Assessment of the suitability of different cassava varieties for gari and fufu flour production in Liberia

Open Access Article; Published online: 15 Feb 2020Different cassava varieties are available in Liberia, but there is little knowledge of their product suitability. Hence, the need to assess the potentials of these varieties to produce gari and fufu flour. The two products from ten improved and two local cassava varieties were characterized based on their yield and chemical, pasting and functional properties using standard methods. The results showed that TMS 96/0097 (gari 27.54%) and Butter cassava (fufu flour 27.35%) have the highest percentage yields. The starch content was higher in gari produced from TMS98/0505 (92.00%) and lower from TMS95/0289 (82.62%); the fufu flour starch content was higher in TMS98/0505 (90.59%) and lower in Bassa girl (84.75%). Gari and fufu flour produced from TMS96/0097 (507.38 RUV) and TMS00/0357 (506.04 RVU) had the highest final viscosity, and the products from TMS95/0289 (338.46 RVU and 336.80 RVU) had the least. The highest swelling power was found in gari (12.74%) and fufu flour (13.55%) produced from TMS92/0057 and the lowest in TMS91/0416 gari (8.23%) and TMS01/1235 fufu flour (8.31%). All the samples may form a paste below the boiling point of water (100°C) at < 7 min. However, cassava varieties and the interactions between varieties and locations had a significant (P < 0.05) effect on the properties of the products: Chemical (except ash content), pasting (except pasting temperature) and functional. Therefore, all the varieties may be suitable for gari and fufu flour production based on the quality preferred by the consumers

The Impact of Irrigation on the Nutritional Status of Children in the Sissala West District of Ghana

Abstract: According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO, 2006) the most sustainable way to reduce hunger effectively is to improve agriculture and rural development simultaneously. The study investigated the impact of irrigation dam projects on child nutritional status. A total of 397 mother-child pair from three communities (control, 1 year and 2 year intervention with introduction of irrigation dam) with and without irrigation dams participated in the study. Nutritional status was assessed using anthropometric indicators (height/length, weight and MUAC) and haemoglobin levels. For haemoglobin assessment a sub-sample of 200 children was used. Twenty-four h dietary recall was used to assess dietary intake. The results showed significant differences (p&lt;0.001) in wasting rates of 11.0, 21.2 and 12.3%, respectively, among children in the control, 1 year intervention and 2-year intervention communities, respectively. Haemoglobin assessment revealed that a greater proportion of children (70.1%) were anaemic. The 1 year intervention had a significantly higher number of children (p&lt;0.001) who had haemoglobin in the normal range. Most (95.9%) of the children did not meet their energy needs according to their dietary intake records. Child feeding practices continue to be a challenge in these communities. Currently, the impact of the irrigation dam on the livelihoods and nutritional status of the children is not obvious but more time is needed to realize the full potential. Nutrition education should target the incorporation of fish from the dam into young child feeding in these communities

Characterization of yam-growing households in the project areas of Ghana

The Yam Improvement for Income and Food Security in West Africa (YIIFSWA) project was initiated to assess and understand yam-based systems in order to identify the opportunities of interventions that could potentially help to increase productivity in the region. The project consists of two phases: the inception and impact study phase. During the inception phase, a baseline study was conducted in different yam-growing communities aggregated on agroecological zoning into southern Guinea savanna (SGS), derived savanna (DS), and humid forest (HF). A complementary baseline survey was commissioned in addition to the substantive data collected within the same yam belt of Ghana aiming at measuring directly yam yield from farmers’ fields in order to get more accurate crop yield estimates. The baseline studies aimed at understanding farmers’ livelihoods in yam growing areas to increase agricultural productivity in Ghana, and serve also as benchmarks to assess changes brought about by the YIIFSWA project in future. The goal of the baseline surveys was to measure the key economic and social indicators before the major components of the project implementation. Data was collected by means of structured questionnaire and a set of qualitative interview questions for focus group discussions to capture household and community specific information. The intent of the survey was to sample households within the yam belt. The survey design was based on a multistage random sampling procedure, drawing on households from yam-growing areas of Ghana; thus 600 households were selected using a sampling frame developed by extension agents in collaboration with community heads as a source list

Characterization of yam-growing households in the project areas of Nigeria

The Yam Improvement for Income and Food Security in West Africa (YIIFSWA) project was initiated to assess and understand the yam-based systems in order to identify the opportunities of interventions that could potentially help to increase productivity in the region. The project consists of two phases: the inception phase and impact study phase. During the inception phase, a baseline study was conducted in different yam-growing communities aggregated on agroecological zoning into the southern Guinea savanna (SGS), the derived savanna (DF), and the humid forest (HF). A complementary baseline survey was commissioned in addition to the substantive data collected within the same yam belt of Nigeria aiming at measuring directly yam yield from farmers’ fields in order to get more accurate crop yield estimates. The baseline studies aimed at understanding farmers’ livelihoods in yam-growing areas to increase agricultural productivity in Nigeria and also to serve as benchmarks to assess changes brought about by the YIIFSWA project in future. The goal of the baseline surveys was to measure the key economic and social indicators before implementing the major components of the project.Data was collected by means of structured questionnaire and a set of qualitative interview questions for focus group discussions to capture household and community specific information. The main survey design was based on a multistage, random sampling procedure, drawing on the universe of households from yam growing areas of Nigeria. A random sampling procedure was used to select 800 households within the yam belt

