Livestock Output Research Articles

Metal Accumulation Properties of Eight Traditionally Utilized Nutritional Plants and Their Potential as Suitable Crops for Cultivation on Acidic Soils of the Northern Province Uíge, Angola

High metal contents of acidic soils from sub-Saharan Africa often prevent the cultivation of crops and lead to a low livestock yield. The carbohydrate rich diet of the Angolan population is low in minerals and vitamins, resulting in various deficiency syndromes and a high child mortality rate. Eight traditionally utilized plants (Anisophyllea quangensis, Annona stenophylla subsp. cuneata, Canarium schweinfurthii, Eugenia malangensis, Landolphia lanceolata, Raphionacme madiensis, Tristemma mauritianum, Vitex madiensis subsp. madiensis) with nutritional value for the Angolan population were analyzed for their soil and growing conditions. The species are adapted to the local conditions and can serve as crops for the unfavorable soils of the province Uíge. Chemical and physical characteristics of the uppermost soil (0–5 cm) and in 30 cm depth were analyzed. The plant-available macro-and micronutrients were determined using Mehlich 3 extraction. Data are completed with leaf tissue analyses, examining the uptake of minerals. As aluminum (Al) and manganese (Mn) are plant-available in high amounts, local plants evolved mechanisms dealing with those metals. These Al accumulators with foliar contents above 1000 mg/kg are Anisophyllea quangensis (7884 mg/kg), Landolphia lanceolata (6809 mg/kg), Tristemma mauritianum (4674 mg/kg), and Eugenia malangensis (13,989 mg/kg). All four species bear edible fruits with nutritional potential. The domestication and commercialization of those plants seem to be promising, utilizing local soils without expensive amelioration techniques.

Challenges of agricultural insurance development in Albania

Agricultural production is exposed to natural risks that cannot be prevented and lead not only to production losses but also to a decrease in farmers’ income.As a result of these risks, farmers often do not have the opportunity to pay their loans. Against risky borrowers, credit institutions refuse to give loans. Under these conditions, the government must intervene in risk management, trying to reduce these negative effects. The provision of agricultural products as one of the most important instruments for the financial support of this sector will be the focus of this paper. Agricultural insurance provides compensation for economic losses resulting from unfavorable natural phenomena, contributing to the reduction of poverty. Without adequate insurance, lenders would not provide farmers with insurance policies. Agricultural insurance is a tool that helps farmers to predict the future, to protect the business from unforeseen events, supply and demand fluctuations or various operational challenges. In the case of developing countries such as Albania, these markets are not developed. A main problem in the development of these markets is the lack of demand due to unaffordable prices for farmers. One of the biggest challenges of the agricultural insurance industry is not only providing the right insurance product, but also helping agricultural sector in improving risk management practices to increase production. As Hazell (2009) puts it, many agricultural risks cannot be insured on a financially sound basis, but there is scope for increased insurance of farm assets, of the life and health of rural people, and of some specific perils that affect crop and livestock yields. Such insurance could be efficiently provided by the private sector if governments were to remove some of the important constraints impinging on commercial insurers. The greatest challenge is to find ways of insuring low-income rural households against natural hazards on a financially sound basis.

Screening of Phytoconstituents from Curcuma longa, Piper nigrum and Murraya koenigii Methanolic Extracts, and In Vitro Efficacy of Their Combinations on Nematode Parasite (Ascaridia galli) of Gallus gallus domesticus

Plants are a natural gift from God to humans. They play a crucial role in maintaining the health of humans as well as the environment. Humans have used medicinal plants to cure a variety of diseases since ancient times, including skin disorders, gastrointestinal issues, respiratory issues, bacterial infections, viral diseases, and parasitic diseases, as they contain a variety of active components (phytoconstituents). Nematidiasis is a parasitic ailment in livestock animals and birds caused by nematode parasites that reduces livestock output. The current work examines the phytoconstituents found in methanolic extracts of Curcuma longa (rhizome), Piper nigrum (seed), and Murraya koenigii (leaf), as well as their interactions. Their extracts were tested in vitro against the parasitic worm Ascaridia galli from the host Gallus gallus domesticus. They contain significant phytoconstituents such as alkaloids, tannins, flavonoids, phenols, glycosides, steroids, and others. When their extracts were combined, they have a high level of action against parasites, indicating a synergetic effect. The amount of activity displayed was dosedependents. Researchers may find the findings useful in controlling nematode infection in farm animals and birds by combining these important natural plants as an alternative source of anthelmintics.

