Farming Areas Research Articles

Blue economy in the green fields: rethinking value chain analysis of inland fisheries in Bangladesh

Bangladesh ranks as the third largest country in terms of inland freshwater resources. This study seeks to explore the current development of the inland cultured fish market value chain and the criteria for its expansion. A field survey was conducted across inland fishery farms in eight districts, representing all eight divisions of Bangladesh. From each district, four farms were selected, including small, medium, and large operations. Regression analyses were performed on various covariates in relation to total sells, with and without resampling. Key factors identified as significant include total production, farmer's age, farm size, electricity costs, minnow expenses, culture duration, loan transactions, and specific regional divisions. The findings suggest that as farmer’s age, expand their farm areas, and extend the culture period, total sells are likely to increase. According to the survey data, retailers enjoy the highest profit margin at 29%, while farm owners or farmers hold the second highest margin at 26% for inland carp fish.

Potential Provinces in Papua New Guinea for Rice Farming

Papua New Guinea has plenty of land with suitable agro-climatic conditions for rice farming, but despite this, the country still needs to import rice to meet the demands of its rapidly growing population and urbanization. To address this issue, a research project was undertaken to create a realistic scope and map of areas within each province of Papua New Guinea that are suitable for rice production, using Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques. The study included nineteen regions of Papua New Guinea. A digital surface model was used to determine the suitability of each area for large-scale rice farming, based on climate, soil factors, and topography. The Erdas Imagine v-11 model builder was used to create a critical model for the suitability of rice mapping. Each province was classified into five classes based on the suitability of the land for rice farming. The results showed that approximately 14% of the land in Papua New Guinea is exceptionally suitable for rice farming. Eight provinces (Central, East Sepik, East New Britain, Morobe, Madang, Milne Bay, West New Britain, and Western Province) were identified as having large-scale land suitable for rice production and were evaluated accordingly.

Multi-Use as the Next Iteration of Ecosystem-Based Management Planning and Implementation

In the not-so-distant future, it may be entirely possible for an aquaculture farmer to harvest robust crops of seaweeds and shellfish safely within the leased area of an offshore wind farm. Likewise, a charter boat captain may tap into turbine sensors for weather and traffic data needed to navigate a boatload of recreational anglers to productive fishing grounds. Or, perhaps, commercial fishermen deploy innovative gear types on modified vessels to safely and lucratively fish within wind farms.

Feasibility of the Core-Plasma Partnership in the Perspective of Sugarcane Farmers in Pekat District, Dompu Regency, Indonesia

With the increasing demand for national sugar, the expansion of sugarcane cultivation areas outside Java has been carried out through the development of the Inti-Plasma partnership between PT Sukses Mantap Sejahtera (SMS) and vicinity farmers in Pekat District of Dompu Regency. The study was conducted to identify the feasibility of this sugarcane partnership from the perspective of farmers in terms of financial feasibility. This research was conducted in Pekat Subdistrict, Dompu Regency, where PT SMS is located. Two villages of Sorinomo Village and Bringin Jaya Village were chosen by using purposive sampling, considering the highest number of farmers and area of sugarcane farms. Then, the number of respondents from two villages was determined by Slovin’s formula based on the partner sugarcane farmer population in the two villages. The number of respondents was 51 farmers who were proportionally randomly selected, comprising 27 farmers in Sorinomo Village and 24 in Beringin Sila Village. The results showed that this partnership is worth continuing because it provides high profits to sugarcane farmers. The partnership has been going very well and is very likely to continue. However, farmers still face some problems with late payments, damaged/dead seeds, pests and diseases, destructive animals, lack of counseling, and labor shortages during harvesting.

