Articles

The implications of land use and land cover changes for rural household food insecurity in the Northeastern highlands of Ethiopia: the case of the Teleyayen sub-watershed

Ethiopia has tremendous agricultural potential with vast areas of fertile land. However, agriculture remains underdeveloped and poverty persists, especially in rural areas. Therefore, this study examined the i...

Authors: Alem-meta Assefa Agidew and K. N. Singh

Does crop diversity contribute to dietary diversity? Evidence from integration of vegetables into maize-based farming systems

Maize is the most important staple crop for food security and livelihood of smallholder farmers in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa, but it alone cannot ensure food security. Cropping patterns must be diversif...

Authors: Srinivasulu Rajendran, Victor Afari-Sefa, Apurba Shee, Temesgen Bocher, Mateete Bekunda, Inviolate dominick and Philipo Joseph Lukumay

The contribution of Productive Safety Net Program for food security of the rural households in the case of Bale Zone, Southeast Ethiopia

Developing countries in general and Ethiopia in particular are affected by a growing problem of food insecurity. Millions of individuals and households especially the rural poor are the main victims of the p...

Authors: Diriba Welteji, Kerime Mohammed and Kedir Hussein

Golden Rice: instructions for use

Golden Rice is any variety of rice which makes beta-carotene, thus giving the rice a yellow (Golden) colour. It was created as an additional intervention for vitamin A deficiency. This dietary deficiency is th...

Authors: Adrian Dubock

An overview of agriculture, nutrition and fortification, supplementation and biofortification: Golden Rice as an example for enhancing micronutrient intake

The worlds growing population and limited land resources require high intensity of food production. Human nutrition needs both macronutrients and micronutrients. One way of providing micronutrients in staple c...

Authors: Adrian Dubock

Agriculture and food security: fifth anniversary

Authors: Malcolm Elliott

Farmers’ soil knowledge, fertility management logic and its linkage with scientifically analyzed soil properties in southern Ethiopia

Farmers’ locally have acquired knowledge from generations of experience and experimentation that fit local conditions. Yet, the scientific approach less used farmers’ soil knowledge (FSK) and site-specific soi...

Authors: Fanuel Laekemariam, Kibebew Kibret and Tekalign Mamo

Pigeonpea [(Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.)] production system, farmers’ preferred traits and implications for variety development and introduction in Benin

The success of crop varieties introduction is tightly linked to the uses, biophysical conditions, the cropping systems in which the crop is integrated and farmers’ and consumers’ preferences. In Benin, however...

Authors: Mathieu Anatole Tele Ayenan, Kwadwo Ofori, Léonard Essèhou Ahoton and Agyemang Danquah

Integrated effect of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria and phosphate-solubilizing microorganisms on growth of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) under rainfed condition

Biofertilizers are now considered to be the only alternative of chemical fertilizers which apart from their soaring cost are enhancing in pollution hazards of our environment. Increasing and extending the role...

Authors: Mahmooda Saleemi, Muhammad Zahid Kiani, Tariq Sultan, Azeem Khalid and Shahid Mahmood

Effect of Micro-Agricultural Financial Institutions of South Africa financial services on livelihood capital of beneficiaries in North West Province South Africa

This paper examined the effect of Micro-Agricultural Financial Institutions of South Africa financial services on livelihood capital of beneficiaries in North West Province South Africa. A simple random sampli...

Authors: Idowu Oladele and Lucky Ward

Editorial for the Thematic Series in Agriculture & Food Security: Climate-Smart Agriculture Technologies in West Africa: learning from the ground AR4D experiences

Authors: Jules Bayala, Robert Zougmoré, Sidzabda Djibril Dayamba and Alain Olivier

Effect of drought early warning system on household food security in Karamoja subregion, Uganda

Drought is regarded as a leading cause of food insecurity affecting about 220 million people in sub-Saharan Africa. Drought early warning systems (DEWSs) have the potential to strengthen capacity of communiti...

