scholarly journals Profitability and sustainability of peri-urban vegetable production systems in Vietnam

1996 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 125-143 ◽  
Author(s):  
H.G.P. Jansen ◽  
D.J. Midmore ◽  
P.H. Binh ◽  
S. Valasayya ◽  
L.C. Tru
Keyword(s):  
Production Systems ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Added Value ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Ho Chi Minh City ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Chemical Fertilizers ◽  
Vegetable Farmers ◽  
Fresh Vegetables ◽  
Returns To Labour

Results are reported of a study of the income and cropping systems of peri-urban vegetable farmers around Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, as well as the constraints and opportunities for vegetable production and marketing. Urban population growth is fuelling the demand for timely supplies of fresh vegetables. Much of this increased demand, particularly for the more perishable species, is satisfied through peri-urban production which has significantly increased since the change from centrally planned and collective systems to a market economy. Around Ho Chi Minh City farms are small (on average about 0.8 ha), 65% which are de facto owned and with about 60% dedicated to vegetables. Most vegetable farmers also grow rice and/or groundnuts, while cabbage is the most commonly grown vegetable crop. Vegetables provide about $1000 total revenues, or $650 added value (returns to labour, land and management) per farm per year. Added value per ha per day of vegetables is double or more than that for rice, providing employment for five or more times the number for rice, despite very high labour use. The negative correlation between farm size and cropping intensity suggests that labour is a factor limiting vegetable production enterprises. One of the major demands on labour is for irrigation. Major input costs relate to organic materials, chemical fertilizers and pesticides, although much variability exists between crops. Pests, and low and variable vegetable prices, are the most commonly cited constraints. There is a clear trough in vegetable supply during August to October following the hot-wet months, and an apparent overuse of chemical fertilizers and insecticides. Lack of communal purchase of inputs and marketing limit the success of market-oriented vegetable farms.

scholarly journals Sustainability in the Case of Small Vegetable Farmers: A Matrix Approach

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (18) ◽  
pp. 10320
Author(s):  
Ioan Sebastian Brumă ◽  
Simona-Roxana Ulman ◽  
Cristina Cautisanu ◽  
Lucian Tanasă ◽  
Gabriel Vasile Hoha
Keyword(s):  
Added Value ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Five Dimensions ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Vegetable Farmers ◽  
Time Space ◽  
Social Environmental

Considering that sustainability is a relative concept, but also that this limitation could be avoided through continuous adaptation of the evaluation tools by taking into account the directions of change (such as time, space, application domain), the goal of the present study is to elaborate a matrix for measuring the level of sustainability for small vegetable farms. Thus, looking at what sustainability could represent under such circumstances, we divided its characteristics into four main dimensions (economic, social, environmental, cultural), while adding the private dimension. Inclusion of the private dimension may provide potential added value to this study, and thus enrich the general perspective of producers’ capacity to meet the sustainability goals in their entrepreneurial activity. To quantify these five dimensions of the sustainability matrix, a questionnaire was built up and used as support for face-to-face interviews conducted at the level of the North-East Development Region of Romania. Our results showed associations between diverse components of the dimensions considered, revealing their synergy in farm activity, along with the occurrence of some differences in the levels of sustainability dimensions and sub-dimensions, which differ as a function of the specific types of vegetable production (conventional, ecologic, natural, mixed).

scholarly journals An Evaluation of Summer Cover Crops for Use in Vegetable Production Systems in North Carolina

HortScience ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 600-603 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy G. Creamer ◽  
Keith R. Baldwin
Keyword(s):  
Cover Crops ◽  
Aboveground Biomass ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Pennisetum Glaucum ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Foxtail Millet ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Vegetable Crops ◽  
Lablab Purpureus ◽  
Sorghum Sudangrass

