Vegetable Size Research Articles

From Outside to Inside: The Subtle Probing of Globular Fruits and Solanaceous Vegetables Using Machine Vision and Near-Infrared Methods

Machine vision and near-infrared light technology are widely used in fruits and vegetable grading, as an important means of agricultural non-destructive testing. The characteristics of fruits and vegetables can easily be automatically distinguished by these two technologies, such as appearance, shape, color and texture. Nondestructive testing is reasonably used for image processing and pattern recognition, and can meet the identification and grading of single features and fusion features in production. Through the summary and analysis of the fruits and vegetable grading technology in the past five years, the results show that the accuracy of machine vision for fruits and vegetable size grading is 70–99.8%, the accuracy of external defect grading is 88–95%, and the accuracy of NIR and hyperspectral internal detection grading is 80.56–100%. Comprehensive research on multi-feature fusion technology in the future can provide comprehensive guidance for the construction of automatic integrated grading of fruits and vegetables, which is the main research direction of fruits and vegetable grading in the future.

The size and growth trends of the leafy vegetables market

The size and growth trends of the leafy vegetables market

Associations between Social Contact, Sleep and Dietary Patterns among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Social isolation in adults can be associated with altered sleep and eating behavior. This study aimed to investigate the interactions between the extent of social contact, eating behavior and sleep in infants and preschool children. In an observational study, 439 caregivers of 562 children aged 0-6 years provided information on sleep (i.e., duration, latency, bedtimes and nighttime awakenings), eating behaviors (i.e., meal size, consumption of sweet snacks, salty snacks, fruits and vegetables) and social contact (i.e., quarantine status, household size, social activities) during the COVID-19 pandemic (April 2020). In infants (0-3 years), the change in meal size and consumption of snacks, fruits, and vegetables did not significantly relate to the extent of social contact. For preschool children (3-6 years), a trend was observed, suggesting that quarantine status was associated with increased meal size. Changes in sleep duration, sleep latency, bedtimes and nighttime awakenings from before to during the pandemic were not significantly linked to the three variables quantifying social contact in both age groups. This study highlights that, contrary to expectations, the extent of social contact has negligible associations with infants' and preschool children's sleep and eating behaviors. These findings indicate that other factors beyond social isolation play a role in shaping children's eating habits and sleep patterns.

CONSUMER PREFERENCE TOWARDS THE ATTRIBUTES OF AQUAPONICS PRODUCTS AT PT. TANIKOTA

The increasing awareness of healthy lifestyle among the public has made consumers more selective in choosing their food, particularly vegetables. Aquaponic vegetable products, which are free from pesticides, have emerged as an alternative for health-conscious consumers. This study aimed to identify the characteristics of consumers who purchase aquaponic vegetables based on product attributes at PT. Tanikota and to determine the ranking of attributes of aquaponic vegetables according to consumer preferences. The research method employed in this study was a case study, using a whole population of 70 aquaponic vegetable consumers at PT. Tanikota as the respondents. Data were analyzed using descriptive analysis of frequency distribution. The results of the study revealed that the characteristics of consumers who buy aquaponic vegetables at PT. Tanikota were generally women aged 26-35 years, holding an undergraduate degree, with 3 family dependents, employed in private sectors, and having an income range of 2,600,000-Rp 5,200,000/month. The attributes of aquaponic vegetables at PT. Tanikota were ranked based on consumer preferences, with the level of freshness of vegetables, variety of vegetables, color of vegetables, method of payment, method of purchase, physical form of vegetables, vegetable size, distance, vegetable packaging, and the price of vegetables, respectively. The lower rank of price attributes can be attributed to the lack of aquaponic vegetable cultivation in the city of Bandung, which makes it difficult for consumers to compare the prices offered by PT. Tanikota with those offered by other companies.

Compact water pump and its application to self-contained soft robot hand for vegetable factory

As the number of agricultural workers is decreasing, there are a lot of demands on the robotics automation of agricultural tasks, including the automation of repacking and shipping in vegetable factories. A soft robot hand is suitable for such tasks because of its less damaging to vegetables and adaptability to variety in size and weight of vegetables. However, most of soft robotic hands are actuated by the air pressure, and the output force is not sufficient for heavy vegetables that are often dealt with in a vegetable factory. To solve this problem, we developed a prototype of a hydraulic soft robot hand in our previous research. Selecting an oil as the hydraulic source, the prototype was actuated by a compact built-in pump, we showed that the prototype could hold 2 or cabbage with pressure control. In this paper, we develop a compact water pump that can generate maximum , and update the prototype selecting the water as the hydraulic source. We experimentally show that the soft hand can grasp and hold a cabbages, assuming a real situation in a vegetable factory.

