eChapters

Abstract

Amongst various oilseed crops grown across the world, soybean (Glycine max L. Merrill) is globally important as a high source of protein and oil for human consumption and is also being used as potential feed for animals. Soybean is grown under rain-fed conditions in the tropics and subtropics in the marginal lands with less amount of external application of chemical fertilizers. The frequent climate variations have created a number of biotic and abiotic stresses, drought being a major abiotic stress which adversely affects the soybean productivity. Thus, to enhance the productivity of soybean, besides managing the nutrients, stress management is of utmost importance. There is a great opportunity of application of microbes especially arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) where its application alone or in combination with plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) can help in nutrient mobilization and remediation of plant stresses.

SYNOPSIS

Food security is a complex issue, linked to availability and access to food, malnutrition in the population, economic development, environment, and local and global trade. Malnutrition hinders healthy growth and proper development of the human immune system affecting neurological and cognitive development especially in children.

Table 6.1 and table 6.2 shows the Gross Value Added (GVA) of poultry sector in Indian economy. The GVA from poultry sector in year 2017-18 at current price was Rs. 32844 Crore and Rs. 101913 for eggs and meat respectively.

Livestock sector may be considered as a driving force for nutritional security and an important component of sustainable agriculture in India. Livestock sector besides providing milk and meat also provides a diverse range of output for agriculture (manure, draught power and transport) and for manufacturing sector (fiber and leather). According to estimates of the Central Statistics Office (CSO), the value of output from livestock sector at current prices was about 4,59,051 crore during 2011-12 which is about 24.8% of the value of output from total agricultural and allied sector at current price and 25.6% at constant prices (2004-05). The value of output of milk is 3,05,484 crore in 2011-12, which is higher than the value of output of paddy and wheat. The value of output from eggs and wool group is 17,803 crore and 318 crore respectively for 2011-12. Livestock agriculture is the only way to produce food in many of the world’s harshest environments. Locally adapted breeds enable these vast areas to be used in a sustainable manner.

Abstract

Wild medicinal plants have been major source of therapeutic agents for alleviation or cure of human diseases since time immemorial. These are extensively utilized throughout the world in two distinct areas of health management i.e., modern medicine and or folk medicine. Some of the important medicinal plants grown and cultivated in India for medicine, phytochemicals, nutraceuticals, cosmetics and others are Abelmoschus moschatus, Aristolochia bracteata, Cassia alexandrina, Caralluma fimbriata, Gymnema sylvestre, Withania somnifera and other species. They have become important sectors of trade and commerce. However, in India, about 90% collection of medicinal plants is form wild source and since 70% of collections involve destructive harvesting, many plants have become endangered or vulnerable or threatened. The increasing demands of the pharmaceutical industry have created problem of supply and one of the major difficulties being experienced by the industry is that of obtaining sufficient quantities of medicinal plants for the manufacture of genuine medicine.

Introduction

Livestock sector plays a significant role in the Indian economy, particularly for the welfare of rural population of India. The importance of livestock in India's economy can be gauged from the fact that 90 million farming families rear over 90 million milch animals. Of the total household in the rural areas, about 73 percent own some form of livestock, three-quarter of which are reared by small and marginal farmers.

Today, the overall growth rate in livestock sector is steady and is around 4-5%, despite the fact that investment in this sector is not substantial. This is possible due to the egalitarian distribution of the livestock as compared to land among landless labourers, small and marginal farmers thus resulting in balanced development of the rural economy particularly in reducing the poverty especially among the weaker sections of the society. Livestock also plays an important source of employment in rural India, especially for women. The rural woman plays a significant role in most of the animal husbandry operations related to feeding, breeding, management and healthcare of the livestock.

Livestock plays an important and vital role in providing nutritive food to families both in rural and urban areas. Since the dawn of civilization, mankind has been utilizing different animal species for a variety of purposes, viz., production of milk, meat, wool, egg and leather, draught power, companionship, entertainment, research experimentation, sports, security, etc. Livestock wealth is deemed to be as the oldest wealth resource for mankind and was once a symbol of economic status in the society. This is one sector where poor contributes to the growth directly instead of getting benefit from growth generated elsewhere. The effect of livestock sector growth on poverty is anecdotal, yet scattered evidence on livestock's contribution to income indicates that growth in livestock production is pro-poor.

Abstract

Most dryers operate at low thermal efficiency. The development of models and control systems offers an opportunity to improve dryer operation and efficiency. Dryer control is very important and with deeper understanding of the drying concept, new “smart” dryers can be made more reliable and more cost-effective than classical dryers. This chapter will provide an overview of necessity of control and safety measure in food drying system, and terminology related with drying control system. Different control strategy includes conventional and advanced techniques implemented in drying operation are reviewed  here and simple outline of intelligence control system in drying technology are briefly described in succeeding section. Various hazards in drying process and risk and safety management will also be discussed.

