Farm Level Research Articles

Low-Volume Electrochemical Sensor Platform for Direct Detection of Paraquat in Drinking Water

Direct testing of pesticide contaminants in drinking water is a challenge. Portable and sensitive sensor platforms are desirable to test water contaminants directly at farm and consumer levels. In this study, we have demonstrated the feasibility of an electrochemical sensor for the direct detection of paraquat (PQ) in drinking water samples. An immunoassay-based sensing platform was fabricated using PQ-specific antibody immobilized on the surface of the electrochemically reduced graphene oxide (rGO) modified screen-printed carbon electrode (rGO-SPCE). Using non-faradaic electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) as a detection tool, the sensor platform demonstrated a dynamic response for PQ concentration in drinking water ranging from 0.05 ng/mL to 72.9 ng/mL (0.19 to 243.8 nM), with a coefficient of determination (r2) of 0.997 and a limit of detection of 0.05 ng/mL (0.19 nM). Percentage recovery within ±20% error was obtained, and the sensor cross-reactivity test showed a selective response against glyphosate antigen. With the flexibility to use single-frequency EIS and low sample volume, the developed sensor demonstrated testing in water samples directly without any sample pre-processing. This low-volume electroanalytical sensor platforms can be translated into portable testing tools for the detection of various water contaminants.

Developing sustainable dairy farms in the tropics: From policy to practice

CONTEXTSustainable dairy production is included in the policy agenda of many countries in the tropics to address, among others, their commitment to the Paris Agreement. To the best of our knowledge, however, a study to assess the impact of the proposed interventions for sustainable dairy production is still lacking for most of those countries. Using policy goals as entry points to develop scenarios can provide insight into the impact of policy interventions on dairy farming practices. OBJECTIVEThis study aimed to evaluate the implication of interventions towards sustainable dairy development identified by the governments of Indonesia and Costa Rica. METHODSInformation about current farming practices (i.e. the baseline) were collected on 32 smallholder dairy farms in Indonesia and 24 dairy farms in Costa Rica. Scenarios were designed based on policy goals for dairy development and climate change mitigation in each country. The scenarios for Indonesia encompassed relocation of the dairy sector to Sumatra to allow coupling of livestock to land combined with a restriction on manure production to ensure all manure to be applied to grow forage, and a restriction on the amount of purchased feeds, at two levels: maximally 100% and 50% of the baseline. The scenarios for Costa Rica included a silvopastoral system and a reduction in the amount of purchased feeds, at two levels: 50% and 80% lower than the baseline. We estimated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at chain level and carbon (C) stocks at farm level. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONSThe scenarios for Indonesia increased herd size and milk output by 240–360%, and GHG emissions per farm by 269–455%, while decreased GHG emissions per kg milk by 1–10%, compared to the baseline. C stocks per farm were higher in the scenarios than in the baseline, but compared to natural vegetation much more C is lost under the scenarios because more land is being used. The scenarios for Costa Rica reduced herd size and milk output by 5–25% and GHG emissions per farm by 17–35%, while GHG emissions per kg milk decreased by 10%, compared to the baseline. C stocks per farm were comparable. SIGNIFICANCETo achieve the multiple policy goals for sustainable dairy development, the governments need to consider the trade-off between increasing milk production and reducing GHG emissions. In Indonesia, relocation of the dairy sector needs a strict policy to avoid the expansion of dairy farms into tropical forest land. Furthermore, the Costa Rican government needs to incentivise dairy farmers to implement a silvopastoral system to reduce GHG emissions and land use. This, however, will be at the expense of milk output.

