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SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC RELATIONSHIPS AND MANAGEMENT REGIMES ON USE OF FRUNDU AS FERMENTED FAMINE FOOD IN URBAN NORTHERN DARFUR IN SUDAN
Full text linkFrundu, which in a local term in Darfur for fermented seeds of roselle
( Hibiscus sabdariffa L.), is a traditional Sudanese food often used
as a meat substitute during famine times. The objective of this study
was to assess the relationships between socio-demographic and
management regimes on the use of Frundu as a food security commodity in
urban Darfur in Sudan. A survey involving 140 respondents was conducted
in El-Fashir city markets, where Frundu is a popular commodity in
Darfur markets. A semi-structured questionnaire and Chi square analysis
were used. It was found that the period of fermentation of Frundu
ranged from 3 to 7 days, depending on seasonal temperature. The storage
period of Frundu was on average one year. Over 55% of the respondents
acknowledged Frundu as critical a coping strategy when famine struck
Darfur and the majority of respondents were familiar with Frundu.
Frundu is becoming less popular in Darfur for several reasons;
including difficulty in obtaining Roselle seeds, competition from the
cheapest food items especially during non-famine time; and lack of
familiarity with Frundu among young generations. To boost its
production, processing and utilisation, farmers should be encouraged to
increase its cultivation particularly because it is an important cash
crops in Sudan.Frundu, qui est les graines ferment\ue9es de roselle dans un terme
local au Darfour (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.), est un aliment traditionnel
soudanais souvent utilis\ue9 comme substitut de viande en
p\ue9riode de famine. L\u2019objectif de cette \ue9tude \ue9tait
d\u2019\ue9valuer les relations entre les r\ue9gimes
socio-d\ue9mographiques et de gestion sur l\u2019utilisation du
Frundu comme produit de s\ue9curit\ue9 alimentaire dans le Darfour
urbain au Soudan. Une enqu\ueate aupr\ue8s de 140 r\ue9pondants a
\ue9t\ue9 men\ue9e sur les march\ue9s de la ville
d\u2019El-Fashir la o\uf9 Frundu est un produit populaire sur les
march\ue9s du Darfour. Un questionnaire semi-structur\ue9 et une
analyse du chi carr\ue9 ont \ue9t\ue9 utilis\ue9s. Il a
\ue9t\ue9 constat\ue9 que la p\ue9riode de fermentation du
Frundu variait de 3 \ue0 7 jours, selon la temp\ue9rature
saisonni\ue8re. La dur\ue9e de conservation du Frundu \ue9tait en
moyenne d\u2019un an. Plus de 55% des personnes interrog\ue9es ont
reconnu Frundu comme une strat\ue9gie d\u2019adaptation essentielle
lorsque la famine a frapp\ue9 le Darfour et la majorit\ue9 des
personnes interrog\ue9es connaissaient Frundu. Frundu devient moins
populaire au Darfour pour plusieurs raisons ; y compris la
difficult\ue9 \ue0 obtenir des graines de Roselle, la concurrence
des produits alimentaires les moins chers, en particulier dans la
p\ue9riode d\u2018 abondance; et le manque de familiarit\ue9 avec
Frundu parmi les jeunes g\ue9n\ue9rations. Pour stimuler sa
production, sa transformation et son utilisation, les agriculteurs
devraient \ueatre encourag\ue9s \ue0 augmenter la culture de
Frundu, parce que Frundu est une plante de cueillettes commerciales au
Soudan
Integrated effects of herbicides and foliar fertilizer on corn inbred line
No full textPlant response to herbicides is one of the most essential points in
corn (<taxon genus="Zea" species="mays" sub-prefix=""
sub-species=""><sp>Zea</sp>
<sp>mays</sp></taxon> L.) production, especially in
inbred lines. Weed abundance is higher in corn lines comparing to
hybrids. Insufficient herbicide selectivity in lines crop can be a
limiting factor for their application. Weed control today is based on
Integrated Weed Management (IWM) approach, i.e. to use all possible
methods and measures for weed control and better crop fitness. In this
research, sensitivity of one corn inbred line (selection based on
previous research) was tested to two sulfonylurea herbicides in
treatments with and without foliar fertilizer. Treatments included
recommended and double field doses and control (no herbicide), with and
without foliar fertilizer. Herbicides and foliar fertilizer were
applied as a mixture. In a 3 yr field experiment, herbicides expressed
