Reduce Nutrient Losses Research Articles

Optimization of microwave-assisted extraction of bajra milk using response surface methodology

Millets, especially bajra, are known for their ability to thrive in harsh climates and resist pests. Bajra contains high nutritional values, including a high level of protein, fiber and essential minerals like iron, zinc, calcium and magnesium. Plant-based beverages such as bajra milk are becoming more popular as lactose-free, nutritious alternatives to dairy milk. Bajra milk is rich in antioxidants, phenolic acids and flavonoids, offering health benefits such as improved heart health, diabetes control and immune system support. Microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) has proven to be an energy-efficient and a sustainable technique for producing plant-based milks like bajra milk. Compared to conventional methods, MAE reduces nutrient loss, speeds up the process and improves the protein content, viscosity and sensory acceptability. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the extraction processes, identifying ideal conditions of soaking time of 16 h, microwave time of 1.5 min and a temperature of 85 ?C. Under these parameters, the extraction yield was 70.23 %, with a protein content of 5.57 g/100 ml and an overall acceptability rating of 7.2. The aim of this present study is to use the RSM tool to optimize the microwave-assisted extraction of bajra milk and compare the physicochemical and nutritional properties of the conventional method and MAE, MAE bajra milk as a cost effective, ecofriendly solution for large scale plant-based milk production positioning bajra as a valuable alternative.

Impact of Reducing Food Loss and Waste on Sustainable Food Systems

Impact of Reducing Food Loss and Waste on Sustainable Food Systems

Monitoring Perishable Commodities Using Cellular IoT: An Intelligent Real-Time Conditions Tracker Design

Perishable product losses can occur throughout postharvest handling. Proper monitoring of key environmental conditions during this period is essential for predicting quality losses throughout their shelf life. This paper presents the design and testing of a portable and compact datalogger for the real-time monitoring of environmental conditions throughout the food supply chain. The device developed incorporates high-precision sensors to measure temperature, relative humidity, CO2 concentration, luminosity and vibrations, as well as wireless communication capabilities for data transmission, simplifying real-time monitoring over existing multi-component systems while keeping costs affordable. Strategies to optimize power consumption allow a month of battery life, being able to cover entire periods of transport and storage, according to the results of the autonomy test performed on the device. The datalogger uses NB-IoT and relies on other wireless communication protocols if not available to send sensor data to a cloud platform. Comparative testing with commercial dataloggers has been carried out to verify correct device measurements, and field testing has validated successful real-time data transmission along an entire refrigerated transport route. The functionality and autonomy of the proposed device meet the needs of live remote monitoring to help reduce food losses.

Waste, the real villain: a comprehensive analysis and prospective perspective on food loss and waste in China

IntroductionOne of the best ways to ensure food security is to reduce Food Loss and Waste (FLW). However, China still confronts numerous obstacles in food loss and waste study because of the intricate industrial chain, the wide range of accounting standards, and a lack of data, among other reasons.MethodsUsing the literature analysis method, 119 literatures were collected and analyzed to examine the current status of FLW in China at various stages after food production and throughout the life cycle from the perspectives of time series and research areas.ResultsThe study indicates that the rates of FLW in China have been higher than 20% in recent years and are still increasing. Among them, the highest FLW rates were found in the harvesting stage (3–6%), storage stage (8–10%) and consumption stage (10–17%). In addition, FLW results in a huge waste of resource endowments.DiscussionThe environment and resources are profoundly affected by these substantial food losses and wastes, leading to unnecessary depletion of resources. As China’s focus on food loss and waste intensifies, an increasing number of academics are expected to delve into this area, exploring dimensions such as ecological footprint assessment, innovative uses for food waste, and gathering primary data.

Pennycress reduces potential for nutrient loss in Illinois.