OPTIMAL LIMA BEAN PLOT SIZE

It is important to determine optimal experimental plot size in order to ensure accurate results and correct decision making. There are no studies of this nature for lima bean cultivation. As such, the aim of this study was to determine the optimal plot size to estimate lima bean yield in family farming and experimental areas, combining the number of treatments, repetitions, and accuracy levels. Experiments were conducted in two 12[Formula: see text]m × 16[Formula: see text]m plots, each subdivided into 192 basic units (BUs) measuring 1[Formula: see text]m2. Bean weight was assessed in each of the units (g). Smith’s index of soil heterogeneity and optimal plot size were estimated using the Modified Maximum Curvature Method and Hatheway’s Method. The index of soil heterogeneity was higher than 0.7 for all the variables analyzed. Plot size between 10[Formula: see text]m2 and 15[Formula: see text]m2 is considered efficient in estimating lima bean weight. These first estimated optimal plot sizes will allow researchers and farmers who work with the crop to obtain more robust yield estimates.

Local population decline of the threatened Lesser Grey Shrike Lanius minor is linked to the modernisation of the rural landscape

Summary Landscape changes and the intensification of agriculture in recent centuries were largely responsible for the dramatic decline in the biodiversity of farmlands. Rural settlements have also been subject to radical changes due to modernisation, but their impact on bird populations is poorly quantified. The Lesser Grey Shrike Lanius minor is a threatened farmland bird and already extinct in many areas. We monitored a population of this long-distance migrant in a traditional farming area in the Poľana Mountains (central Slovakia) in three breeding seasons (1996, 2016, and 2021). We analysed the impact of the increase in number of modern habitations and the decrease in traditional farmsteads on the population decline. The number of breeding territories decreased from 73 in 1996 to 38 in 2016 and 22 in 2021. As the population has declined, the breeding area has also shrunk significantly. While there were no modern homesteads in the breeding territories in 1996, by 2021 their number had increased to the number of traditional farmsteads. Building a single modern house in a territory reduced the probability of nesting to about 6%, and this effect was also seen when one or two farms were still present (17% and 40%, respectively). An additional modern homestead in the territory reduced the nesting probability to almost zero, even if a farmstead was already present. In this long-term empirical study, we identified these changes as a local threat factor for the species studied. The results presented can help in the design and implementation of conservation measures in traditional farming landscapes.

Life Cycle Assessment and Return on Investment of Biogas Utilization in Dairy Farming Areas of Tanzania

Life Cycle Assessment and Return on Investment of Biogas Utilization in Dairy Farming Areas of Tanzania

Chemical components of different solvent extracts of Asclepias curassavica L. and antibacterial effect of the extracts on tomato pathogens

The use of environmentally friendly and sustainable agricultural methods in the control of diseases and pests is of great importance. In both conventional and organic agricultural production systems, the utilization of various plant extracts as part of integrated pest management has gained significance in recent years. The chemical constituents of various solutions derived from the flowers, leaves, and roots of the Asclepias curassavica L. plant were investigated, along with the possibilities of utilizing these solutions in the control of tomato plant pathogenic bacteria. As a result of the analysis, acetic acid in 60% and 80% ethanol solutions, as well as acetic acid methy ester in 60% and 80% methanol solutions, were detected in the flowers, leaves, and roots. The effects of A. curassavica flower, leaf, and root extracts, prepared using three different solvents (water, methanol, and ethanol), were investigated on eight different pathogenic bacteria (Agrobacterium tumefaciens, Clavibacter michiganensis, Dickeya zeae, Pectobacterium caratovorum, Pseudomonas phaseolicola, Pseudomonas tomato, Pseudomonas viridiflava, and Xanthomonas euvesicatoria) that cause diseases in plants. Several main compounds such as acetic acid, acetic acid. methyl ester, Furfural, 2-Furanmethanol, 4H-Pyran-4-one. 2.3-dihydro-3.5-dihydroxy-6-methyl-, Glycerin, Benzo furan. 2.3-dihydro- and 5-Hydroxy methyl furfural were identified as analyzed by GC-MS with different concentrations of ethanol and methanol solutions used for the flower, leaves and root of A. curassavica plants. The flower extract prepared with 80% ethanol exhibited a higher inhibition zone (ranging from 1.5 mm to 5.3 mm) in all pathogens, compared to other applications. The successful suppression effect of A. curassavica flower extracts on this disease is promising, especially in organic farming areas. Additionally, since it is environmentally friendly and sustainable, it can be included in integrated control methods to prevent the loss of productivity caused by diseases.