DIGITALIZATION IN AGRICULTURE: PROBLEMS OF IMPLEMENTATION

The relevance of the research topic is determined by the fact that at the present stage the targets of modern agricultural production are concluded in the need to increase the volume of output of livestock and crop production while maintaining quality. At the same time, this topic has a certain problem field, since the growth rate of output in the industry in question is impossible today without the use of advanced technologies. In this context, the leading role belongs to the digitalization of agriculture, since only through high-tech approaches at the present stage it is possible to ensure highly competitive work of agricultural enterprises.
 The purpose of the study is to analyze the problems of digitalization implementation in agriculture. In the process of writing the work, comparative, analytical methods were used, through which a number of publications and monographs of recent years were studied within the framework of the topic of this article.
 The results of the study should include the justification of the need to implement a number of measures including retraining and training of personnel, synchronization of existing production processes with innovative solutions, as well as to organize the necessary financing for the implementation of these measures. It was concluded that these measures will optimize the process of digitalization of the agricultural sector and increase the productivity of agricultural enterprises.

Problems of socio-economic development and ways to improve it for rural areas in Lviv region

For a long time the issue of socio-economic development of rural areas, which have their characteristics, has not lost its relevance but also is united by common unsolvable problems that restrict their development in Ukraine. The socio-economic decline of the village can not only reduce economic performance in agriculture but will also have a negative impact on depopulation, environmental deterioration, reduce the efficiency of natural resources, as well as the destruction of the cultural environment. The article presents the results of a study of the socio-economic situation in rural areas, analysis of economic and environmental indicators of the use of agricultural resources in the production of crop and livestock products in villages by different categories of producers. The publication provides information on the profitability of production in agricultural formations from 2010 to 2020. It has been established that the reason for the lack of growth in production in households is the irrational and economically unjustified use of resources and the lack of modern technologies. The publication also reveals the trends in the production output of livestock and crop production by different categories of producers. The indicators of production profitability were analyzed by agricultural enterprises during 2010-2020. The ways and means of improving the situation of using the natural resources by private agricultural enterprises, increasing economic indicators in the rural sector, and increasing production in agricultural enterprises are given. The results of the previous research show the possibilities and prospects for the implementation of the economic potential of rural areas based on the efficient and economically structured governance on the given territories. In addition, in modern realities, there may be an inflow to the mainstream of the investment climate due to the process of decentralization of the local government, receiving investment in the community, and, the increasing of the economy as a result. The research has shown that the development of social and economic infrastructure depends on investment activity.

Social Consideration in Product Life Cycle for Product Social Sustainability

Social life cycle assessment (S-LCA) is an emerging and pivotal tool for sustainability evaluation of products throughout their life cycle. Understanding deeply published papers helps to modify methods and identify research gaps. The aim of this study is to discover the existing gap in the S-LCA of products and to find the weaknesses of the approach. The method of performing the review was a narrative review where published papers from 2006 to 2020 were included through the use of the Web of Science and Scopus databases. S-LCA is considered to be relevant to a majority of sectors and processes (agricultural, industrial, technology, energy, and tourism). However, there is not sufficient research on evaluation of S-LCA on cereal crops and livestock output. It is indicated that, in the present S-LCA studies, there has been a lack of attention paid to the society and value chain actors and final consumer stakeholders. The elements of sexual harassment and employment relationships are not considered in SLCA studies. Italy has the largest amount of cases of S-LCA studies. The major challenges of applying S-LCA (by using site specific data) is data collection, which is time-consuming. It is recommended to evaluate a comprehensive sustainability assessment by adding cost of social assessment to LCA since there has been a lack of attention on assessment of cost in S-LCA.

Impact of the veterinary feed directive on Ohio cattle operations.

