Turkey has vast agricultural lands and diverse climatic conditions, and different plant species can be cultivated. Especially, Konya province, located in the Central Anatolia Region, is an important agricultural centre in Turkey. Konya province, which has a polyculture production pattern, stands out in the production of medicinal and aromatic plants due to its favourable climatic conditions and soil structure. In Turkey, 26.33% of cumin, which is among the medicinal and aromatic plants, is produced in Konya province. This study aims to determine the factors affecting cumin production. For this purpose, 65 cumin producers determined by proportional sampling method were interviewed. The data obtained through these interviews were analysed by using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method to determine the weights of the criteria affecting the cumin production decision of the agricultural enterprises. In the process of determining the criteria influencing the cumin production decision, the opinions of subject experts working in universities, public institutions and organizations and producers were taken. Among the criteria determined as yield, price, labour requirement, water requirement, ease of marketing, mechanisation, input costs, cultivation knowledge, soil structure and subsidies, the most important criterion was found to be price with 28.11%. Price criterion is followed by input cost 22.57%, water requirement 12.13%,  yield 8.71%, cultivation knowledge 8.43%, subsidies 6.82%, ease of marketing 4.74%, soil structure 3.63%, mechanisation 2.54% and labour requirement 2.25%. It is thought that the solution of the mechanisation problem will make a significant contribution to cumin production as it will reduce the need for labour force.

Tomato buds of cv. Idkawy were cultured in vitro on solid MS medium with 0.2 mg-l BAP. The plantlets that were produced were exposed to different doses of gamma radiation, ranging from 100 to 200 Gy. Afterward, single pieces of nodes were cut and moved to a fresh MS medium with 0.2 mg-l of BAP. The gamma radiation caused a mortality rate of 18.75% to 52.5% among the explants. The surviving plantlets were then cut into single node pieces and transferred to an MS medium containing 0.2 mg-l of BAP, with added NaCl concentrations of either 50 or 100 mM. There was increased mortality of the vegetative buds on the explants with increased salt concentrations. It was shown that the all gamma radiation doses caused reduced the percentage of survival at saline levels. The genetic diversity was assessment by using ten primers for each SCoT and ISSR markers to six irradiated treatments grew under salt stress (100 Gy x 50 mM, 150 Gy x 50 mM, 200 Gy x 50 mM, 100 Gy x 100 mM, 150 Gy x 100 mM, 200 Gy x 100 mM). It was showed that the polymorphism percentage mean of SCoT marker (29.56%) is higher than the ISSR marker (26.78%). The average of PIC values for both markers SCoT and ISSR were 0.197 and 0.288 (PIC ˂0.5), as well as, MI values were 0.077 and 0.081, respectively. In contrast, when considering the number of alleles (Ne), Nei's genetic diversity (H), and Shannon's information index (I) parameters, it was observed that the greatest genetic variation was caused by the combined treatment of 200 Gy x 50 mM NaCl using the SCoT marker. On the other hand, with the ISSR marker, the highest induced genetic variation was seen with the combined treatment of 150 Gy x 50 mM NaCl. The obtained results demonstrate that SCoT marker was more accurate and efficient than ISSR marker for distinguishing and genetic variation analysis of irradiated tomato plantlets grew under salt stress. The relationships within treatments were estimated through cluster analysis (UPGMA) based on SCoT and ISSR analysis.