Assessing Sustainability Performance at Farm Level in the Kingdom of Bahrain

Crop production in Bahrain is facing many challenges that may undermine farm's sustainability. Farmers are an important player and assessing farm’s sustainability to identify performance gaps is essential. This study aims to measures farm sustainability in Bahrain using Response-Inducing Sustainability Evaluation (RISE) tool accompanied by field visit observations. The assessment was carried out on 29 farms and applied on 8 themes. The study contributed by configuring RISE's regional data to match Bahrain's conditions through the adjustment of some evaluation functions. The application of RISE showed that the average score of the 29 farms was (63 points) which indicates the requirement of additional improvement. Farms fared well in five themes (quality of life, water use, working conditions, soil use, and farm management). Whereas it performed low in three themes (Material Use, Biodiversity & Economic viability). Quality of life theme received the highest score (76 points), while biodiversity was the lowest (34 points). RISE application was successful; however, land tenure needs to be considered to improve local sustainability. Despite the presence of lands that are classified as agriculture but unexploited, it is suggested to encourage landowners exploiting the lands or rent them out to other farmers. In addition, the development of good agricultural practises guidelines is vital.

Improving land-use efficiency of solar power in China and policy implications

Improving the power output of solar photovoltaic (PV) farms is critical to maximize the potential of PV power and reduce extensive land use in the context of large-scale deployment of renewable energy. In this paper we developed an integrated solar power potential assessment framework to quantify the gap between technical potential and actual generation of solar PV farms on national, provincial, and plant scales, and identify the key factors that cause the underperformance of PV farms. Specifically, to assess technical potential, hourly meteorological reanalysis data is adopted and the power generation-related parameters are calculated (i.e. optimal panel tilt, array spacing, packing factor etc.) with consideration of their spatial variability. For actual power generation, a detailed plant-level dataset is first established by this study which integrates technical, operational, and geospatial information from 145 solar farms across seven provinces in China. Our results show that the actual PV power generation per square meter is only 1/3 of the estimated technical potential. Technological factor is the primary factor, accounting for 48.43% of the underperformance, followed by engineering and management factors, accounting for 38.55% and 13.02%, respectively. The novelty of our study is revealing the underperformance level of solar farms in reality, identifying the causing factors, and highlighting the importance of integrating land-use efficiency indicators into solar power planning and development.

Prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility profile of Salmonella isolated from vegetable farms fertilized with animal manure in Addis Ababa Ethiopia

The resistance of foodborne pathogens to antimicrobial agents is a potential danger to human health. Hence, establishing the status of good agricultural practices (GAPs) and the antimicrobial susceptibility of major foodborne pathogens has a significant programmatic implication in planning interventions. The objective of this study was to assess the gap in attaining GAP and estimate the prevalence and antimicrobial susceptibility profile of Salmonella in vegetable farms fertilized with animal manure in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A total of 81 vegetable farms from four sub-cities in Addis Ababa were visited, and 1119 samples were collected: soil (n = 271), manure (n = 375), vegetables (n = 398), and dairy cattle feces (n = 75). Additional data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Isolation of Salmonella was done using standard microbiology techniques and antimicrobial susceptibility testing was conducted using disk diffusion assays. Carriage for antimicrobial resistance genes was tested using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Among the 81 vegetable farms visited, 24.7% used animal manure without any treatment, 27.2% used properly stored animal manure and 80.2% were easily accessible to animals. The prevalence of Salmonella was 2.3% at the sample level, 17.3% at the vegetable farm level, and 2.5% in vegetables. The highest rate of resistance was recorded for streptomycin, 80.7% (21 of 26), followed by kanamycin, 65.4% (17 of 26), and gentamicin, 61.5% (16 of 26). Multidrug resistance was detected in 61.5% of the Salmonella isolates. Vegetable farms have a gap in attaining GAPs, which could contribute to increased contamination and the transfer of antimicrobial resistance to the vegetables. The application of GAPs, including proper preparation of compost and the appropriate use of antimicrobials in veterinary practices, are recommended to reduce the emergence and spread of antimicrobial resistance.