different selectivity to the tested line. The line was further tested
in controlled conditions for dose-response analyses in order to
determine variations in biomass and biochemical compounds levels. The
double dose of foramsulfuron affected fresh matter significantly (p
< 0.05) with 90% decrease, compared to control. An experiment in
controlled conditions showed increased tolerance to herbicides in
treatments with foliar fertilizer \u2013 according to higher effective
doses (ED10, ED50, and ED90) estimated, indicating higher plant
tolerance to herbicides when foliar fertilizer was applied. In corn
leaves the highest herbicide dose and foliar fertilizer induced slight
reduction of concentrations of free thiol groups, soluble proteins and
phytic P (to 14.1%, 9.3% and 9.9%, respectively) and increased
phenolics concentration (up to 26.7%) compared to treatment without
herbicide application. Obtained results indicate positive effects of
foliar fertilizer when it is applied in mixture with herbicides, and
foliar fertilizing should be considered as important strategy in
obtaining higher yields
Phytohormone content variation manipulated by <taxon genus="Bemisia" species="tabaci" sub-prefix="" sub-species=""><sp>Bemisia</sp> <sp>tabaci</sp></taxon> participated in inhibiting tobacco growth: Gibberellin may play a crucial role
No full textInfestation of <taxon genus="Bemisia" species="tabaci" sub-prefix=""
sub-species=""><sp>Bemisia</sp>
<sp>tabaci</sp></taxon> MEAM1 (Gennadius) causes
significant phenotypic changes in a variety of plants. However, plants
damaged by Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood) show no similar
changes. In this study, to explore the effects of MEAM1 infestation on
tobacco growth and the mechanism underlying these effects, growth
index, and photosynthesis of infested tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.),
as well as content of hormones, including auxin, gibberellin,
cytokinin, abscisic acid, methyl jasmonate, and ethylene were measured.
The results demonstrated that infestation of MEAM1 significantly
inhibited tobacco growth and the inhibition effect varied with MEAM1
feeding densities, 50 MEAM1 per infested tobacco plant decreased plant
height, internode length, and dry weight cm-2, and this inhibition
peaked at 200 MEAM1 per plant, which reduced by 52.17%, 43.83%, and
45.61% that of controls, respectively. Additionally, MEAM1 infestation
inhibited photosynthesis of tobacco, causing significant decrease in
chlorophyll content, photosynthetic rate and stomatal conductance.
However, the effects of T. vaporariorum infestation on tobacco were
significantly lighter than that of MEAM1. Hormones assays indicated
that infestation with 200 MEAM1 per plant for 30 d significantly
affected hormones content, among which gibberellin content was
specifically reduced compared with that of uninfested control plants
and T. vaporariorum infested plants. Furthermore, exogenous application
of 1 and 2 \u3bcM gibberellin alleviated the reduction in plant height
mediated by MEAM1. Therefore, infestation of MEAM1 significantly
inhibited tobacco growth and photosynthesis, and the reduction of
gibberellin content may contribute to this inhibition
Aquatic Insects Diversity and Water Quality Assessment of a Tropical Freshwater Pond in Benin City, Nigeria
Full text linkAquatic insects are species of significant importance to water bodies
because they serve various purposes including nutrient cycling, vectors
of pathogens and bioindicators of water quality. Analyzing their
community structure is a veritable tool in studies of biodiversity and
quality of limnetic ecosystems. Therefore, we investigated the health
status of a pond in Benin City, Nigeria using insect\u2019s abundance,
composition, distribution and physicochemical parameters of the
waterbody. Insects were sampled using sweep nets and identified to the
species level while water samples were collected and analyzed using
in-situ and ex-situ methods to determine the physicochemical properties
in three sampling stations. The results of the physicochemical
assessment of the water indicated that conditions did not differ widely
between sites (P > 0.05) except for total alkalinity, and the
recorded values were well within the ambient FMEnv permissible limits
for surface water except for dissolved oxygen, turbidity and phosphate.