Authors: Damalie Akwango, Bernard Bonton Obaa, Nelson Turyahabwe, Yona Baguma and Anthony Egeru

Diversity amongst farm households and achievements from multi-stakeholder innovation platform approach: lessons from Balaka Malawi

Understanding diversity of smallholder farm households is of critical importance for the success of development interventions. Farming households often will devise livelihood strategies that provide the best g...

Authors: Clifton Makate and Nelson Mango

Assessing the information seeking behaviour and utilization of rice farmers in the Ejisu-Juaben municipality of Ashanti Region of Ghana

A significant gap exists between advances in technologies in agriculture and what Ghanaian farmers practice on their farms. This paper examines rice farmers’ information seeking behaviour and the determinants ...

Authors: Lawrencia Donkor Acheampong, Benedicta Nsiah Frimpong, Alexander Adu-Appiah, Bright Owusu Asante and Maxwell Darko Asante

Spatial variations of household food insecurity in East Gojjam Zone, Amhara Region, Ethiopia: implications for agroecosystem-based interventions

In Ethiopia, food insecurity remains a major public health challenge. Agroecosystem has a potential to determine food insecurity. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the spatial pattern of household food ...

Authors: Zewdie Aderaw Alemu, Ahmed Ali Ahmed, Alemayehu Worku Yalew and Belay Simanie

Men and women farmers’ perceptions of adopting improved diets for pigs in Uganda: decision-making, income allocation, and intra-household strategies that mitigate relative disadvantage

The roles and responsibilities of men and women in east African smallholder pig-raising households and the entitlements each can claim from pig-enterprise income are unknown. The article is a qualitative gende...

Authors: Natalie Ann Carter, Sally Humphries, Delia Grace, Emily Awuor Ouma and Catherine Elizabeth Dewey

Is there any economics in smallholder cocoyam production? Evidence from the forest agro-ecological zone of Ghana

Cocoyam is an important food security crop in Ghana because it stores better than all other root and tuber crops. Despite its socio-economic relevance, production has declined persistently since the last decad...

Authors: Stanley Boakye-Achampong, Kwasi Ohene-Yankyera, Robert Aidoo and Olav Jull Sørensen

Connecting smallholder tomato producers to improved seed in West Africa

Environmental heterogeneity, emerging pathogens and limited access to financial and agricultural inputs prevent farmers from producing consistent crop yields in many developing countries. Yield instability im...

Authors: Kari Perez, Jeffrey S. Froikin-Gordon, Issoufou Kollo Abdourhamane, Virginie Levasseur, Aïssatou Ali Alfari, Armel Mensah, Offei Bonsu, Boukary Habsatou, Françoise Assogba-Komlan, Abdou Aziz Mbaye, Moussa Noussourou, Lenli Claude Otoidobiga, Léonard Ouédraogo, Tatsuya Kon, Maria R. Rojas, Kadiatou Touré Gamby…

Profitability and productivity of potato (Solanum tuberosum) in Baglung district, Nepal

Potato is considered as staple food in Hill regions of Nepal. It is considered as a major crop (in cropping pattern) of the majority of the households in Bobang and Tara VDC of Baglung district. The potato pr...

Authors: Mahima Bajracharya and Mahesh Sapkota

Tillage and fertilizer effect on maize and soybean yields in the Guinea savanna zone of Ghana

The most limiting factors for sustainable maize production in smallholder farming systems of sub-Saharan Africa, especially the savanna agro-ecological zone, are erratic rainfall pattern and low soil fertility.

Authors: Samuel Saaka Jeduah Buah, Hashim Ibrahim, Mavis Derigubah, Martin Kuzie, James Vuuro Segtaa, Jules Bayala, Robert Zougmore and Mathieu Ouedraogo

Fisheries, food, and health in the USA: the importance of aligning fisheries and health policies

Food availability, access, and utilization are the three pillars of food security and need to be aligned in order to support a healthy population. United States (US) fisheries policy plays an important role i...