Nutrient export of nitrogen and phosphorus from row crop agriculture in the Upper US Midwest is a threat to the structure and function of aquatic systems. To meet Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) nutrient reduction goals, the Upper US Midwest needs to implement strategies to reduce nutrient export from agriculture. Studies demonstrate the potential of cover crops to reduce the export of nitrate-nitrogen from the Upper US Midwest. We investigated the impact of the economically viable winter cash cover crop pennycress (Thlaspi arvense) on soil porewater nutrients and soil nutrients and characteristics. We used nine replicated 0.8ha plots (n=3 per treatment) at a production scale research farm over 4 years with pennycress and fertilized pennycress (56kg ha-1 of urea) treatments compared to a fallow reference. Over the study period, soil porewater nitrate-nitrogen was reduced by 53% in pennycress plots and 34% in fertilized pennycress plots relative to the fallow reference at a depth of 45cm. Early season establishment was crucial in providing nutrient reduction potential. In 2021, poor pennycress establishment resulted in porewater nitrate-nitrogen concentrations 141% higher than in 2022 with excellent pennycress establishment. Following pennycress termination, soil nitrate-nitrogen was reduced by 24% in pennycress and 26% in fertilized pennycress compared to the fallow reference in the top 30cm of soil. Following 4 years of pennycress planting, nitrate-nitrogen concentrations were significantly reduced with no broad effect on soil characteristics. We conclude that the novel pennycress crop has potential to reduce nutrient loss from row crop agriculture in the Upper US Midwest.

Perspectives on Evaluation of Food Banks

Food banks have played an important role in reducing food loss and waste and improving the food insecurity of vulnerable people. This study aimed to carry out a systematic review of food bank evaluation studies and bring new perspectives for future research and decision-making. Ninety-three articles were selected and analyzed from a search on the Web of Science and ScienceDirect platforms. Bibliometric analyses and analyses of the evaluation methodologies were performed. The bibliometric results present the evolution of the studies over the period considered (1994–2024) and indicate how peaks of growth in the number of studies may be related to external events. Both the authors and studied organizations are located mainly in high-income countries. The main aspects considered in the evaluation methodologies are related to the dimensions of short-term impacts and results, indicating less interest in the dimension related to internal processes and activities. This study provides important support for researchers and decision-makers: in addition to presenting, in each dimension of the evaluation, the main indicators used, it raises the questions of the extent to which evaluation studies reflect the reality and context of a given country or region and the extent to which they reflect the management processes of food banks.

Production losses in Russian agriculture: Impact on food security and environmental sustainability

This paper provides a quantitative assessment of the impact of losses on specific aspects of food security and environmental sustainability. The lack of full information on the benefits of food loss reduction destimulates developing appropriate effective measures at the public level and in the private sector. The study covers losses generated at the initial stages of the food supply chain, including agricultural production and primary processing. Methodological assessments are based on works of foreign authors, recommendations of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and domestic methodological developments in this area. The results indicate that at the primary stages of the food supply chain, food losses generate a relatively small amount of greenhouse gas emissions, so their reduction in order to lower the carbon footprint is not as effective as at the stage of retail and household consumption. However, preventing losses in agriculture contributes to the creation of additional volumes of food, which can be directed to the consumption of vulnerable groups of population. At the same time, the consequences of loss reduction vary greatly depending on the type of product

Field trial guidelines for evaluating enhanced efficiency fertilizers

AbstractThere are many fertilizer additives and alternatives that aim to increase plant nutrient use efficiency and reduce nutrient losses to the environment, here referred to collectively as enhanced efficiency fertilizers (EEFs). However, there is often insufficient published scientific field trial results across a variety of locations, climates, soils, cropping systems, and management scenarios to prove their efficacy and conditions for use. Guidelines for common minimum datasets and data stewardship in evaluating the agronomic performance and environmental impact of EEFs are needed for researchers to follow. Such guidelines will improve hypothesis testing centered on product efficacy and provide producers with guidance on how these technologies function and perform when integrated with other management practices within the 4R Nutrient Stewardship Framework. A scientific committee was formed to develop a set of protocol guidelines for evaluating EEFs in replicated, plot‐based field trials on an international scale. The guidelines are composed of experimental design and core metadata, crop and soil analyses, environmental loss measurements, and data stewardship, and include both recommended and required components to allow for flexibility and adaptability depending on the trial location, objectives, infrastructure capacity, product type, and depth of understanding of the potential EEF efficacy. This approach will ensure consistency and compatibility in experimental design and data collection to support data integration, analysis, and reuse leading to large‐scale impact and end‐user confidence.

