Stages Of Agricultural Production Research Articles

Exploring the total cost of whole fresh, fresh-cut and pre-cooked vegetables

PurposeThe food industry should evolve towards new business models which take into account the damage cost in decision making, considering the impact that its products generate on the natural and human environment. Hence, the present study aims to calculate the damage cost caused by the production of whole fresh (as average of potatoes, aubergines, and broccoli), and processed vegetables (fresh-cut and pre-cooked).MethodsThe environmental life cycle approach was carried out per kilogram of assessed products (from cradle to the entrance of the market). The foreground Life Cycle Inventory was obtained from engineering procurement and construction projects of the whole fresh and processed vegetables industries. The Ecoinvent 3.8 and Agribalyse 3.0.1 databases were used for the background inventory. The ReCiPe 2016 method was used with a hierarchical perspective, evaluating eighteen midpoint categories as well as the endpoint categories (human health, ecosystems, and resources). The monetisation of these environmental impacts was then calculated using the endpoint monetisation factors developed by Ponsioen et al. (Monetisation of sustainability impacts of food production and consumption. Wageningen Economic Research, Wageningen, 2020) for each product. It should be noted that this study does not include a comparative assessment. This study does not intend to compare the results for the three vegetable groups.Results and discussionThe damage costs were 0.16 €/kg for whole fresh vegetables, 0.37 €/kg for fresh-cut vegetables and 0.41 €/kg for pre-cooked vegetables. The agricultural production stage contributed most to these total damage costs due to the impact produced on land use and global warming in midpoint categories and human health and ecosystems in endpoint categories. In addition, the damage cost due to fossil resource scarcity (midpoint) and resource scarcity (endpoint) was mainly caused by the plastic packaging of fresh-cut and pre-cooked vegetables. The total cost was 1.02 €/kg for whole fresh vegetables, 2.99 €/kg for fresh-cut vegetables, and 3.43 €/kg for pre-cooked vegetables.ConclusionsThese results suggest that some efforts should be made to reduce both environmental impacts and damage costs. For instance, to improve agricultural production, special attention should be paid to fertilisation and water consumption. Additionally, new packaging options should be explored as well as the inclusion of renewable sources in the electricity grid, and finally, on transporting the finished products to the market, by using trucks that run on cleaner fuels.Graphical abstract

Farmers’ Knowledge on Agricultural Irrigation Programs: The Case of Altınekin District of Konya Province

Climate change-induced droughts have various negative impacts on different sectors, especially on agricultural sector. Altınekin District, where the research was conducted, has the lowest precipitation in Konya Province, therefore is expected to be most affected by drought. For sustainable use of water resources, each stage of agricultural production should be carried out within the framework of a specific program. With this study, knowledge level of farmers engaged in irrigated agriculture in Altınekin district regarding irrigation and irrigation programs they applied were determined through a face-to-face survey. Present findings revealed that 38.7% of the participant farmers are aged 50 years and over and a large proportion of them (54.7%) are primary school graduates. Participant farmers were all (100%) using groundwater resources in agricultural production and 88% of them stated that they did not receive any training on irrigation. While 32% of the farmers participating in the survey stated that they had knowledge about the concept of irrigation program, 68% reported that they did not have any knowledge. Incorrect and improper practices regarding efficient use of irrigation water in the region, especially regarding the irrigation program, were identified and solutions were proposed for these problems.