Summer cover crops can produce biomass, contribute nitrogen to cropping systems, increase soil organic matter, and suppress weeds. Through fixation of atmospheric N2 and uptake of soil residual N, they also contribute to the N requirement of subsequent vegetable crops. Six legumes {cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.), sesbania (Sesbania exaltata L.), soybean (Glycine max L.), hairy indigo (Indigofera hirsutum L.), velvetbean [Mucuna deeringiana (Bort.) Merr.], and lablab (Lablab purpureus L.)}; two nonlegume broadleaved species [buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum Moench) and sesame (Sesamum indicum L.)]; and five grasses {sorghum-sudangrass [Sorghum bicolor (L) Moench × S. sudanense (P) Stapf.], sudangrass [S. sudanense (P) Stapf.], Japanese millet [Echinochloa frumentacea (Roxb.) Link], pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L). R. Br.], and German foxtail millet [Setaria italica (L.) Beauv.)]}, were planted in raised beds alone or in mixtures in 1995 at Plymouth, and in 1996 at Goldsboro, N.C. Biomass production for the legumes ranged from 1420 (velvetbean) to 4807 kg·ha-1 (sesbania). Low velvetbean biomass was attributed to poor germination in this study. Nitrogen in the aboveground biomass for the legumes ranged from 32 (velvetbean) to 97 kg·ha-1 (sesbania). All of the legumes except velvetbean were competitive with weeds. Lablab did not suppress weeds as well as did cover crops producing higher biomass. Aboveground biomass for grasses varied from 3918 (Japanese millet) to 8792 kg·ha-1 (sorghum-sudangrass). While N for the grasses ranged from 39 (Japanese millet) to 88 kg·ha-1 (sorghum-sudangrass), the C: N ratios were very high. Additional N would be needed for fall-planted vegetable crops to overcome immobilization of N. All of the grass cover crops reduced weeds as relative to the weedy control plot. Species that performed well together as a mixture at both sites included Japanese millet/soybean and sorghum-sudangrass/cowpea.

scholarly journals An Analysis of the Vegetables Supply Chain in Swaziland

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bongiwe G. Xaba ◽  
Micah B. Masuku
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Marketing Channel ◽  
Marketing Channels ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Total Consumption ◽  
Vegetable Farmers ◽  
Fresh Vegetables ◽  
Per Capita

<em></em><p>The total consumption of fresh vegetables in Swaziland is estimated around 40,000 tonnes per year and this translate into 40 kg per capita consumption per year. Individuals who are not economically challenged consume above the annual per capita of 40 kg in contrast to a poor individuals living in rural areas, who consume less than the per capita vegetables. The study sought to describe the performance of vegetable vegetables supply chain in Swaziland. A descriptive research design was used in the study and data were collected using personal interviews from 100 randomly selected vegetable farmers. Data were analysed using market margins and marketing channel analysis to identify existing marketing channels used by vegetable farmers. The revealed marketing channels that producers used to obtain attractive prices and a higher share of the consumer price. The largest producer’s share was obtained through direct sale to consumers. Channels that included restaurants had high total gross margins and low producer’s share of the consumer price. The concern for issues on post-harvest and marketing should form an integral part of policy development and research programmes and also the public and private sectors should facilitate contractual arrangements for vegetables farmers. Commercialising vegetable production should not be overemphasised because it encourages farmers to be market oriented as opposed to production oriented. Farmers need to form cooperatives in order to assist in bargaining of prices within the vegetable supply chain.</p>

NUTRIENT BALANCES AND ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE IN URBAN AND PERI-URBAN VEGETABLE PRODUCTION SYSTEMS OF THREE WEST AFRICAN CITIES

2014 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 126-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
AISHA ABDULKADIR ◽  
SHEICK K. SANGARÉ ◽  
HAMADOUN AMADOU ◽  
JOHN O. AGBENIN
Keyword(s):  
Economic Performance ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
West African ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Nutrient Inputs ◽  
African Cities ◽  
High K ◽  
Fresh Vegetables ◽  
Bobo Dioulasso ◽  
Increase Productivity

