The early adoption of the legume Arachis pintoi was studied in the State of Caqueta, located in Colombia's Amazon region [date not given]. Data came from 174 farmers randomly surveyed in 1986 and 1997 within the area of influence of Nestle, a multinational milk-processing company. In addition, 52 farmers who had already adopted Arachis were surveyed separately to study their experiences, difficulties, and prospects with the legume. Results indicated that livestock activity is undergoing dynamic intensification. Since 1986, milk production per lactation has increased by 31%, cow fertility by 5%, herd size by 18%, and the area sown to improved pastures by 165%. Current adoption rate of Arachis is about 9.2%, with an estimated 3000 ha already planted. Two-thirds of farmers who had adopted Arachis said they would double, in the next year, the average area sown (9.6 ha/farm). Adopters tended to have larger farms and to have invested twice the capital than did non-adopters. The cost of seed for both grass and legume accounted for 40-52% of total establishment costs, making seed quality decisive in uaranteeing success. To promote Arachis, more information on the plant and its management in association with grasses must be disseminated. Mechanisms should also be sought to reduce establishment costs.

A cross-sectional survey was carried out to characterize the pig production systems in four districts along the Kenya-Uganda border. Information was collected by administering structured questionnaires to 645 households in 32 randomly selected clusters. The study showed that the majority of the farmers owned very small pig herds (2.4±0.1) which were mainly tethered. Their main objective for pig keeping was income generation. Decisions on pig purchases were predominantly made by either women or by women and men in collaboration while day to day care of the animals was performed by women. Disease especially African swine fever (ASF) was considered to be the biggest risk to pig investment, while feeding was the biggest production constraint. Studies that look into cheaper locally available feed options should be undertaken to enable the farmers solve the feed constraint. Sensitization of farmers to adopt biosecurity measures would reduce disease risk especially ASF risk.

The objective of this study was to understand the perception of agricultural producers in Colombia who currently do not own livestock about the role of cattle in alleviating poverty in their farms. Data came from direct survey interviews in 2002 with 143 farmers who did not own cattle in the five most important regions of animal production in Colombia to elicit their perception about the role of livestock as a pathway out of poverty. Selected regions were: Piedmont, Caribbean, the Coffee-growing region, the highlands of Antioquia, and the Cundiboyacense altiplanicie. Most smallholders interviewed in the Piedmont had cattle in the past (85%), followed by producers in Antioquia (60%) and least in the Coffee-growing region (39%). The most important reason for selling their cattle in all regions was due to financial crisis and needed cash (ie., from 27% of smallholders interviewed in the Caribbean and the Cundiboyacense altiplanicie to almost 50% in the Piedmont). Most smallholders surveyed used the money from the sale of animals to pay health bills of family members, to pay off debts, and/or to use the cash to survive due to crop failure from extreme weather conditions (ie., drought or frost damage). The most striking result is that 76% of farmers in Antioquia to 97% of smallholders in the Cundiboyacense altiplanicie would like to own cattle if they had the opportunity. The most important reason for owning cattle in all regions was as a mechanism for savings and building capital. The second most important reason in all regions was to obtain milk and beef for family consumption, except in Antioquia where this issue was irrelevant. Other reasons for owning cattle were to reduce and diversify risk due to crop failure and to utilize manure as fertilizer. The preferred animal category to own in all regions was by far the milking cow, ranging from 52% of smallholders in Antioquia to 96% in the Cundiboyacense altiplanicie. Results from this study show that cattle are perceived by small-holder farmers as a contribution to the improvement in the quality of life. The challenge is to develop novel mechanisms to provide smallholders with livestock, either through credit loans or thru the Fondos Ganaderos of Colombia, whose objective is to help small farmers who have production capacity but lack the resources to buy cattle.