Monetary policy and overshooting of agricultural prices in China: in a supply chain perspective

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to test the overshooting effects of monetary expansion on prices of agricultural products at farm production, processing and circulation stages in China, and to investigate the heterogeneity of the overshooting mechanisms in these three links.Design/methodology/approachEmpirical results are obtained through the vector error correction model and the overshooting framework proposed by Saghaian et al. (2002b). Specifically, we first apply the Dickey–Fuller generalized least squares (DF-GLS) method to test the stationarity of the key variables, and then use the Johansen’s (1991) method to conduct the cointegration test. Finally, the vector error correction model is employed to examine the overshooting hypotheses in the three stages of China’s agricultural sector.FindingsEmpirical results indicate that overshooting of prices relative to monetary expansion in China’s agricultural sector is a common phenomenon, but with significant heterogeneity. Firstly, at the stage of agricultural production, the overshooting degree and restoration rate of material price are greater than those of agricultural products price. Secondly, at the processing stage of agricultural products, both the purchase price of agricultural products and industrial producer price have an overshooting effect, but the overshooting effect of the former is more significant than the latter. Thirdly, at the circulation stage of agricultural products, the overshooting coefficient of the wholesale price index of agricultural products is the most significant, while that of the retail and purchase price of agricultural products is not significant.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to proposing a comprehensive framework on testing the overshooting effects for three main stages of agricultural sector in China and empirically investigating the heterogeneity of the overshooting mechanisms in different stages with time series methods.

Emission intensities in EU countriesʼ food production systems and their market resilience during the 2020 global economic turmoil

One effect of the 2020 global pandemic was market turmoil over the food production system. Such strong market shocks can also affect the environment, for example, through changes in the greenhouse gas (GHG) emission intensity of production. The purpose of this study was to calculate and evaluate comparable GHG emission intensity indicators for food production systems and their production stages in European Union (EU) countries. An index decomposition analysis of the obtained indicators was conducted to determine the structural and intensity effects. The three original contributions of this analysis were index decomposition of emission intensity, consideration of more GHGs, and expansion of the study period to include 2018–2020. The results from the majority of countries confirm the research hypothesis that the emission intensity at the agricultural (on-farm) production stage in EU countries in 2020 increased in relation to the emission intensity of the remaining stages of the food production system. The overall emission intensity of food production systems increased from 0.83 CO2-eq per 1 GDP in PPP in 2019 to 0.86 in 2020. However, this was caused solely by the increase in emission intensity at the agricultural production stage, from 2.40 CO2-eq per 1 GDP in PPP to 2.65 in 2020. On average, emission intensity did not increase at other stages of the food production systems in EU countries. Our findings indicate the low market resilience of agriculture to the 2020 economic turmoil, causing the low market power of agricultural producers in relation to the remaining stages of the food production value chain. These results were confirmed by the higher intensity index and lower structural index between 2019 and 2020 in the majority of the analyzed countries, caused by the decline in the share of agriculture in the GDP structure of food production, with a simultaneous increase in its intensity over time.

Comparative Analysis of Different UAV Swarm Control Methods on Unmanned Farms

Unmanned farms employ a variety of sensors, automated systems, and data analysis techniques to enable fully automated and intelligent management. This not only heightens agricultural production efficiency but also reduces the costs associated with human resources. As integral components of unmanned farms’ automation systems, agricultural UAVs have been widely adopted across various operational stages due to their precision, high efficiency, environmental sustainability, and simplicity of operation. However, present-day technological advancement levels and relevant policy regulations pose significant restrictions on UAVs in terms of payload and endurance, leading to diminished task efficiency when a single UAV is deployed over large areas. Accordingly, this paper aggregates and analyzes research pertaining to UAV swarms from databases such as Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, Scopus, IEEE Xplorer, and Wiley over the past decade. An initial overview presents the current control methods for UAV swarms, incorporating a summary and analysis of the features, merits, and drawbacks of diverse control techniques. Subsequently, drawing from the four main stages of agricultural production (cultivation, planting, management, and harvesting), we evaluate the application of UAV swarms in each stage and provide an overview of the most advanced UAV swarm technologies utilized therein. Finally, we scrutinize and analyze the challenges and concerns associated with UAV swarm applications on unmanned farms and provide forward-looking insights into the future developmental trajectory of UAV swarm technology in unmanned farming, with the objective of bolstering swarm performance, scalability, and adoption rates in such settings.

