eChapters

Livestock rearing is central to livelihoods and survival of millions of people of India. It is estimated that approximately 100 million people derive their livelihood from livestock rearing as primary or secondary source of income. Livestock related activities help to maintain regular in flow of income for these households. Small farmers in India generate nearly half of their income from livestock and the value of cattle represents a significant part of their wealth, so the death of cattle poses a significant risk and affects farmers? net worth and income.

Type of Risks to Livestock based Livelihoods

Large animals are expensive and thus carry higher risk exposure. These risks are in form of losses due to the disease, accident, theft, natural calamity which can cause significant losses to these households. Sometimes owners are forced to sell their animals due to incurable disease/ disorder/ fodder and water scarcity and later they are unable to rebuild their stock. Many times animal losses force them into poverty trap from where they are unable to recover.

Introduction
Aquaculture is one of the food-producing industries with the fastest rate of growth in the world and is widely recognized for its substantial contributions to food security, revenue production, and poverty alleviation (Subhasinghe, 2003). The production of aquaculture has increased dramatically during the last 30 years, from less than 20 million tonnes in the early 1990s to 178.9 million tonnes in 2022. The aquaculture industry reported an average growth rate of 6.7% per year globally from 1990 to 2020 (FAO, 2022). In 2020-22, the global annual per capita fish consumption was 20.4 kg (FAO, 2022). In addition, 58.5 million people were engaged in this sector worldwide for their livelihood. Many new approaches and technologies have been developed to increase the production. However, aquaculture faces significant challenges, including environmental quality, quality seed availability, and disease management (Sitcha et al., 2020; Oglend, 2020). To address these issues, the aquaculture industry adopts new scientific and technological advancements. Among the recent advancements in science, nanotechnology is fast emerging as a novel tool for the next generation of aquaculture and fisheries development. Nanotechnology is rapidly becoming a new tool for the growth of aquaculture and fisheries in the next generation, among other recent scientific breakthroughs
(Shah et al., 2020).

Phosphorus is a critical mineral for animal health, playing a vital role in bone development, energy metabolism, cell signalling, and overall physiological functions. Disorders related to phosphorus imbalance, whether due to deficiency or excess, can lead to significant health issues in animals.
a) Pica
Pica is a condition characterized by the persistent ingestion of non-nutritive substances such as soil, rocks, plastic, cloth, or other inappropriate materials. While commonly observed in humans, pica is also prevalent in animals, including livestock, domestic pets, and wildlife. It is often a sign of underlying health, environmental, or nutritional issues. Understanding the causes, implications, and management of pica is crucial for animal welfare and productivity.
Causes of pica in animals
The aetiology of pica in animals is multifaceted and can be broadly categorized into nutritional, medical, behavioural, and environmental factors.

Introduction

Diffusion is the process by which an innovation is transmitted to the members of a social system over some time and through channels in a specified manner. According to Rogers (1962), this is a unique form of communication in which the messages are focused on innovative concepts. The concepts can include (i) A new idea, (ii) An idea that is communicated via certain channels (iii) Among the members of a social system (iv) Overtime. On the other hand, the adoption process is the mental process through which an individual passes from first hearing about an innovation to final adoption, as defined by Rogers (1962).

1. Introduction

Sustainability embodies an ecological vision aimed at fostering enduring human coexistence on Earth. Over time, its definition has evolved in literature and context, generating ongoing debate. Generally, experts frame sustainability around three pillars: social, economic, and environmental. While environmental concerns often dominate discussions, sustainability encompasses broader challenges like pollution, land degradation, biodiversity loss, climate change, and ecosystem service decline. This concept influences decision-making globally, politically, and personally.

Sustainable development, often used interchangeably with sustainability, is distinguished by UNESCO as a long-term objective versus the diverse processes and pathways to achieve it. Within the economic dimension, the tension between welfare and environmental preservation is explored through concepts like “weak and strong sustainability,” acknowledging the necessity of trade-offs. Ideal policies would aim to decouple environmental degradation from economic growth.

