NICANVEG under-utilised vegetables

Poverty-stricken rural women are the custodians of gathering, utilisation and preservation of underexploited indigenous leaf and fruit vegetables. Most studies on leafy vegetables have focused on routinely cultivated species. The objective of this Nigerian-Canadian Vegetable (NICANVEG) project is to increase food security and economic empowerment of resource-poor rural women farmers of Nigeria through the utilisation, cultivation, processing and preservation of underutilised vegetable species. A major focus is training rural women on production, processing, utilisation and marketing of underutilised vegetables for food security and financial empowerment

The dynamics of soil aggregate breakdown in water in response to landuse as measured with laser diffraction technique

The Mastersizer 2000G (Malvern Instruments) Diffraction Instrument was used to assess and quantify the breakdown of soil aggregates and compute wet aggregate stability indices. The study was aimed at evolving a novel rapid method of determining soil aggregate stability. Bulk surface (0-15 cm) soil samples were collected under 5 different land uses in the Teaching and Resrach Farm of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. About 0.5g of the soils aggregates (0.5 -1 mm diameter) were evaluated in the laser diffractometer with the stirrer operated at 500 rpm and the pump at 1800 rpm. The different size aggregates and particles of sand silt and clay were quantified periodically. Water stable aggregates greater than 250 m (WSA>250), water stable aggregates less than 250 m (WSA<250), water dispersible clay index (WDI), and mean volume diameter (MVD) among others were computed from the laser diffraction data. The values were compared with the classical Yoder wet sieving technique. The WSA>250 was significantly higher on the soils under Forest (FR), Cacao (CC), Teak (TK) and Oil Palm (OP) plantations, while it was significantly lowest under no-tillage (NT) and continuous cultivation (CT). The pasture (PD) was not significantly different from either the cultivated and the non-cultivated soils. Conversely, the WSA<250 and water dispersible clay index was highest in the cultivated soils (CT and NT) and lowest in the non-cultivated soils (FR, TK, CC and OP) while the PD was in-between. The MVD also followed a similar trend as the WSA>250. The wet sieving water stable aggregates index (WSI>250) was significantly correlated with WSA>250 (r = 0.75), MVD (r = 0.75), WDI (r = -0.68) and WSA<250 (r = - 0.73). All the laser diffraction measured aggregation indices were significantly correlated with the organic matter contents of the soils. Thus the laser diffraction promises a rapid and comprehensive method of evaluation of soil aggregate stability

Optimization of production of bread enriched with leafy vegetable powder

This work was carried out with the aid of a grant from Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), and with financial support from the Government of Canada, provided through Global Affairs Canada (GAC)Response Surface Methodology was used in this study to determine optimal conditions for the production of high quality bread enriched with vegetable powder. Fresh and matured fluted pumpkin leaves (Telfaria occidentalis) were obtained from Teaching and Research farms of Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria. Results showed evidence of the enrichment of vegetable powder in bread making, and in addition to the perceived nutritional benefit, the physical characteristics of the loaf of bread are preserved

Final report of agronomic trial and water management of fertilizer micro-dosing technology on traditional leafy vegetables

This work was carried out with the aid of a grant from Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), and with financial support from the Government of Canada, provided through Global Affairs Canada (GAC)This trial tested and fine-tuned fertilizer micro-dosing and application (using different rates and time intervals), on the yield and quality of Indigenous vegetables. Results show that fertilizer micro-dosing can be used to sustainably produce these vegetables when combined with organic manure at the rate of 5 tons per ha. Soils of both forest and savanna ecosystems were able to sustain high vegetable yield under fertilizer micro-dose rate at 40 kg/ha over the three years of study when compared with the farmers' recommended rates. Capillary irrigation can reduce both the volume of required irrigation water, and women’s workloads

Influence of nitrogen fertilizer micro-dosing on phenolic content, antioxidant, and anticholinesterase properties of aqueous extracts of three tropical leafy vegetables

This work was carried out with the aid of a grant from Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), and with financial support from the Government of Canada, provided through Global Affairs Canada (GAC)Substituting synthetic antioxidant food additives with naturally occurring plant antioxidants could promote the production of safer food systems. The combined use of organic manure with urea fertilizer led to enhanced antioxidant and anti-AChE activities of the leaf polyphenolic extracts. This detailed paper demonstrates how vegetable leaf polyphenolic compounds show free radical scavenging and other antioxidant properties that are comparable to those of butylated hydroxytoluene, a synthetic antioxidant agent. Results indicate that the vegetable leaf extracts are potential agents that can be used both as effective food preservatives and bioactive agents against neurodegenerative diseases