Authors: David Clifford Love, Patricia Pinto da Silva, Julia Olson, Jillian Parry Fry and Patricia Mary Clay

Value chain development for mango (Mangifera indica) around Outamba Kilimi National Park in Sierra Leone: constraints and opportunities for smallholders

Mango is an important tree fruit in Sierra Leone since it participates to food and nutritional security mainly in rural areas. However, the economic potential of this tree fruit is still untapped to a large ex...

Authors: Ademonla Djalalou Dine Arinloye, Ann Degrande, Vodjo Nicodème Fassinou Hotegni, Ebenezar Asaah, Rebecca Bockarie, Joachim Binam Nyemeck, Jules Bayala and Antoine Kalinganire

Determinants of maize seed income and adoption of foundation seed production: evidence from Palpa District of Nepal

Maize is the second most important staple crop in terms of area and production in Nepal. The production and yield of maize are low in Nepal as compared to other similar agro-climatic regions. Seed is considere...

Authors: Mahesh Sapkota, Niraj Prakash Joshi, Rishi Ram Kattel and Mahima Bajracharya

Impacts of natural disasters on smallholder farmers: gaps and recommendations

Here, we review the impacts of recent natural disasters in developing countries on rural agriculture and livelihoods with the objective of understanding gaps and providing recommendations. Lessons from these d...

Authors: Tejendra Chapagain and Manish N. Raizada

Participatory diagnosis and development of climate change adaptive capacity in the groundnut basin of Senegal: building a climate-smart village model

Up to now, efforts to help local communities out of the food-insecurity trap were guided by researcher (or other actors)-led decisions on technologies to be implemented by the communities. This approach has p...

Authors: Diaminatou Sanogo, Badiane Yacine Ndour, Moussa Sall, Katim Toure, Mouhamadou Diop, Baba Ansoumana Camara, Ousmane N’Diaye and Djibril Thiam

Uses and vulnerability of ligneous species exploited by local population of northern Burkina Faso in their adaptation strategies to changing environments

Arid and semi-arid areas of West Africa are highly subject to climate change effects. This is combined to other drivers such as population growth and livestock number increase. To cope with such changing envir...

Authors: Pauline Ouédraogo, Babou André Bationo, Josias Sanou, Salifou Traoré, Silamana Barry, Sidzabda Djibril Dayamba, Jules Bayala, Mathieu Ouédraogo, Sebastiaan Soeters and Adjima Thiombiano

Impacts of temperature and rainfall variation on rice productivity in major ecosystems of Bangladesh

Inconsistency in climate regimes of rainfall and temperature is a source of biotic and abiotic stresses in agricultural systems worldwide. Several studies from Bangladesh report that this variability is a caus...

Authors: Md Abiar Rahman, SuChul Kang, Nidhi Nagabhatla and Robert Macnee

An assessment of mobile phone-based dissemination of weather and market information in the Upper West Region of Ghana

The rapid growth of mobile phones in Ghana has opened up the possibility of delivering timely and useful weather and market information to farmers at costs lower than traditional agricultural extension service...

Authors: Prince Maxwell Etwire, Saaka Buah, Mathieu Ouédraogo, Robert Zougmoré, Samuel Tetteh Partey, Edward Martey, Sidzabda Djibril Dayamba and Jules Bayala

Food security in the Savannah Accelerated Development Authority Zone of Ghana: an ordered probit with household hunger scale approach

Food security has been observed to be severe in northern Ghana than any other area of the country. Though this has been acknowledged, few attempts have been made to curb the situation. One of such intervention...

Authors: Paul Kwame Nkegbe, Benjamin Musah Abu and Haruna Issahaku

Small-scale fisheries in the context of traditional post-harvest practice and the quest for food and nutritional security in Nigeria

Existing scholarly works have paid little or no attention to the problems small-scale fisheries encounter within the context of food and nutritional security. Therefore, this work has examined the problem. Sma...