A total of 10 insect taxa, comprising of 103 individuals in 2 orders
were recorded in the study and among the orders, Hemiptera comprised of
7 species and Coleoptera comprised of 3 species. Majority of the insect
fauna found in this study are typically found in similar water bodies
in the tropics. However, the obsereved insect community structure
revealed a relatively low taxa richness with a dominance of
pollution-resistant species which suggests a moderately polluted
condition of the waterbody
Impact of Varying Herbicide Contaminated Soil on Biomarkers of Achatina achatina
Full text linkSoil microrganisms or faunas play vital roles in biogeochemical cycles
which maintain the state of equilibrium of mineral elements in soil
ecosystem as well as impacting on its texture and structure in
otherward productivity. The impact of herbicides on biological
population of soil samples spiked with various herbicides such as:
dragon (paraquat) dichloride, Action 40 (Dimethoate), Vanish
(Glyphosate). Buta force (Butachlor) and Amino force (2, 4-D amine
720G/L) were investigated. The soils were spiked with 10% of the
herbicides, incubated for 4weeks and the oxidative stress as well as
the acetylcholinesterase activity of soil faunas used as biomonitors.
There was a progressive increase of lipid peroxidation in achatina
achatina with vanish having the highest level of malondialdehyde (5.12
mg.dl) and dragon herbicides with the lowest levels on the second week
(2.67 mg/dl). The sample contaminated with amino force herbicide had
the least impact on glutathione levels (1.66 mg/dl) while the dragon
herbicide depleted more of the glutathione levels (1.31 mg/dl). The
Achatina achatina incubated with the soil sample spiked with vanish
registered the highest catalase activity (6.2 1U/L) while action 40
recorded 3.9 IU/L as the least activity. Acetylcholineesterase activity
seen in Achatina achatina incubated with soil sample 4(vanish) was
inhibited beyond all other samples with 0.169 IU g protein-1 as the
least value with the exception of amino force that depreciated to 0.108
IU g protein-1on the third week. This study reveals how detrimental
these herbicides can be to achatina achatina which counsels the farmers
on their selectivity for agricultural purposes
Households\u2019 Consumption Pattern of Snail ( Archachatina species) in Oluyole Local Government Area of Oyo State, Nigeria
Full text linkThe present study investigates household consumption pattern of snail
meat in Oluyole Local Government Area of Oyo State. A multistage random
sampling technique was used to administer the questionnaires to a total
of 120 respondents. Data collected were analyzed using both descriptive
statistics and inferential statistics. The socioeconomic factors
analyzed showed that age group between 31 and 40 (45.0%) consumed snail
more while age group between 51 and 60 (11.70%) consumed less snails.
The majority of respondents were Married (60.8%) and possess secondary
education (54.2%). Most of the respondents (95.8%) consume snail meat
but most of them consume snail meat on a seasonal basis unlike beef and
fish. Furthermore, fried form of snail meat is mostly (65%) preferred
when compared to cooked form (24.2%). The regression analysis shows
that the consumption of snail meat depended on the price, household
size, educational level, household income, nutritive value, occupation
and its availability. Problems associated with snail meat consumption
in the study area include Price, income level, unavailability and
cultural belief. Based on the findings, this study recommends that
extension workers should engage the public on the need to get involved
in the rearing of snails to make it readily available all year round
and thus make it more affordable for all sundry
Economic Analysis of Cassava Flour and Garri Production in Ibarapa Local Government Area, Oyo State, Nigeria
Full text linkCassava, an edible root crop and a reliable and relatively inexpensive
source of carbohydrate, is widely grown and processed into different
foods such as cassava flour and garri. The study analyzed the costs and
returns in cassava flour and garri production and also determined the
factors influencing its production in the study area. A two- stage
sampling technique was used to generate primary data used for this
study. The first stage involved the purposive selection of Ibarapa
North Local Government Area (LGA), because it has more cassava
producers and processors than other LGAs. The second stage involved the
random selection of 15 villages out of the 23 in the LGA. From the
selected villages, 170 respondents were randomly selected while only
150 copies of the structured questionnaire administered were retrieved.