This paper describes a study aimed at evaluating the effect of selecting sires based on their breeding values for milk yield estimated in their countries of origin on reproductive performance of their daughters on large-scale dairy farms in Malawi. To do this an analysis was done using 2362 records of purebred Holstein Friesian cattle kept in Central and Southern Malawi from 1986 to 1996. Fixed effects of sire group, herd, year and season of calving were tested and random effects of dam and cow were included in the statistical model applied. (Co)variance components were estimated through the restricted maximum likelihood (REML) procedure. Mean number of services per conception (NSC) was 1.50, gestation interval (GI) was 277days, calving interval between first and second parity (CI1) was 416 days, calving interval between second and third parity two and three (CI2) was 408 days, and age at first calving (AFC) was 32.5 months. In general the majority of the reproductive traits were affected by the non-genetic factors of herd, year and season. Sire group, a proxy of the breeding strategy, had a significant effect on AFC (p<0.01) and CI2 (p<0.05). Factors that had significant effects (p<0.01) on most of the reproductive traits in the study were herd, year of insemination, year of calving, and season of insemination. Phenotypic correlation between NSC and AFC was 0.19, between NSC and GI was -0.05, while that between NSC and CI2 was 0.14. Heritability estimates for NSC, GI, CI1, and AFC were, 0.04, 0.10, 0.001, and 0.20, respectively. The high variation due to non-genetic factors and the low heritability estimates for the reproductive traits indicate that much improvement could be made through improved management, husbandry practices, and strategically utilizing environmental factors.

Methane is considered to be the main greenhouse gas (GHG) emitted by livestock. One method for reducing methane emissions from ruminants is to improve production efficiency, which reduces methane emissions per unit of product (FAO, 2010; Gworgwor, Mbahi, and Yakubu, 2006). There are many researches about prebiotics which can reduce methane production in livestock, for example, galacto-oligosaccharides reduced methane emission up to 11% (litres/day) (Zhou et al., 2004). There is almost no information about prebiotic inulin, so the aim of this research was to determine the impact of different dosages of inulin concentrate (50%) on the increase of calves’ body weight and its impact on methane emission, as well as to find out how the results change if it is added to barley flour not to milk as in our previous research. Approximately fifty days old, clinically healthy, different Holstein Friesian crossbreed calves kept in groups of 8, in a partly closed space with natural ventilation through windows were included in this research. Eight calves were in the control group (CoG) and sixteen received inulin (Pre12 (n = 8), Pre24 (n = 8)). At the beginning of the experiment – the 28th and 56th day - we determined each calf’s weight and measured the methane level in the rumen by using the PICARROG-2508 gas analyser (Fleck, 2013). We concluded that inulin supplement significantly (p ≤ 0.05) increased the live weight gain comparing Pre24 and CoG. The highest methane production on 1 kg of body weight at the end of the research was detected in Pre24 – 1.24 mg mE-3 and the lowest in CoG – 0.99 mg mE-3.

This work deals with the baking quality of the spelt wheat grain (Triticum spelta L.) compared with bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Mixed flours were made of different share of spelt wheat and bread wheat (in total 11 mixtures) in 2016 in the Česke Budejovice in the laboratories of the Faculty of Agriculture. The technological quality of these mixtures was analysed, focusing on standard evaluation methods (protein content, characteristic of gluten or swellability of protein). The analysis was supplemented by complete rheological analysis made by Mixolab II. Bread was used as a model product. Subsequently, sensory evaluation of baked bread from the previously prepared mixtures was done. Part of the analysis was to estimate the economic basic bread recipe with different proportions of bread wheat and spelt wheat. The results were statistically analysed via STATISTICA 9.1 (StatSoft, Inc., USA). It was proved that the flour made of spelt can give cereal products with a higher nutritional value. The results have shown that the spelt grain is much more suitable for baking. Its advantage is the higher protein content and higher resistance of kneading of the dough and starch gelatinization rate, which was statistically confirmed. The main disadvantage is the higher price of spelt. According to the results, the ideal utilization of spelt wheat based on sensory analysis and economic calculations seems to be the mixture of spelt wheat and bread wheat, which results in an undeniable decrease of the product cost, and hence effects the common customer choice and taste preferences.