Authors: Shehu Latunji Akintola and Kafayat Adetoun Fakoya

Fishing for food: piloting an exploration of the invisible subsistence harvest of coastal resources in Connecticut

In Connecticut, the subsistence harvest of coastal and marine resources, with the explicit goal of consuming what is collected or caught, is counted and regulated as recreational fishing. Little information ex...

Authors: Syma Alexi Ebbin

Reconnecting people, place, and nature: examining alternative food networks in Newfoundland’s fisheries

Fisheries have played a significant role in the economic development of Newfoundland and Labrador and continue to contribute to coastal livelihoods and local food security. However, the access to and availabil...

Authors: Chloé Poitevin DesRivières, Ratana Chuenpagdee and Charles Mather

The impact of adoption of conservation agriculture on smallholder farmers’ food security in semi-arid zones of southern Africa

In southern Africa, conservation agriculture (CA) has received a lot of research and promotional support from various organizations in the past decades. Conservation agriculture is largely promoted as one of t...

Authors: Nelson Mango, Shephard Siziba and Clifton Makate

Assessment of production practices of smallholder potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) farmers in Wolaita zone, southern Ethiopia

Potato plays a great role for the achievement of food security program due to its plasticity to environmental conditions and yielding capacity. However, its productivity is far less than other countries due to...

Authors: Hailu Gebru, Ali Mohammed, Nigussie Dechassa and Derbew Belew

Optimizing yield of improved varieties of millet and sorghum under highly variable rainfall conditions using contour ridges in Cinzana, Mali

Low productivity of cereals, the staple food, in Sahelian zone of Cinzana in Mali is caused by a range of factors including but not limited to inherent low soil fertility, and insufficient and inadequate distr...

Authors: Kalifa Traore, Daouda Kalifa Sidibe, Harouna Coulibaly and Jules Bayala

Characteristics of maize cultivars in Africa: How modern are they and how many do smallholder farmers grow?

Maize is the most important cereal and most widely cultivated staple that plays a key role in the food security of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Although some countries have achieved significant gains in maize pro...

Authors: Tsedeke Abate, Monica Fisher, Tahirou Abdoulaye, Girma T. Kassie, Rodney Lunduka, Paswel Marenya and Woinishet Asnake

Genotype by environment effects on promiscuous nodulation in soybean (Glycine max L. Merrill)

Understanding factors influencing the expression of a trait is key in designing a breeding program. Genotype by environment interaction has great influence on most quantitative traits. Promiscuous nodulation i...

Authors: Eric E. Agoyi, Thomas L. Odong, John B. Tumuhairwe, Godfree Chigeza, Brian W. Diers and Phinehas Tukamuhabwa

The association of food insecurity and school absenteeism: systematic review

Household food insecurity not only affects normal physical growth of young children, but also adversely affects their intellectual capacity and social skills. Studies showed that household food insecurity has ...

Authors: Dessalegn Tamiru and Tefera Belachew

Response to the Ebola-related bushmeat consumption ban in rural Côte d’Ivoire

Bushmeat represents an important animal protein source for populations in rural areas of Côte d’Ivoire; consequently, the exploitation of the bushmeat reserves has contributed to food security in these areas f...

Authors: Arlette Olaby Dindé, Aubin Jacob Mobio, Amoin Georgette Konan, Gilbert Fokou, Konan Yao, Emmanuel Lasme Jean Charles Esso, Agathe Fantodji, Marina Koussemon and Bassirou Bonfoh

Farmers’ knowledge and perception of postharvest physiological deterioration in cassava storage roots in Ghana

In spite of the essential role of cassava in ensuring household food security and employment for most rural farm households, postharvest physiological deterioration (PPD) of the roots which is serious abiotic ...