Water consumption of spring and winter wheat on chernozem soils of the Volgograd region

Scientific and practical research was carried out with the aim of establishing new approaches to the cultivation of durum varieties of spring wheat and winter wheat, the main task when starting the experiments was to obtain a wheat yield at the existing level, while offering alternatives to the classic mineral nutrition, which allows not only to obtain the planned harvest wheat but preserve the natural fertility of the soil. No less important is the fact that the experiment was carried out in a risky farming area. In this regard, it is necessary to know how the water consumption of winter and spring durum wheat develops. We used pre-sowing treatment of seed material with modern biofertilizers. But the root mass of durum wheat has a distinctive feature from the root mass of soft wheat. The root mass of durum wheat contains mycorrhiza, which interacts better with soil microflora. Together with biofertilizers, a more favorable water regime is created, which has a positive effect on yields. Along with zoned varieties, modern wheat varieties with higher plasticity and adaptability to arid conditions were studied. The experiment was carried out in 2020…2023. in the Volgograd region, on the peasant farm “Eliseev A.N” in the Mikhailovsky district, located in the southern black soil zone. The objects of testing in the experiment were varieties of durum spring wheat: Donskaya Elegiya, Krasnokutka 13 and winter durum wheat: Agat Donskoy and Aksinit with pre-sowing treatment with biofertilizers. The experiment showed that the lowest water consumption indicators were in the variants without seed treatment and they varied between varieties from 259.5 mm (Krasnokutka 13 variety) to 521.0 mm (Aksinit variety). The maximum values were observed in the variant with seed treatment with biofertilizer Gumi 20 and they amounted to 263.2 mm for the Krasnokutka 13 variety, and 265.7 mm for the Aksinit variety, respectively.

Environmental Assessment of Fish Farm Areas Using Macrobenthic Mollusk Structures Comparing Coastal and Lake Water Ecosystems: Efforts toward Sustainable Aquaculture

Environmental Assessment of Fish Farm Areas Using Macrobenthic Mollusk Structures Comparing Coastal and Lake Water Ecosystems: Efforts toward Sustainable Aquaculture

РЕКУПЕРАЦИЯ ТЕПЛОТЫ ИЗ ВОЗДУХА, УДАЛЯЕМОГО ИЗ ЖИВОТНОВОДЧЕСКОГО ПОМЕЩЕНИЯ

The air removed from the livestock premises by the forced ventilation system contains a significant amount of heat, that can be usefully used, for example, the supply air heating. Currently this energy saving area in the literature is being actively considered. The amount of heat air had being recovered from the indoor rooms depends on the area’s latitude where the livestock farm is located. The influence of cattle farm area’s latitude location saving heat from the air removed from the livestock premises is analyzed. The calculations for three regions of the Russian Federation’s European part located at different latitudes (Rostov, Tambov and Arkhangelsk), in relation to a 280-head cattle farm were performed. To determine the thermal power extracted from the exhaust air, these rooms thermal and material balances (the latter in terms of moisture and carbon dioxide) for the cold (winter) period of the year were compiled and the exhaust air consumption was calculated. In the calculations, a scheme of intermediate coolant, propylene glycol was considered, that circulates between two heating units, the first -on supply air, the second one - on the removed one were installed. It is shown that the farm’s location area latitude gives a significant impact on the energysaving effect: the more northerly the farm is located, the greater the effect, explaining by different indicators of the regions’ heating period under consideration. An payback period’s assessment for capital expenditures and installation work of this system implementation was carried out. The cost of three KSk3-11 brand heaters, a Grundfos UPS 32-80 F 220 circulation pump, 50 liters of propylene glycol aqueous solution, and 100 m of mounting pipes to material costs are attributed. This assessment showed considered heat recovery system’s expediency using. The numerical calculations of obtained results for country’s specified regions can be used economic effect magnitude estimate resulting.

