ASSESSMENT OF THE NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF FADOGIA TRIPHYLLA HERBAL TEA OF ZAMBIA

Fadogia triphylla, a perennial shrub that can reach up to 120 cm is used both as a local herbal tea and in traditional medicine. Traditional healers have reported the use of Fadogia spp. in the treatment of coughs, ascariasis, abdominal pains and stomachs. There is limited information about the nutritional and medicinal value of the leaves of this local tea. Thus, the objective in this study was to asses the nutritional value and herbal tea characteristics of F. triphylla leaves from Zambia. Fadogia triphylla leaves were collected from Shatumbu district, Lusaka at two different times (June 2006 and August 2006). The dry Fadogia leaves were then subjected to foreign matter analysis and moisture content analysis. Total ashes and total insoluble ashes, total phenols, antioxidant activity, and elemental and caffeine. The leaves are high in antioxidant components (8%) and rich in minerals (7%), potassium (1%), calcium (1.3-1.8%) and manganese (90-71 mg/100 g). No caffeine was detected in the leaves based upon HPLC analysis and pure caffeine as the standard, permitting the labelling of this bush tea to be caffeine-free infusion. Initial quality standards were developed for the first time to define quality in Fadogia tea. While a preliminary study, we found the leaves to be high in antioxidant components, rich in minerals (e.g. potassium, calcium and manganese), caffeine-free and the herbal tea to have a pleasant taste. Fadogia leaves contain interesting functional properties that show the leaves to be healthy and nutritional and which may assist in the commercialization of this indigenous tea into non-local markets

QUALITY AND CHEMISTRY OF AFRICAN BIRDS EYE CHILI (CAPSICUM FRUTESCENS) FROM ZAMBIA

African Birds Eye Chili (Capsicum frutescens) is a specialty hot pepper of increasing interest to consumers and to those who enjoy and rely on hot peppers. Assessing of the chemistry and quality of this spice is becoming increasingly important to increase its market access and better define the product variation from different producing regions. The objective of this study is to assess the chemistry and quality of African Birds Eye Chili grown in Zambia. Fruit samples from this plant were grown and harvested (2006-2007 seasons) from the Chinyanja Triangle area and from the 2008 season from Chongwe, Kalomo and Mpongwe and subjected to proximate and chemical analysis. The deep orange color of the Zambian African Birds Eye Chili was found to be very positive. All the samples showed low levels of moisture (1%, and 1%, respectively; and dihydrocapsaicin reaching 0.5-0.7% and 0.5%, respectively from these sites. Samples from the Chinyanja Triangle, 2006-07 were found to be lower (0.6-0.8% capsaicin, 0.3-0.5% dihydrocapsaicin) but direct comparisons are not possible as those studies were conducted in an earlier growing season. In 2008 season, the application of Good Agricultural Practices, higher quality seeds and improved production practices (improved weeding and drying) which appeared to result in the production of high quality Chili. A study to compare Zambian African Birds Eye Chili to other hot pepper commercial samples found on the USA market found that the Zambian product contained far higher levels of capsaicin and were of superior quality to the commercial hot pepper products

Productivity and profitability of manual and mechanized conservation agriculture (CA) systems in eastern Zambia

Climate variability and declining soil fertility pose a major threat to sustainable agronomic and economic growth in Zambia. The objective of this study was to assess crop yield, land and labor productivity of conservation agriculture (CA) technologies in Eastern Zambia. On-farm trials were run from 2012–2015 and farmers were replicates of a randomized complete block design. The trials compared three CA systems against a conventional practice. Yield and net return ha−1 were determined for maize and legume yield (kg ha−1) produced by ridge and furrow tillage, CA dibble stick planting, CA animal traction ripping and direct seeding. The dibble stick, ripline and direct seeding CA systems had 6–18, 12–28 and 8–9% greater maize yield relative to the conventional tillage system, respectively. Rotation of maize with cowpea and soybean significantly increased maize yields in all CA systems. Intercropping maize with cowpea increased land productivity (e.g., the land equivalent ratio for four seasons was 2.01) compared with full rotations under CA. Maize/cowpea intercropping in dibble stick CA produced the greatest net returns (US$312-767 ha−1) compared with dibble stick maize-cowpea rotation (US$204-657), dibble stick maize monoculture (US$108-584) and the conventional practice (US$64-516). The net-return for the animal traction CA systems showed that maize-soybean rotations using the ripper were more profitable than the direct seeder or conventional ridge and furrow systems. Agronomic and economic benefits of CA-based cropping systems highlight the good potential for improved food security and agricultural productivity for smallholder farmers