Agrifood Sustainability Transitions in Firms and Industry: A Bibliographic Analysis of Research Themes

There is a growing consensus that the modern food system lies at the centre of the great challenges facing humanity and that urgent and profound changes are required in the way that food is produced, processed, distributed and consumed. This review analyses sustainability transitions within agrifood systems, focusing on the role of firms and industries as defined by the Sustainable Transitions Research Network (STRN). This paper conducts the first systematic literature review using bibliometric analysis to assess the current state of research on this theme. The findings reveal a significant increase in publications related to firms and industries associated with agrifood sustainability transitions. Furthermore, the focus of current research is geographically concentrated in the European Union. The review identifies four key themes in the literature, based on the co-occurrence of keywords. These are agriculture, innovation, governance, food systems and agroecology. The review identifies an increasing awareness of the role of farmers in driving sustainability transitions at the farm level. Furthermore, there is an increasing awareness of the interrelated characteristics of the agrifood system, which acknowledges the need for sustainable innovations to occur at multiple stages of the agrifood system. The review also shows that there is growing evidence that innovations can occur through disruptive as well as incremental innovation and highlights the importance of governance influencing transitions. The existing literature raises questions about alternative food networks as sustainable innovations, their potential for significant change in the established food system and the validity of their claims regarding food equity and environmental sustainability. A key theme emerging from the literature is an ecological perspective that identifies the complex biological processes and ecosystems that form an integral part of agricultural production. These findings provide a greater understanding of the current literature landscape of agrifood sustainable transitions relating to firms and industries and lay a foundation for future research.

Quantifying the adoption of conservation agriculture: Development and application of the Conservation Agriculture Appraisal Index

CONTEXTEstimates of conservation agriculture (CA) adoption vary worldwide because of a lack of a standardized methodology to quantify the simultaneous utilization of its core principles of minimum soil disturbance, permanent soil organic cover and crop diversification. Comparisons of CA adoption among farms across regions requires estimation of the farm area and cropping season where CA principles are applied. OBJECTIVETo develop the Conservation Agriculture Appraisal Index (CAAI) as a standardized conceptual framework with defined thresholds that indicates the intensity and frequency of use of each CA core principle. CAAI was subsequently applied to quantify CA adoption on farms across four wheat (triticum aestivum) growing regions, both with and without livestock, including dryland and irrigated systems in Australia and Mexico, respectively. METHODSCAAI is a continuous scoring system that estimates the intensity and frequency of application of the core principles and their concurrent utilization to assess the extent of CA adoption. CAAI score is the sum of the scores of each core principle, accounting for the percentage of the farm area and cropping season where CA is applied. CAAI emerged from semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, and farm visits that captured underlying patterns of CA use in regional-specific contexts. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONSCAAI assessed annual CA adoption on 100 farms in four wheat growing regions with different environments and farming systems. The adoption of CA was higher in Australia than Mexico, where partial adoption was more prevalent, especially for summer crops. ‘No adoption’ of CA occurred when one of the core principles consistently scored zero within a year. SIGNIFICANCEThe CAAI can be used as a benchmarking research tool at the farm level to standardize units for comparisons and identify levels of CA adoption by farm area and cropping seasons between and across regions.

Characterization of the typology of producers in the “sembrando vida” program in Oaxaca, Mexico

In Mexico, research work documented at plot in the field or producer level is uncommon and with limited information, due to the fact that it is expensive and requires specialized personnel. This research work carried out by the National Institute of Forestry, Agriculture and Livestock Research (INIFAP) and financed by the National Council of Humanities, Science and Technology (CONAHCYT) was based on a field diagnosis to determine the description of the typology of the participating "sowers'' producers enrolled in the Sembrando Vida Program (PSV), of the Federal Goverment of Mexico belonging to the state of Oaxaca, and thus, be able to implement strategies for training and follow-up attention on a massive scale. A total of 383 sample surveys were analyzed from a population of 37,719 small producers representing an estimated crop area of 56,578 hectares distributed in two regions of the state of Oaxaca. It is concluded that the diagnosis continues to be a fundamental information tool to identify and address more precisely and timely the problems at the farmer's plot level and with any type of crop. Another fundamental activity was the visit or technical visits to the territories that are representative of the regions in order to validate the information obtained. With the results obtained in this research, it was possible to address the main problems through personalized and directed technical assistance under the scheme of field schools (learning-by-doing) throughout the development of annual and fruit crops that the planters have in the MIAF within their PUPs (Small Production Units). Likewise, insert the main training needs at the express and consensual request of all program stakeholders: researchers-trainers, PSV technicians and sowers.