How Does Capital Endowment Impact Farmers’ Green Production Behavior? Perspectives on Ecological Cognition and Environmental Regulation

Enhancing rural ecological protection and promoting the adoption of environmentally-friendly agricultural production practices largely depend on the implementation of green production methods by farmers. This research paper focuses on the green production behavior of farmers in Hainan Province, China, drawing insights from survey responses provided by 543 farmers. The study examines how farmers’ capital endowment, ecological cognition, and environmental regulation impact their multiple green production practices, using the ordered probit model, mediation effect model, and moderation effect model for analysis and further applying the Ivoprobit_CMP, PSM, and other methods for endogeneity treatment and a robustness test. The study reveals several key findings. Firstly, only a small proportion of farmers consistently adopt green production practices throughout various stages of agricultural production. Secondly, the research shows that capital endowment, including natural, economic, human, and social capital, has a significant influence on farmers’ green production behavior. Thirdly, the study finds that ecological cognition plays a crucial role in mediating the relationship between capital endowment and its dimensions (human and social capital) and the adoption of green production practices. Additionally, the research discovers that environmental regulation positively moderates the relationship between ecological cognition and farmers’ green production behavior. Finally, the research indicates that factors such as ethnicity, fluctuations in agricultural production, and the location of the village agricultural waste collection site are all significant determinants of farmers’ engagement in green production practices. The study also identifies significant regional disparities in farmers’ adoption of green production practices. To address the issue of farmers’ low adoption of green production practices, the paper recommends promoting the overall green transformation of the entire agricultural production process. This can be achieved by enhancing farmers’ capital endowment in multiple dimensions and improving their ecological cognition through various channels. Additionally, creating a supportive external environment that aligns with green production practices is deemed critical.

Preference of Major Stored Product Insects in Fortified Rice with Basil

As the world’s population grows, the needs for feeding it follow the same path. Considering these conditions, ensuring the quantity and quality of raw materials, such as cereals, seems imperative. Stored product insects are responsible for significant losses in the post-harvest stages of agricultural products and the available chemical methods for their control are decreasing, due to their negative impact on the environment and humans. To this end, the evaluation of the efficacy of non-chemical methods for the management of storage insects is crucial. In the present study, we conducted two trials of choice tests based on rice fortified with basil to determine its potential as a non-chemical repellent of stored product insects. In the first trial, we evaluated the repellent activity of rice enriched with basil on adults of Sitophilus oryzae, Rhyzopertha dominica, Tribolium castaneum and Oryzaephilus surinamensis, as well as on T. castaneum larvae. In the second trial, the same procedure was followed with deltamethrin-treated rice fortified with basil. The results of the first trial showed that for most of the insect species tested, the rice fortified with basil was moderately repellent, while for O. surinamensis, it was attractive. Surprisingly, in the second trial, the deltamethrin-treated rice fortified with basil showed a repellent effect on O. surinamensis adults and T. castaneum larvae, while no repellency was observed for the rest of insect species examined. Observation time was not significant for any of the insect species, combinations and trials, with the exception of the rice fortified with basil vs. Blanc combination in O. surinamensis. Our findings suggest that the use of deltamethrin-treated rice fortified with basil was effective as a repellent for O. surinamensis adults and T. castaneum larvae.

Strategies of Climate Change Mitigation in Agriculture Plant Production—A Critical Review