SUMMARYUrban and peri-urban (UPA) cultivation supplies fresh vegetables and employment for the increasing number of urban inhabitants. It is characterized by the use of large nutrient inputs to increase productivity and often associated with negative environmental risks. For these reasons, this study quantified nutrient (nitrogen, N; phosphorus, P; and potassium, K) flows and economic performance of UPA gardening of the three West African cities of Kano, Nigeria; Bobo Dioulasso, Burkina Faso; Sikasso, Mali, during a 2-year period using theMonitoring forQualityImprovement (MonQI) toolbox considering inflows and outflows sources. Average annual N, P and K balances were positive for all gardens in the three cities with N balances of 279, 1127 and 74 kg N ha−1in Kano, Bobo Dioulasso and Sikasso, respectively, except for annual K deficits of 222 and 187 kg K ha−1in Kano and Sikasso, respectively. Nitrogen use efficiencies were 63%, 51% and 87% in Kano, Bobo Dioulasso and Sikasso, respectively, with poor P use efficiencies due to excess application in all three cities. However, a high K efficiency was observed in Bobo Dioulasso (87%) while applications of K were lower than required in Kano and Sikasso with efficiencies of 121% and 110%, indicating possible K mining. The average annual gross margins from gardening indicated a statistically higher (p< 0.05) return of US$3.83 m−2in Bobo Dioulasso than returns obtained in Kano (US$0.92 m−2) and Sikasso (US$1.37 m−2). Although an economically vibrant activity, intensive UPA vegetable production needs to be reviewed for strategic planning towards improving N and P use efficiencies in order to maintain its productivity as well as safeguard the environment. Appropriate K fertilization is necessary to avoid long term K depletion in Kano and Sikasso UPA gardening.

scholarly journals FACTORS INFLUENCING TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION BY TRADITIONAL AFRICAN VEGETABLE FARMERS IN NORTHERN GHANA

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 474-487
Author(s):  
Yakubu Balma Issaka ◽  
George Nyarko ◽  
Doris Quaidoo
Keyword(s):  
Technology Adoption ◽  
Northern Region ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Northern Ghana ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Access To Credit ◽  
Vegetable Farmers ◽  
African Vegetables ◽  
Improved Technology

The production of traditional African vegetables is an age-old tradition among the people of the northern region of Ghana. However, the knowledge base of traditional African vegetable production remains local due to a lack of research and policy support. Therefore, the adoption of improved technology among traditional vegetable farmers is generally low and impedes efforts to promote widespread cultivation, consumption and even commercialisation. This study aims at clarifying potential factors that determine the adoption of technologies by traditional African vegetable farmers in the northern region of Ghana. One hundred and five (105) respondents in five communities and across two administrative districts in the northern region were selected for an in-depth survey using a combination of quantitative and qualitative data collection methods. In addition, a logit regression was used to determine the effect of various factors on technology adoption by farmers. Among the factors, the educational level of a farmer, access to credit, farm size, experience in farming and access to extension support were found to be important factors affecting the decision of traditional African vegetable farmers to adopt improved technology. The results of this study can help enhance the effectiveness of policy re-orientation towards a more effective commercialisation of traditional African vegetables in Ghana and elsewhere.

scholarly journals Evaluating the Relationship between Fruit and Vegetable Growers Use of Plastic Biodegradable Mulches, and Environmental Stewardship and Labor Savings: The Case of Tennessee Fruit and Vegetable Farmers

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 2075 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margarita Velandia ◽  
Roderick Rejesus ◽  
Christopher Clark ◽  
Karen L. DeLong ◽  
Annette Wszelaki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Stewardship ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Strongly Correlated ◽  
Fruit And Vegetable ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
Vegetable Farmers ◽  
Farmer Survey ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Relationship