Authors: R. Prempeh, J. A. Manu-Aduening, B. O. Asante, I. K. Asante, S. K. Offei and E. Y. Danquah

Characterization of pre- and postharvest losses of tomato supply chain in Ethiopia

Tomato has significant economic importance in Ethiopia. Although quantitative evidence is limited, postharvest loss in tomato is considerably high. This study presents qualitative and quantitative postharvest ...

Authors: Bezabih Emana, Victor Afari-Sefa, Ngoni Nenguwo, Amsalu Ayana, Dereje Kebede and Hedija Mohammed

Impact of climate variability on pineapple production in Ghana

Climate variations have a considerable impact on crop production. For pineapple, variable temperatures and rainfall patterns are implicated, yet there is limited knowledge of the conditions and consequences of...

Authors: Portia Adade Williams, Olivier Crespo, Christopher John Atkinson and George Owusu Essegbey

Productivity and food security effects of using of certified seed potato: the case of Kenya’s potato farmers

Potato is a major food crop in the tropical regions of Africa. However, potato yields continue to remain very low in these regions mainly due to use of poor quality seed. The recent development of rapid seed m...

Authors: Julius Juma Okello, Yuan Zhou, Norman Kwikiriza, Sylvester Ogutu, Ian Barker, Elmar Schulte-Geldermann, Elly Atieno and Justin Taj Ahmed

Smallholder farmers’ adaptation to climate change and determinants of their adaptation decisions in the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia

The agricultural sector remains the main source of livelihoods for rural communities in Ethiopia, but faces the challenge of changing climate. This study investigated how smallholder farmers perceive climate c...

Authors: Abrham Belay, John W. Recha, Teshale Woldeamanuel and John F. Morton

Mitigating dry season food insecurity in the subtropics by prospecting drought-tolerant, nitrogen-fixing weeds

Subtropical regions experience an extended dry season, which inhibits the growth of most crops, and as a result there is seasonal scarcity of food and fodder. Globally, almost 600 million smallholders and land...

Authors: Finlay A. A. Small and Manish N. Raizada

Is bean really a women’s crop? Men and women’s participation in bean production in Uganda

Common bean one of the grain legumes that was traditionally considered a subsistence crop and therefore a woman’s crop in Uganda was prioritized for commercialization. This has transformed the crop from being ...

Authors: Florence Nakazi, Jemimah Njuki, Michael Adrogu Ugen, Paul Aseete, Enid Katungi, Eliud Birachi, Ruth Kabanyoro, Isaac Joseph Mugagga and Grace Nanyonjo

Establishing symbiotic nitrogen fixation in cereals and other non-legume crops: The Greener Nitrogen Revolution

Haber’s invention of the synthesis of ammonia from its elements is one of the cornerstones of modern civilization. For nearly a century, agriculture has come to rely on synthetic nitrogen fertilizers produced ...

Authors: David Dent and Edward Cocking

Vegetable diversification in cocoa-based farming systems Ghana

As part of dynamic livelihood coping strategies, some farmers in Ghana’s cocoa belt have diversified away from traditional cocoa production to other high-value crops including vegetables, to the extent of dive...

Authors: Justice G. Djokoto, Victor Afari-Sefa and Albert Addo-Quaye

Internal validity and reliability of experience-based household food insecurity scales in Indian settings

Experience-based household food insecurity (HFI) scales are not included in large-scale Indian surveys. There is limited evidence on which experience-based HFI scale or questions within a scale are most releva...

Authors: Vani Sethi, Chandana Maitra, Rasmi Avula, Sayeed Unisa and Surbhi Bhalla

Addressing constraints in promoting wild edible plants’ utilization in household nutrition: case of the Congo Basin forest area

It is worth raising the question, why are wild edible plants (WEPs) which are rich in diverse nutrients and widely abundant underutilized despite the increasing rate of undernourishment in poor regions? One r...

Authors: Precillia Ijang Tata Ngome, Charlie Shackleton, Anne Degrande and Julius Chupezi Tieguhong