The global population is increasing at a rapid pace, posing significant challenges to sustainable development and food security. This review paper examines the advantages and challenges of organic farming as a potential solution to address the pressing issues in modern agriculture and food production. Organic farming offers a range of benefits, including improved soil fertility, higher profitability, reduced external input usage, land reclamation, improved market access, and enhanced farmer capacity and self-reliance. Organic farming practices prioritize environmental sustainability by reducing chemical usage and reliance on biological methods of pest control, as well as enhancing biodiversity, which strengthens ecological balance and resilience against pests and diseases. However, organic farming also faces challenges that need to be addressed for its widespread adoption. These challenges include uncertainty surrounding legislative environments, psychological and sociological costs of conversion, financial risks during the transition period, securing marketing channels for organic produce, and diminishing profit margins. Efforts should be made to provide farmers with the necessary support, including technical assistance, subsidies, and access to markets, to overcome these challenges. Despite the challenges, the potential of organic farming in promoting sustainable agriculture and ensuring a secure food system cannot be overlooked. It offers a natural and environmentally friendly approach to food production, prioritizing the health of both humans and the ecosystem.

The development of high-yielding modern wheat varieties to feed the growing population has had a negative impact on the production of ancestral and landrace crops. The use of modern varieties, which are very deficient in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and flavonoids, has caused people to turn to old varieties due to health problems that arise over time. In this study, which aimed to determine the glutathione S-transferase (GST) enzyme activity of registered varieties and landraces, the differences between the protein values and GST enzyme activity values of wheat were found to be statistically significant. When protein values were analysed among wheat varieties, einkorn wheat had the highest value with 15.53 mg/ml, and KUNDURU-1149 had the second highest value with 13.52 mg/ml. The lowest protein values were found in wheat landraces. Lr-4 had the highest GST enzyme activity with 299.7 mmol/min/mg protein and Lr-10 with 265.3 mmol/min/mg protein. A negative and high correlation was found between wheat protein values and GST enzyme activity, and it was determined that landraces were prominent in terms of GST enzyme activity.

The diverse nutrients found in sweet potato leaves, including vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, offer a range of health benefits. The presence of carotenoids and polyphenols, both powerful health-promoting compounds, highlights their potential contribution to medical science. The main objective of this study was to ascertain essential functionals substances of antioxidant, phenolic compounds, and β-carotene in the leaves of 14 distinct sweet potato lines cultivated in open field. A comprehensive analysis of antioxidant capacity, phenolic content, and β-carotene was conducted using ABTS, Folin-Ciocalteu, and HPLC techniques, respectively. The study showed that the concentrations of total antioxidants, phenols, and β-carotene differed markedly among the leaf materials. Among the lines, SP-13 stands out with the highest concentration of phenols (124.64 mg/g dry weight), while SP-14 comes in at the opposite end with the lowest amount (62.97 mg/g dry weight) under field conditions. In the case of antioxidant content in line SP-3 showed the highest with 3.55 mg/g dry weight, while SP-14 brings up the lowest with 1.88 mg/g dry weight. Line SP-5 showed the most β-carotene (0.51 mg/g dry weight), while SP-11 had the least (0.05 mg/g dry weight). Therefore, it can be concluded that sweet potato leaves are a valuable dietary source of antioxidants, phenolic compounds, and β-carotene which have beneficial health elements.

Bu çalışmada şeker fabrikası atığı olan melas ve süt farikası yan ürünü olan peynir altı suyu elma ve portakal kaplamasında kullanılarak üç hafta boyunca depolanmıştır. Depolama süresince kalite değişimleri belirlenmiştir. Kaplamada kullanılan peynir altı suyu ve melasın briks değerleri sırasıyla 30 ve 50, pH’ları ise 1 ve 7.8’dir. Çalışmada kaplanan meyvelerin ağırlık kaybı ve renk değerleri incelenmiştir. Çalışma sonucunda üç haftalık depolama periyodunda elma için melas+su, portakal için ise peynir altı suyunun etkisinin önemli olduğu tespit edilmiştir. Melas+su ile kaplanan elmalarda ağırlık kaybı %3.645 iken kaplanmayan örneklerde %6.327’dir. Peynir altı suyu ile kaplanan portakallarda ağırlık kaybı %17.860 iken kaplanmayan örneklerde ise %27.930’dur. Çalışma ile melasın elmada, peynir altı suyunun da portakalda kaplama materyali olarak kullanılabileceği sonucuna varılmıştır. Özellikle ağırlık kaybı meyvelerin depolanmasında istenmeyen bir durumdur. Meyvelerin kaplanması ile bu durum minimuma indirilebilir. Kullanılan peynir altı suyu ve melas özellikle ağırlık kaybının azaltılmasında etkili olmuştur.