Agriculture is the second-highest, after energy use, source of greenhouse gas emissions, which are released from soils and animal digestion processes and as a result of energy consumption at various stages of agricultural production. However, changes in the management of agricultural systems may mitigate the negative impact of this sector on the atmosphere and climate. This paper presents a literature review on energy consumption in agriculture and the potential of agricultural crop production to assist in mitigation of global warming by increasing absorption of CO2 from the atmosphere. The issue was considered in the context of managing the cultivation of main, catch and cover crops. The potential of carbon sequestration in the above- and below-ground biomass of selected crops was analyzed. It was stated that, depending on the species, main crops can sequester up to 113 CO2 ha−1 yr−1 in whole biomass, while catch or cover crops can sequester up to 14.80 CO2 ha−1 yr−1 and 0.17 CO2 ha−1 yr−1 in the above- and below-ground biomass, respectively. The benefits of the spread of catch or cover crops, such as improvement of soil quality (leading to an increase in primary crop yield by even as much as 65%) and a phytosanitary effect, as well as the barriers that limit the use of catch crops, including the problems with matching crop species to climate and soil conditions and the risk of reducing farmers’ income, were considered. The results of the review show that catch crops can assimilate an additional amount of 4 to 6 tonnes CO2 ha−1 yr−1, and thus, spreading of catch crops is an effective way to reduce the climate impact of agriculture.

Assessment of food losses at the stage of agricultural production in the Russian Federation

The article presents a method of quantitative measurement of food losses in agricultural production in Russia based on verifiable statistical data and the results of its application. The relevance of the study is related to the limited resources for agricultural production and the growing demand for food, considering climate change, leading to an increase in the risks of extreme weather events and epidemics. The estimates of losses presented in Russia are either based on the calculation of food resource balances and have limitations in terms of coverage of the types of losses considered, or are based on subjective assessments of respondents. The proposed method makes it possible to identify focal points of food losses in agricultural production. In addition, the results obtained can be used to assess the potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions because of limiting food losses in Russian agricultural production.

Life cycle assessment of urban food supply: Key findings and recommendations from a French metropolitan area case study

The environmental challenges raised by urban food supply requirements must be addressed and sustainable local food policies need to be designed. For these reasons, the major areas of improvement should be identified in terms of both consumption and production. This paper aims at implementing Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to achieve a comprehensive diagnosis of the environmental impacts of food supply at a city level, and to provide adequate recommendations on how to perform data collection. Initially designed to quantify the environmental performance of a product or service, proposals have been made to adapt LCA to city and territory scales. However, applications are still scarce, as data collection can be very resource-intensive. Most existing studies apply a top-down approach that presents a number of limitations. For example, an overly aggregated representation of the studied sectors is proposed, while mainly greenhouse gas impacts are quantified without addressing a broad coverage of environmental issues. In this paper, a bottom-up approach is adopted, where the collected data concerns a comparison between two data sources involving individual food consumption (i.e. a national and a local survey). AGRIBALYSE 3.0 database is used for life cycle inventories of food products and different methods are employed to scale up the analysis to city level. Results indicate that the main impacts arise from animal product consumption and agricultural production stages, with certain variations according to the impact category and considered food product. A comparison between national and local data on food consumption confirms that average national data are sufficient for an initial diagnosis. One of the next challenges will be to improve the LCA databases. Although they now include several hundred foodstuffs, they do not distinguish between alternative practices (e.g., for agricultural or retailing step) and product sources.

Smart Contract to Traceability of Food Social Selling

Traditionally, food sustainability has been considered solely in the stage of agricultural production. However, globalization, the expansion of the food production industry, and the emergence of supermarket chains that control the retail food market require specific significant changes in supply chains in the food sector and, therefore, we need to address the economic, social, and environmental impacts of these events. On the other hand, social selling has increased rapidly in recent years, with a further boom, following current events related to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). This explosion of social sales, where there are usually no control and regulation entities, can bring problems associated with mishandling items. In this paper, we expose how Blockchain technology supports the traceability of social sales by validating the data provided by the chain participants such as digital health passports, production and transport data in the sale process; the proposed solution generates recommendations on product management considering the agreements previously made by the network actors. To evaluate the proposed smart contracts, we use Hyperledger Caliper, obtaining an average throughput of 12.6 transactions per second and an average latency of 0.3 s for the asset update process. We also use a study case to evaluate the proposed project platform’s selling-transport stage using Internet of Things (IoT) sensors.