FreshSense: Transforming Supply Chains with Low-Cost and Dynamic Food Quality Sensing at the Pallet-Level

Food wastage is a pervasive issue that affects millions of people worldwide. Approximately 40% of produced food goes to waste after harvest[1], while 10% of the world's population goes to bed hungry each night[2]. The food industry is also known to have some of the highest emissions, and the environmental impact from produce that gets wasted post-harvest is a significant overhead to the industry's carbon footprint. On these accounts, there is an imminent need to detect and reduce food loss. In an effort to reduce such loss, in this work, we ask the question: Can we use wireless technology to track the change in food quality and nutrition, post-harvest, as it travels through the global supply chain? Current methods for monitoring food quality are sparse and prone to manual error. Literature shows that moisture content in produce is a good proxy for quality and nutritionnutrition[3,12]. However, the inability to accurately and efficiently track moisture content at scale leads to substantial loss. To address this challenge, we propose FreshSense, a novel wireless sensing system that enables real-time, non-invasive monitoring of moisture content in produce as it moves through the supply chain.

Optimization of Manure-Based Substrate Preparation to Reduce Nutrients Losses and Improve Quality for Growth of Agaricus bisporus

With the growing world population, food demand has also increased, resulting in increased agricultural waste and livestock manure production. Wheat straw and cow dung are rich nutrient sources and, if not utilized properly, may lead to environmental pollution. Keeping in view the cultivation of Agaricus bisporus on straw/manure-based substrate, the current study aimed to optimize the conventional manure preparation technique to reduce nutrient losses and keep the quality of manure at its best. The treatments were considered as traditional and optimized schemes for mushroom substrate preparation. The results achieved herein indicated that the nutrient losses were low in the optimum scheme. For carbon (C), the loss was 43.55% at the substrate stage in the traditional scheme and reduced to 37.75% in the optimum scheme. In the case of nitrogen (N), the loss was 22.01% in the traditional scheme and was lower (18.49%) in the optimum scheme. The nutrient concentration in Agaricus bisporus was higher with the optimum scheme compared with the traditional scheme. It was 1.74% for C, 7.17% for N, 3.58% for phosphorus (P), and 4.92% for potassium (K). The optimum scheme also improved the Agaricus bisporus yield per unit area (84.55%) and the total yield (28.92%). The net income of the optimum scheme was 102.95% higher compared to the traditional scheme. The economic analysis also revealed that the benefit–cost ratio of the optimum scheme was high (48.86%) compared with the traditional scheme. This study concludes that the use of the optimum scheme can better utilize the wheat straw and cow manure waste for substrate preparation and reducing nutrient losses. In addition, the final mushroom residue can also be used as a leftover substrate for further utilization.

A Holistic Framework for Evaluating Food Loss and Waste Due to Marketing Standards across the Entire Food Supply Chain.

