Effects of replacing fishmeal with black soldier fly larval meal in the diets of grower-finishing guinea fowls reared under tropical conditions

The study was conducted with the view to determine the impact of replacing fishmeal with black soldier fly larval meal (BSFLM) on growing guinea fowls. BSFLM replaced fishmeal (3% in the control diet) in the ratios of 0, 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100% to produce six dietary treatments, which were iso-caloric and iso-nitrogenous. Two hundred and forty-eight-week old guinea fowls with mean live weight of 273.2 ± 10.9 g were tagged, weighted, and randomly assigned to 24 (6 × 4) floor pens; each pen was treated as a replicate. Feed and water were provided ad libitum during the entire period, which lasted 10 weeks. Feed consumption differed among the treatment groups (P = 0.0072) with the 100% fishmeal diets recording the lowest. Daily gain was significantly (P = 0.009) higher for birds fed high BSFLM diets compared to the control (100% fishmeal diet). The inclusion of BSFLM in the diets elicited positive linear effect on weight gains of the guinea fowls (R2 = 0.91) with increasing concentration resulting in higher live weight gains. The feed conversion ratio (FCR) also differed between treatments (P < 0.05) but similar for the 100% fishmeal (control) and 100% BSFLM diets. Organ and haematopoitic integrity were equally assured regardless of levels of the protein sources fed to the birds. Generally, meats from birds fed 60 to 100% BSFLM and from hens were more acceptable. A study to evaluate the economics of utilising BSFLM in guinea fowl production is recommended

Smallholder Adoption of Soil and Water Conservation Practices in Northern Ghana

Both governmental and non-governmental organizations are engaged in the promotion of soil and water conservation practices in northern Ghana, but adoption is believed to be low. This study thus examines the determinants of conservation practices by farming households in the area. Data for the study was collected from 445 households located in 15 communities in northern Ghana. Univariate, bivariate and multivariate probit models were used to analyse the decision to adopt six conservation practices in the area. Results show the major determinants of adoption are plot and cropping characteristics such as location; and socio-economic and institutional variables such as number of contacts with extension officers, membership in farmer association and distance to major market. A major policy implication of the study is the strengthening of extension service in the area to significantly boost conservation adoption

African Journal of Food Science Full Length Research Paper Food expenditure and household welfare in Ghana

The main objective of this study was to investigate the determinants of household food expenditure and its effects on welfare. As a result of potential simultaneity between food expenditure and welfare, a simultaneous equations model was estimated using the two-stage least squares method. The findings confirm the theoretical and empirical evidences that households reduce the percentage share of their food expenditure as they become richer. Also, increases in the food budget share lead to a reduction in welfare. Different households which spent greater percentages of their incomes on food were as follows: female headed households; households headed by the aged; households whose heads had little or no formal education; households whose heads were married; smaller households; rural households; households in the forest and savannah belts; and households living farther from the nation’s capital. Also, welfare was greater for the following households: female headed households; households headed by the aged, households whose heads had formal education, smaller households, households who owned assets; households living in the urban centres, as well as those living closer to the nation’s capital. Households that must be targeted for support include male-headed households, households headed by the relatively young, larger households, rural households and households farther from the nation’s capital, including those in the savannah belt

Do data envelopment and stochastic frontier analyses produce similar efficiency estimates? The case of Ghanaian maize production

This study applied stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) and data envelopment analysis (DEA) to examine the technical efficiency of maize production in northern Ghana using cross-sectional data from 360 maize farmers for the 2011/2012 cropping season. Farm size, seed, fertiliser and herbicides had a positive effect on maize output. Agricultural mechanisation, extension services, experience and gender influenced technical efficiency. The study recommends that access to tractors be expanded to increase farmers’ production efficiency. Maize production could improve if less-experienced farmers learn from the accumulated knowledge of experienced farmers, including through extension. Agricultural extension services should be strengthened to disseminate improved farming practices to farmers for increased efficiency. Female farmers should be supported by removing socio-cultural barriers by raising awareness in order to correct the wrong traditions and perceptions inimical to women’s full participation in farming so as to bring improvements in technical efficiency

Impact of black soldier fly larval meal on growth performance, apparent digestibility, haematological and blood chemistry indices of guinea fowl starter keets under tropical conditions

In order to assess the impact of larval meal on guinea fowl, six iso-caloric and iso-nitrogenous diets were fed to day-old-keets ad libitum till 8weeks of age. Water was also freely provided. The fishmeal (FM) component of the experimental diets was replaced with black soldier fly larval meal (BSFLM) in the following percentage ratios of 0&ndash;100%. Results showed that body weight gain significantly (P&lt;0.05) increased in all the BSFLM treatment groups compared to the control group. The final body weight of the birds at age 8weeks differed significantly (P&lt;0.001). Dry matter intake varied (P&lt;0.001) slightly among the birds but never affected (P&gt;0.05) ME intake and faecal output as well as weight changes of the keets. Digestibility of dry matter and energy were not affected (P&gt;0.05) by the differences in diet. Organ and haematopoietic integrity were assured regardless of the protein types used as well as levels of inclusion. The results suggest that the replacement of fishmeal with BSFLM in so far as the economics of production is concerned could result in reduced feed cost for starter guinea keet judging from diets that contained 60&ndash;100% BSFLM