Widespread use of antibiotics in U.S. livestock operations has been identified as a potential contributor to the rising rates of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. In response, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued new rules in January 2017. GFI (Guide for Industry) #213 banned use of antibiotics for growth promotion and required veterinarian permission, via a revised Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD), to deliver antibiotics through feed. Many stakeholders expressed pre-implementation concerns regarding the rules' potential adverse effects on production and profitability. Our study employed qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate how implementation of GFI #213/VFD impacted Ohio cattle operations. We interviewed over fifty cattle farmers and eight large animal veterinarians to document changes in farm antibiotic use, management practices, and profitability. We also examined published government data for possible effects on overall meat production at the state and national levels. We found that the great majority of Ohio farmers reported little difficulty in complying with the VFD with minimal adverse impacts. Farm responses to the feed directive varied with operation size, type (beef or dairy), and whether producers had previously used fed antibiotics. The most commonly reported changes, by both producers and veterinarians, were more veterinary-client interactions, more paperwork/record-keeping, and decreased use of fed antibiotics. All veterinarians, many beef operators, but no dairy operators reported perceiving the VFD as beneficial; however, dairy operations reported less difficulty with compliance due to established working relationships with veterinarians. We found no evidence that the rules impacted the trajectory of state or national livestock output. In conclusion, GFI #213 was reported as not burdensome enough to prevent compliance, but inconvenient enough to incentivize reduced use of fed antibiotics (when previously used) without significant adverse effects, consistent with its goal of promoting judicious use of medically important antibiotics in order to preserve their effectiveness.

Resilience of Milk Supply Chains during and after the COVID-19 Crisis in Latvia

Abstract The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on national economies are characterized as the worst economic turmoil in recent years, as economic growth slowed to the level of the 2008 global financial crisis. At the end of 2019 and the beginning of 2020, economic growth surveys did not project that the novel virus could have a negative impact on economic growth. As a result of the rapid spread of the virus and the increase in the number of infection cases, national governments took strict measures to limit the spread of the virus, which led to a significant deterioration in the economic situation in all industries of the economy. Agriculture plays an important role in providing food to the country’s population, yet the pandemic made a negative impact on sales volumes and prices in the domestic and international markets. The research aims to assess the impacts of the pandemic on milk supply chains in Latvia and come up with solutions to stabilizing the situation in the dairy sector. The national restrictions to combat the pandemic also hampered the dairy sector concerning the sale of raw milk and finished products in foreign markets, thereby leading to overproduction and stockpiling of the finished products, price dumping and a significant decrease in milk purchase prices to or below the production cost level for many dairy farms. Although there is no indication that the pandemic would lead to a decrease in the numbers of livestock and farms or output in early 2021, it is too early to assess the overall impact of the pandemic on dairy farming, as uncertainty over the duration of pandemic restrictions is a major risk to farm survival. The operation of the dairy sector was stabilized by means of the support provided by the government, as well as the farms’ accumulated financial and feed resources. In order to identify future challenges for milk supply chains, the research performed an analysis of operational risks for milk producers and processors to identify the most important risks and design recommendations for their elimination. The longer there is uncertainty about the return of the dairy sector to pre-pandemic output levels, the more likely it is that the pandemic is going to lead to a decrease in the numbers of dairy livestock and farms.

EROSION PROCESS AND ITS IMPACT ON AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY IN ITS INTENSIVE DEVELOPMENT IN THE TERRITORIAL LAND OF MASALLI DISTRICT

The article presents the general characteristics of geological, geomorphological and orographic structures of soil-forming species, hydrographic network, climatic conditions, climatic factors, plant cover, plant cover. The total area of ??the district is 72097 hectares, of which 33.07% have a slope of the surface, which ranges from 1 to 350 Wrong use of steep slopes, unsystematic cutting of forest, unregulated output of livestock and economic activity play a major role in the spread and development of erosion processes in the territory of Masallin district.

Prediction of Food Production Using Machine Learning Algorithms of Multilayer Perceptron and ANFIS

Advancing models for accurate estimation of food production is essential for policymaking and managing national plans of action for food security. This research proposes two machine learning models for the prediction of food production. The adaptive network-based fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) and multilayer perceptron (MLP) methods are used to advance the prediction models. In the present study, two variables of livestock production and agricultural production were considered as the source of food production. Three variables were used to evaluate livestock production, namely livestock yield, live animals, and animal slaughtered, and two variables were used to assess agricultural production, namely agricultural production yields and losses. Iran was selected as the case study of the current study. Therefore, time-series data related to livestock and agricultural productions in Iran from 1961 to 2017 have been collected from the FAOSTAT database. First, 70% of this data was used to train ANFIS and MLP, and the remaining 30% of the data was used to test the models. The results disclosed that the ANFIS model with generalized bell-shaped (Gbell) built-in membership functions has the lowest error level in predicting food production. The findings of this study provide a suitable tool for policymakers who can use this model and predict the future of food production to provide a proper plan for the future of food security and food supply for the next generations.

