The study analysed the extent of vulnerability to food insecurity and household coping mechanisms among yam farmers in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Cross-sectional data were used for this study with the aid of a well-designed questionnaire. A multistage sampling procedure was used to select 360 respondents. Multinomial logit (MNL) model and Feasible Generalized Least Square (FGLS) method were employed for the data analysis. The results of the FGLS model showed that 49.3% of the households were food secure and experienced low vulnerability to food insecurity. However, 30.23% of them were food insecure and highly vulnerable; they are considered as chronically food-insecure households. Also, the study revealed that 11.01% of the food secure households may be food insecure in the future if necessary attention and intervention are not given by both households and the government. Again, 9.4% of the households that were experiencing food shortage, as at the time of the study, may recover in the future. The findings of MNL revealed that the age of the household head, main occupation, household size, land size, net household income, and membership in a cooperative society were the main significant factors in yam farming households' decision to use coping strategies. As a result, it is recommended that leveraging the potential role of coping mechanisms already used by households during food shortages, and building a comprehensive human capital development, such as education, will be vital policy options to reduce food insecurity.

A corn dryer prototype was manufactured for Mexican small-scale farmers in order to avoid them paying fines for corn with a high-moisture content when selling their corn on to stores. The dryer comprised two large boxes perforated by round holes and containing stainless steel trays subjected to a hot air temperature of 45°C within the batch. The accumulated grain in both boxes was 200 mm and the airflow rate were 0.56 m3 s-1. The corn ears layer was of 80 mm of depth in each of the boxes. The airflow rate was 0.34 m3 s-1. Within eight hours, we sampled corn grain in nine points of each box and found that the mean corn grain moisture content was reduced from 30.36% to 10.47% for box 1 whereas for box 2 it was reduced until 14.72%. The fuel consumption for drying was 0.55 kg h-1 of kerosene. In Box1, the exponential regression model for corn grain moisture content had an R² of 0.9143 whereas Box 2 exponential regression model had an R² was of 0.6642. In Box 1, the exponential regression model for corn ear moisture content had an R² of 0.9616 whereas Box 2 had an R² was of 0.9400. Both models for corn cob moisture content had an R² of 0.9639. Two-layer corn dryers can be used to harness gas or fuel energy to speed up drying for storage.

Drying characteristics of Lemon grass leaves using an oven dryer was studied at four different temperatures (40, 50, 60 and 70°C). The effect of the drying temperatures on moisture content of the leaves was investigated. Thirteen drying models were fitted to the drying data to establish the model that best describes the drying characteristics of Lemon grass leaves. The best model was determined by the model with the lowest value of SSE and root mean square error (RMSE), and the highest value of coefficient of determination (R2). Hii et al. model satisfied the conditions for selecting the most suitable and reliable model with R2, SSE and RMSE values of the model was 0.9964, 0.0250 and 0.0214 respectively. This model is most suitable at 40°C. The effective diffusivity (Deff) values ranged from 8.92452 × 10-12 m2/s to 16.00657 × 10-12 m2/s and increases as temperature increases. It was further observed that the amount of energy required to eliminate moisture within the leaves was in the range of 19.85 kJ/mol - 19.86949 kJ/mol. Dried lemongrass leaves can be used in food preservation as an alternative to synthetic substances that have recently become less acceptable to consumers. Consumers accept natural food products that are universally acknowledged as safe, such as lemon grass with essential oils, and they also fit the standards for green processing.

The gastrointestinal parasitic infestation seems to have a substantial economic impact on the entire livestock production industry. Because of the parasites' environmental appropriateness, numerous domestic animals in Bangladesh are particularly susceptible to the infestation; however, the extent to which people are aware of the potential risk factors is debatable. Therefore, the current meta-analysis' objective is to determine the precise understanding of potential risk variables and the impact of climatological variations on five important gastrointestinal parasites: Paramphistomum species, Strongyloides species, Trichuris species, Schistosoma species, and Moneizia species. Four globally recognized databases, including Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, and Google Scholar were screened to choose the studies published in English language from 2000 to 2020. Finally, 29 studies were selected for further analysis and recorded the maximum prevalence in Paramphistomum species (26%; 95% CI: 19-33), followed by Strongyloides species (9%, 95% CI: 5-12), Trichuris species (10%, 95% CI: 4-17), Schistosoma species (19%, 95% CI: 7-31), and Moneizia species (8%, 95% CI: 5-10); besides the overall prevalence was noted as 15% (95% CI: 11-18). Furthermore, subgroup analysis revealed that parasite infestation was most prevalent in females (21%) and the elderly animal population (14%) and the summer season (26%). To sum up, the current meta-analysis visualized the epidemiological risk factors with the overall incidence of five major parasite infestations in livestock animals in Bangladesh; hence, the government and shareholders may employ it as proof before launching any control programs or improving farmers' awareness.

World trade in agricultural products, tends to increase. Turkey is among the countries in foreign trade advantages with its agricultural potential. As one of the most important tomato producer countries, monitoring of developments in the world tomatoes trade is extremely important for Turkey. The aim of this study was to evaluate Turkey’s position in world tomato trade. The developments of tomato foreign trade between Turkey and importer countries were analysed using Trade Intensity Analysis Method. Turkey supplied %75 of total tomato exports to Russia. Ukraine, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Syria and Israel are important markets for tomato export. The epidemic (Covid-19 virus) has also been reflected in the international trade balances in tomato production. Giving importance to Turkey’s political relations and to boost its exports by providing market diversity, it is important for the sustainability of tomato exports. In this context, market researches should be conducted specially to find and entrance into new markets. Besides the fresh tomato, the activities for the export of tomato paste and canned tomato should be implemented.