Results from the primary data shows that 28.3% of garri
producers-producers had no formal education and 46.7% were between the
ages of 30 and 39years. The regression analysis shows that the quantity
of garri sold (
f =5.4099), transportation cost (
f =-0.2994),
peeling cost (
f = -0.4249), and grating cost (
f = 0.6878)
were all significant to the total revenue of cassava flour sold. Price,
inadequate capital, transportation, land tenure and markets were
factors influencing garri and cassava flour production. Analysis of the
costs and returns revealed that processing cassava into garri gave a
higher gross margin even though processing of cassava was profitable,
indicating that there is a significant difference between flour and
garri production. Inputs, market, good and infrastructural facilities
should be provided so as to increase production capacity and hence food
security
Determination and Comparative Evaluation of Mineral Content of Honey obtain from Rivers State University, Forestry Arboretum and Port Harcourt Local Market
Full text linkThe study was concerned with the comparative study of honey produced
from forestry arboretum in Rivers State University and the local
market. The objective of this research was to determine and compare the
Mineral Content of Honey Obtained from Rivers State University,
Forestry Arboretum and the local market Using Atomic Absorption
Spectrophotometer (Buck Scientific 210 vp) after digestion. Five
elements were analyzed which include Calcium, Iron, Zinc, Magnesium and
Potassium. The results gotten from the forestry arboretum honey are as
follows; Calcium 1.14 \ub1 0.062mg/100, Iron 0.32 \ub1 0.001 mg/100
Magnesium 5.4 \ub1 0.472 mg/100, Zinc 0.12 \ub1 0.062mg/100g and
potassium 470 \ub1 47.450mg/100 while for the local market Calcium is
0.3 \ub1 0.0017mg/100g, Iron 0.4 \ub1 0.003mg/100g, Zinc 0.17
\ub1 0.0062mg/100, magnesium 7.2 \ub1 0.260mg/100, and potassium
12.3 \ub1 0.145mg/100 .However Potassium, Calcium and Magnesium were
the most abundant samples in the forestry arboretum and this is very
important for development of the bones general body formation. A total
of fifteen panelist were used to evaluate the honey sensory on a four
point scale for different parameters. It was observed that appearance
and opagueness has the highest score for samples, 3.43 and 3.42
respectively in forestry arboretum and the local market while texture,
viscosity, taste and aroma are not farfetched. The results indicate
that qualities of both honey samples are acceptable and both Honey
Samples are rich in minerals
Climate Change and Nutrition Security in Nigeria
Full text linkClimate change is a global reality and a major concern of many
countries of the world. Its average impacts are the same globally but
with some regional peculiarities. This paper reviewed the global events
of climate change and its reality in Nigeria. It observed that the
world\u2019s climatic elements have been undergoing changing pattern
for a long period. Its reality in Nigeria was seen in changing rain
pattern, relative humidity, atmospheric temperature, rising sea level,
coastal flooding, erosion, desertification and drought among other
indicators of climate change. These events were viewed vis-\ue0-vis
their impacts on nutrition security. The paper related these events to
such drivers of food insecurity as food shortages; increase in crop and
animal diseases; shortage of portable water; poor sanitation; loss of
rural livelihood and different forms of pollution-related diseases.
Measures were suggested for integration into government programmes and
policy that will help in mitigating and adapting to the impact of
climate change on nutrition security
Hydrocarbon Generation Potential of the Campano-Maastrichtian Dark Mudstone Lithofacies, Benin Flank, South West Anambra Basin, Nigeria
Full text linkThe dark mudstone lithofacies of Mamu Formation was deposited during
the Campano-Maastrichtian flooding episode. It is laterally
heterogeneous, and has been subdivided into marsh, bay and central
basin subenvironments in order of proximality. Arising from
recommendation from a previous study, we evaluated its hydrocarbon
generating potential using multidisciplinary tools involving visual
kerogen analysis, as well as bulk and isotope geochemistry.
Seventy-seven sample materials were taken from 3-outcrop sites at
Uzebba, Okpekpe and Imiegba locations, Benin flank, SW Anambra Basin,
Nigeria. The results show that bulk of the samples have good organic
richness. Kerogen quality is dominantly of gas prone Type III kerogen.
However, visual kerogen analysis indicates the presence of an oil prone
Type II/III kerogen in the central basin subenvironments. An immature
thermal maturity is inferred based on spore colour index (SCI) of less
than 6 on the SCI chart (thermal alteration index of <2.5). In
addition, we hypothesize that the dark mudstone lithofacies possesses
biogenic gas potential based on its organic richness, kerogen quality
and thermal maturity. Shale gas prospectivity is further enhanced by
the low dip of the Mamu Formation, shallow burial as well as high
silica content. Worth mentioning is the proximal marsh mudstone (Uzebba
location) with suitable microfabric, very high silica as well as
>10m of combined (continuous) outcropping and subcropping thickness