Consumer attitudes about purchasing and consuming vegetables in the Republic of Srpska

The main goal of the research was to investigate the consumer attitudes when buying and consuming vegetables. Primary data collection was carried out in the second half of 2022. A survey of 100 people was conducted with a structured questionnaire that included socio-demographic questions and questions that were directly related to attitudes towards buying and consuming vegetables. To calculate and determine the associations between certain characteristics of the sample, the Chi-Square (χ2) test was also applied. The results showed that vegetables are most often bought in supermarkets (49%) and green markets (25%). According to the results, 70% of consumers spend less than 100 BAM per month on buying vegetables and 30% more than 100 BAM. The most important factors when buying vegetables are freshness, quality, smell and taste, and the origin of a product. The size and appearance of vegetables and the vicinity of the selling place are less important factors. Consumers with a lower income spend less on vegetables on a monthly basis. The monthly expenditure on vegetables and the frequency of purchase are interconnected. Respondents whose households spend less on vegetables buy them more often in mini and supermarkets, while those who spend more buy them more often at the green market. Male respondents think that their households spend less on vegetables compared to the opinion of female respondents.

Relative role of leaching and chemical degradation in the loss of water-soluble vitamins C and B9 from frozen vegetables cooked in water

Losses of vitamins C and folates due to chemical degradation and leaching were modelled in green peas and Brussels sprouts. Vegetables were treated at four temperatures from 25 to 85 °C. They were directly placed in water (diffusion and thermal degradation) or hermetically sealed bags (only thermal degradation). Chemical degradation was modelled according to a pseudo-first-order and leaching according to Ficks’ second law. While in contact with water, losses of vitamins appeared to be ten times higher for vitamin C and two times for folates. In both vegetables, vitamin C diffused faster than folates, and the chemical degradation was faster in peas than in Brussels sprouts. For both vitamins, increasing of the temperature augmented the degradation speed and, to a lesser extent, the leaching. Chemical degradation of folates plateaued at approximately 53% and 63% of initial contents for pea and Brussels sprouts, respectively. The relative importance of degradation and leaching changed with vegetable size and temperature. In peas, leaching was the faster mechanism and notably predominant at low temperatures, probably due to the smaller size of the vegetable. An accurate understanding of vitamin loss requires simultaneous consideration of the two mechanisms studied here, degradation and leaching, which have different parameters.

Human Grasp Mechanism Understanding, Human-Inspired Grasp Control and Robotic Grasping Planning for Agricultural Robots.

As the end execution tool of agricultural robots, the manipulator directly determines whether the grasping task can be successfully completed. The human hand can adapt to various objects and achieve stable grasping, which is the highest goal for manipulator design and development. Thus, this study combines a multi-sensor fusion tactile glove to simulate manual grasping, explores the mechanism and characteristics of the human hand, and formulates rational grasping plans. According to the shape and size of fruits and vegetables, the grasping gesture library is summarized to facilitate the matching of optimal grasping gestures. By analyzing inter-finger curvature correlations and inter-joint pressure correlations, we investigated the synergistic motion characteristics of the human hand. In addition, the force data were processed by the wavelet transform algorithms and then the thresholds for sliding detection were set to ensure robust grasping. The acceleration law under the interaction with the external environment during grasping was also discussed, including stable movement, accidental collision, and placement of the target position. Finally, according to the analysis and summary of the manual gripping mechanism, the corresponding pre-gripping planning was designed to provide theoretical guidance and ideas for the gripping of robots.

Vegetable Size Measurement Based on Stereo Camera and Keypoints Detection.

This work focuses on the problem of non-contact measurement for vegetables in agricultural automation. The application of computer vision in assisted agricultural production significantly improves work efficiency due to the rapid development of information technology and artificial intelligence. Based on object detection and stereo cameras, this paper proposes an intelligent method for vegetable recognition and size estimation. The method obtains colorful images and depth maps with a binocular stereo camera. Then detection networks classify four kinds of common vegetables (cucumber, eggplant, tomato and pepper) and locate six points for each object. Finally, the size of vegetables is calculated using the pixel position and depth of keypoints. Experimental results show that the proposed method can classify four kinds of common vegetables within 60 cm and accurately estimate their diameter and length. The work provides an innovative idea for solving the vegetable’s non-contact measurement problems and can promote the application of computer vision in agricultural automation.