Introduction

The strategic control process is an essential component of strategic management that helps organizations monitor and evaluate their strategic plans and initiatives. It involves a systematic approach to assess the progress performance, and effectiveness of strategic objectives and make necessary adjustments to ensure alignment with organizational goals. Here are some key points on the introduction to the strategic control process. Strategic control refers to the ongoing monitoring, evaluation, and adjustment of an organization's strategic activities to ensure they are in line with the desired outcomes and objectives. It The significance of strategic control lies in several key reasons. helps organizations track their progress, identify deviations from the intended course, and take corrective actions. It also enables managers to assess the effectiveness of strategies, make informed decisions, and enhance organizational performance.

The economic loss in livestock arising due to mycotoxicosis is enormous apart from being a health risk. Indian economy is heavily affected by mycotoxins. It was estimated that 10 million dollars were lost in India’s export within a decade due to groundnut contamination with mycotoxins (Vasanthi and Bhat, 1998). Many developing countries have realized that reducing mycotoxin contamination in foods will not only improve the health and production in animal, but also increase the raw material exports (international trade) to other countries. The following strategies are to be adhered strictly to reduce the mycotoxins contamination of crops in the field.

1. Early harvesting

Early harvesting reduces the fungal infection of crop in the field. Early harvesting and threshing of groundnuts results in lower aflatoxin levels and higher gross returns of 27% than in delayed harvesting (Rachaputi et al., 2002).

Answer the followings
    Q.1.    What is the international organizations associated for making outline the mastitis control programme?
    Ans.    National Institute for Research on Dairying (NIRD) and National Mastitis Council (NMC).

    Q.2.    What is the important objective of dairy industry as regards to mastitis control?
    Ans.    The important objective is to achieve an excellent udder health for production of high quality of milk.

    Q.3.    What is the basic principles of mastitis control programme?
    Ans.    There three basic principles of mastitis control programme:
    a)    Elimination of existing infection
    b)    Prevention of new infection 
    c)    Monitoring of udder health status

Sterilization refers the complete removal or elimination of microorganisms from an environment. Physical and chemical agents are available to remove the microorganisms from the environment. Heat, irradiation and filtration are the three physical agents and various chemicals are available for sterilization.

Terms related to control of microorganisms

Cide or cidal means to kill the microorganism (Ex. Bactericidal refers the killing of bacteria).

Static or stasis means inactivation or inhibition, but not killing. They prevent multiplication of the organism. (Ex. Fungistatic refers the inhibition of growth of fungi.).

Sepsis refers break down of a living tissue by organisms and is accompanied by inflammation and pus formation.

Antispetic is an agent applied externally on living tissues to kill or inhibit the growth of the organisms.

Disinfectant is an agent applied externally on inanimate objects (not living tissues) to destroy harmful pathogens in their vegetative stage.

(Antiseptics are milder than disinfectants because to avoid the side effects)

Sanitation refers removal of organisms from a location by cleaning but not by sterilization.

Plant diseases create challenging problems in commercialagriculture and pose real economic threats to bothconventional and organic farming systems. Plantpathogens are difficult to manage for several reasons.First of all, plant pathogens are hard to identify becausethey are so small. The positive identification of apathogen often requires specialized equipment andtraining, and in some cases accurate diagnosis in thefield is difficult.Plant pathogens are constantly changing and mutating,resulting in new strains and new challenges togrowers. Disease management is complicated by the presenceof multiple types of pathogens. For any crop thegrower must deal with a variety of fungi, bacteria, viruses,and nematodes. This situation is even more complicatedfor organic crop production because they usuallyproduce a wide array of crops and are prohibitedfrom applying conventional synthetic fungicides.The world market continues to be extremely competitiveand continues to require that growers supplyhigh-quality, disease-free produce with an acceptableshelf life.

Introduction

Perishable nature of horticultural produce is a major factor contributing in high post-harvest losses. The metabolic processes such as respiration, transpiration, and ethylene production remain active after the harvesting of produce, which drive ripening and senescence Fig. 1. Thus, an effective post-harvest handling is crucial to delay these changes. The rate of these processes depends on the produce’s physiological characteristics, composition, and storage conditions like temperature and humidity. Low-temperature storage is the simplest and most efficient method to slow down deterioration Escobedo-Avellaneda and Welti-Chanes, 2016. Combining low temperatures with methods that limit oxygen exposure, which fuels many enzymatic reactions, further extends shelf life and maintains food quality. Reduced oxygen levels decrease respiration and the activity of enzymes like polyphenol oxidase and peroxidase.