India has a primarily agrarian economy. A significant portion of the country’s land is utilized for agriculture, and many of its agro-ecological regions cultivate a broad spectrum of crops. With a production of 93.9 million tons (Mt) of wheat, 104.6 Mt of rice, 21.6 Mt of maize, 20.7 Mt of millets, 357.7 Mt of sugarcane, 8.1 Mt of fibre crops, 17.2 Mt of pulses and 30.0 Mt of oilseeds crops, in the year 2011-12, it is usual that a massive amount of crop residues are produced both on-farm and off-farm. The country produces approximately 500-550 Mt of crop residues per year in the country. Therefore, landholders are facing difficulties in managing crop residues in the country. The human population has grown four times in the last century. With a projected 9.7 billion people in the world by 2050, worldwide food consumption and the demand for meat and milk are likely to increase by as much as 73% and 58%, respectively. Improved agricultural and industrial practices have contributed to the population boom, which continues to put pressure on food supply to feed a growing population. Huge quantities of food resources will be needed, but again, the crop residues produced at these levels of global production pose major challenges.

Availability of Crop Residues

India produces more than 500 million tons (Mt) of agricultural residue on an annual basis. The quantity of residue produced has grown significantly due to the cultivation of wheat and rice. Crop residue output varies greatly, and the use of these residue is influenced by the crops cultivated, the intensity of cropping, and the productivity across different Indian regions. About 70% of the total crop residues (352 Mt) are contributed by cereal crops (rice, wheat, maize, millets), with rice contributing 34% and wheat 22%. The excess agricultural residues—that is, the residues left over after subtracting the amount used for other purposes—are often burned on the farm. The amount of surplus crop residues available in India is estimated between 84 and 141 Mt per year where cereals crops contribute 58. As an estimate, about 70 MTs of surplus crop residue are burned annually.

In this era of computer, mathematical models become integral part of hydrologic studies due to advancement in soft technology. But question always arises as ‘Why should modeling?’ It was well expressed by Rosenblueth and Wiener (1945) as

No substantial part of the universe is so simple that it can be grasped and controlled without abstraction. Abstraction consists in replacing the parts of the universe under consideration by a model of similar but simpler structure. Models, formal or intellectual on the one hand, or material on the other are thus a central necessity of scientific procedure.

Pear (Pyrus spp.) is a superior temperate fruit with good taste and flavour. Because of its tolerance to wide range of soil and climatic conditions, it is grown both in sub-tropical and temperate conditions. In J&K, 14,532 hectare area is under cultivation, with an annual production of 88,329 metric tones. In Jammu Division, pear is being grown on 7,600 hectare having 30,257 metric tonnes production annually. The pear is grown in Doda, Poonch, Rajouri, Udhampur and Kathua districts of Jammu Division.

Climate and Soil

Pear is adapted to wide range of climatic conditions. Most of the commercial cultivars require 900-1000 hours of chilling below 7^oC to break the dormancy. Pear is a temperate fruit crop; however, it can be grown successfully in subtropical regions of Jammu. There are several low chilling cultivars, which are well adapted for cultivation under sub-tropical conditions. Pears are grown successfully over a wide range of soils provided they have sufficient moisture. Compared to apples, they are less tolerant to drought and rather more tolerant to impeded drainage. Deep, well drained and fertile soil give high yield.

1.    Marketing Scenario of Fruits and Vegetables
    
2.    Marketing Systems of Fruits and Vegetables
    
3.    Vertical Coordination in Food Chain
    
4.    Supply Chain Management
    
5.    Post Harvest Management
        
References

Introduction

Wine is a very unique fermented beverage. It was an essential part of various religious and cultural ceremonies in ancient civilizations; and continues to be considered as a ‘drink for elite’. The reason is that wine was considered as ‘Gift of God and ‘God’s nectar’ in religious text books, and medicinal value of the beverage is well supported by modern science. Wine is a beverage well tagged with its geographical origin. This concept originally comes from French concept of terroir; which explains that a varietal wine from a defined region possess distinctive qualities. Wine makers of the past enjoyed this definition of quality for better marketing opportunities. Today, globalization and advancement in wine science created empowered consumers who could clearly discriminate quality of wines. In addition to a product with high sensory qualities, consumers expect a healthful beverage produced in an environmentally sustainable manner. Enology research projects focus on such aspects; and this chapter is a glance on enology advancements and proven health benefits of wine, such as cardiovascular health gut health, dental health etc.