Nigerian women reap benefits from indigenous vegetables

Despite their potential, research has failed to prioritize indigenous vegetable species for improving food security, nutrition and income. The project worked with 1,200 farmers (50% women) who have formed 22 vegetable cooperative groups. Radio programs on popular FM stations in south-western Nigeria created awareness on production, utilization, and nutritional and health benefits of underutilized vegetables, reaching over 3 million listeners. There has been rapid expansion of the project sites, with more farmers joining the training. Given the successes recorded in the field in south-western Nigeria, the introduction of this system is adaptable to other areas of Africa

Antihypertensive properties of aqueous extracts of vegetable leaf-fortified bread after oral administration to spontaneously hypertensive rats

This study investigated the potential cardiovascular health benefits of leavened bread produced from wheat flour that contained 1%, 2% and 3% additions of leafy vegetable powders obtained from Amaranthus viridis (AO), Solanum macrocarpon (SM) or Telfairia occidentalis (TO). Vegetable leaves were harvested from the MicroVeg Project (Nigeria). See [http://hdl.handle.net/10625/58583]. Leafy vegetables are very rich sources of phytochemicals, especially polyphenols that can contribute to improved human health. Oral administration of 100 mg dried extract/kg body weight to hypertensive rats led to reductions (up to 42 mmHg) in systolic, diastolic and mean arterial blood pressure

Advanced tools for food security research: web-based GIS mapping and synchrotron-based analysis for scaling up the MicroVeg agronomic innovations

This work was carried out with the aid of a grant from Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), and with financial support from the Government of Canada, provided through Global Affairs Canada (GAC)The new WebGIS platform allows visualization of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data compiled from online sources as well project research. Part of the larger project “Synergizing fertilizer micro-dosing and indigenous vegetable production to enhance food and economic security of West African farmers (CIFSRF Phase 2)” it contains climate, topographical, infrastructure, soil data and all of MicroVeg agronomic data, adjusted into two seasons (wet vs. dry) three ecozones (rainforest, savannah, and sudano savannah) for the four vegetable crops of the project. This allows estimates of vegetable yields, water requirements, and microdose fertilizer rates anywhere in Benin Republic or Nigeria. See: http://webgis.usask.ca/microveg

Potential of Indigenous Vegetable-Fortified Food Products for Improved Human Nutrition and Health in West Africa

The study developed and tested the acceptability of key innovative value-added products, including vegetable-fortified bread and pastry products (cookies and chinchin), using each of these three indigenous vegetables, namely Telfairia occidentalis Hook. F. (fluted pumpkin), Amaranthus virdis L. (local amaranth), and Solanum macrocarpon L. (eggplant). The bread was fortified with each of the individual dried leafy vegetables at levels of 1%, 3%, and 5%. Ogi was also fortified with the equivalent of the dried Telfaria occidentalis in the wet form at 1%, 3%, and 5%, while pastry was fortified with the only extract obtained from amaranth leafy vegetable at 1%, 3%, and 5%. Results from the MicroVeg project showed that bread fortified with 3% (w/w) dried vegetable leaf powders had higher nutritional properties. Pastry formulations that included 3% dried vegetable leaf powders had slightly lower consumer acceptability in terms of taste and color; however, due to the associated potential health benefits, consumers were willing to buy the vegetable-fortified products as replacements for the regular products. This chapter discusses the full details of the nutrition and value addition aspects of MicroVeg with empirical examples of the interventions and the potential contributions to dietary diversity and enhanced family nutrition

Synergizing fertilizer micro-dosing and indigenous vegetable production to enhance food and economic security of West African farmers : final report

This work was carried out with the aid of a grant from Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC), and with financial support from the Government of Canada, provided through Global Affairs Canada (GAC)This annex answers questions that arose from baseline reports regarding: educational level of farmers; land acquisition; land area under vegetable cultivation; current use of fertilizers by farmers and use of irrigation; ease of water supply and access; costs associated with accessing water; household consumption of vegetables; and disputes in relation to the use of irrigation water, with emphasis on gender distribution. This is a detailed report on surveys, with data tables included. The Nigeria-Canada Indigenous Vegetables Project (NiCanVeg) successfully developed new technologies that improved farming practices, post-harvest handling and value addition for Indigenous vegetables