This paper addresses the critical and urgent need to reduce food losses and waste (FLW) resulting from stringent marketing standards. It proposes a comprehensive and actionable framework grounded in the three pillars of sustainability-environmental, economic, and social-to effectively evaluate FLW across the entire food supply chain. The paper involves a thorough review of existing marketing standards, including research on FLW due to marketing standards, and proposes the implementation of targeted key actions within four key food sectors: fruits, vegetables, dairy, and cereals. The study provides a detailed analysis of the significant impact marketing standards have on FLW at various stages of the supply chain, including primary production, processing, retail, and consumption. By focusing on these critical points, the research underscores the necessity of addressing marketing standards to achieve meaningful reductions in FLW. The proposed framework aims to foster improved business practices and drive the development of innovative, sector-specific solutions that balance sustainability goals with economic viability. The holistic approach followed for this research lays the foundation for ensuring that the proposed framework is adaptable and practical, leading to measurable improvements in reducing FLW and promoting sustainability across the food industry.

Copper nano metal-organic framework paper-based sensor for dual optical detection of biogenic amines to evaluate the food freshness

The improvement of food safety and the reduction of food loss and waste require the development of new bioanalytical tools that provide chemical information about the composition of food that is of great value for improving traceability and extending the shelf life of food. Herein, a Cu-based metal-organic framework has been synthesized and immobilized onto cellulose paper disks for colorimetric and fluorescent detection and quantification of biogenic amines in food. The color of the nano metal-organic framework changes from green to brown in the presence of low amounts of biogenic amine vapors. Also, the fluorescence emission of the nano metal-organic framework greatly decreases after exposing the cellulose disks to amine vapors. The developed sensing paper disk exhibits a quick response to the presence of volatile biogenic amines, very low detection limits, and great selectivity. Also, the paper sensor was used for real-time monitoring of biogenic amines in bass samples at different temperature conditions, being a highly valuable method for evaluating food freshness and safeguarding food safety.

Role of nanomaterials in modern agriculture

Agriculture is a foundation of several emerging countries, and it is one of the most economically significant drivers. Farmers, consumers, and the environment are all at risk as a result of the increased usage of mineral fertilizers and harmful pesticides. Over the last few years, substantial research into the application of Nanotechnology to boost agricultural productivity has been undertaken. Nanoparticles (NPs) have been discovered to be beneficial as nanopesticides, nanobiosensor, nanofertilizers, and nanoremediation in agrifood production. Nutrients, pesticides, fungicides, and herbicides are compacted with a variety of NPs to facilitate the progressive release of fertilisers and pesticides, resulting in exact dose accessibility to plants. Nanofertilizers improve nutrient utilization, reduce nutrient deficiencies, reduce soil toxicity, and lessen the negative consequences of overdosing, all while reducing treatment frequency. Nanoformulations are used in agriculture to boost germination of seed, reduce nutrient losses in fertilization, reduce the amount of pesticides dispersed, aid water and nutrient management, and. This review also discusses various challenges and concerns about pesticide product development, formulation, and toxicity for ecologically friendly and sustainable agriculture.

Climate smart agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa: Role of arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi

Climate change affects many areas of human lives, including agriculture. Interestingly, agriculture contributes to climate change, necessitating climate smart approaches to ensure a win-win situation; wherein agricultural production is sustainable and meets current and future needs. Climate smart agriculture is a collection of agricultural practices that increase productivity, adaptation, and mitigation of climate change contribution to agriculture. While many global regions depend on agriculture directly and indirectly, the sub-Saharan Africa region is directly dependent on agriculture. Existing “climate smart” activities in this region must be better defined and strengthened to achieve its objectives – increasing agricultural productivity, adapting agricultural systems, and mitigating emissions from agricultural activities. Among these climate smart activities are the significance of soil microorganisms, particularly arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in sustainable agricultural systems, where they provide limited plant nutrients, control pests and diseases, aid drought adaptation, improve soil structure, reduce nutrient loss during leaching, leading to sustainable soil management.