Fruits are living commodities which continue to respire and transpire even after harvest. The storage life of fresh fruits is indirectly proportional to the rate of their respiration which in turn depends on the atmospheric gas composition in which they are stored. Normal air contains about 20.9% oxygen (O2), 78.0% Nitrogen (N₂) and 0.03% carbondioxide (CO₂). Lower levels of O₂ and higher levels of CO₂ in the storage environment result in reduced rate of respiration, delayed ripening and increased storage life. The reduction in O₂ concentration and increase in CO₂ concentration in the storage room with precise control and maintenance of these gases throughout the storage period is generally referred as controlled atmosphere (CA) storage.

CA storage is generally used for long term storage or long distance transportation of fruits in combination with low temperature storage. The use of CA storage for extending the post harvest life of fruits has increased steadily worldwide during the past 60 years. This trend is expected to continue with the advancement of technologies in attaining and maintaining CA during transport, storage and marketing of fresh fruits.

Introduction

Nitrogen (N) fertilization assured centre stage for enhancing food production in developing countries especially after the introduction of high yielding and fertilizer responsive crop varieties. Almost half of the human population relies on N fertilizer for food production (Ladha et al., 2005), and about 56 percent of the N fertilizer is used for producing rice, maize, and wheat (IFA, 2002). It has contributed an estimated 40% to the increase in per capita food production over the past 50 years (Smil, 2002). However, excess use of chemical N fertilizer may negatively affect surface water, as well as groundwater, and the atmosphere (through leaching and runoff) through volatilization of N (Galloway et al., 2008).

Control means the power or authority to direct and order or restrain. In the context of an entrepreneurial function, control may be defined as “comparing operating results with the plans, and taking corrective action when results deviate from the plans”.

Control requires two things: first, there is a clear – cut and specific plan according to which any work is to proceed and second, it is possible to measure the results of operations with a view to detecting deviations.

Components of biodiversity are all the various forms of life on Earth including ecosystems, animals, plants, fungi, microorganisms, and genetic diversity. Ecosystems, species and genetic resources should be used for the benefit of humans, but in a way that does not lead to the decline of biodiversity. Substantial investments are required to conserve biodiversity, but it will bring significant environmental, economic and social benefits in return. To address these challenges various initiatives were taken in the past such as Ramsar Convention on Wetlands in 1971, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 1973, 1979 Bonn Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) in 1979.

The ever mounting population in 21^st century is a great challenge for the researchers to provide ample food and that has to be achieved within the context of existing challenges such as deteriorated arable land along with increasing adverse affects of changing climate. There is demand to increase food production to the tune of 70% by 2050 (Wani and Sah, 2014). Although major crops have achieved good progress, vulneRability to climatic variability emerged as a serious concern in crop improvement which could be attributed to higher sowing densities that in turn lead to more competition for water and nutrients. Abiotic stresses can be considered as major yield restraining factors among different crops. The projected estimations for changes in abiotic stresses such as drought, water logging and heat reveals far serious concerns for crop productivity (Qin et al., 2011; Bailey-Serres et al., 2012). Therefore, the concern of global food security in the era of climate change has compelled plant scientists in different crops to shift to breeding for climate resilient genotypes. Maize, being a hardy crop has an inherent potential to perform well under sub-optimal environments with minimum crop management (Kole et al., 2015). Abiotic stresses such as drought, heat and water logging affects maize yield adversely.

Although, conventional breeding approaches have exploited its fullest potential for production of elite maize hybrids but still little success attained for breeding climate resilient genotypes or varieties owing to the fact that stress tolerance is multi-genic or quantitative in nature. Therefore, the best option is to utilize the molecular breeding along with the conventional approaches for development of climate smart varieties.

9.1 INTRODUCTION

When a new individual arises from a somatic cell without formation of a seed, it is called vegetative propagation. Vegetative propagation occurs naturally (i.e., natural vegetative propagation) in many crops, and profitably exploited in horticulture using either conventional or biotechnological artificial techniques. We shall discuss conventional artificial vegetative propagation in this chapter including cuttings, grafting, budding, layering, suckering, etc. They have been widely used for commercial propagation of fruit trees and ornamental shrubs.

Introduction

Vegetables are preferable host to many insects because of their succulence and suitable nutritional status. All vegetables are attacked but degree of damage and number of pests varies depending upon the crop, variety and climate. Pest infestation in vegetables has been the main bottleneck in their economical production. The problem has more socio-economic dimensions because of rapid expansion of area under vegetables, intensive cultivation, round the year cultivation, export enhancement and health consciousness among the people.

The diamondback moth (DBM), Plutella xylostella (L.), is a major pest of brassica crops worldwide. DBM has been estimated globally to cost US$ 1 billion in direct losses and control costs. (Grzywacz et al., 2010)