The substitution of polyethylene (PE) mulch for plastic biodegradable mulches (BDMs) in fruit and vegetable production has the potential to reduce the negative environmental impacts associated with PE mulch use, and the overall sustainability of fruit and vegetable production. A better understanding of the factors associated with BDM use could inform efforts to promote the use of BDMs. The main goal of this study is to assess the correlation between the use of BDMs among fruit and vegetable farmers, and labor savings and environmental stewardship. Using data from a Tennessee fruit and vegetable farmer survey and probit regressions, this study evaluates the correlation between the use of BDMs, and the labor savings associated with the use of BDMs and farmer environmental stewardship, after controlling for farmer and farmer business characteristics. Results suggest that farm size, farmer environmental stewardship, and labor savings from BDM use are strongly correlated with the use of BDMs among Tennessee fruit and vegetable growers, specifically among those farmers who are more likely to have previous experience using PE mulch.

scholarly journals Entomoponics: combining insect rearing and greenhouse vegetable production – a case study with Tenebrio molitor and high-wire cucumber cultivation

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
C.L. Coudron ◽  
D. Deruytter ◽  
S. Craeye ◽  
P. Bleyaert
Keyword(s):  
Production Systems ◽  
Larval Growth ◽  
Tenebrio Molitor ◽  
Added Value ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Greenhouse Climate ◽  
Insect Rearing ◽  
Greenhouse Vegetable ◽  
Greenhouse Vegetable Production

Insect production is generally a monoculture where insects are kept in an enclosed environment with a stable climate to maximise production. To maintain these conditions air treatment is necessary, which results in high operational costs. Combining insect rearing with hydroponic greenhouse cultivation (HGC) of fruit vegetables might offer an opportunity for cost reduction. Fruit vegetables generally require more elevated air temperature, while leaving enough space under the substrate supporting gutters to allow insect rearing. In this study the feasibility of combining both production systems was evaluated with mealworms (Tenebrio molitor) and cucumber HGC serving as model species. The influence of the greenhouse climate was assessed by rearing mealworms simultaneous at two locations (a climate room and a cucumber HGC). Furthermore, pruning waste and aesthetically declined fruits could serve as a feed for insects. This was tested by comparing 4 different wet feeds (whole and mashed cucumber pruning, tomatoes and agar-agar). Larval growth was monitored and at harvest the mealworm yield was compared among treatments. Mealworm growth in the greenhouse was on average 8.1% slower than growth in a climate room even though the average ambient temperature in the greenhouse was lower and more variable (22.1±3.30 °C standard deviation compared to 27.0±0.34 °C). Moreover, the results showed that the tested HGC residues can be used as wet feed given that mashed cucumber pruning gave similar results as agar-agar (control) and tomatoes even outperformed the control significantly in terms of growth. ‘Entomoponics’ is introduced as the name for the combination of insect production and HGC of vegetables as a way to create added value in unused heated space inside a greenhouse and valorise greenhouse residues.

scholarly journals A comparative analysis of the profitability and technical efficiency of vegetable production under two farming systems in Nigeria

2021 ◽  
Vol 66 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-104
Author(s):  
Omotoso Ogunmola ◽  
Christiana Afolabi ◽  
Charles Adesina ◽  
Kelechi Ilechukwu
Keyword(s):  
Organic Farming ◽  
Technical Efficiency ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Farm Size ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Technical Inefficiency ◽  
Vegetable Farmers ◽  
Organic Farmers ◽  
Inorganic And Organic

Increasing agricultural productivity enhanced by versatile production systems is critical for sustainable food security and economic development. The study aims to compare the profitability and technical efficiency of vegetable production and factors influencing the technical efficiency of vegetable production between inorganic and organic farming systems in Imo State, Nigeria. Primary data were collected using structured questionnaires comprising 100 vegetable farmers using a multistage sampling procedure. The budgetary analysis and stochastic production frontier model were used to estimate the profitability and the technical efficiencies of the enterprise. An average farmer realized N277,445.24 and N190,506.04 per hectare as profit from inorganic and organic vegetable production and can potentially earn N4.40 and N2.89 on every Naira invested, respectively. However, the inorganic farming system achieved significantly higher returns than the organic farming system. The mean technical efficiencies for organic and inorganic vegetable farmers were 89.57% and 75.64%, respectively. Farm size, labour and the quantity of seeds were the crucial factors that affected the technical efficiency under both farming systems. Also, age, years of education and farming experience were the significant variables that influenced the technical inefficiency of inorganic farmers, whereas years of education and household size significantly influenced the technical inefficiency of organic farmers. This study advocates for subsidized inputs for organic farmers to compensate for their lower yields and policies that would attract young people to vegetable farming to increase the production level.