Building a physics-based virtual refrigerated container filled with fruit in ventilated packaging

We build a validated physics-based model of a refrigerated container filled with fruit in ventilated packaging. This model of a virtual container is the basis for simulations in an accompanying paper on citrus fruit shipped overseas from South Africa to Europe. The model is used to understand better how the cargo cools and when and where food quality is lost in these supply chains. We build a computational fluid dynamics model with a two-phase porous media approach that simulates the airflow in the container and the cooling process of every fruit. This container can be considered aerodynamically to be a slot-ventilated enclosure. We also model the fruit's thermally-driven quality loss. Using a two-phase porous media approach for the ventilated cargo and modeling temperature-driven fruit quality evolution are two steps forward compared to most existing physics-based refrigerated container models. We validate the porous media model implementation. We define and apply actionable metrics for every fruit inside the cargo, such as remaining shelf life upon arrival and seven-eighths cooling time.•This model can help reduce food loss and increase supply-chain resilience.•This model is an essential building block of a refrigerated container’s digital twin.•This model can support stakeholders in improving cargo temperature control and resulting fruit quality preservation.

Integrated modelling of fertilizer and climate change scenario impacts on agricultural production and nitrogen losses in Austria

The European Commission's Farm to Fork strategy aims at reducing nutrient losses and fertilizer use, but has been criticized for its expected negative impacts on European economy, agriculture, and food supply. We apply an integrated modelling framework to analyze potential effects of fertilizer reductions on land use, nitrogen losses, and agricultural output of two fertilizer and four climate change scenarios. The fertilizer scenarios comprise a uniform 20 % reduction of mineral N fertilizer (f20) and a combination of several fertilizer restrictions (fcm). The model results indicate that the restrictions in fertilization lead to decreases in crop production of 6 to 9 %, whereas intensive and extensive grassland production increases. N losses to air, water, and soil are substantially reduced by 9 % (f20) and 20 % (fcm), yet fall short of the intended 50 % reduction. The regional heterogeneity of the model results shows that tailored measures need to be elaborated by taking climate change developments, the regional heterogeneity of prevalent farming systems, and bio-physical conditions into account. Uniform measures applied to the national policy context fall short to attain policy targets cost-effectively. N emission capping, taxes or managerial measures such as crop rotational N balancing are options to be explored in future research.

The Impact of Integrated Weed Management Practices on Nutrient Uptake in Rice (Oryza sativa L.)

The study investigated the impact of integrated weed management practices on nutrient uptake in rice (Oryza sativa L.) and weeds at 90 days after transplanting (DAT) over the 2022 and 2023 growing seasons at the Crop Research Centre (CRC) farm of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel University of Agriculture and Technology, Meerut. Various weed control strategies, including the application of pre-emergence and post-emergence herbicides combined with manual weeding, were evaluated for their effectiveness in enhancing the uptake of essential nutrients such as nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) by rice, while also reducing nutrient loss to weeds. Among the strategies tested, the combination of Pyrazosulfuron at 150 g active ingredient per hectare (a.i. ha⁻¹) as a pre-emergence herbicide and Penoxsulam at 22 g a.i. ha⁻¹ as a post-emergence herbicide, supplemented with one manual weeding at 40 DAT, proved to be the most effective. This approach resulted in the highest nutrient uptake by rice and the lowest nutrient uptake by weeds. In this treatment, nitrogen uptake in the rice grains reached 62.7 kg per hectare in 2022 and 67.4 kg per hectare in 2023, significantly outperforming other treatments. The weed-free treatment, which involved complete weed eradication, also demonstrated high nutrient absorption, highlighting the importance of thorough weed control for optimal rice growth. Conversely, the untreated weedy check, where no weed control was implemented, led to the highest nutrient uptake by weeds, severely limiting the availability of nutrients for the rice crop. Manual weeding alone, without the use of herbicides, showed moderate effectiveness but was less efficient compared to the integrated approach combining herbicides and hand weeding.