The contribution of livestock to household livelihoods in Tanzania and Uganda: measuring tradable and non-tradable livestock outputs

Livestock is estimated to contribute to the livelihoods of about 60 percent of rural households in developing countries, including many poor. Measuring the exact extent of such contribution is however challenging, because of significant data gaps. This paper develops and applies a methodology to assess the contribution of livestock to household livelihoods, which allows measuring both tradable and non-tradable or marginally tradable livestock outputs. It implements it using data from Living Standards Measurement Studies (LSMS) in Uganda and Tanzania, which include a comprehensive livestock module, as well as data from ad hoc surveys implemented by the ministries in charge of livestock in both countries. Results suggest that non-tradable and marginally traded livestock outputs represent about half of the contribution of livestock to household livelihoods.

EMISSION OF CARBON WARMING THE CLIMATIC CHANGE ADVERSELY AFFECTS THE LIVESTOCK SECTOR: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY OF PAKISTAN

Purpose: The paper explores how livestock reveals the warming climatic variations particularly in farming and poultry sub-sectors of agriculture. The rising average temperature of the region has been a challenge during the last two decades which has created many complications and health problems in animals as stress, low reproduction, its consequence as draught, adverse effects on milk and meat production. More consumption of water increases the cost of livestock products. It has altered the temperature of the sea and rivers, emerges the negative effects on the species and creatures of water.
 Methodology: To conduct the empirical study on this economic issue the data has been assumed from 1980 to 2014 due to constraints of statistics. Auto-Regressive Distributive Lag model to cointegration (ARDL) was applied on the time series data and the other econometric tests as Error Correction Mechanism, Cumulative sum of Recursive Residual CUSUM and CUSUM sum of Square Test, Bound Test and Diagnostic tests were operated to conclude the results of the research study.
 Main findings: The finding of the study is that CO2emission from electricity, gases fuel consumption, and urban population growth raised the average temperature of the region which is discouraging the livestock. Production and increasing the costs of livestock output.
 Application of the study: The study is the most appropriate and applicable for this subcontinent especially for Pakistan. 
 Originality and novelty of the study: The research study contributes to the agricultural economics literature with advanced information. It suggests the government utilize the planet Badar-1 climatic information and more advanced technology about temperature to formulate comprehensive policies to combat the climatic and environmental changes and more resources are allocated so that international standard of production of livestock can be achieved.

Prediction of Food Production Using Machine Learning Algorithms of Multilayer Perceptron and ANFIS

Advancing models for accurate estimation of food production is essential for policymaking and managing national plans of action for food security. This research proposes two machine learning models for the prediction of food production. The adaptive network-based fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) and multilayer perceptron (MLP) methods are used to advance the prediction models. In the present study, two variables of livestock production and agricultural production were considered as the source of food production. Three variables were used to evaluate livestock production, namely livestock yield, live animals, and animal slaughtered, and two variables were used to assess agricultural production, namely agricultural production yields and losses. Iran was selected as the case study of the current study. Therefore, time-series data related to livestock and agricultural productions in Iran from 1961 to 2017 have been collected from the FAOSTAT database. First, 70% of this data was used to train ANFIS and MLP, and the remaining 30% of the data was used to test the models. The results disclosed that the ANFIS model with Generalized bell-shaped (Gbell) built-in membership functions has the lowest error level in predicting food production. The findings of this study provide a suitable tool for policymakers who can use this model and predict the future of food production to provide a proper plan for the future of food security and food supply for the next generations.