Whydoes food loss and wastematter for food security-from the perspective of causeand magnitude

Food security has raised crisis alarms all over the world. Especially nowadays, conventional agriculture is threatened by climate change and extreme weather, and the agri-food system is loading the increasing population burden. Food loss and waste (FLW) have gotten more and more attention. Still, the main research focus is on a narrowed and specific stage of the food value chain of specific food types in a particular area, which lacks an overall comprehensive understanding of this topic from a broad view. This review aims to provide a comprehensive description of food loss and waste and provide a useful theoretical background to public decision-makers and individuals to reduce food loss and waste for a better and more sustainable society, economy, and environment. Secondary research and content analysis are used in this review as methodology, following Michael E. Porter’s value chain theory, to analyze and simplify the sustainable path (in light of the cause and magnitude of food security based on the nexus between food security and food loss and waste across the entire food value chain (from the main manifestation of FLW: agricultural production stages, such as cultivation or breeding and storage, post-harvest processing and distribution, and retail and consumption. We also provided the Ishikawa model diagram to better explain the causes of food loss and waste. And other manifestations, such as the COVID-19 and Russia and Ukraine war). To conclude, reducing food loss and waste is crucial for sustainable food security, but the manifestation of FLW differ in different stage of the value chain and different food types. Generally speaking, production sees the most loss, while consumption sees the most waste. Therefore, we suggest both public and private should be aware that producing more food and utilizing food resources properly along different stages of the value chain is equally important.

Methodological approaches to assessing the cooperative potential of rural areas

The article considers cooperation as a process of bringing together agricultural producers in order to solve certain business problems more effectively. Considering the present development stage of agricultural production, cooperation has no due interest on the part of either producers or the state. In this regard, the article aims at developing proposals for the methodological assessment of the cooperative potential of rural areas. During the study, using various generally recognized methods of generalizing existing scientific developments, expert assessments, analytical and others, an algorithm for assessing the ability and possibility of forming and improving the efficiency of an agricultural cooperative community in rural areas is proposed. The introduction of the proposed methodological approaches will provide the authorities and administration with an argumentation for solving the problems of developing and reforming agricultural cooperatives, ensuring employment and a decent standard of living for the rural population. Together, this will make it possible to address economic, social and environmental problems of rural areas in a more sustainable manner.

Characterizing food systems to better understand their vulnerabilities: a case study in Québec and São Paulo

Abstract Characterizing food systems, i.e., describing their organizational features, can help to generate a better understanding of the structural vulnerabilities that constrain transitions towards sustainable food security. However, their characterization across different economic contexts remains challenging. In this paper, by linking key concepts from research on food regimes, food system vulnerabilities and responsible innovation, we aim to characterize food systems in a developing and a developed economy to identify their shared vulnerabilities. We applied a case study design to characterize food production, processing and distribution in the province of Québec (Canada) and in the state of São Paulo (Brazil). In both cases, the processing and distribution stages have higher economic predominance when compared to the agricultural production stage. Furthermore, we observed concentration in a few activities in both food systems, with a shared focus on export-oriented supply chains. Vulnerabilities in both food systems include: (1) increased interdependence because some supply chains are export-oriented or depend on foreign labor and are, therefore, exposed to external risks; (2) concentration in a few activities, which threatens present and future local food diversity and (3) unequal power relations, making small and medium players vulnerable to decisions made by big players. The characterization developed in this study shows that the two food systems are mainly pursuing economic goals, following the institutional logics of the neoliberal food regime, which are not necessarily aligned with food security goals. It also exposes the presence of characteristics of ‘responsibility’ that may eventually help overcome food systems' vulnerabilities and support transitions toward sustainability.

The Use of Digital Technologies to Improve the Information Support of Agricultural Enterprises

The use of digital technologies affects all stages of agricultural production, transforming and improving business processes, models, and structures. In this regard, the efficiency of implementing the digital platform in the strategic development of an agricultural enterprise is an urgent scientific task.

