Profitability of value addition to cashew farming households in Nigeria

The cashew tree ( Anacardium occidentale L.) is an economic crop in Nigeria grown in small plantations in almost every State because of the ease of cultivation and need for minimum attention. Cashew apple wastes on plantations and this reduces cashew farming household incomes. This study examined value addition to cashew as a way of preventing farm losses due to wastage and lack of proper storage of the cashew apple Nigeria. The process of value addition involved the kernels being graded, heat treated, shelled roasted and packaged. The apples were crushed, processed to juice and bottled for sale. There was a significant difference (P<0.05) between net income per farmer adding value (US$487.26) and not adding value (US$306.29). Also, the benefit-cost ratio of adding value was 1:2.30.Le noix de cajou ( Anacardium occidentale L.) est une culture \ue9conomique au Nigeria. Elle est cultiv\ue9e dans de petites plantations dans presque chaque Etat par ce qu'elle est facile \ue0 cultiver et requiert une attention minimale. Les pommes de cajou sont souvent abandon\ue9es dans des plantations, ce qui r\ue9duit son revenu au niveau des m\ue9nages. Cette \ue9tude examine la valeur ajout\ue9e du cajou comme un moyen de pr\ue9vention des pertes dans les fermes dues au gaspillage et au manque de moyen appropri\ue9 de stockage des pommes de cajou au Nigeria. Le processus de l'addition de la valeur concernait le gradage, traitement \ue0 chaud, d\ue9coqillage, grillage et emballage des grains de cajou. Les pommes \ue9taient presses, transform\ue9es en jus embouteill\ue9 pour vente. Il \ue9tait observ\ue9 une diff\ue9rence significative (P<0.05) entre le revenue net sur la valeur ajout\ue9e par fermier (US487.26) et celui des produits non transform\ue9s (US306.29). Aussi, le rapport b\ue9n\ue9fice-co\ufbt de l'ajout de la valeur au produit \ue9tait de 1;2.3

Profitability of value addition to cashew farming households in Nigeria

The cashew tree ( Anacardium occidentale L.) is an economic crop in Nigeria grown in small plantations in almost every State because of the ease of cultivation and need for minimum attention. Cashew apple wastes on plantations and this reduces cashew farming household incomes. This study examined value addition to cashew as a way of preventing farm losses due to wastage and lack of proper storage of the cashew apple Nigeria. The process of value addition involved the kernels being graded, heat treated, shelled roasted and packaged. The apples were crushed, processed to juice and bottled for sale. There was a significant difference (P<0.05) between net income per farmer adding value (US$487.26) and not adding value (US$306.29). Also, the benefit-cost ratio of adding value was 1:2.30.Le noix de cajou ( Anacardium occidentale L.) est une culture économique au Nigeria. Elle est cultivée dans de petites plantations dans presque chaque Etat par ce qu&apos;elle est facile à cultiver et requiert une attention minimale. Les pommes de cajou sont souvent abandonées dans des plantations, ce qui réduit son revenu au niveau des ménages. Cette étude examine la valeur ajoutée du cajou comme un moyen de prévention des pertes dans les fermes dues au gaspillage et au manque de moyen approprié de stockage des pommes de cajou au Nigeria. Le processus de l&apos;addition de la valeur concernait le gradage, traitement à chaud, décoqillage, grillage et emballage des grains de cajou. Les pommes étaient presses, transformées en jus embouteillé pour vente. Il était observé une différence significative (P<0.05) entre le revenue net sur la valeur ajoutée par fermier (US$487.26) et celui des produits non transformés (US$306.29). Aussi, le rapport bénéfice-coût de l&apos;ajout de la valeur au produit était de 1;2.3

Genetic diversity and re-classification of coffee (Coffea canephora Pierre ex A. Froehner) from South Western Nigeria through genotyping-by-sequencing-single nucleotide polymorphism analysis

Coffea canephora is an important economic crop in Nigeria, however, little is known about the diversity inherent within, and the genetic relationship among coffee grown and conserved in the country. We examined the genetic diversity and relatedness among 48 Coffea genotypes which included: (a) C. arabica, C. abeokutae, C. liberica, and C. stenophylla, (b) 14 C. canephora accessions conserved in the germplasm of Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (CRIN), and (c) 30 farmer-cultivated genotypes collected from South-Western Nigeria. By analyzing 433048 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) identified through genotyping-by-sequencing we discovered that previous characterizations of C. canephora based on morphological data were inconclusive. Here, we established the correct number of C. canephora varieties present in the CRIN genebank which was four and not six as previously described based on morphological characters. We found three distinct diversity structures within the C. canephora genepool that were dominated by a single genetic group determined from passport descriptors to most likely be of Congolese (Democratic Republic of Congo) origin. High uniformity was also found among the farmer-cultivated accessions with 99% of them representing C. canephora var. Niaouli as their ancestral background. The analysis showed that the genetic base of coffee germplasm in Nigeria is narrow compared to the large genetic diversity of C. canephora. Therefore, broadening this genetic base through future acquisition and hybridization is imperative. However, the relatively high genetic differentiation (FST estimate = 0.3037) identified between Java Robusta and Niaouli will be used as a starting point for our breeding program

Genetic identity and diversity of Nigerian cacao genebank collections verified by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs): a guide to field genebank management and utilization

Published online: 21 March 2018Nigeria is the sixth largest cacao producer in the world. Field performance and quality of cacao hybrid families is largely dependent on the genetic integrity of parental clones obtained in field genebank collections. However, information on the impact of mislabeling on seed garden output in Nigeria is lacking. Using 63 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers, we analyzed 1457 cacao trees sampled from seven major field genebank plots in Nigeria to assess the genetic integrity in Nigerian cacao germplasm. The procedure of multilocus matching with known reference clones revealed up to 78% mislabeling in recently introduced international germplasm. A high rate of mislabeling was also revealed in the West African local selections and breeding lines, using Bayesian assignment test. The problem of mislabeling has been attributed to errors from the sources of introduction, pre-planting labeling errors, and rootstocks overtaking budded scions due to poor field management. The analysis of genetic diversity revealed a good representation of the available cacao germplasm groups in Nigerian field genebanks, indicating that the genetic base of Nigeria cacao germplasm has been significantly widened through germplasm introductions. However, only a small proportion of the available germplasm in the genebank have been utilized for variety development. This study proved the utility of SNP markers for cleaning up the genebanks and reducing offtypes; thereby providing a strong basis for improving the accuracy and efficiency in cacao genebank management and breeding, as well as for mobilizing improved varieties to cacao farmers in Nigeria