FACTORS AFFECTING WILLINGNESS TO PAY FOR ORGANIC VEGETABLES IN NEPAL

Consumers are more conscious for their health; as a result, demand of organic vegetables has been increasing. The objective of this study was to assess factors affecting the willingness to pay (WTP) for premium price for organic vegetables in Nepal. A sample of 720 respondents, surveyed at four markets in Nepal, analysed by descriptive statistics and Probit model under Dichotomous Choice Contingent Valuation Method. Overall, the average premium price that consumers were willing to pay for organic vegetables in country was 26.4%. Age, education, and knowledge-related variables were important determinants at lower premium price while affordability factors such as income, expense on vegetable, marital status, and family size appear to be important determinants of WTP at high premium price for organic vegetables. Income was strongly significant and positively influencing WTP at 30% or higher premium levels. Family size was significant and negatively associated to WTP at all levels of premium price. The result suggests to invent cost-saving policy at producer level for reducing the requirement of high premium price.

The influence of size on the storage life of vegetables

The purpose of the article is to study the influence of the size of vegetables on their storage life and to confirm the principle of the optimal size. It has been established that medium-sized vegetables, in most cases, are distinguished by the lowest natural loss, losses from decay, and total losses, compared with large and small ones. Plant organisms of optimal sizes have better storage life and longer life span, but their parameters are differentiated by types and varieties of vegetables.

Linking smallholder producers to high-value markets through vegetable producer cooperatives in Cambodia

Modern retail markets have grown in Cambodia, but vegetable growers are unlikely to gain benefits from these high value markets (HVMs). Producer cooperatives (PCs) could play a critical role in linking smallholder farmers to HVMs. The purpose of this paper is: (1) to examine the role of PCs in linking vegetable producers to HVMs; and (2) analyse the factors affecting successful participation in HVMs. This study applied a mixed methods approach to PCs selling the members’ vegetables to HVMs (PC-HVMs), and PCs selling members’ vegetables to traditional markets (TMs) only (PC-TMs). Both groups of PCs provided services to their members (e.g. input, financial, extension services). However, the content and quality of these services were different. PC-TMs emphasised only on support linked to production, while PC-HVMs focused on both production and marketing support. This study indicated that vegetable farming experience, total vegetable produce, and average vegetable prices had a statistically significant influence on producers’ participation in HVMs. However, vegetable farm size showed a negatively significant effect on participation in HVMs. As one of the very few empirical studies on PCs in Cambodia the research provides valuable context for further studies. It has developed and tested a framework for analysing the factors affecting successful participation in HVMs and provides an explanation of why some PCs can successfully participate in HVMs.

Larger serving size and seasoning’s role in consumer behaviors toward vegetables

A diet rich in vegetables provides many nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and fiber; as a result, eating vegetables could reduce the risk of chronic diseases. However, very few Americans consume enough vegetables daily, and average intake falls significantly below national recommendations. This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of seasoning and increased portion sizes on vegetable consumption in a US adult population. An observational study was conducted in a commercial cafeteria that provided options of steamed or seasoned green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots (n = 890). The portion size was 8-oz, double the standard vegetable size (4-oz). Participants returned 527 surveys with information regarding vegetable choice, liking, and demographics. Leftover bowls were collected for waste analysis. According to binomial tests, significantly more people purchased the seasoned vegetables over steamed (p < 0.001); in detail, the same trend was observed with the purchasing data of seasoned green beans, broccoli, and cauliflower (p < 0.001 for each vegetable type). Vegetable likings were high and similar across all vegetables and cooking methods with an average of 7.3 (9 = like extremely). Overall, 8-oz (226.8 g) servings resulted in 16.59 mean g waste and 210.21 mean g of consumption. To conclude, cooking vegetables with herbs and spices was well accepted by the adult population as was a larger portion size.