6.1. Introduction

This chapter deals with the sample survey conducted on cotton, turmeric and castor seed farmers and recorded various benefits observed by them by using Futures market as a platform for price information. Further, it tries to examine the price discovery efficiency of commodity futures market with the help of secondary data.

It is often believed that future price is a forecast of the price of a commodity during the maturity month of its futures contracts. It is far from true. The futures price of a commodity traded at an exchange market is not so much determined by the anticipated supply of and demand for that commodity in the maturity month of its futures contracts as by the cost of carrying the commodity till the maturity of such contract. That means the spot and future prices of any commodity are always determined by the same basic forces of the present and prospective demand and supply. The difference between the two prices represents merely the cost of carrying the commodity from the present to the future. Such cost may be positive or negative depending on whether the current (not the future) supplies are abundant or scarce respectively when the price of futures contracts of any commodity is in reality relied upon by the physical market functionaries in that commodity as a “reference” price for executing their forward transactions in either the domestic or export market, that price may deem to be “discovered” in the true sense. The application of such reference price for transacting a forward transaction in the physical market in that commodity, in fact facilitates the use of the same future contract for managing price risk for such forward transaction. Hence, the price discovery and price risk management are the two sides of the same coin and efficiency of price discovery is directly related to the price risk management. A commodity exchange or a derivative market is not a mechanism for controlling prices. An efficient futures market is one that discovers prices and provides effective mechanism for managing price risk arising from unavoidable price variations owing to shifts in demand and supply schedule. Prices are determined by the basic demand and supply forces and not the market. Markets reflect the supply and demand conditions from time to time through variation in prices.

HACCP: The Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) is a scientific, rational and systematic approach to identify, assess and control hazards during production, processing, manufacturing and use of food. It ensures safety of the food. HACCP presents a good opportunity for the food industry for upgrading quality and bringing uniformity and consistency in their supplies to international market. or It is a systematic preventive approach to food safety that addresses physical, chemical and biological hazards as a mean of prevention rather than finished product inspection. It involves identification, evaluation and control of hazards which are significant for food safety.

HACCP plan: A document prepared in accordance with the principles of HACCP to ensure control of hazards which are significant for food safety throughout the food chain under consideration.

Haemagglutinins: A group of proteins of plants that are not antibodies and do not originate in an immune system but bind specifically to carbohydrate containing receptors on cell surfaces (red blood cells). It is also known as Phytoagglutins / lectins.

5.1    Introduction
       5.1.1  Types of Distributors
    Questions and Problems
    
References

Indicators of agricultural sustainability are a composite set of attributes or measures that embody a particular aspect of agriculture. These are quantified information, which help to explain how things are changing over time. Smyth and Dumanski (1993) define indicators as environmental attributes that measure or reflect environmental status or condition of change.

Climate change refers to a change of climate that is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and that is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods (FCCC).

Overall, climate change could result in a variety of impacts on agriculture. Some of these effects are biophysical, some are ecological, and some are economic, including:

• A shift in climate and agricultural zones towards the poles
• Changes in production patterns due to higher temperatures
• A boost in agricultural productivity due to increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
• Changing precipitation patterns
• Increased vulnerability of the landless and the poor

5.1 Introduction

In random sampling it is assumed in prior that the population is divisible into a finite number of distinct and identifiable units and these units are known as sampling units. The smallest unit into which the population can be divide, is called an elementary unit (element) of the population. A group of such units is known as cluster. When such cluster is treated as sampling unit, then the sampling procedure adopted is known as cluster sampling. If the entire area containing the population under study is divided into smaller area segments and each element in the population belongs to one and only one such area segment, the sampling is sometimes known as area sampling.

Generally, identification and location of an element requires considerable time. H

Field-ready pregnancy diagnostic tests are an important tool for improving reproductive performance in livestock. They help optimize breeding programs, resource allocation, and decision-making processes, leading to better economic outcomes and sustainable livestock production systems. Pregnancy diagnosis is an important tool for improving reproductive performance in livestock for several reasons:

1) Timely management: early and accurate pregnancy diagnosis allows farmers and livestock producers to make timely decisions about the management of pregnant and non-pregnant animals. This includes adjusting feeding regimes, providing appropriate veterinary care, and establishing breeding plans.

