination level in their grain samples decreased from 83.6 to 55.8 ppb (p < 0.001). However, it was also noted that increased knowledge did not significantly change farmers’ attitude toward not consuming grade-outs because of economic incentive incompatibility, leaving potential for improving the practices further. This existing gap in the adoption of aflatoxin mitigation practices calls for approaches that take into account farmers’ needs and incentives to attain sustainable behavioral change.

Highlights

To address undernutrition, the government of Malawi has been implementing initiatives to increase the production of and improve access to nutritious foods especially legumes such as groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L), common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L) and pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L) among others [1].In Malawi, groundnut is a major crop grown on 390,000 ha [2], mostly by smallholder farmers.Groundnut production offers a lot of benefits to the farmers in terms of improving soil fertility by fixing atmospheric nitrogen and providing an important source of income and food
Considering the need for designing effective behavioral change tools to enhance the implementation of mitigation efforts, this study aims to: (a) determine the level of KAP on pre- and post-harvest crop management practices on aflatoxin mitigation, (b) determine the impact of training on pre- and post-harvest crop management on aflatoxin levels in crop samples, and (c) identify gaps in farmers’ attitude toward aflatoxin mitigation practices and their impact on aflatoxin levels in crop samples
Stripping and shelling of groundnut were dominantly handled by women, which was consistent with the result previously reported by

Summary

Introduction

The government of Malawi has been implementing initiatives to increase the production of and improve access to nutritious foods especially legumes such as groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L), common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L) and pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan L) among others [1]. In Malawi, groundnut is a major crop grown on 390,000 ha [2], mostly by smallholder farmers. Groundnut production offers a lot of benefits to the farmers in terms of improving soil fertility by fixing atmospheric nitrogen and providing an important source of income and food. The consumption of groundnut, especially when it is not sorted to remove moldy, shriveled, insect-damaged and broken kernels, increases the risk of aflatoxin exposure for consumers [4]

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Conclusion