Managing the Transformation of Traditional to Organic Agriculture in Pune District: A Long Term Policy Framework

Organic farming is a natural method of cultivation of farms. It improves soil fertility, environment, health of animals and human being. Due to green revolution and commercialisation of agriculture, farmers have focused more on yield and output of all crops. Farmers are using chemical fertilisers and pesticides for high yields, big size, good shape and colour of fruits, grains and vegetables. The aim of this study is to understand effect of chemical fertilisers on the crops, surrounding environment, soil fertility, health of animals and people in Pune district. The present study finds that the farmers of Pune district are using dung, poultry manure and chemical fertilisers. Those farmers are using the poultry manure have more physical and animal assets, land holding, irrigation facilities, expenditure on health, education, income and education and experience of farmers. The multinomial logit regression result shows that those farmers are using the chemical fertilisers have less education, age, irrigated land. Women are less educated in such families. The use of chemical fertilisers have adverse effect on soil fertility, soil layers’, health of people and animals in district. Therefore, present study suggests to reduce the use of the chemical fertilisers for commercial crops. The state and central government, NGO’s, researchers and organisations must come together to manage and form a policy to reduce the chemical fertilisers use and increase the use of organic pesticides, fertilisers. Women’s education can play significant role in reducing the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides in state. The availability of more credit facilities through banks, awareness through media, exports and domestic markets for organic products and encouragement to farmers to produce only organic products will help in this direction. In order to protect soil fertility, environment, water and air such policies are urgently required in India. For sustainable agriculture and economic growth, organic farming is most important.

Establecimiento del tamaño de raciones de consumo de frutas y hortalizas para su uso en guías alimentarias en el entorno español: propuesta del Comité Científico de la Asociación 5 al día

Introducción: las raciones de consumo son cantidades estándares de alimentos o bebidas sugeridas para asesorar sobre la cantidad de alimento a consumir para preservar un estado de salud adecuado. El objetivo principal de este trabajo es establecer los tamaños de ración de consumo de frutas y hortalizas (FH) para uso en guías alimentarias.Material y métodos: Se adaptó la metodología de la United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) para el establecimiento de los tamaños de ración de consumo para guías, y la del sistema de Intercambios. Se recopilaron datos de porción reportados en encuestas y calibres comunes en el mercado, se ajustó a cantidades de alimento fácilmente reconocibles y con equivalencia de nutrientes clave y se evaluó el grado de cumplimiento de los objetivos de salud pública para el consumo de FH.Resultados: Los tamaños de porción típicamente reportados en encuestas españolas son escasos y poco homogéneos, y no se encontraron datos publicados en revistas científicas sobre los calibres. Las guías alimentarias españolas, a pesar de mostrar un rango de tamaño de ración para FH no aseguran que sean intercambiables ni especifican el método para llegar a las mismas. La ración de hortalizas obtenida ha sido de 139,44 g (DS:±21,98; CV:0,16), de 137,68 g (DS:±49,61; CV:0,36) para frutas y 28,00g (DS:±7,53; CV:0,27) para frutas desecadas.Conclusiones: Con las raciones establecidas, el mensaje “consume al menos 5 raciones entre FH al día” permitiría alcanzar los objetivo de Salud Pública para FH establecidos en 600 g (peso neto)/persona/día. Se recomienda a la Agencia Española de Consumo, Seguridad Alimentaria y Nutrición (AECOSAN) que use esta misma metodología para el establecimiento de raciones en el resto de grupos de alimentos que configuran la Guía Dietética Basada en Alimentos para la población española.

Relationship between color and antioxidant capacity of fruits and vegetables

Visual perception plays a key role in the selection of nutritious and healthy foods. Color, as one of the most important senses of vision, can be used as an indicator of food quality/defects and grade. It is recommended consumers include various colors in their plate to obtain various vitamins and minerals. Color is also thought to be related to antioxidant capacity. Within this regard, this study investigated the relationship between color and antioxidant capacity in various fruits and vegetables. The results indicate the color hues analyzed by computer vision based image analysis can be related with TAC of fruits and vegetables, but with some limitations and can be used as a guide for food selection to increase daily antioxidant intake. Most of fruits and vegetables having hue values above 180° and below 20°, have high antioxidant capacity (>10 mmol TE/kg fresh weight). The results also emphasized the importance of the serving size of fruits and vegetables in terms of their contribution to daily antioxidant intake. Based on these results, fruits and vegetables could be categorized into low-, medium-, and high-antioxidant groups according to their TAC and potential contributions to fulfill the recommended daily antioxidant intake. Finally, daily antioxidant intake was evaluated with a healthier scenario created by doubling vegetable portion and reducing fruit portion by half in the meal.

