Meat inspection and food safety concerns: open data kit (ODK)that Uganda is using to improve livestock disease surveillance and reporting.

 

Open Data Kit to improve livestock disease surveillance and reporting in Uganda.Surveillance of livestock diseases is key to reduce their harm to livelihoods, development and even humans. Meat inspectors in Uganda are using the Open Data kit (ODK) tool to improve animal disease surveillance and reporting, and sharing their experiences and knowledge with peers. The tool was rolled out at a training workshop held in October 2021 at the Makerere University College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity (COVAB). 

 The workshop aimed to boost, retool and equip inspectors in routine meat inspection procedures, hands-on skills in meat hygiene and food safety procedures, and knowledge of meat inspection regulations and standards. 

  Ensuring wholesome beef.

 How ODK works .

ODK is an open-source mobile data collection platform that enables users to fill out forms offline and send data to a server when a connection is found. 

 why reforms are necessary.

Once on the server, the data can be viewed, downloaded and acted upon. In the first six weeks following the training, the meat inspectors had uploaded more than 300 reports to the ILRI server.

 Collected data can be used to determine prevalence of diseases, locations and age-group of animals affected, and inform response. 

 Speaking at the review meeting, Annie Cook, a senior scientist at ILRI, commended the inspectors for their interest in improving the reporting of data on disease surveillance at the points of slaughter, saying: 'As pioneers at using the ODK tool in the meat inspection sector, your feedback and input is important in refining the tool so that it is useful and can be used in the future.' 

 Reporting their experiences, the meat inspectors noted that the tool was user-friendly and most did not have major challenges in uploading data. 

 

Why cassava could be a way to keep food costs down.

 

                 Why cassava could be a way to keep food costs down.

There are two main root vegetables in West Africa - cassava and yam. Cassava is available all year round, it is cheap and is known, or to put it correctly, was known as food for the poor. 

         Why cassava could be a way to keep food costs down.

 The other popular one is yam, which Nigerian author Chinua Achebe famously described as "the king of crops". The yam harvest is awaited eagerly. Indeed, special rites are performed before the new yam can be eaten, and we put on our finest clothes to celebrate the vegetable. Cassava is, at best, everyday food and used to be the regular fare of the poor and servants.

 

      Why cassava could be a way to keep food costs down : the global cassava development strategy.

Garri from cassava can replace wheat and can be used for bread.

 I note that President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda is urging his people to turn to a diet of cassava as an antidote to the rocketing price of wheat during the current worldwide cost of living crisis. "If there is no bread, eat muwogo [cassava]," he said.

Bread prices to rise in Nigeria: Garri to the rescue

As predicted some months ago,wheat value chain disruptions due to the Russian-Ukraine war has started. In an earlier post, i talked about how the Russian-Ukraine war affects you and analysed the situation as well as suggested or canvassed for the use of garri to replace wheat.

 Garri made from fermentation and frying of cassava has a lot of benefits that promotes wellness and healthy lifestyle. Garri is a fermented food thus promotes gut health, see more here. Garri can be used to make bread and it can serve as a replacement or substitute for wheat. 

          Bread prices rising. Learn how to use garri to make delicious burger bread, coconut bread and more.

  Echbee foods an indigenous company is using yellow garri to make bread, biscuit, cookies, cakes ,cereals, finger foods and other wholesome food. The garri bread comes in different varieties: the burger , the sardine, the chocolate and peanut.

           Why bread prices are rising and how to swap garri with wheat. 

Look at some of our garri bread varieties. 

Garri burger bread.

Garri brown bread.

Garri chocolate bread.
See more garri products here

How to make burger bread with garri.

How to make bread with garri.

This burger bread is made from garri, the yellow garri. 

 

The human cost of rabies.

Vaccinate your dogs, cats and monkeys. When bitten seek medical attention.

MISSION RABIES: ZERO BY 30

 

Rabies: what happens when humans get rabies.