Analysis of the regulations concerning circular economy and its relationship to the reduction of food loss and waste on an international level: A review

The term food loss and waste (FLW) refers to discarded food during the different stages of the food chain. Food loss occurs during the initial stages of the food chain, and food waste occurs during the final stages. The relation between FLW and circular economy (CE) is particularly important for countries which are beginning to implement actions or regulations on this topic. These proposals may have an impact in strategic sectors of their economy. The objective of this review document was to analyse the regulations of FLW and CE in some countries located throughout the European Union, Asia, Africa and Latin America. To fulfil this objective, FLW and CE regulations were identified and analysed in 12 countries located in the aforementioned regions. The analysis showed that France, Spain, Japan and Uruguay included objectives related to FLW in their CE legislations focusing on food waste reduction, whereas China, Chile, Argentina and Mexico did not include FLW in their CE legislations. African countries did not have CE legislations in place yet. France and Japan have had more success in the reduction of FLW. In conclusion, CE regulation should include FLW regulation to achieve more efficiency at reducing and reusing these residues.

DEVELOPMENT POP-UP BOOK: A LEARNING MEDIA TO REDUCE FOOD LOSS AND FOOD WASTE IN JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

The development of interesting learning media needs to be done to attract students' interest. Food loss and food waste are quite serious problems because the effects of food loss and food waste are very detrimental to humans. One of the learning media that can be developed as an educational effort related to the problem of food waste and food loss, namely pop-up books. The purpose of this study was to determine the results of the validity, effectiveness, and practicality of pop-up books to train students to reduce food loss and food waste. The research design used research and design (R&D). The participants in this study were class VII in one of the Surabaya city junior high schools in the Even Semester 2021/2022. The instruments used in the study, namely: feasibility test instruments for media experts, media feasibility test instruments for material experts, food loss and food waste literacy questions, and response questionnaires. Data collection techniques, namely: written tests, observations and surveys with paper & pencil. Data analysis techniques for validity use a Likert scale by finding the average, effectiveness is analyzed using Normalized change, and practicality is analyzed using a response questionnaire by finding the percentage of each indicator. The results of this study, material expert validators obtained a percentage of 90% and media expert validators obtained a percentage of 93%. The effectiveness of this media obtained a score of <c> = 0.67 with the interpretation of moderate improvement. The practicality of this media obtained a percentage of 93% with a very good interpretation. Pop-up book food loss and waste is a feasible media to be used in learning to train and reduce food loss and food waste.

Assessment of anticoagulant potential of Halocnemum strobilaceum (Pall.) against black rat (Rattus rattus Lin.) from Algeria

BackgroundBlack rats (Rattus rattus; Rodentia: Muridae) cause significant damage to agricultural and human health, and they are considered a reservoir for a variety of diseases. ObjectivesThe current study aimed to evaluate the toxicity of oral anticoagulants derived from Halocnemum strobilaceum (Pall.) M. Bieb. to these dangerous animals. MethodFour selected doses (100, 150, 200 and 300 mg/day/kg of individual weight) and one control were utilized, with 10 repetitions of each dose (5 ♂ and 5 ♀). The extract was powdered on dates as bait. ResultsUPLC-ESI/MS-MS chromatography identified three distinct coumarins (coumaric acid, p-coumaric acid and 4-hydroxycoumarin). The results showed that the fourth dose used caused the highest number of deaths (100 % after three days of treatment). In contrast, after 48 h of therapy, all rats examined showed lethargy, anorexia and unconsciousness, followed by rapid death at 72 h in the treated individuals. The LD50 was recorded at 146.4 mg.kg−1 with a LT50 of 59.37 h. At the end of the experiment, the autopsies of all deceased individuals allowed us to observe the bleeding of their internal organs. The analysis of PT and aPTT demonstrated that the halophyte under investigation possesses anticoagulant activity that increased with the concentration. Histological sections of the liver revealed cellular alteration and significant necrosis. As well, the kidneys had vascular occlusion with an inflammatory filtrate. ConclusionsTo reduce food losses and wastes caused by these pests, H. strobilaceum will be an important plant for use in protecting against invasive rodents, especially in environmental and stored product programs focused at eradicating rodent pests.