Farmer’s Knowledge on Utilization of Chemical Fertilizers as Soil Fertility Enhancement Option in Ruhumuro Sub-County, Bushenyi District

The study focused on assessing the farmer’s knowledge on utilization of chemical fertilizers as soil fertility enhancement option in Ruhumuro sub-county, Bushenyi district. It was limited to; establishing the local farmers’knowledge on the use of chemical fertilizers, investigating the factors that influence farmers’ decisions to utilize chemical fertilizers and establishing the benefits that local farmers achieve from utilizing chemical fertilizers. The study employed a cross-sectional research design and primary data was collected from 200 respondents. the data was analyzed using SPSS version 22.0. The study concluded that farmers had local knowledge on use of chemical fertilizers where they revealed that, fertilizer use is influenced by on agro-climatic conditions and farm characteristics at (p=.027), profitability is the principal incentive to adopt fertilizer use at (p=.021), fertilizer use ensure high productivity and yields at (p=.003). The decisions on fertilizer use has mainly considered credit access and price at (p=.026) Fertilizer use alter the soil properties at p= (.029). Fertilizer applied to farmers’ crops do not provide optimal economic returns to farmers as (p=.312) as non-significant. The study also concluded that there were factors that influence the farmers’ decisions to utilize chemical fertilizers. Such as; ownership of land (p=.022), labour avialability (p=.024), Cost of the fertilizers (p=.004) and un-availability of credit services/financial institutions offering services (p=.028). Non-significant factors included; farming experience and level of education (p=.427, p=.369). The study concluded that there were benefits that local farmers achieve from utilizing chemical fertilizers. Such as; Restoration of soil fertility (<i>x<sup>2</sup></i> = 3.002, p=0.021), Sustainable food production (<i>x<sup>2 </sup></i>= 2.441, p=0.001), Income security (<i>x<sup>2</sup></i> = 0.871, p= 0.010), Improvement of crop yields (<i>x<sup>2</sup></i> = 3.123, p=0.023) and Contribute to greenhouse effect (<i>x<sup>2</sup></i> = 4.211, p=0.141) which was not significant. The study recommends that, there is a need for policymakers and agricultural stakeholders to consider the social, economic, and environmental implications of the widespread use of chemical fertilizers. Constant extension training services on chemical fertilizer use should be done to help farmers use the recommended dosage of fertilizers to avoid environmental degradation due to lack of adequate knowledge on fertilizer utilization. Government should undertake legal reforms to recognize and protect the rights of vulnerable groups to own and use land. They should also put in place mechanisms to ensure that the law is enforced.

Hygiene performance rating at farm level - an auditing scheme for evaluation of biosecurity measures’ effect on prevalence of Campylobacter from selected broiler producers

BackgroundPreventing pathogens from entering the broiler premises is the main biosecurity measure at farm level. In conventional broiler production, chickens are kept indoors during the entire production period. Pathogens can enter the broiler-producing unit from sources such as water, equipment, personnel, insects, and rodents. The possible routes must be controlled, and corrective measures applied when necessary. The objective of this study was to (1) develop a hygiene protocol and test the scheme on 30 farms, and (2) compare the results to their Campylobacter-colonised status. A Hygiene Performance Rating protocol at farm level (HPR-F) was developed to systematically review the production to identify risk areas to biosecurity. The HPR-F consists of 13 categories with related questions. For each question, a score was given from 1 to 3, where 1 meant “acceptable”, 2 was “potential for improvements”, and 3 was “not acceptable”. Scores for each question were multiplied with weight factors for hygienic impact and economic consequences describing whether the necessary improvement depends on a significant investment or is a cheap quick-fix and calculated into a percentage where 100% is perfect hygiene. The 30 farms in the study were selected from one county in Norway. The Campylobacter-results for each of the 30 farms in 2019–2021 were given according to rules in the Norwegian Action Plan against Campylobacter faecal sampling on-farm 3–6 days prior to slaughter.ResultsThe overall results from the HPR-F showed that the general hygiene level was high in all farms. The mean total hygiene score was 82% and varied from 70 to 92%. The category Handling dead chicken had the highest hygiene score (93%), and Ventilation had the lowest score (55%). The HPR-F results were compared to the Campylobacter-status for the 30 farms: Campylobacter-negative flocks had slightly higher total scores than Campylobacter-positive flocks (P = 0.19). Among others, the category Outdoor area (vegetation close to the premises’ walls) was identified as the most stable factor in relation to be colonised with Campylobacter.ConclusionsThe HPR-F tested in this research trial provides a tool for veterinarians, advisors, and poultry farmers to improve biosecurity at farm level and enhance the preventive animal health initiatives.