Türkiye’de etlik piliç ebeveyn ıslah çalışmaları 2015 yılında saf hatlar kullanılarak yeniden başlatılmıştır. Bu çalışmalarda A1 ve A2 ana hatları ile B1 ve B2 baba hatlarında seleksiyon ve melezleme çalışmaları ile ebeveyn üretimi gerçekleştirilmiştir.  Ebeveyn ve hibritlerin verim özelliklerinin ortaya koyulmasıyla, materyal 2020 yılında “Anadolu-T” ismi ile tescil edilmiştir. Saf hatlarda 2016 yılında uygulanan ıslah programına göre büyütme döneminde; canlı ağırlık (CA), canlı ağırlık artışı (CAA), 49-63 günlük yemden yararlanma oranı (YYO), 49. gün göğüs alanı (GA) ile kanat tüylenme hızına ait kalıtımın korunması gibi özelliklere göre seleksiyon yapılmıştır. Yumurtlama döneminde ise; ana hatlarında yumurta verimi (YV), baba hatlarında ise döllülük oranı yönünden seleksiyona devam edilmiştir. Böylece farklı özelliklere sahip saf hatların hem ticari damızlık hem de ticari etlik piliç performansları geliştirilmeye çalışılmıştır. Bu çalışmada, uygulanan ıslah programına göre 2017-2022 yılları arasında saf hatlardan elde edilen bazı veriler değerlendirilmiştir. 40 haftalık yaşta üretilen kuluçkalık yumurta veriminin kabul edilebilir düzeyde olduğu görülmüştür. Hem ana hem de baba hatlarında CA, YYO ve GA gibi özelliklerde saf hatlarda ilerleme sağlandığı görülmektedir. Ticari firmalardan damızlık satın alarak üretim yapan Türkiye açısından, mevcut saf hatlar önemli bir kapasite sağlayacak düzeydedir. Uygun çoğaltma ve dağıtımla ülkemiz etlik piliç damızlık ihtiyacının %10-15’inin bu materyalle karşılanması mümkündür. Özel sektör ile yapılan paylaşımda damızlıkların verim özellikleri kabul edilebilir düzeyde bulunmuş, 5 haftalık etlik piliç performansları da ticari etlik piliçlerle benzerlik göstermiştir.

Zeytinyağı, zeytin meyvesinden mekanik olarak elde edilen ve rafine edilmeden tüketilebilen en önemli bitkisel yağlardan biridir. Zeytinyağı, insan sağlığına faydalı olduğu bilinen yüksek oranda doymamış yağ asitleri ve antioksidan bileşikler içerir. Yeni üretilen zeytinyağı, zeytin posası parçacıkları ve sudan kaynaklanan mikro damlacıklar nedeniyle bulanık görünüme sahiptir. Bulanık görünüme neden olan katı partiküller ve su, bazı mikroorganizmaların canlılığını koruyabileceği bir ortam yaratır. Mikroorganizmaların bazıları zeytinyağının fiziko-kimyasal ve duyusal özelliklerini, yüksek enzimatik aktiviteleri sayesinde iyileştirirken, bazıları da zeytinyağının kalitesini bozar. Zeytinyağındaki mikroorganizma çeşitliliği, zeytin çeşidi, hasat yöntemi, işleme tekniği, depolama koşulları ve depolama süresi gibi faktörlere bağlı olarak değişebilir. Bu çalışmada zeytinyağında bulunan mikroorganizmalar ve bunların zeytinyağı kalitesine etkileri derlenmeye çalışılmıştır.