Combining Sentinel-2 data with an optical-trapezoid approach to infer within-field soil moisture variability and monitor agricultural production stages

Soil moisture is an important precision agricultural variable that can be used to identify optimal growth conditions, infer vegetation stress, and maximize crop yield. However, obtaining soil moisture information with sufficient spatial and temporal resolution for such applications remains a challenge. The optical trapezoid model (OPTRAM), a shortwave infrared transformed reflectance and normalized difference vegetation index (STR-NDVI) method, has previously been used for retrieving soil moisture from optical remote sensing data. However, the capacity of OPTRAM for mapping the high-resolution spatial heterogeneity of soil moisture at individual agricultural field scales has yet to be explored. Here, we advance an approach for retrieving and quantifying the spatial heterogeneity of soil moisture for individual fields using high spatiotemporal resolution Sentinel-2 imagery. We also propose the concept of a dynamic STR-NDVI space for identification of irrigation events and crop growth stages, such as irrigation start and end dates, and dates of initial crop growth, maturity and harvest. Pre-existing OPTRAM parameterization schemes were evaluated for several crops (maize, carrot, alfalfa and Rhodes grass) and a new scheme was proposed. Results show that the original OPTRAM model can derive surface soil moisture (∼ 1 cm in depth) with acceptable coefficients of determination (R2 ≥ 0.43) and root mean square errors (RMSE ≤ 0.09 m3/m3) against ground measurements when uniform dry and wet edge parameters are applied for all crop types. The proposed scheme produced improved soil moisture retrievals with an R2 ≥ 0.65 and RMSE ≤ 0.05 m3/m3 when the specific dry and wet edge parameters were applied for each specific crop type. By analyzing time series of STR-NDVI, we demonstrate that the dynamic STR-NDVI spaces not only traces the coevolution of surface processes but also quantifies the spatial heterogeneity of soil moisture and vegetation status. Thus, the proposed dynamic STR-NDVI spaces based on the high spatiotemporal resolution Sentinel-2 imagery can both advance and extend the application of OPTRAM and improve the interpretation of soil moisture spatial heterogeneity at agricultural field scales, supporting efforts towards irrigation and crop growth monitoring in precision agriculture.

Potential of biofuels production from wheat straw biomass, current achievements and perspectives: a review

This paper was developed to review the application of biorefinery techniques that produce bio-materials and biofuels from agricultural waste, such as wheat straw. Attention was concentrated upon wheat straw, because it was reported as a high value-added raw material for biorefinery applications, thus emphasizing the value of a systematic literature review of this content area. Energy production from non-renewable sources is one of the main reasons for climate change and greenhouse gas emissions. Biomass is the main source of energy that makes up between 10 and 14% of the world’s energy supply. Agricultural waste is a large energy resource with no nutritional value to humans. Wheat straw is an abundant agricultural waste with lower commercial value compared to other lignocellulosic materials. The study demonstrated that wheat straw is being used for biofuels production in eco-friendly processes. Nevertheless, wheat straw compared to other biomass (wood, algae, and corn stover) is relatively less beneficial, but its higher bioethanol potential and production yields. A large amount of wheat straw is produced in the world at different stages of agricultural production, which can all be used as a source of green energy. HIGHLIGHTS Review literature for wheat straw as feedstock in biorefineries was carried out. Wheat straw conversion into bioethanol and other beneficial bio-materials was studied. Wheat straw for bioethanol was confirmed as a sustainable choice for transporting fuels. This review paper, studied the competitiveness between biorefinery and oil-refinery products.