2) Optimized breeding programs: In livestock, controlling the timing of pregnancies is critical to maintaining a well-organized breeding program. With accurate pregnancy testing, farmers can identify non-pregnant animals and breed them back earlier, optimizing resource utilization and shortening the generation interval.

3) Resource allocation: early identification of non-pregnant animals helps avoid unnecessary allocation of resources such as feed and health care to animals that will not produce offspring in the current cycle. This efficient allocation of resources is essential to maintaining a cost effective production system.

4) Lower costs: unproductive animals consume resources without contributing to farm productivity. By quickly identifying non-pregnant animals, farmers can avoid the cost of keeping these animals during their non-productive period.

5) Genetic improvement: for livestock programs focused on genetic improvement, accurate pregnancy diagnosis is critical. It enables the selection and promotion of animals with desirable traits for breeding purposes, thus accelerating genetic progress.

Food packaging protects products from physical, chemical, biological and environmental influences while helping to maintain safety, freshness and quality. Advanced packaging systems perform functions beyond simple containment by regulating gases, moisture, temperature and microbial activity. The chapter examines modified-atmosphere, controlled-atmosphere and vacuum packaging, together with active and intelligent systems. Time-temperature indicators, freshness indicators and biosensors enable real-time monitoring of product condition. Edible and biodegradable materials provide more sustainable alternatives to conventional packaging, while nanotechnology can improve mechanical, barrier and antimicrobial performance. Shelf-life modelling and hurdle technology are also considered as tools for designing integrated packaging systems suited to specific foods and storage conditions.

INTRODUCTION

Hybrid crops are derived from an established and well-proven breeding method used in ornamental sectors. The development of hybrid crops has been one of the major factors behind a dramatic increase in global crop yields. Hybrid is produced by crossing between two genetically dissimilar parents. Pollen from male parent called pollen parent will pollinate, fertilize and set seeds in female called seed parent to produce F₁ hybrid seeds. For production of a hybrid, crossing between two parents is important, the crossing process will results in heterosis or hybrid vigour. Heterosis is defined as the increase in size or vigour of a hybrid over its parent. This boost in performance, combining the best yield, quality and agronomic characters from each parent, is the result of hybrid breeding.

F₁ hybrid seed offers to the growers a significant benefits in terms of yield improvement, agronomic performance and consistency of end-use quality. But attempting to farm-save hybrid varieties will result in segregating populations producing highly variable offspring, which can lead to reduced yield, disease resistance and quality. As this factsheet explains, it doesn’t make economic or agronomic sense to save seed of an F₁ hybrid. In self pollinated crops it is difficult to cross but in cross pollinated crops it is easier. In nature to create genetic variability and for its wider adaptation in different environmental conditions, flowering plants has adopted many mechanisms for cross pollination. Cross pollination results in genetic heterogeneity and show wider adaptations. F₁ hybrids are in immense usage throughout the world with the rapid increasing interest in flowers, however the total number of the hybrids developed in flowers is still less. In India hybrid seed production is taken up in Bengaluru, Pune, Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh for export.

F₁ hybrids in ornamental crops were known even before Shull 1911 when he propounded the classical theory of hybrid vigour in plant breeding for the first time. In 1909 F₁ hybrid variety Prima Donna in begonia was released by Benary Seed Company in Germany. The first commercial F₁ hybrid in petunia was produced by Japan during World War II, in 1942. From 1950 onwards, F₁ hybrids were available in ornamental flowers from The Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, USA and UK besides Japan and produced in flower crops like ageratum, anemone, gerbera, primula, petunia, cyclamen, marigold, pansies, begonia, geranium, portulaca, dianthus, balsam, stock, wall flower, ornamental sunflower, gazania, hollyhock, calceolaria and zinnia. Flower breeders became familiar with the F₁ hybrid production of those crops also which were formerly propagated by vegetative parts such as pelargonium and gerbera. A few important hybrids were first released in petunia in 1940-50, geranium single in 1960, antirrhinum, marigold, pansy and zinnia in 1965, ageratum in 1966, geranium double in 1970, dianthus, impatiens, portulaca in 1976-77, gerbera in 1980 and carnation in 1981.