Impact Of Different Production Systems Research Articles

Implementing Cleaner Production Technologies: General Aspects

This article presents an overview of the main aspects of cleaner production as a preventive environmental strategy that integrates into production processes to make them more environmentally efficient in terms of the use of resources and raw materials, among others. Reference is made to the general aspects of environmental impact focused on production systems, the origin and general evolution of the concept, as well as its definition, general aspects, advantages and difficulties for its implementation. In general, it is concluded that cleaner production is a strategy that can help to reduce the environmental impact of different production systems; however, activities are needed to disseminate and make it known to various stakeholders, and to emphasize the social, environmental and economic benefits that its application can bring.

Dynamic simulation for predicting warning and action thresholds: A novelty for strawberry powdery mildew management

Strawberry powdery mildew (SPM), caused by Podosphaera aphanis, is gaining in importance as production of day-neutral strawberry and resistance to fungicide increase. This disease is difficult to predict because of the wide range of weather conditions favorable to its development. We explored dynamic simulation modelling. The model uses equations developed in-house, published algorithms describing sub-processes of P. aphanis life cycle (e.g. sporulation, conidia germination, leaf colonization) and assembled knowledge of the interactions among the pathogen, host, and weather. Weather, disease, and host data collected at three sites in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2015, 2016 and 2018, for a total of nine epidemics were used to validate the model. The results show a good simulation of the trends, shape and amplitude of SPM severity. The relationship between simulated and observed SPM severity was significant at all sites and years. The proportion of linear variations in the observed SPM explained by the variation in simulated disease severity were between 0.60 and 0.80. Based on receiver operating curve analysis, the model accurately predicted both warning and action thresholds of 5% and 15% disease severity. This is the first model that can quantitatively predict SPM severity, warning and action thresholds to tune fungicide application strategies. In addition, the model can be used to assess the impact of different production systems on powdery mildew and hence anticipate risk.

Indicadores morfológicos y estructurales de calidad y potencial de erosión del suelo bajo diferentes usos de la tierra en la Amazonía Ecuatoriana

El presente trabajo muestra los resultados del impacto de diferentes sistemas de produccion sobre la calidad y el potencial de erosion del recurso suelo en dos pisos altitudinales de la provincia de Napo, Ecuador. Para este proposito, se han utilizado parametros morfologicos e indices estructurales de suelo y la tecnica de evaluacion multivariada mediante un analisis de componentes principales categorico. En general, los suelos presentaron clases texturales arcillosas y arcillo limosas con predominancia de materiales finos principalmente limo y arcilla, lo cual le proporcionan una mayor susceptibilidad a distintos procesos de degradacion fisica, tales como sellado y encostrado superficial, erosion, compactacion. El analisis de componente principales categorico permitio agrupar los sistemas de produccion en funcion del piso altitudinal y diferentes parametros indicando que la densidad aparente, el carbono organico, numero de surcos y el % de pendiente son las variables que definen la calidad del suelo y su potencial de erosion.

Portraying and tracing the impact of different production systems on the volatile organic compound composition of milk by PTR-(Quad)MS and PTR-(ToF)MS

The aim of this study was to discover the unique volatile compositional traits of retail milk from different production systems. Forty-four retail milk samples were analyzed, including organic milk (n=10), conventional milk (n=14) and pasture milk (n=20) from winter (n=22) and summer (n=22). Proton transfer reaction quadrupole mass spectrometry (PTR-(Quad)MS) was utilized to obtain the mass-resolved fingerprints (76 masses per sample) of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Principal component analysis (PCA) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were performed to evaluate the differences between the groups. The production systems were characterized by six masses, while season showed larger differences, with twenty-two masses discriminating between the milks. For 2 masses, a significant interaction of systems and seasons was observed. The chemical formula of these VOC masses were tentatively identified by Proton Transfer Reaction Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometric (PTR-(ToF)MS). These results illustrate that the type of feed is reflected in the VOC composition of milks.