The viruses that cause avian flu (influenza) are highly contagious and highly variable viruses commonly found in birds. Wild birds in aquatic habitats are thought to be natural reservoirs for influenza viruses, but domestic poultry and other birds can also be infected. Influenza viruses belong to the orthomyxovirus family. Influenza A viruses are the only orthomyxoviruses known to naturally affect birds. Many bird species are susceptible to infection with influenza A viruses. Influenza A viruses have nucleocapsid and matrix proteins associated with their antigenic properties but are subtyped according to the hemagglutinin (H) and neuraminidase (N) antigens. In addition, avian influenza virus infections are considered to be one of the most important public health problems of the 21st century. Only in the last century, avian influenza viruses have created 4 different pandemics and have caused the death of a large number of poultry all over the world. The main purpose of this study is to provide information about avian influenza virus characteristics, important virus subtypes, clinical symptoms and antiviral drugs by analyzing the “Avian influenza” known as a poultry epidemic that has had significant effects in the 21st century.

This study examined the allelopathic effect of different concentration of aqueous extracts of Parkia biglobosa stem bark on the germination and growth of weed seeds species. Seeds of Eragorastis tenella, Eragorastis atrovirens, Pannicum pedicellata, Pennisetum sub albidum, Hypharrhenia rufa and Brcichiaria brizantha were tested for plumule germination and radicle growth with three different concentrations of 1%, 5%, 10% plant extract while ordinary water was used as control. Growth parameters including germinated weeds population were measured; the highest germinated weeds population was at the control (8.06±3.97) and the least was obtained from the 10% concentration with the mean of (4.42±2.59). Weeds population decreased as the concentration increased. The highest mean of weeds height was recorded from 1% concentration (11.46±7.08) which is statistically significant while the least mean was recorded from 10% concentration (7.69±6.70) statistically not significant. The family emergence by concentration indicated that, the experiment under control had (4 families) for 1% (2 families), 5% (2 families) and 10% (4 families) emerged. The germination, radicle and plumule length were inhibited when compare with control and the inhibition was statistically not significant at.

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of 10 mM silicon (Si) application on salt stress (50, 100, and 200 mM NaCl) tolerance in Hungarian vetch seedlings (Ege Beyazi-79) based on growth parameters (shoot length and fresh weight, organic dry matter, and moisture), bioactive compounds as chlorophyll, carotenoid, proline, protein, nitrate, and nutrient status. Silicon was applied to the seedlings from the leaves and NaCl from the salt soil, both of which were dissolved in Hoagland solution. The results revealed that the highest shoot length Si+100 mM NaCl was recorded and the highest fresh and dry weight was recorded with length Si+50 mM NaCl. The highest dry matter was obtained from Si and 200 mM NaCl. The highest chlorophyll, carotenoid, proline, protein, and nitrate were obtained from 100 mM NaCl+Si, while the lowest chlorophyll, carotenoid, and nitrate were obtained from 200 mm NaCl and the lowest proline and protein from 100 mM NaCl, respectively. The amount of K, Mg, and S were low in NaCl doses but high in Si and Si + NaCl doses, and P was higher in all groups compared to the control. The content of Na, Co, and Se were high in all groups except Cl 50 NaCl, while Mn, Zn, and Ni were higher in Si and Si + NaCl doses. Silicon content of samples was high at higher NaCl + Si doses. The results provided by this investigating indicated that silicate concentrations positively affected the parameters examined in Hungarian seedlings, and increased the tolerance of seedlings to salt stress.

This study evaluates the chemical properties of mistletoe leaves powder from moringa trees (MLPM) and mistletoe leaves powder from kola nut trees (MLPK). The MLPM and MLPK were subjected to phytochemical analysis, vitamin A determination, lipid peroxidation inhibition activity, 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate (DPPH) analysis, proximate and mineral composition analysis, alpha-amylase inhibitory activity and alpha-glucosidase inhibitory activity. Total phenol, steroids, and tannins concentrations were higher in MLPK than in MLPM; steroids was higher in MLPK than in MLPM; whereas total flavonoids and saponins concentrations, were equivalents. MLPK had greater vitamin A concentrations and DPPH than MLPM. The lipid peroxidation inhibition of MLPM and MLPK did not differ significantly. MLPM had higher moisture, crude fibre, and ash content than MLPK. Furthermore, MLPK had larger fat, crude protein, and nitrogen-free extract contents than MLPM. The MLPM and MLPK have similar Zn (0.9 vs. 1.3 mg/kg), Ca (20.1 vs. 13.1 mg/kg), Mg (66.1 vs. 70.2 mg/kg), and P (185.8 vs. 183.5 mg/kg) contents. The alpha-amylase inhibitory action of MLPM (40.40%) and MLPK (35.07%) were similar. MLPK (44.37%), on the other hand, has a stronger alpha-glucose inhibitory action than MLPM (32.47%). Finally, phenol, steroids, tannins, and steroids varied between MLPM and MLPK, with phenol, steroids, and tannins being greater in MLPK. The MLPM had higher vitamin A concentrations and antioxidant activity than MLPK. The MLPM and MLPK inhibited alpha-amylase and alpha-glucosidase activity.