Simulations of Future Trends in Welfare-Centric Egg Production Systems: Impacts on Productivity and Prices.

The implementation of more animal welfare-centric livestock production systems holds considerable potential for achieving sustainable production in Japan. However, such systems generally reduce productivity per unit area, impose financial burdens on farmers that adversely affect their physical and mental health, and require increased consumer awareness. In particular, declines in productivity per unit area substantially affect the farming economy, giving rise to concerns about the sufficient egg production for the population, which consequently exacerbates Japan's food security concerns. In this study, our goal was to predict temporal trends in the Japanese transition to welfare-centric facilities by analyzing desired egg consumption. We formulated five scenarios, ending in 2050, to assess the future impact of changing the proportions of types of egg production on total production, numbers of hens, total farm area, production costs, and retail prices. Multiple issues were identified in our analysis. First, Japanese production uses conventional caging, which provides high efficiency, maximum output, and decreased prices. Our simulations suggest that ensuring optimal production is likely to present challenges as animal welfare is addressed. They also suggest that the poultry industry or the Japanese government will likely need to plan changes in production methods will likely be necessary to prevent egg surpluses and/or shortages. Additional issues were identified, including price increases, numbers of hens, total farm area, and production costs. This study offers valuable insights for policymakers in their decision-making processes to help optimize production methods while considering food security, animal welfare, and farmers' welfare.

Serotype Distribution and Pathotypic Characteristics of Streptococcus suis Isolates from Slaughtered Pigs in a High‐Density Pig Farming Area in Thailand

Streptococcus suis is a significant bacterial pathogen in the swine industry and represents a zoonotic threat to human health. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence, serotype distribution, and pathotypic characteristics of S. suis isolates obtained from nasopharyngeal swabs of slaughtered pigs in the high‐density swine farming region of Thailand. Among 322 swab samples, 194 samples (60.25%) were found to harbor S. suis. The most prevalent serotype was serotype 8 (7.98%), followed by 19 (7.56%), 29 (6.72%), 3 (5.88%), and 2 (5.04%), with 39.92% of isolates classified as non‐typeable. Molecular characterization revealed the presence of various clonal complexes (CCs), with CC221/234 being the most prevalent (19.15%). Human‐associated clades (HAC) were identified in 29.79% of isolates, including serotypes 2 (two isolates), 1/2 (two isolates), and 4 (four isolates) in CC233/379. Additionally, several isolates exhibited a high potential for zoonotic transmission, particularly within the CC233/379 clade, which emerged exclusively in Thailand. Molecular pathotyping uncovered challenges in differentiating pathogenic and commensal S. suis strains in healthy pigs. Despite this, surveillance and monitoring of S. suis populations are essential to track dynamics and mitigate the risk of human infections.

Could fish aggregation at ocean aquaculture augment wild populations and local fisheries?

The global population consumes more seafood from aquaculture today than from capture fisheries and although the aquaculture industry continues to grow, both seafood sectors will continue to be important to the global food supply into the future. As farming continues to expand into ocean systems, understanding how wild populations and fisheries will interact with farms will be increasingly important to informing sustainable ocean planning and management. Using a spatially explicit population and fishing model we simulate several impacts from ocean aquaculture (i.e., aggregation, protection from fishing, and impacts on fitness) to evaluate the mechanisms underlying interactions between aquaculture, wild populations and fisheries. We find that aggregation of species to farms can increase the benefits of protection from fishing that a farm provides and can have greater impacts on more mobile species. Splitting total farm area into smaller farms can benefit fishery catches, whereas larger farms can provide greater ecological benefits through conservation of wild populations. Our results provide clear lessons on how to design and co-manage expanding ocean aquaculture along with wild capture ecosystem management to benefit fisheries or conservation objectives.