Variations in Palatability and Portion Size of Vegetables on Meal Intake of Preschool Children

Variations in Palatability and Portion Size of Vegetables on Meal Intake of Preschool Children

Farmers’ participation in vegetable innovation platforms in Southwest Nigeria

Innovation Platforms (IPs) are established to facilitate communication among actors along commodity value chain. Its use as entry point for dissemination of agricultural innovations has received attention in recent years. The paper presents the experience of using IPs to scale up micro-dosing innovations in Southwest Nigeria. It examined farmers' participation in IP activities, benefits derived from such participation and constraints to participation. The multistage sampling procedure was used to select 160 farmers for the study. Structured interview schedule was used to collect data from farmers. Only 148 of the interview guides were certified as containing enough information for analysis. Data collected were collated and analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Data collected were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings reveal high participation of farmers in decision making regarding the activities on the platforms. Majority of the farmers also participated in IP meetings (71.6%), capacity building/training sessions (90.5%), demonstration trials (83.1%), and business relationship meetings (81.1%). There was a low participation of farmers in leadership (10.8%), consultation (4.7%) and marketing (16.2%). Benefits derived include knowledge and skills in vegetable production using micro-dosing innovations, face to face interaction with other stakeholders, improved productivity and timely access to information. Insufficient market for produce during the wet season, credit to expand production during the dry season, lack of trust among actors on the platforms and lack of commitment of members were major constraints identified by farmers on the platforms. Income of vegetable farmers (r=0.173) and household size (r= -0.167) had significant relationships with participation at p≤0.05. Based on the findings, it is concluded that membership of IPs has benefited farmers. However, the project should improve on the linkage of IPs with the market and training on group dynamics among IP actors as ways of reducing obstacles to effective functioning of the IPs. This will facilitate effective dissemination, adoption of micro-dosing innovations and food security of farm families and further ensure sustainability of the IPs.

Alberta's Tomorrow Project: adherence to cancer prevention recommendations pertaining to diet, physical activity and body size.

To explore cross-sectional adherence to cancer prevention recommendations by adults enrolled in a prospective cohort in Alberta, Canada. Questionnaire data were used to construct a composite cancer prevention adherence score for each participant, based on selected personal recommendations published by the World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research (2007). Data were self-reported on health and lifestyle, past-year physical activity and past-year FFQ. The scores accounted for physical activity, dietary supplement use, body size, and intakes of alcohol, fruit, vegetables and red meat. Tobacco exposure was also included. Scores ranged from 0 (least adherent) to 7 (most adherent). Alberta's Tomorrow Project; a research platform based on a prospective cohort. Adult men and women (n 24 988) aged 35-69 years recruited by random digit dialling and enrolled in Alberta's Tomorrow Project between 2001 and 2009. Of the cohort, 14 % achieved adherence scores ≥5 and 60 % had scores ≤3. Overall adherence scores were higher in women (mean (sd): 3·4 (1·1)) than in men (3·0 (1·2)). The extent of overall adherence was also associated with level of education, employment status, annual household income, personal history of chronic disease, family history of chronic disease and age. Reported adherence to selected personal recommendations for cancer prevention was low in this cohort of adults. In the short to medium term, these results suggest that more work is required to identify behaviours to target with cancer prevention strategies at a population level. Future work will explore the associations between adherence scores and cancer risk in this cohort.

Consumer���s choice of retail outlets for African indigenous vegetables: Empirical evidence among rural and urban households in Kenya

AbstractThis study evaluated socio-economic, institutional and product characteristics that influence the choice for African indigenous vegetable (AIV) retail outlets among rural and urban households in Kenya. Multistage sampling technique was used to select a sample of 450 respondents from four counties in Kenya. Data was collected using a pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire and a multinomial Probit model was used in the analysis. Findings revealed that local open air markets and green groceries were the most preferred retail outlets in rural and urban households, respectively. Additionally, gender, age and education level of the key decision-maker, household size, varietal diversity, vegetable bunch size, market distance and perceptions regarding AIV retail prices significantly influenced the choice for AIV retail outlets. Interventions that would standardize the quantity of vegetables sold per bunch in both supermarkets and green groceries and a further development of more green grocery retail out...