Evaluation of the relationship between participation in agricultural insurance scheme and income of poultry farmers in Osogbo ADP zone, Osun State

Poultry production is affected by disease outbreak, weather-related perils, market risk, financial risk, and technological failure of the production.This study examined relationship between the farm income and participation in agricultural insurance on poultry layers farmers in Osogbo Agricultural Development Projects (ADP) of Osun State, Nigeria. Primary data were collected from 120 poultry layers farmers with the aid of structured questionnaire using multi-stage sampling procedures. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. Majority (80.0%) of the poultry farmers were below the age of 50 years and more than half (64.2%) of them were male. Majority (83.3%) of the poultry farmers had poultry farming experience of more than five years with mean years of farming experience of 12 years. The crucial constraint that limits the poultry farmers in participating in agricultural insurance scheme in the study area is lack of adequate information on the benefits of agricultural insurance scheme. Mean farm income of those poultry farmers that insured their farm was higher than those that did not participate which imply that agricultural insurance scheme has a positive relationship on the farm income on farmers who participated in the insurance scheme. Adequate dissemination of knowledge on the benefits of agricultural insurance by extension agents is crucial to increase the level of participation of poultry farmers

Determinant of farmers participation and repayment of Osun Rural Enterprise and Agricultural Program (OREAP) micro-credit loan scheme

This study examines the factors that affect farmer’s participation and loan repayment of Osun Rural Enterprise and Agricultural Program (OREAP) micro credit scheme introduced by the government in Osun State. Respondents were proportionately selected from the three (3) Agricultural Development Zones in Osun State. A three-stage sampling technique was used to proportionately draw 90 beneficiaries and 90 nonbeneficiaries from the three agro-ecological zones of the state. Logit regression and ordinary least square model were used to analyze the data. The results showed that Participation in OREAP is significantly affected by gender, marital status, household size, educational status, farm size, farm income, access to extension service and membership in cooperative society. The results also revealed that education, farm income, size of loan granted, and number of loan disbursement are significantly associated with the time it took the respondents to pay back the loan. The farmer’s inability to market their produce, risk and fluctuations in farm yield and uncooperative attitudes of other beneficiaries were the constraints faced by farmers as it affect their ability to repay the loan obtained through the program. The study concluded that the activities of OREAP had not been properly carried out in the study area as a result of the problems encountered by beneficiaries in obtaining and repayment of the loan. The research therefore, recommends that government and other agricultural agencies should encourage farmers to go into value additions of their produce as this will reduce gloat in the market and wastage of farm produce thereby enabling farmers to be able to repay the loan obtained for their agricultural activities.Keywords: factors, ‘OREAP’, credit, disbursement, defaul

Effect of contract farming on poultry farming households food security in Osun state, Nigeria

This study analyzed the effect of contract farming on food security of poultry households in Osun State, Nigeria. Primary data were used for the study and two stage sampling technique was used in selecting 180  households comprising of 90 contract and 90 non-contract farming  households. A structured questionnaire was used for the purpose of extracting needed information from the farmers. Data were analyzed using Food Security Index, Propensity Score Matching and Likert scale. The results showed that the contract farming households were more food secured (76.9%) than the non-contract farming households (46.8%). The effect of contract farming on the households that participated shows that the calorie intake increased (p < 0.05) on the average by 1047 kCal/AE/day. This shows that the program has positive impact on the Target Group. The constraints to contract farming in the study area includes: Deferred payment on the part of contract firm, no reimbursement in case of production failure, bridge of agreement, biased terms, cheating, high defaulting rate. The study therefore recommends that there should be interest payment for delay in payment to farmers as part of the agreement to curb the issue of intentional delay of payment by the contracting firms and that agreement on risk sharing in case of failures in production should be included in the agreements so as to protect the farmer from being too vulnerable.Key words: contract farming, poultry, food securit

Phytochemical and antimalarial studies on the methanol root bark extract of Annona senegalensis pers. (annonaceae

Phytochemical screening of the methanol root bark extract of Annona senegalensis, a plant known for its numerous ethnomedicinal uses such antimalarial, anticonvulsant, anticancer, antinociceptive and anti-inflammatory properties showed the presence of tannins, saponins, alkaloids, triterpenes, steroids, flavonoids and cardiac glycosides. The column chromatographic analysis of the chloroform fraction of the crude methanol extract led to the isolation of stigmasterol which was elucidated using IR, 1D and 2D NMR analysis. The median oral lethal dose (LD50) was estimated to be 2154 mg/kg, suggesting the extract is relatively toxic at the tested doses. The crude extract produced a significant (p ≤ 0.05) dose - dependent antimalarial activity against Plasmodium berghei in early infection (suppressive test) at doses of 150, 300 and 600 mg/kg suppressing the parasitemia level by 20.08%, 41.66% and 53.46% respectively, while chloroquine produced the highest parasite suppression of 85.73% at 5 mg/kg when compared to negative group. The extract also showed a dose - dependent significant (p ≤ 0.05) decrease in parasitemia level at 150, 300 and 600 mg/kg in established infection (curative test) producing a chemo-suppression at 46.20%, 36.62% and 8.25% respectively with chloroquine producing the highest chemo-suppression of 73.24% at 5 mg/kg when compared to the negative control. The findings of this study suggest that the root bark extract of the plant is active against the malaria parasite used and this is consistent with the ethnomedicinal use of Annona senegalensis in the treatment of malaria. Keywords: Malaria, Parasite, Root Bark, Extract, Annona senegalensis, Phytochemistr

Triterpenoids from the aerial part of Bryophyllum pinnatum (Lam.) oken (crassulaceae)

Two pentacyclic triterpenoids, 3-friedelanone and lupeol, were isolated from the hexane fraction of the methanol aerial part extract of Bryophyllum pinnatum, a plant used in traditional medicine for treatment of diarrhea, epilepsy, hypertension, cough, jaundice, gout, earache, burns, abscesses, gastric ulcers, amongst numerous indications. The isolation of the compounds was carried out by a combination of column chromatography and preparative thin layer chromatography. The compounds were characterized using 1H NMR and 13C NMR spectral data as well as comparison with reported data. This is the first report of isolation of 3-friedelanone and lupeol from the aerial part of this plant. Keywords: Bryophyllum pinnatum, NMR, Pentacyclic triterpenoids, 3-Friedelanone, Lupeo

Isolation and characterization of lupeol and stigmasterol from methanol root extract of Combretum hypopolinum (diels.) Okafor(Combretaceae)

Lupeol (a pentacyclic triterpenoid) and stigmasterol were isolated from the ethyl acetate fraction of the methanol root extract of Combretum hypopilinum, a plant known to have a wide range of medicinal uses in traditional medicine such as pain, infertility and tuberculosis treatment. The chromatographic analysis of the ethyl acetate fraction of the crude methanol extract led to the isolation of lupeol and stigmasterol which were elucidated and characterized using their IR,1HNMR,and 13C NMR spectral data in comparison with literature