Enhancing crop productivity through community-based seed multiplication system

Improved quality seeds out-yield farmers' saved seeds significantly. However, the limited availability of such seeds through the conventional seed supply system is due to socio-economic factors and inadequacy of skilled personnel and infrastructure. A community-based seed multiplication system was, therefore, adopted and small seed stocks of soybean, cowpea and yam were distributed to farmer groups in the rural communities in northern Ghana, northern Nigeria and central Togo, respectively, between 1996 and 1999 for further multiplication. An impact assessment after 4 years showed a significant ease of farmers' access to improved seeds and development of linkages with pesticide dealers, credit sources, and extension services as a result of opting for this system. Quality of farmers' saved seeds had improved and farmers' yield had increased over 90 per cent. Extra incomes earned were used to purchase household items, and part invested in transport businesses and rearing of small ruminants as well as in human capital such as paying children's school fees and family hospital bills and meeting other social responsibilities. This system was, therefore, effective in diffusing improved seeds and associated technologies and services to many more farmers and communities within a very short time to improve their socio-economic status.Les graines de qualité améliorée dépassaient considérablement en rendement les graines gardées par les agriculteurs. Cependant, la disponibilité de telles graines par le système conventionnel de provision de graine est limitée en raison de facteurs socio-économiques, l'insuffisance de personnel qualifié et l'infrastructure. Un système de multiplication de graine basé à la communauté était donc adopté et une petite quantité de stocks de graine de soja, de dolique et d'igname étaient distribués aux groupes d'agriculteurs dans les communautés rurales dans le nord du Ghana, le nord du Nigéria et le centre du Togo respectivement entre les années 1996 et 1999 pour de multiplication davantage. L'évaluation d'impact entreprise après quatre années montrait une aisance considérable avec laquelle les agriculteurs avaient accès aux graines améliorées et aux liens de développement avec les marchands de pesticide, les lignes de crédit et les services de vulgarisation agricole à la suite d' opter pour ce système. La qualité de graines gardées par les agriculteurs avait amélioré et les rendements d'agriculteurs avaient augmenté plus de 90%. Les suppléments de revenus gagnés étaient dépensés pour les articles ménagers, et une partie du revenun était investie en entreprises de transport et en élévage de petits ruminants ainsi qu'en ressources humaines telles que le paiement de frais de scolarité de la jeunesse, les factures hospitalières et pour régler d'autres responsabilités sociales. Ce système était donc efficace pour la distribution de graines améliorées et la vulgarisation de services et de technologies liées à l'agriculture à beaucoup plus d'agriculteurs et aux communautés dans très peu de temps pour améliorer leur situation socio-économique. Ghana Journal of Agricultural Science Vol. 39 (2) 2006: pp. 181-18

Review of empirical and emerging breeding methods and tools for yam (Dioscorea spp.) improvement: status and prospects

Open Access Article; Published online: 05 Dec 2019Yam (Dioscorea spp.) is an important tuber crop with tremendous potential as a functional food in the tropics and subtropics. However, the crop has not shown progressive productivity gain over decades due to various production constraints. This paper reviews the progress achieved in empirical breeding endeavours and the development, status and application of emerging breeding tools and technologies to translate genetic gains in yam improvement. Significant progress has been made in yam genetic improvement over the years which has led to the identification and development of several improved clones and sources of variability for various economically important traits. Substantial efforts have also been made to develop diverse molecular markers, transcriptome and metabolome profiles of crucial traits, trait mapping and generate reference genome sequences of the key species. However, there seems to be a slow translation of research improvements into widespread applications. These advances and the integration of empirical and emerging methods and technologies into the breeding process will enhance yam breeding efforts and ensure the quick delivery of improved varieties that possess superior agronomic and quality traits

Long-term continuous administration of a hydro-ethanolic extract of Synedrella nodiflora (L) Gaertn in male Sprague-Dawley rats: biochemical, haematological and histopathological changes

Background: Conflicting reports about the toxicity of Synedrella nodiflora (L) Gaertn (family Asteraceae), a plant traditionally used in Ghana for the management of epilepsy, abound in literature. The present study evaluates the effect of a 90-day continuous oral administration of a hydro-ethanolic whole plant extract of Synedrella nodiflora (SNE) in male Sprague-Dawley rats.Methods: The toxicological evaluation of the extract (100, 300 and 1000 mgkg-1) was focused on haematological, serum biochemical parameters and histopathological changes of some isolated organs.Results: The extract produced no mortality in the rats treated during the study period. Only SNE 100 mgkg-1 produced significant decrease in white blood cell and neutrophil counts and an increase in albumin, globulin, total bilirubin, total protein and potassium levels. The higher doses (SNE 300 and 1000 mgkg-1) had no significant effect on all the haematological and biochemical parameters measured. Histopathological assessment of the liver, kidney and heart revealed no abnormalities in rats treated with the extracts. Only the SNE 1000 mgkg-1 produced distortions of the branching arrangements of the myocardial fibres and a congested vessel which indicates a healed infarction.Conclusions: The findings suggest hydro-ethanolic extract of Synedrella nodiflora (L) Gaertn generally has a low toxicity profile following a 90-day continuous oral administration in male Sprague-Dawley rats under the present laboratory conditions. However patients with renal or cardiac problems should use the plant with caution.Funding: Jointly supported by the International Foundation for Science, Stockholm, Sweden, through a grant (# F/5191-1) to Dr. Patrick Amoateng and the Office of Research, Innovation and Development (ORID), University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana, grant awarded to Dr. Patrick Amoateng (reference number: URF/6/ILG-002/2012-2013)Keywords: : Synedrella nodiflora, Sprague-Dawley rats, histopathological, haematologica