The Impact of Different Production Systems on the Content of Lycopene in Tomato Fruits

Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) is one of the most widespread vegetable crops for multiple uses in the diet of the human population. Tomato products and tomatoes are an important source of vitamin C, copper and iron, and contain significant amounts of B vitamins, and minerals such as potassium, sodium, magnesium and calcium. However, tomato lycopene seems particularly precious, active substances from the carotenoid family that plays an important role in the defense of the health of human organism.In the fruits of tomatoes lycopene is dominant carotenoid, and besides him there are also smaller facilities α-carotene, β-carotene, γ-carotene, phytoene, fitofluena, neurosporena and lutein. The content of lycopene in tomatoes is largely dependent on the different agro-ecological conditions, primarily temperature, solar radiation and humidity.It is clear that the variety, stage of maturity, different environmental conditions and production methods affect the chemical and physical characteristics of agricultural products. Bearing in mind the nutritional and halth importance of representation of tomatoes in the diet and the area in which this kind of vegetable products, the objective of this research is to examine the impact of different production systems (organic, integrated and conventional) on the synthesis and content of lycopene in tomatoes.All production systems include the established methodology that is used for the production of tomatoes in open field (block system). Within each type of production were included tomato hybrids Matias F1 and Sakura F1. The highest content of lycopene was recorded in the integrated production(6.05mg/100 g),and the lowestin conventional(5.88 mg/100g). The highest contentof lycopenehad ahybridSakuraF1from6.34to6.56 (mg/100g) depending on the mode of production

Animal welfare and meat quality: The perspective of Uruguay, a “small” exporter country

Public sensitivity towards animal welfare has risen in recent years. Uruguay is a primary meat exporter. Therefore, it is compulsory not only to provide good quality and safe meat, but also to project a welfare friendly image. Uruguayan meat production systems are mainly based on rangeland pastures but, due to international meat prices and the opening of new markets, intensive fattening systems increased. These systems include a wide range of feeding alternatives between pasture and concentrate utilization, involving differences in terms of animal welfare, carcass and meat quality, that require to be studied. Accordingly, some husbandry practices associated mainly with extensive systems must be evaluated, as well as their applicability to international recommendations related to pre-slaughter handling which may not be suitable for local conditions. In the present paper we share scientific results related to the impact of different production systems, husbandry practices and pre-slaughter procedures associated to animal welfare and meat quality in Uruguayan conditions.

Environmental impacts of the pork supply chain with regard to farm performance

SUMMARYLivestock production is increasingly facing consumer concern about the environmental impact of different production systems. In order to provide a detailed insight into the contribution of pork production, a life-cycle assessment (LCA) of average German pork production was performed. In this way, the global warming potential was estimated at 3·22 kg CO2-eq/kg pork, eutrophication at 23·3 g PO4-eq and acidification at 57·1 g SO2-eq. The functional unit was 1 kg pork as a slaughter weight. The analysis aimed at identifying those farm parameters which had most impact on the LCA results. For that purpose, a deterministic pig farm model was developed which reflected all the processes of a pig farm, while focusing on five distinct areas: general farm information, biological performance, basic feed data, manure management and resource use and emissions. In this way, it was possible to vary the level of performance parameters from farrowing (piglet losses and number of piglets born alive per litter) and finishing stage (lean-meat content, daily weight gain, animal losses and feed conversion ratio). The number of piglets born alive, the lean-meat content and the feed conversion ratio were identified as having the greatest influence on the results. In comparison with average pork production, the values of the impact categories increased and decreased by up to 4·7%. The results show that the fertility of sows and the feed management of finishers should be optimized to mitigate environmental impacts at pig farm level.

Mid-term financial impact of animal welfare improvements in Dutch broiler production

This study used a stochastic bioeconomic simulation model to simulate the business and financial risk of different broiler production systems over a 5-yr period. Simulation analysis was conducted using the @Risk add-in in MS Excel. To compare the impact of different production systems on economic feasibility, 2 cases were considered. The first case focused on the economic feasibility of a completely new system, whereas the second examined economic feasibilities when a farm switches from a conventional to an animal welfare-improving production system. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to assess the key drivers of economic feasibility and to reveal systematic differences across production systems. The study shows that economic feasibility of systems with improved animal welfare predominantly depends on the price that farmers receive. Moreover, the study demonstrates the importance of the level and variation of the price premium for improved welfare, particularly in the first 5 yr after conversion. The economic feasibility of the production system increases with the level of welfare improvements for a sufficiently high price level for broiler meat and low volatility in producer prices. If this is not the case, however, risk attitudes of farmers become important as well as the use of potential risk management instruments.