AGRICULTURE AND ENVIRONMENT INTERACTION

The resources necessary for food production have shown a disquieting deterioration during the last three decades. Modern intensive agriculture has an adverse effect not only on the physical environment but also on human health. On the other hand, 'Sustainable Agricultural Systems', which has gained importance in recent years, deals with both the protection of natural resources and the increase in plant production. In these systems, production is ensured by directing the resources obtained from the system cycle, not the chemicals and inputs that harm human, plant and environmental health, and quality healthy products are obtained. In 'Organic Farming', which is one of the sustainable agricultural systems, it is aimed to cause the least damage to the environment by producing healthy foods without disturbing the natural balance. The risk of pollution is less because less economic input is used in these and similar protected sustainable agricultural systems. While the inputs used in agricultural production stage increase the productivity of the product produced per unit area and make it more resistant to diseases and pests, they can have negative effects on the living things in the immediate vicinity and the ecosystem. While the development of agriculture in a region positively affects the natural life, oxygen production and climate in the region, inorganic nitrate pollution, pesticide pollution and salinity problems can be listed as the negative effects of agriculture on the environment, especially in regions where intensive agriculture is practiced. Also, agricultural water use, application of fertilizers and pesticides may negatively affect the water courses, deforestation, and crop and animal raising may result in greenhouse gas emissions, unsuitable agricultural practices may have detrimental impacts on soil, genetic resources and biodiversity. In order to ensure sustainability in agriculture, by abandoning the agricultural production methods based on excessive chemical pesticides and fertilizers that the producers have applied until now; an economical fertilization, preserving the organic matter ratio of the soil by preventing stubble fires, reduced tillage, combating diseases, pests and weeds in integration with a suitable crop rotation are of great importance.

Grape Cultivar Identification and Classification by Machine Olfaction Analysis of Leaf Volatiles

Development of electronic technologies for precise identification of fruit crop cultivars in agricultural production provides an effective means for assuring product quality and authentication. The capabilities of discriminating between grape (Vitis vinifera L.) cultivars is essential for assuring certification of varieties sold in world markets. Machine olfaction, based on electronic-nose (e-nose) technologies, is readily available for rapid identification of fruit and vegetative agricultural products. This technology relies on detection of and discrimination between volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from plant parts. It may be used in all stages of agricultural production to facilitate crop maintenance, cultivation, and harvesting decisions prior to marketing. An experimental e-nose device was constructed and tested in combination with five chemometric methods, including PCA, LDA, QDA, SVM, and ANN, as rapid, non-destructive tools for identification and classification of grape cultivars. An e-nose instrument equipped with nine metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) sensors was utilized to identify and classify five grape cultivars based on leaf VOC emissions using supervised and non-supervised methods. Grape leaf samples were first identified as belonging to specific cultivar types using PCA analyses, which are non-supervised classification methods, with the first two principal components (PC-1 and PC-2) accounting for 89% of the total variance. Four supervised statistical methods were further tested, including DA, QDA, SVM, and ANN, and provided effective discrimination accuracies of 98%, 99%, 92%, and 99%, respectively. These findings confirmed the suitable applicability of an MOS e-nose sensor array with supervised methods for accurate identification of grape cultivars, which is useful for authentication of vine cultivar types for commercial markets.

Assessment of environmental safety indicators of rural areas

The article shows the features of quantitative assessment of the use of natural resources in agricultural sector, environmental impact factors in order to develop adaptation scenarios and mitigate their consequences are identified. This is an alternative option for environmentally sustainable development in agriculture, which allows rational use of land resources. The purpose of the study is to determine the criteria for assessing the impact of agriculture on the environment components, in particular on the atmosphere, hydrosphere and land resources. Methods of economic analysis, comparison, synthesis, decomposition are used for a comprehensive assessment of the functioning of an enterprise in production of agricultural products. In the process of working on this topic, the following results were obtained: an assessment of the impact of functioning of agro-industrial complex on the environment was done. According to the current methods for determining the degree of impact on land resources, the soil quality scores were calculated before and after it. Anthropogenic pressure on the atmosphere and water resources was assessed in accordance with equivalent indicators. On the basis of the results, the authors present recommendations and conclusions on the determination of data characterizing the impact of the stages of agricultural production on the environment. The results of the calculations make it possible to make forecasts and assess the level of environmental safety in agricultural production.