In Kuantan Singingi Regency, rubber farming is a big deal. It's a key crop, but it hasn't been doing much to boost the local economy. The main issue? Farmers have little say in how their rubber is sold or priced. Traders often call the shots, leaving farmers with little bargaining power. Enter the Kuantan Singingi Rubber Farmers Association, or APKARKUSI. This group...
The Camaná Valley, nestled in the Arequipa region of Peru, has become a powerhouse in rice production. Over the past three decades, Peru's rice output has surged by a staggering 4. 88 times. This impressive growth is largely due to the adoption of innovative rice varieties, namely IR-43 (NIR) and Tinajones. The journey of these rice varieties in the Camaná Valley is...
Just picture this: farmers from fields to fridge. Make perfect sense, right? Cold storage is key. It keeps food fresh and extends its life. You see, different fruits and veggies need different fridge temperatures. Sometimes, there's just too much stuff to store in one place. So, what's the solution? Cold storage facilities need to be smartly placed and sized...
Imagine asking more than 3, 000 people from Finland, France, Ireland, and Poland how to improve calf health. Four methods were discussed: using colostrum, giving calves probiotic powder or yogurt, and increasing the time calves spend with their mothers. Some participants also received details like costs and environmental impacts. When rating their preferences on a sc...
You might think yeast is just for baking bread, but it turns out it can also help cows produce more milk! Researchers found that giving live yeast (a tiny organism called Saccharomyces cerevisiae) to high-yielding dairy cows can improve their milk production. When 50 Holstein cows were given food with live yeast for about four months, they produced more milk and milk...
In the United States, farming is facing a future where more hands are needed on the land. Simultaneously, military veterans are looking for new career paths after their service. This is where a unique program at Appalachian State University in North Carolina steps in. The program, known as Frontline to Farm, aims to train military veterans in sustainable farming prac...