Cross-Sector Review of Drivers and Available 3Rs Approaches for Acute Systemic Toxicity Testing

Acute systemic toxicity studies are carried out in many sectors in which synthetic chemicals are manufactured or used and are among the most criticized of all toxicology tests on both scientific and ethical grounds. A review of the drivers for acute toxicity testing within the pharmaceutical industry led to a paradigm shift whereby in vivo acute toxicity data are no longer routinely required in advance of human clinical trials. Based on this experience, the following review was undertaken to identify (1) regulatory and scientific drivers for acute toxicity testing in other industrial sectors, (2) activities aimed at replacing, reducing, or refining the use of animals, and (3) recommendations for future work in this area

Beliefs, taboos and minor crop value chains: the case of Bambara Groundnut in Malawi

Throughout sub-Saharan Africa, bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranean) is a source of food for smallholder farmers that is increasingly promoted for its drought tolerance, soil enhancing qualities and nutritious properties. Being an accessible crop to smallholders, it has also recently been the focus of support to develop its value chain in Malawi. However, bambara groundnut is featured in the belief systems of rural people in Malawi, and may effect and be effected by market development. Beliefs and taboos reflect the life/death meanings symbolically represented in bambara groundnut, which influences how and by whom the crop is produced and consumed. These practices lend significant control over the crop to women. These findings have important implications for development and market related interventions that work with food crops, which need to be taken into account during the design phase

Competing and conflicting messages via online news media: potential impacts of claims that the Great Barrier Reef is dying

Coverage of issues by news media is known to impact on both public perceptions and policy development aimed at addressing the featured issues. We examine the potential impact of news media coverage regarding the health and potential future of the World heritage-listed Great Barrier Reef, which is under multiple pressures, both natural and anthropogenic. We draw on the extant literature regarding the impact of news media coverage of other complex issues, linking to relevant, albeit limited theoretical concepts that have been applied to previous media studies. We find that media coverage is predominately sensationalized and negative, with the potential to reinforce perceptions that mitigation attempts will be ineffective and thus likely to inhibit future policy development. We discuss the need for a review of existing science communication models and strategies to reduce the knowledge-practice gap between scientists and policy makers, together with proactive strategies to counter negative news coverage

The Small Farmer in Jamaican Agriculture: An Assessment of Constraints and Opportunities

Excerpts from the Introduction: Our main concern in this assessment of the agricultural sector is the small farmer: the conditions under which he is operating, the role he is playing--and might play--in the continuing transition from a traditional to a more modern agriculture, and his present and future welfare. The small farmer is viewed, however, against the background of the agricultural sector as a whole. The assessment is divided into two parts. Part I (Volume I) is an island-wide view of the small farmer. It deals with the characteristics of the small farmer and the conditions under which he is operating. It examines the constraints which press upon him at various levels: economic, social, administrative and cultural. Part I also provides the background and standard of comparison for the appraisal of the assets and liabilities of the Target Area

The Small Farmer in Western Portland and Eastern St. Mary (Jamaica)

Part II (Volume II) deals with the small farmer in the Portland Region (West Portland and Eastern St. Mary parishes). The project area consists essentially of the constituency of Western Portland plus that portion of the constituency of Eastern Portland that includes Port Antonio, and that part of Eastern St. Mary parish contained within the Portland Region (defined by the Town and Country Planning Department). A special effort was made to look into the specific problems of the farms and farming communities along the valleys of the Rio Grande River, Swift River, Spanish River, and Buff Bay River, and into the potential for future development food crops, export crops, agro-industry, market towns and regional centers. A number of indicators (income, acreage, volume of production, yields, population growth and migration, etc.) show that this part of the North Coast has seen its development needs postponed, particularly as they apply to the small farmer. The analysis makes use of the methodological consideration that, whatever the problems of the small very specific proportion farmer on an island-wide basis, they combine in a in a particular area. Projects are proposed for the elimination or neutralization of these constraints. The inter-sectoral nature of these projects provides the basis of an integrated rural development program in the Target area

Summaries of Consumption Effects of Agricultural Policies in Selected African Countries

Excerpts from the report: Studies of the consumption effects of agricultural policies are now available for five African countries -- Cameroon, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, and Tanzania. These studies were sponsored by AID's Office of Nutrition under their Consumption Effects of Agricultural Policies (CEAP) project and implemented through the Nutrition Economics Group of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Summaries of the results of these studies are included in this document. The studies themselves were designed to explore and systematically analyze the linkages between selected agricultural policies and the food consumption patterns of groups likely to be at risk of malnutrition in these countries. Relationships analyzed in these studies include how such policies affect the amount and type of food available to these groups, their incomes and the prices they pay for food. How these groups alter their consumption patterns when their incomes and prices change were also analyzed. The studies were expected to produce (1) information and policy guidance for policy makers and analysts in the host countries, (2) examples of the types of analytical methods which can be used to evaluate the consumption impacts of agricultural policies and how to use them and (3) guidelines suggesting how to undertake comparable studies in other countries

Pakistan’s Edible Oilseeds Industry

Report Preface: The Office of International Cooperation and Development (OICD) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, under an agreement with the Pakistan Mission of the U.S. Agency for International Develop­ment, has completed a study of the total oilseeds sector of Pakistan for the Government of Pakistan's Oilseeds Development Board. The study has involved seven technical teams and a total of 24 individual consultants. These technical teams addressed the following topics: Research; Production; Alternative Crops; Domestic Distribution; Markets and Trade; Oilseed Storage, Processing, and Poultry and-Livestock Production and Marketing; and Policy and Organization. This summary report is a synthesis of 30 separate reports written by the technical teams. It was prepared by the oilseeds consolidation team after assessing the findings and recommendations of the technical teams and reviewing the drastic changes in the world edible oils market since the technical reports were completed. It presents an action plan that is realistic and usable by decision makers in the Government and the private sector. The report deals specifically with oilseed pricing policy and organization, oilseed markets, edible oil imports, oilseed processing, oilseed production and research and the utilization of oilseed meal for poultry and livestock. The summary is divided into six parts. The first section offers a brief overview of the consolidation team's major conclusions and recommendations. Section II. reviews the current edible oils situation. Section III. assesses the availability of resources for edible oils production. Section IV. offers a comprehensive edible oils strategy, including a new marketing policy. Section V. analyzes the implications of one of the proposed new policy's major points, increased vegetable ghee prices. Finally, Section VI. describes long-term programs that the GOP should consider in conjunction with the policy recommendations