Evaluation of A Rapid Visual Pregnancy (Bio- RPD) test for detection of Pregnancy Specific Protein B (PSPB) in Cow Serum

The early pregnancy diagnosis allows optimizing production and timely management correction, with a greater reproductive output of livestock. The BioPRYN Rapid Visual Pregnancy Test® from Bio tracking USA consists of an ELISA for visual reading which does not require the use of readers in the laboratory, with satisfactory pregnancy diagnoses at 28 days of pregnancy in heifers and 30 days in cows. Therefore, the aim of this study is to determine the accuracy of this rapid test (Bio-RPD) based on visual observation of color change and Optical Density (OD) using BioPRYN Flex ELISA. For this purpose, 92 serum samples from cows were tested. The numbers of positive pregnant samples obtained with Biorapid (Bio-RPD) were 63 (68.5 %) while with BioPRYN Flex ELISA was 66 (71.7%). The numbers of negative not pregnant samples were 25 (27.2%) with Bio-RPD while they were 26 (28.2%0) with BioPRYN ELISA. Three samples were recorded as recheck with Bio-RPD and they were pregnant with BioPRYN Flex. Only one sample was identified as pregnant by Bio-RPD (1.1%) while it is not pregnant by BioPRYN Flex ELISA (false positive). Test results were showing that accuracy of the BioPRYN Visual Pregnancy test kit with sensitivity of 99% compared to BioPRYN ELISA Pregnancy test kit. In conclusion, we recommend that the Bio-RPD visual test could be used as a rapid accurate tool for pregnancy diagnosis on farms which has no laboratory ELISA equipment or trans rectal ultrasonography.

An overview on integrated farming system

In terms of geography and time, Integrated Farming Systems (IFS) and methods of thinking about them have developed. Crop and livestock outputs rose in the past two decades, bringing with them worries about their socio-economic and ecological tradeoffs. A solution to issues emerging from a primarily reductionist approach to research and a cornucopian perspective of external inputs was the application of farming systems research (FSR) to agricultural development. Modern technology was either unwelcomed or resulted in unintended negative consequences. This article examines FSR definitions and forms, as well as the necessity for change in agricultural development thought. The use of thermodynamic theory (TDT) in the study of agricultural systems has an impact on debates between cornucopians and environmentalists, as well as between reductionist and holistic research methods. There is a need to identify context (technology appropriateness), pay greater attention to relationships within systems (system dynamics), and define sustainability standards. The article connects biophysical and socioeconomic processes, provides a physical context for anthropomorphic waste ideas, and compares and contrasts objectivism and constructivism. It is claimed that FSR can only progress if all of these problems are taken into account when thinking about IFS development. Because of the complexity of reality, scientists should think more thoroughly about the best approach for lifting people out of poverty. Replicas of the well-known Bangladesh Grameen Bank micro-credit initiatives conducted throughout Asia indicate that there is ideal developments for farm families in the subcontinent to which even the impoverished aspire. Poor women invest in little animals as a result of this experience, and the household gradually rises out of poverty. Research on local resources to meet the needs of these individuals is a huge and unmet issue.

Impact of Conventional Cattle Farming Systems on Farmer Awareness, Livestock Output and Household Income

Cattle was introduced in Papua a long time ago. However, it was unpredictable to adapt to raise cattle.An explorative field study was performed in fifteen villages using participatory research to betterunderstand the dynamics of cattle performances. Cattle farming system has been categorized in threetypes, i.e. small- and medium-sized systems. They used ANOVA and Kruskal-Wallis to analyze data. Thefinding of this research was that the three sizes of cattle farming in many components of good farmingpractices were similar (p>0.05). No large gap was found along the lines of farmers, cattle, and economicperformance. West New Guinea’s Tropical Livestock Unit was low and has the potential to increase dueto agribusiness potential. Better government services and other related stakeholders should narrow thelack of good agricultural practices.

