Factors Influencing Consumers’ Preference for Purchasing of Ready to Eat Food Products: A Study in Shahr – e-Now of Kabul City

Ready to eat products are any products that have gone through chemical, mechanical or physical processing in the processing industries or at home and which has been altered from their natural state to a new state. These products include frozen, pasteurized, fried, condensed, dried, dehydrated, canned and homogenized food. The food processing industry has an important role in linking the farmers to the final consumers in the domestic and international markets. The consumer preference for ready to eat products at Shahr-e- Now of Kabul city is influenced by physiological, psychological and sociological factors. The present study attempted to analyze the factors influencing the purchase of ready to eat products from Shahr-e- Now of Kabul city markets; the primary data was collected from 90 consumers in Shahr -e- Now of Kabul city. The study revealed that 47.78 per cent of the respondents preferred ready to eat products. Nearly one-third of the consumers purchase ready-to-eat products once a week. Easy availability, taste, convenience, and quality were the main factors influencing consumers' purchase of ready-to-eat products in Shahr -e- Now of Kabul city markets. The study clearly indicated that there is a wide scope for food processing industries in Kabul city since consumers’ preference for ready to eat products is increasing. Hence the study clearly reveals that manufacturers need to ensure that their products meet the requirements of consumers in terms of meeting the requirements of easy availability, taste, quality and convenience in the usage of ready to eat products

Environmental Impacts of Waste Management in the City of Taluqan

This study aims to find the environmental impacts of waste management within four seasons (spring, summer, autumn, and winter) of the year in Taluqan City. In this research, samples from 100 families during one week noted that dustbin setups for each house and labels like plastics, metals, organics, ashes, diapers, and plastic cans were used to separate waste easily. Household waste generation was analysed using various methods; a questionnaire survey was carried out among 400 householders to assess the current state of waste management in Taluqan City. The result showed that the government has no proper waste management; the residents collect and throw waste into the environment (surface water, vacant lands, streets, agricultural areas, etc.). The average waste generation was 0.903 kg/capita/day for winter, 0.805 kg/capita/day for summer, 0.53 kg/capita/day for spring, and 0.6 kg/capita/day for fall. The percentage of solid waste components in Taluqan City is organic at 60%, glass at 4.2%, metals at 13.25%, plastic and papers at 7.75%, and diapers at 15%. The average generation rate for all seasons is   0.72 kg /capita/day in Taluqan. Based on the respondents, 90 % of households throw their waste into surface water or vacant lands, 75% were interested in receiving information regarding the 3Rs (reduce, reuse, and recycle), 70 % wanted to pay for the collection, 65% wanted to collect from Masjid-to-Masjid, 35% like to be visited house-to-house and 17% were willing for separation of their waste

Effects of Nitrogen Application on Growth and Yield of Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) in Northeast Agro-Ecology of Afghanistan

A field experiment Conducted at the farm of Kunduz University during cropping season of 2023 to evaluate Effects of Nitrogen Application on Growth and Yield of Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) in northeast of Afghanistan. The field experiment laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications, the treatments were Nitrogen fertilizer levels viz. Control, 15 kg N/ha, 30 kg N/ha and 45 kg N/ha respectively, result of the study revealed the highest Plant Height (32.61cm), Branches/plant (10.05), Leave area index (5.20), Kernel/pod (2.23), Pod weight (24.46), Pods/plant (32.30), 100- seed weight (76.38gr), Pod yield (2.89t/ha), haulm yield (5.53t/ha) and Biological yield (8.42t/ha) were in treatment with application 45 kg N/ha, the minimum growth and yield parameters were in Control plots, it can be concluded nitrogen fertilizer at the rate of 45 kg N/ha is optimum level for enhancing groundnut productivity and profitability in northeast of Afghanistan

Effect of Different Seeding Rates on Growth and Yield of Common Bean

Legumes are one of the most important sources of protein in the diet of many people in developing countries. The protein content of legumes is about twice that of grains, and plant based production of legumes has numerous advantages over animal protein supply in terms of cost and consumer health; the best plant based protein belongs to the common bean, which contains all essential amino acids for the human body. The experiment laid out in a randomized complete block design with three replications, a field experiment was conducted at the agriculture faculty of Kunduz University farm during the cropping season of 2023, the study aimed to investigate the effect of different seeding rates on the growth and yield of common bean viz. 125 kg/ha, 150 kg/ha, 175 kg/ha, 200 kg/ha and 225 kg/ha. The result showed that the best seeding rate was 200 kg/ha, which resulted in significantly higher plant height (39.87cm), leaf area (335.88cm2), branches/plant (9.89), dry Matter (6.43 gr/plant), pods/plant (13.27), seeds/pod (5.26), 100 seed weight (30.80gr), grain yield (2210.99 kg/ha), Stover yield (4500.00 kg/ha), gross return (265319 AFN/ha), net return (229233 AFN/ha) and B: Cost Ratio (6.33) followed by seeding of 175 kg/ha, the minimum growth and yield were in seeding rate of 125 kg/ha. It can be concluded that selecting the appropriate seeding rate is crucial for optimizing the growth and yield of common bean