Wheat (Triticum aestivum) is one of the main crops grown in Latvia. Nitrogen fertilizer is one of the most important factors affecting the acquired yield and its quality. The aim of this paper is to describe the nitrogen fertilization impact on winter wheat yield and yield components under two soil tillage systems and after two forecrops. Field trials were carried out at Research and Study farm ‘Peterlauki’ of Latvia University of Agriculture (56° 30.658°C N and 23° 41.580°C E) in 2014/2015 and 2015/2016. Researched factors were (1) crop rotation (continuous wheat and wheat/oilseed rape (Brassica napus ssp. oleifera), (2) soil tillage (traditional soil tillage with mould-board ploughing at a depth of 22 – 24 cm and reduced soil tillage with disc harrowing at a depth below 10 cm), and (3) nitrogen fertilizer rate (N0 or control, N60, N90, N120(90+30), N150(90+60), N180(90+60+30), N210(90+70+50), and N240(120+60+60). Results showed that the nitrogen fertilization significantly increased winter wheat grain yield after both forecrops and in both soil tillage variants. Grain yield significantly increased until the nitrogen fertilizer rate N180. Nitrogen fertilizer significantly affected all tested yield components. Values of yield components increased enhancing N-rate of N150 – N180. The forecrop had a significant impact on wheat yield and 1000 grain weight (both increased when wheat was sown after oilseed rape). Yield and grain number per ear were significantly higher when conventional tillage was used, but number of ears per square m – when the reduced tillage was used.

The article deals with the implementation of the LEADER programme in Poland. The aim of the paper was to present the influence of the LEADER programme 2007 – 2013 on rural areas development taking into account its objectives. This topic is current in the context of the Rural Development Programme 2007 – 2013 evaluation and search for effective tools for supporting rural areas. The results of research conducted in 2016 among residents and local action groups are presented. Firstly, the LEADER programme had little impact on the possibility of finding work outside the agriculture. Secondly, the realized projects have contributed to the improvement of the quality of life of the residents in rural areas, especially when it comes to meeting the needs of tourism and leisure. The programme was of great importance in underpinning social capital in the countryside, especially its behavioural and bonding dimension. It is very significant taking into account the low level of social capital in rural areas in Poland. An overall level of activity of rural residents and other entities increased, so as the propensity to engage in joint initiatives and the level of trust. The observed effects of the LEADER programme may in the future contribute significantly to the endogenous development of rural areas.

It is important for every country that its territory develops evenly and in a balanced way. In the European Union (EU), a special focus is placed on the development of rural territories, as predominantly rural regions in the EU represent 57% of the territory and 24% of the population. In Latvia, the development of rural territories depends on economic growth in the key industries for the rural areas – agriculture and forestry, and logging that contributed to 4.3% of GDP and employed 9.5% of the labour force in 2011. Therefore, the research aim is to perform an assessment of the administrative territories of Latvia. The research analysed the municipalities of Latvia in terms of population and change in the population as well as in terms of revenue and income and change in the revenue and income. The research found that in Latvia the best economic performance was demonstrated by the municipalities with a population in the range of 8-12 thousand. In the period 2004 – 2014, the number of residents decreased by more than 20% in 49 municipalities of Latvia. Such municipalities are located far away from the capital city, and poor economic performance indicators with a prevailing primary sector were typical of the municipalities. The municipalities with higher tax revenue had larger populations, which increased in the period of analysis, and such municipalities are located in the vicinity of Riga and high economic performance indicators were characteristic of them.

Smart specialisation strategy (RIS3) is topical for each European Union member state – including the Baltic States. It is a smart tool for the European Union (EU) Structural Funds absorption from 2014 to 2020. Each EU member state has set their own priorities based on the country specialisation and economy strengths and weaknesses. For RIS3 development evaluation, there is RIS3 Assessment Wheel developed – a tool for assessing the RIS3 in a chosen region and positioning it between other regions. The aim of research is to find main differences between RIS3 development in the Baltic States. The tasks of research are 1) to compare existing RIS3 Assessment Wheel of Latvia and create authors version of RIS3 Assessment Wheel of Latvia; 2) to create RIS3 Assessment Wheel of Lithuania and Estonia; 3) to make comparisons between created RIS3 Assessment Wheels. The research performed is mainly based on the desk research by using content analysis and the monographic method. In all three Baltic States, there is a lack of information available about revision of priorities in connection with RIS3 development. In order to achieve the aims set in RIS3, it is essential to finish work on RIS3 legislation in Latvia, and introduce the systematic approach to RIS3 target evaluation in all Baltic States.