CASSAVA: HOW TO IMPROVE PROCESSING OF CASSAVA TO GARRI .

CASSAVA: HOW TO IMPROVE PROCESSING OF CASSAVA TO GARRI The processing can be improved by getting more people involved and by empowering those already in the business to ensure food security. Each level can further be expanded by empowering more people to go into the various sectors to boost production. The empowerment can be in form of loans, inputs, training, equipment and vehicles. Every level can be opened up to accommodate more players to improve production and expand market. The cassava tubers can be made into various products such as starch, tapioca, snacks etc. more

AGRICULTURE: Exploring food systems to promote food security.

 Agriculture is a broad term encompassing many facets of production but all with the common goal of food production and food security. The race to feed the estimated 9 billion people by 2050 has began in full swing with several sections of agriculture calling for inputs, support and most especially the drive to get more youths to be involved in agriculture to boost production. 

 Agriculture like any venture has so many chains involved in various sectors but the basic platform is Producers then processors followed by marketers before it gets to consumers. 

 The process from farm to fork involves so many chains capable of increasing production, provide jobs, and promote international trade amongst other things if properly articulated. 

 Breaking down the chain to promote food security is the key to the economic growth we desire. This can be achieved by expanding the network to bring in more people and breaking down other chains by forming mergers to increase productivity and employing more people. 

Agriculture  There are various sectors to consider but this model will work for any sector. The success of the model is based on the fact that an individual cannot do everything; from farm to fork should be opened up so that different groups focus on different aspects of production.Agriculture 

 The cassava farmers will be our model; the network will have some farmers working on the field to get the cassava ready for sale. Then the next group will be those off-takers for onward sale to processors, these will now distribute to other processors for further processing to various products. 

 The next group will be the distributors to marketers then to the table. This model will boost productivity because the farmers are focused on an aspect of production and are sure of a ready market to sell their products.  

 Investments into any sector are easy and safe because of the assurance of return on investment at the end of harvest.Agriculture 

The involvement of many farmers into various aspects of the chain is what stifling growth is, everybody wants to go from farm to table, competing for land, market and structures.

 Categorization, structuring, organization and planning are the keys we need to ensure food security. #farmersunite #farmersconnect #agribusiness.

FIIRO signs pact with German companies on cassava.

FIIRO signs pact with German companies on cassava.The Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO), has signed a pact with two German companies – GIZ and BOSCH – to boost cassava production and processing. The Head of Corporate Communications of FIIRO, Mr Chris Olumuyiwa, said on Friday in Lagos in a statement. GIZ is a green innovation centre for agriculture and the food sector, while BOSCH is a specialist in the fabrication of machinery, power tools and household equipment. Olumuyiwa said the partnership would enable FIIRO to upscale development of innovative cassava processing technologies. more

Green tea ingredient may ameliorate memory impairment, brain insulin resistance, and obesity.

Green tea ingredient may ameliorate memory impairment, brain insulin resistance, and obesity. A new study involving mice, suggests that EGCG (epigallocatechin-3-gallate), the most abundant catechin and biologically active component in green tea, could alleviate high-fat and high-fructose (HFFD)-induced insulin resistance and cognitive impairment.more

New tool to distinguish between viral, bacterial infections.

New tool to distinguish between viral, bacterial infections. Antibiotics are lifesaving drugs, but overuse is leading to one of the world's most pressing health threats: antibiotic resistance. Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center are developing a tool to help physicians prescribe antibiotics to patients who really need them, and avoid giving them to individuals who don't.more

Cassava in the Livestock Feed Industry.

Cassava in the Livestock Feed Industry. Cassava called Manihot esculenta, is extensively cultivated as an annual crop in tropical and subtropical regions for its edible starchy tuberous root, a major source of carbohydrates. Cassava is the third-largest source of food carbohydrates in the tropics, after rice and maize. 

Cassava is a major staple food in the developing world, providing a basic diet for over half a billion people. Cassava is one of the most drought-tolerant crops, capable of growing on marginal soils and Nigeria is the world's largest producer of cassava, while Thailand is the largest exporter of dried cassava. Cassava can be processed into various products such as garri,tapioca, cake,bread and flakes for human consumption,but the peels can be processed and fed to animals. 

 Cassava is used in most tropical areas for feeding pigs, cattle, sheep and poultry. The dried peel of cassava roots are fed to sheep and goats, and raw or boiled roots are mixed into a mash with protein concentrates such as maize, sorghum, groundnut, or oil palm kernel meal and mineral salts for livestock feeding. Research has shown that cassava provides good quality carbohydrate, which may be substituted for maize or barley and that cassava rations are especially suitable for swine, dairy cattle, and poultry. 

 Cassava cannot be used as the main feed stuff because of its deficiency in protein and vitamins, but must be supplemented with other feeds that are rich in the required elements. The composition of a compounded ration varies depending on the specie of the animal such as cattle, pigs, or poultry and the kind of production which includes dairy, meat, or eggs. 

Oil cakes are the main ingredients in the feed for cattle, while feed grains are the most important for pigs and poultry. more

Climate change, agriculture, and food security.

Climate change, agriculture, and food security. Recently 60 delegates from 22 Asian countries took part in a workshop organized by the United Nations in Manila to map out national adaptation plans or NAPs, which are the main vehicles of countries for climate change adaptation including accessing climate finance. This is quite significant in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s withdrawal of America from the Paris Agreement, which binds countries to fight climate change and adapt to its effects, with enhanced support to assist developing countries to do so. Sunlight, temperature and rainfall are the main drivers of crop production;hence, agriculture is directly affected by climate change. But it should also be noted that agriculture also affects climate change as it is responsible for about one-third of greenhouse gas emissions, a major cause of global warming. About 25 percent of carbon dioxide emissions are produced by human practices, mainly deforestation, use of fossil-fuel-based fertilizers, and burning of plant materials. Likewise, most of the methane in the atmosphere comes from livestock, forest fires, irrigated rice cultivation, and waste products.more