Water Quality Monitoring for Smart Farming Using Machine Learning Approach

Water quality in fish farming environments has been a topic of research investigation for numerous years. While most studies have concentrated on managing water quality in fish ponds, there is a lack of research on implementing these practices on a commercial scale. Maintaining good water quality helps prevent disease, stress, and death in fish, resulting in higher yields and profits in fish farming operations. In our study, we gathered weekly data from two fish ponds in the Lintangsongo smart farming area over six months. To deal with the limited dataset, we utilized methods for reducing dimensionality, like the pairwise comparison of correlation matrices to eliminate the highest correlated predictors. We used techniques of feature selection, including XGBoost classification, and apart from that, we used Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE) to determine the importance of features. This analysis identified ammonium and calcium as the top two predictors. These nutrients played a vital role in maintaining the paired cultivation system and promoting the robust development of Nile tilapia fish and water spinach. This process of detecting and distributing nutrients persists until the desired quantities of ammonium and calcium are reached. During each cycle, 0.7 g of ammonium sulfate and calcium nitrate are distributed, and the nutrient levels are assessed. Vernier sensors were employed for assessing nutrient values, and a system of actuators was integrated to supply the necessary nutrients to the smart farming environment using the closed-loop concept. This research investigates water quality management practices in fish farming, assesses their impact on fish health and profitability, identifies key water quality predictors, and implements a closed-loop system for nutrient delivery.

Coffee agrotourism development strategy in Belok Sidan Village, Petang District, Badung Regency

The study was aimed to determine the strategy for developing coffee agro-tourism in Belok Village, Petang District, Badung Regency. The method used is a qualitative method with interviews, which are then analyzed using SWOT analysis by evaluating strengths and weaknesses as internal factors, opportunities and threats as external factors, and using the AHP (Analytical Hierarchy Process) method to calculate the priority weight of the criteria considered. The support from the private sector in developing tourism villages plays a significant role in the development of Belok Sidan Village (strength), the lack of supporting facilities for agro-tourism activities (weakness), the number of tourism workers returning to the village and entrepreneurial factors through MSMEs can play a role in diversifying people's livelihoods (opportunity). Natural disasters/disorders (threats) are a significant factor in developing coffee plantation-based agro-tourism in Belok Sidan Village. Belok Sidan village coffee agro-tourism has the potential as a coffee farming area that can support the economic structure of Badung Regency. Based on the IFAS and EFAS matrix score analysis, the alternative strate-gies used in developing Belok Sidan village coffee agrotourism are developing creative economy businesses, agrotourism digitalization, and Agro Techno Park. According to the AHP analysis results, the Agro Techno Park development is the priority strategy.

A Study on Consumption Pattern of Household in Vallanadu, Thoothukudi District of Tamilnadu, India

The study focussed on the consumption pattern of rural households to analyse household consumption expenditure on both food and non food items. The present study used the primary data collected from rural households in Vallanadu village of Thoothukudi district in Tamilnadu using the questionnaire. In demographic details,we have observed that the average family size of the household is 4.The village has almost equal population of male and female.Then the village has comparatively higher male adult than the female adult , higher male children than the female children. In profession the most of the village people has only primary income for their survival and only few people has secondary income in additional to primary income. In land holding pattern, the village has the highest wetland area for farming and food source.In cropping pattern, the major crop grown in vallanadu is paddy. In household assets, TV & Bike are the most available household assets. In Household consumption expenditure,the consumption of the cereals is comparatively higher than the pulses. In non-food expenditures, most of their income is spend for the education purpose.percapita consumption as highest for cereals with 400g and 177g per day of vegetables.

Associations between turn out practices and rates of musculoskeletal disease and injury in Thoroughbred foals and yearlings on stud farms in the United Kingdom.