Increasingly uneven intra-seasonal distribution of daily and hourly precipitation over Eastern China

It has been long appreciated that precipitation falls unevenly in time, but the degree of unevenness and its changes with warming have been seldomly quantified. These quantifications, however, matter to various sectors (e.g. crop and livestock yields) for addressing evolutionary hydro-meteorological hazards. Using gauge observations at hourly- and daily-resolution, precipitation unevenness is measured by the number of wettest days/hours for half of seasonal precipitation totals over Eastern China, a major breadbasket vulnerable to precipitation volatility intra-seasonally. Across the region, half of seasonal totals needs only 11 d or even more unexpectedly just 44 h to precipitate. During 1970–2017, though seasonal precipitation amount changed little, the intra-seasonal distribution of precipitation, in both frequency and amount, has been getting significantly more uneven, with more widespread and faster changes manifesting in hourly records. The regional-scale unevenness increase is unlikely modulated by internal variability alone, suggesting detectable contributions from anthropogenic climate change. The increased unevenness has led to significant lengthening of the longest dry spells, exposing the region to a more volatile precipitation mode—burstier-but-wetter storms with prolonged droughts in-between.

Influence of Energy-Saving Systems Using Natural Cold on the Energy Intensity of the Milk Cooling Process

Reduction of energy consumption in technological processes of cooling and storage milk on farms is urgent task.(Research purpose) The research purpose is in reducing the energy intensity of the milk cooling process on farms while maintaining its quality.(Materials and methods) The authors conducted research to improve existing and create new smart combined cooling systems based on the rational use of natural and artificial cold sources with means of its accumulation and environmentally friendly coolants with low freezing point.(Results and discussion) The authors have found the dependence of the amount of energy that can be used for cooling and storage of milk and dispersed into the environment on the potential of natural cold of the area and the location of the technological object. The article presents a methodology for assessing the potential of natural cold for different regions of Russia. According to the methodology, authors calculated the values of the ice storage capacities for dairy farms with different livestock and annual milk yield. The article presents the diagram of electric energy savings when using natural cold to cooling milk on farms of 400 heads with a yield of 5000 liters in different climatic regions of Russia. Significant energy savings can be obtained through the use of combined accumulators of natural and artificial cold using environmentally friendly coolants with low freezing point and ground ice storage, in which the freezing of soil and water is carried out due to the ground cooling thermal installation with twophase thermosyphons.(Conclusions) The use of smart combined milk cooling systems on farms on the basis of sources of natural and artificial cold with means of its accumulation and environmentally friendly coolants with low freezing point allows to reduce energy consumption in 1.5-3 times at preservation of its quality. At the same time, such systems in various configurations can be effectively used in all agroclimatic regions of the country.

Supply and Demand Levels for Livestock and Poultry Products in the Chinese Mainland and the Potential Demand for Feed Grains

The widening gap between the supply and demand levels for livestock and poultry products in the Chinese mainland poses a significant challenge to the secure supply of feed grains. Therefore, the accurate prediction of the demand potential for feed grains represents a key scientific issue for ensuring food security in the Chinese mainland. This study is based on an analysis of several factors, such as the Chinese mainland's output, trade volume, apparent consumption of livestock and poultry products, and two different scenarios for predicting the future demand for feed grains are assessed. The results indicate that output and consumption of livestock and poultry products, as well as the country's trade deficit and the pressure of the supply and demand balance with respect to these products, have been increasing in recent years. The analysis predicts that the demand for feed grains in the Chinese mainland will reach 425.5 or 389.6 million tons in 2030 based on the two scenarios. This finding indicates that with the increasing demand for livestock and poultry products in the Chinese mainland, the demand for feed grains will continue to increase, and the shortfall in feed grains and raw materials will expand further, especially dependence on external sources of protein-rich feed grains will remain high.

Характер успадкування селекційних ознак і реалізація потенційної продуктивності кролів полтавське срібло

Goal. To find out the nature of inheritance of selection attributes and the level of realization of the potential productivity of rabbits of breed Poltavske sriblo. Methods. The study was conducted based on the research rabbit farm of Cherkasy research station of bioresources of NAAS on the livestock of rabbits of breed Poltavske sriblo. To achieve the goal group of animals was formed and analyzed in terms of several generations. Results. The data indicate that for pure breeding, because of the small variability of the studied signs, a probable correlation was fixed in values of the width of the loin (r=0.26; P>0.99). The analysis of the index of the phenotypic correlation between selection attributes in the output of livestock and progeny indicates a direct or inverse relationship between the signs (– 0.10...0.10, P0.99–0.999). For the rest of the studied indicators ratios have been established, which amounted to 0.19 and 0.27, but they were not statistically significant (P0.99–0.999), which provides the prerequisites for further breeding activities to enhance meat productivity.