How increased heifer growth rate and reduced dairy cow replacement rate can improve farm economy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions - a win to win situation?

Rearing of replacement heifers makes up a significant part of the total costs in dairy farming. Nevertheless, the average age at first calving for dairy heifers still stays well above 2 years in many countries. This study examined the economic and environmental impacts of increased heifer growth rates and reduced replacement rates on Norwegian dairy farms. The current average growth rate in Norway (baseline scenario) was compared to an accelerated growth rate scenario. Within each of the two growth rate scenarios, we compared three different cow replacement rates. A farm account survey dataset containing physical and economic data on 311 Norwegian farms was clustered into three farm groups: small, medium, and large. To model economic consequences, we used the whole-farm linear programming model ScotFarm. A life cycle analysis model was used to model the environmental impacts of the baseline scenario and an accelerated growth rate scenario on the three farm groups. Accelerated heifer growth rate had a positive effect (14–28%) on farm annual gross margin depending on farm size. While accelerated growth rate resulted in only minor reductions in total emissions at farm level compared to the baseline scenario, reduced replacement rate lowered total farm level emissions by up to 8%, and emissions per unit of output by up to 6%. We conclude that an accelerated heifer growth rate scenario could potentially increase farm gross margin by some 14–28% compared with a baseline growth rate scenario. Reducing the replacement rate would be more efficient to reduce farm−level greenhouse gas emissions.

Adoption of herbicide resistance tests in German arable farming: Insights from the theory of planned behaviour

AbstractAn increasing number of herbicide‐resistant weeds challenge farming systems worldwide. Bans on active ingredients in chemical crop protection, which result in fewer weed control options, emphasise the importance of herbicide resistance management in arable farming. Resistance testing allows farmers to get an objective overview of the prevailing herbicide resistances on their land and to adjust their management strategies accordingly. Nevertheless, no study has examined farmers' adoption of herbicide resistance tests. For this purpose, an online survey with 197 German arable farmers was conducted. The adoption decision was investigated by applying the theory of planned behaviour framework. The results suggest that informing farmers of the economic benefits associated with herbicide resistance tests can facilitate widespread adoption. Furthermore, awareness of the availability of herbicide resistance tests needs to be raised through both advertising and crop consultants. Results from this study are relevant for several interest groups as the usage of herbicide resistance tests can help reduce the emergence of new resistance by optimising herbicide use at the farm level.

Assessing Market Participation of Smallholder Cassava Farmers in Sekyere Central District of Ghana Using Vector Generalized Additive Ordered Models

