The Central African forest ebony, Diospyros crassiflora Hiern, is a small tree native to the moist forests of the Congo Basin. Its appealing black heartwood was one of the first products to be exported from the Gulf of Guinea in the 17th century and is today one of the main sources of ebony globally. Like for other ebony species, its commercial exploitation raises serious questions about the long-term sustainability of its trade and the viability of its populations, but the dots are yet to be ...

Black Sigatoka, caused by Pseudocercospora fijiensis, is one of the most devastating diseases of banana. In commercial banana-growing systems, black Sigatoka is primarily managed by fungicides. This mode of disease management is not feasible for resource-limited smallholder farmers. Therefore, bananas resistant to P. fijiensis provide a practical solution for managing the disease, especially under smallholder farming systems. Most banana and plantain hybrids with resistance to P. fijiensis were ...

The use of indigenous crops in the preparation of nutritious snacks such as biscuits has been reported as a means of alleviating the perennial problem of malnutrition among Nigerians, especially children. However, storage has been recognised as a factor affecting the attributes of these biscuits. This study investigated the quality changes of biscuit produced from fish meal enriched-composite flour of breadfruit and wheat. Freshly harvested seedless variety of breadfruit, matured catfish, wheat ...

Increasing agricultural productivity by promoting high-yielding and micronutrient-rich crop varieties has the potential to reduce poverty and malnutrition. However, getting these technologies into the hands of smallholders remains a challenge. This paper presents results from a randomised field experiment that uses rural primary schools as dissemination hubs for improved orange-fleshed sweet potato (OFSP) vines and nutrition information in rural Tanzania and Uganda. Two years after the initial ...

Wet coffee processing leads to the generation of large volumes of wastewater, whose discharge to the environment leads to pollution of freshwater bodies. Kayanza is a major coffee growing area in Burundi with more than 40 wet coffee processing factories (WCPF) that discharge effluents directly to receiving water bodies without treatment. This study was carried out to assess the effect of coffee wastewater on the physicochemical properties of receiving waterbodies in Kayanza coffee growing ecological ...

everal studies have been conducted on shaded cocoa systems, but few of these have examined species-specific crown architecture of upper canopy trees and its influence on shade provision in cocoa agroforestry systems. In view of the fact that cocoa agroforestry is a recommended practice to drive cocoa production onto a climate-smart pathway, and given the role of upper canopy trees in the moderation of shade and light to the cocoa system, there is the need to understand the dynamics of upper canopy ...

Fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) has rapidly spread in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and has emerged as a major pest of maize and sorghum in the continent. For effective monitoring and a better understanding of the bioecology and management of this pest, a Community-based Fall Armyworm Monitoring, Forecasting, Early Warning and Management (CBFAMFEW) initiative was implemented in six eastern African countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi). Over 650 Community ...

Edible crickets are among the praised insects that are gaining recognition as human food and livestock feed with a potential of contributing to food security and reduction of malnutrition. Globally, the sustainable use of crickets as food or feed is undermined by lack of information on the number of the edible crickets, the country where they are consumed, and the developmental stages consumed. Furthermore, lack of data on their nutritional content and the potential risks to potential consumers ...

Background Heterobeltiosis is the phenomenon when the hybrid’s performance is superior to its best performing parent. Banana (Musa spp. AAA) breeding is a tedious, time-consuming process, taking up to two decades to develop a consumer acceptable hybrid. Exploiting heterobeltiosis in banana breeding will help to select breeding material with high complementarity, thus increasing banana breeding efficiency. The aim of this study was therefore to determine and document the level of heterobeltiosis ...

The banana aphid, Pentalonia nigronervosa, is the sole insect vector of banana bunchy top virus (BBTV), the causal agent of banana bunchy top disease. The aphid acquires and transmits BBTV while feeding on infected banana plants. RNA interference (RNAi) enables the generation of pest and disease-resistant crops; however, its effectiveness relies on the identification of pivotal gene sequences to target and silence. Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) is an essential enzyme responsible for the hydrolytic ...