The response of late storage cabbage and broccoli to applications of sulphur and calcium

2003 ◽  
Vol 83 (4) ◽  
pp. 947-950 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. W. McKeown ◽  
C. J. Bakker
Keyword(s):  
Production Systems ◽  
Calcium Nitrate ◽  
Calcium Sulphate ◽  
Soil Test ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Chemical Fertilizers ◽  
Clubroot Disease ◽  
Sulphur Nutrition ◽  
Sulphur Fertilizer ◽  
Effect Of Treatment

Sulphur may become deficient in intensive vegetable production systems that rely on chemical fertilizers. Yield of cole crops in response to sulphur fertilization has not been evaluated under Ontario conditions. Since calcium is linked to clubroot disease and tipburn, the sulphur fertilizer source is an important consideration. Rates of sulphur and calcium were compared for effects on yield using Novacal (a prilled calcium sulphate product), calcium nitrate and potassium sulphate for 3 yr for cabbage and 2 yr for broccoli on both sand and loam soils. There appeared to be no difference in yield from fertilizer source of sulphur or calcium. Applications of sulphur increased yield of Huron late storage cabbage averaged over years and soil with a mathematical maximum occurring at 55 kg S ha-1. Soil tests indicated levels of approximately 13–19 µg g-1 for sulphur prior to treatment. Yield of cabbage increased proportionately to calcium application averaged over 3 yr. No effect of treatment was observed on broccoli. Thus, soil levels of sulphur were probably limiting for late cabbage but not for broccoli. Sulphur shortage or deficiency appears to exist for late storage cabbage grown in Ontario. Lack of response of broccoli and no calibrated soil test for either element suggest that crops have to be evaluated individually under field conditions for sulphur fertilizer requirements. Key words: Cabbage, broccoli, calcium, sulphur, nutrition, yield

Nitrate Leaching to a Shallow Mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain Aquifer as Influenced by Conventional No-Till and Low-Input Sustainable Grain Production Systems

1993 ◽  
Vol 28 (3-5) ◽  
pp. 691-700 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. P. Craig ◽  
R. R. Weil
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Cropping System ◽  
Atlantic Coastal Plain ◽  
Grain Production ◽  
Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽  
Mineral N ◽  
Low Input ◽  
No Till

In December, 1987, the states in the Chesapeake Bay region, along with the federal government, signed an agreement which called for a 40% reduction in nitrogen and phosphorus loadings to the Bay by the year 2000. To accomplish this goal, major reductions in nutrient loadings associated with agricultural management practices were deemed necessary. The objective of this study was to determine if reducing fertilizer inputs to the NT system would result in a reduction in nitrogen contamination of groundwater. In this study, groundwater, soil, and percolate samples were collected from two cropping systems. The first system was a conventional no-till (NT) grain production system with a two-year rotation of corn/winter wheat/double crop soybean. The second system, denoted low-input sustainable agriculture (LISA), produced the same crops using a winter legume and relay-cropped soybeans into standing wheat to reduce nitrogen and herbicide inputs. Nitrate-nitrogen concentrations in groundwater were significantly lower under the LISA system. Over 80% of the NT groundwater samples had NO3-N concentrations greater than 10 mgl-1, compared to only 4% for the LISA cropping system. Significantly lower soil mineral N to a depth of 180 cm was also observed. The NT soil had nearly twice as much mineral N present in the 90-180 cm portion than the LISA cropping system.

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