Smallholder farmers theoretically produce and market their output to meet livelihood needs of the family under given set of resource constraints. In spite of numerous policy efforts to ensure that smallholder farmers in Ghana and rural districts in particular, exploit the economic potential of cassava production, many of them continue to produce for subsistence with limited participation in the markets. To assess and explain the levels at which smallholder cassava farmers participate in markets, the study applied the partial proportional odds model in the framework of Vector Generalized Additive model (VGAM), which comprehensively addresses conceptual, modelling and interpretational complexities implied by market participation (MP) theory. Data for the study were collected from 365 cassava farmers in Sekyere Central (SC) district of Ashanti region, Ghana. The results showed that only 32% of the farmers participated in the markets as Net sellers, while 45% and 23% participated as Autarkic producers and Net buyers respectively. The econometrics analysis revealed that household size, access to market information, age, education, market access, membership to famer or community organisation, off-farm income, farm income, livestock holdings, cassava output and cassava being cultivated as major crop, appeared statistically significant in explaining MP decisions. Five variables, namely income, livestock, produce, access to market information and cassava as major produce, failed the proportional odds assumption and entered the model unconstrained, producing regime specific estimates. These results are indicative of how conditional, on a given regime, farmers respond to changes in the factors that affect their MP decisions, in terms of intensity and direction. Farm level policies, that target cassava farm households’ participation in markets should consider regime specific strategies.

Profitability Level of Fish Farming In Ife-Ijesa Agricultural Development Programme, Osun State, Nigeria

The objective of this paper is to estimate the profitability level of fish farmers in Ife-ijesa zone of Osun State Agricultural Development Programme (OSADEP), Nigeria using standard procedures of structured questionnaires administered to 100 respondents that were randomly selected. The study revealed that fish farming in the Area was male dominated with 89%. For the respondents using earthen 41.3% were range between50-60% and 31.6% of the respondents using concrete were within the range of 50-60years. 70.3% of the respondents using concrete were married and 56.6% of the respondents using earthen were married. 40.5% of the respondents using concrete had tertiary education and 45.2% of the respondents using earthen had tertiary education. 95.7% of the respondents using earthen operate by self-savings and 98.1% of the respondents using concrete also operate by self-saving and the average pond size used was 0.5 hectares. Findings also showed that the estimated average fixed cost and variable cost incurred for all fish farmers were N109.296.43 for the respondents using concrete and N173,473.38 for the respondents using earthen, while gross margin and average farm profit were N108, 718,43 for the respondents using concrete and N172,734.88 for the respondents using earthen per annum respectively.

Crop Production, the Pollinator Deficit and Land Use Management: UK Farm Level Survey Results

In this paper, we address a gap in the literature concerning pollination management, the pollinator deficit, and conservation objectives. By employing a farm level survey of UK farmers, we examine farmers’ attitudes, understanding and management of pollinators. Based on descriptive statistics and regression analysis, we found significant variation in interest and understanding of the impact of pollinators on commercial crops meaning that many respondents did not consider they had a pollinator deficit in terms of crop quality, quantity, or financial impacts. At the same time, many farmers are willing to adopt environmentally beneficial land-use measures if suitable advice and financial incentives are offered. However, there is little evidence of coordination of actions between farms to support wild pollinators. These findings indicate a potential disconnect between a farmer’s understanding of the impact on agricultural output from a pollinator deficit and the agricultural benefits from the adoption of specific environmental measures.

MULTIVARIATE PROBIT MODELING OF CLIMATE-SMART ADAPTATION CHOICES AMONG FARMERS IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA: GHANAIAN STUDY OF COCOA FARMERS

Climate change and variability pose significant challenges to cocoa production in many sub-Saharan African countries, and Ghana is no exception. Therefore, knowledge of how farmers react to climate change and its variability effects is crucial in developing policies and programs to guide the design and implementation of effective climate-smart adaptation strategies at the farm level in Africa. This study aims to examine climate-smart adaptation choices cocoa farmers make as coping strategies for climate change and variability in Ghana using a multivariate probit modeling approach. Following a multistage sampling procedure, primary data was collected from 720 cocoa farmers across the major cocoa-growing regions in Ghana. The study found major adaptation choices for cocoa farmers to include improved and resistant varieties, optimal fertilizer application, optimal pesticide application, adjusting planting/harvesting dates, shade tree management, crop diversification, non-crop diversification, and off-farm economic diversification. We further observed that farmers’ adaptation choices were significantly influenced by climate change and adaptation-related variables such as rainfall variability index, temperature variability index, climate change impact perception index, and CSA awareness as well as agroclimatic zone effects. Concerning the influence of farmer and farm-specific variables, the study identifies that sex, age, education, farm size, quality of extension services delivery, access to credit, and membership in farmer groups were significant predictors of farmers’ CSA decision choices. This study offers beneficial insights for policymakers and stakeholders on how to promote climate-smart adaptation methods among cocoa farmers in Ghana.