Early-life locomotor activity during turn out may alter susceptibility to musculoskeletal disease and injury via modulation of behaviours and tissue development during growth. Investigate associations between turn out practices and rates of musculoskeletal disease and injury in young Thoroughbreds on stud farms in the United Kingdom. Prospective cohort. Daily records were kept on location and duration of turn out for 134 Thoroughbred foals on six stud farms, from birth until leaving the farm or study exit. Data on veterinary-attended episodes of musculoskeletal disease or injury were collated concurrently. Average daily turn out times (hours), areas (acres) and group size (n foals) were calculated for rolling 7- and 30-day periods of age. Multivariable Cox regression, including farm as a random effect, was used to investigate associations between turn out practices and musculoskeletal disease and injury. The overall incidence of musculoskeletal disease or injury was 5.3 cases/100 foal-months at risk (95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.2-6.6). Compared with 24/7 turn out, average daily turn out times of between 9 and 23 hours over a 7-day period were associated with a 4.6-fold increase in musculoskeletal injury rate (95% CI: 1.7-12.3; P < 0.001), adjusting for farm and paddock area. Each 1-acre increase in the average daily turn out area during the 4th month of life, reduced the rate of musculoskeletal disease and injury between 6 and 18 months of age by 24% (hazard ratio 0.76, 95% CI: 0.58-0.99; P < 0.001), adjusting for farm and turn out time. Non-random sample of participants may affect generalisability. Use of veterinary-attended events likely underestimates disease/injury rates. Results suggest that disruptions or alterations to turn out time routines increase injury risk and should be avoided where possible. Turn out in larger paddocks, particularly before weaning, may confer protection against subsequent musculoskeletal disease and injury.

A TEST TO MEASURE KNOWLEDGE OF DAIRY FRAMERS ABOUT IMPROVED DAIRY FARMING PRACTICES

Dairy farming is practised mainly by resource poor farmers who have limited access to knowledge, skill, training and credit. Extension interventions would help these farmers to access knowledge and technologies that can enhance their standard of living. This would facilitate them to obtain good economic returns. The major objective of study was to evaluate dairy farmers’ knowledge about improved dairy farming practices. The knowledge test of resource poor dairy farmers on four major areas of dairy farming (breeding, feeding, healthcare and management practices) was conducted. A tentative list of 35 items was drafted keeping in view the application of statement suited to the area of study. After getting jury opinion on the items of test, Item difficulty index, Discrimination index and items of validity were worked out. Finally, 28 statements were selected in the final format to measure knowledge about improved dairy farming practices. The reliability coefficient (rtt=0.77) obtained indicated that the internal consistency of the knowledge test developed for the study was very high.

Performance of biochemical tools as fish waste particle tracers in a dispersive marine system

As finfish aquaculture expands to more dispersive coastal environments, inputs of aquaculture-derived organic matter become more diffuse, but widespread. Significant amounts of organic material are likely to be exported beyond the near-farm area, where it may encounter sensitive habitats. Biochemical tracers of organic matter, such as stable isotopes and fatty acids may be useful tools for detecting diffuse waste deposition. We used numerical modelling of direct and resuspended farm waste deposition and empirical environmental measurements to evaluate a range of biochemical indicators (major nutrients, bulk stable isotopes, fatty acids, minor and trace elements) for their efficacy as particle tracers of fish waste around a shallow water (∼30 m) salmon farm, in a dispersive coastal farming area. We also compared their efficacy across a range of sampling approaches (in sediment trap material, sediment and Mytilus edulis as a bio-indicator). Elemental carbon, nitrogen and zinc indicators could accurately reflect predicted waste deposition close to the farm, but only terrestrial fatty acid indicators were able to reflect diffuse wastes farther afield suggesting they are more sensitive tracers of fish waste. Their performance as tracers also differed between sediment trap and sediment samples, with most performing better in sediment trap samples. Although translocated mussels showed evidence of fish waste assimilation in areas of high waste deposition, tissue concentrations of fish waste tracers correlated relatively poorly with modelled waste deposition. Our results highlight the sensitivity of terrestrial fatty acids as fish waste tracers for detecting diffuse waste deposition, and demonstrate that concentrations of a number of elements can be used for mapping acute waste deposition. Our findings can inform selection of biochemical tracers for improved monitoring and management of farm wastes in dispersive marine systems.