Burden assessment of antimicrobial use and resistance in livestock in data-scarce contexts.

Misuse and overuse of antimicrobials in livestock production are identified as drivers for antimicrobial resistance (AMR). To improve decision-making concerning livestock health, it is important to understand the impact of AMR in livestock and aquaculture, within and beyond farm level, as well as expenditure on antimicrobial use (AMU). Such understanding provides grounds for systematic disease prioritisation and establishes a baseline for understanding the value of different strategies to mitigate animal health problems and for the monitoring and evaluation of the impact of those strategies. Yet limited data availability and quality surrounding AMU and AMR create barriers to furthering the knowledge of such impact. These data constraints are also more prevalent in contexts that lack the necessary resources to develop and maintain systematic and centralised data collection and collation systems. Even in regions with robust AMU and AMR monitoring systems in place, data limitations remain, such that the expenditure on antimicrobials and impacts of AMR remain unclear. Additionally, the current research funding strategies have been less focused on primary data collection, adding further barriers to filling the data void and reducing the global AMU/AMR knowledge gap. To work around the data scarcity and leverage previous and ongoing research efforts, it is vital to gain comprehensive knowledge of the people, projects and research consortia dedicated to the topic of AMU/AMR.

Interpretation and utility of the Animal Health Loss Envelope as part of the Global Burden of Animal Diseases analytical process.

The Global Burden of Animal Diseases (GBADs) programme follows a multistage process to produce disease burden estimates in livestock and farmed aquatic animal production systems. The GBADs programme has broad goals of inclusivity, transparency and rigour. Meeting those goals means providing users of all levels of technical expertise with a clear explanation of the programme's output. In this way, the meaning and limitations of those results are clearly communicated, minimising the risk of misinterpretation. The first published estimates of disease burden have been calculated at farm level using a new metric called the Animal Health Loss Envelope. This metric estimates the cost of lost productivity and expenditure on disease control for profit-maximising producers by comparing current system performance to a hypothetical ‘ideal health'scenario. This ideal is a farm-specific concept and is critically different from an ideal health state when physiologically defined. The metric and its key concepts are described in this article.

Assessing the Effectiveness of Water-Saving Plans at the Farm and Basin Level Using Agrohydrological Modeling and Water-Accounting Approaches

Assessing the Effectiveness of Water-Saving Plans at the Farm and Basin Level Using Agrohydrological Modeling and Water-Accounting Approaches

Analisis Rantai Pasok Kopi Arabika di UPH Pusparahayu Kecamatan Cigalontang Kabupaten Tasikmalaya

This research aims to know the general description of the supply chain and the performance of the Arabica coffee supply chain at UPH Pusparahayu, Cigalontang District—, using descriptive qualitative and quantitative methods. The location for the research was determined purposively, namely at UPH Pusparahyu, because it acts as the most significant coffee processing unit in the area and accommodates supplies from many farmers. The method of data analysis to find out the general description of the supply chain uses the concept of Food Supply Chain Networks (FSCN). Supply chain performance measurement was analyzed using the Supply-Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) method, which has five assessment attributes: reliability, responsiveness, flexibility, assets, and cost. The results of the study show an overview of the Arabica coffee supply chain in Cigalontang District, among others targeting the domestic market; the market structure consists of farmers, UPH Pusparahayu, and coffee shops; business process refers to a push or pull view with a variety of modern resources at the UPH level; and have supply chain management that is still conventional in terms of contracts and partner selection. Supply chain performance at the farm level for reliability, responsiveness, flexibility, and assets has reached a superior position, but the cost attribute is in a place of parity. In contrast, the results of performance measurements at the UPH level show an excellent post on reliability, responsiveness, and flexibility. Meanwhile, the asset and cost attributes have not reached the best position.