At university level, the action of volunteer students from the Faculty of Agronomy, UBA, as trainers in organizing and monitoring the production of home gardens in peri-urban settlements Escobar  stands out. Horticulturists belong to a low socioeconomic status and women play an important role in managing the orchards. The feminization of labor is an important factor, and training by university stakeholders has allowed convert them in protagonists and organizers in the neighborhoods. This can be seen in Feminist Anthropology and Gender, within what is known as the feminization of agriculture, especially in cases of intensive production. Women often take responsibility for family support and accept training and organizational tasks with pride and dedication . Student employment is a part of everyday life in a lot of countries in Europe. Students are often working within the institutions as tutors or student staff. At least here is a responsibility for the institution to give equal chances for women and men. Recruiting procedures should stick to the aim of reaching an equal number of male and female student staff in the institution. This is extremely important in positions, where jobs as student staff give an opportunity for further employment in the institution and an academic career . The fact of having to deal with a job in the real world is a complex moment for recent graduates, who sometimes doubt their real capacity to cope with a changing landscape.The signals of the employment system are complex, but many experts and stakeholders agree in the main directions for higher education: greater attention to generic competencies, social skills and personality development, prepare students for the growing globalization, using means beyond classroom teaching . Higher education must be well informed of the expectations of the outside world and respond to the need to prepare students for indeterminate future job tasks, new forms of employment, and to contribute to innovation in society.

The skills needed for particular position are constantly evolving so it must prepare graduates to be “trainable at work”. It should strengthen the professional nature of higher education programs, with general skills of students, especially in scenarios in which future training needs may still be unknown . Sustainable development involves new systems of thought,dutch bucket hydroponic which requires creativity and critical thinking. That is why plans to implement a methodology entrepreneur “role playing” which allows a search to develop a solution to a practical problem, approaching it from the point of view intellectual and emotional, with a technique of deliberate thought based on the separation of different types of thought and emotions are considered essential to the ability to think. This type of work is related to brain structure: the existence of the neocortex, rational brain, and the limbic system, also called midbrain portion of the brain immediately below the cerebral cortex. In humans, these are the centers of emotion, this is where the different emotions are processed. The methodology  is based on separate different aspects of thinking: information, emotion, negative-logical thoughts, optimism, creativity and control. This methodology has been applied in a graduate class in Environmental Management . It is an alternative to the western system of discussion, by creating roles for participants. Hats colors representing different types of thought to the participants, and there is a clear definition of the rules. The organization of work involved the following proposed sequence of hats: white -yellow -black -green -red -blue . The “Six Thinking Hats” allowed driving thought, expressing different opinions, deviate from the usual roles at any meeting and lead people to think in different ways on a given topic. This might be a desirable approach in the case of a group to study the environmental impact of a project, to discover positive and negative aspects on the environment, and propose a contingency plan.It is necessary for new professionals to adopt independent positions, no static patterns, their integration in inter-disciplinary teams, to search for the answer to a problem that is usually not unique, offering original and innovative alternatives. This work is very useful in graduate programs in those involved are graduates of various disciplines, such as in the Specialization in Environmental Management in Agrifood Systems, where different professional interact: agronomists, lawyers, economists, environmental scientists, graduates in landscape science, biochemists, graduates in food science. Real scenarios are proposed and carried out in groups: environmental impact assessments in high-impact productions, as feedlots or agribusiness as chicken slaughterhouse. Also asLike many African countries’ economies, Zambia’s economy has continued to be predominantly agriculture based.

According to the country’s Central Statistical Office , of the 56 percent who live in the rural areas , 97.4 percent are directly engaged in agriculture for their livelihood1 . With unemployment at about 50 percent, agriculture is the only potential source of income within the informal sector employing about 85 percent of the 3.4 million people in the labour force . The sector mainly consists of smallholder farmers who make up about 52 percent of the country’s farmers and contribute about 80 percent of the nation’s staple food, maize . However, despite their aggregate contribution to the nation’s staple food supply and gross domestic product , smallholder farmers still account for over a third of the nation’s hungry and poor . Several factors have been cited for the low welfare levels among smallholder farmers including concentration on low-market value staples, low education levels, low productivity, poor health conditions, lack of market access and credit facilities, poor infrastructure and lack of productive assets . Nevertheless, evidence has shown that those who produce high-value export commodities earn relatively higher incomes than their counterparts who mainly produce cereals . For instance, although Zambia’s total agricultural production largely consists of cereals, high value agricultural exports make a significant contribution of 40 percent annually to total agricultural output . In addition,  reveal that despite the overconcentration on cereal production, high-value fresh produce accounts for about 39 percent of total household income among producing households. The sub-sector has also been characterized by a steady growth over the past two decades, mainly in response to the government’s significant support and private investment. In 2006, non-traditional sessments of carcinogenic risk of inhaling heavy metals are discussed.agricultural exports increased by about 25 percent over the previous year, recording earnings of more than USD 650 million . Zambia’s non-traditional exports have included sugar, cotton lint, horticulture, soya beans and other primary agricultural produce with textile, engineering products, cement and handcrafts being the other products . Other significant export products are fertilizers, hydrated lime, coal, tea, maize, skin leather, asbestos pipes/sheets, groundnuts, mushrooms, fresh eggs and day old chicks, paper, aluminium wires and cables, sorghum, clothing and blankets . Of the agricultural commodities, export horticulture, consisting mainly of cut flowers and fresh vegetables, earned the highest foreign exchange over the period 1990-2010 . However, unlike other agricultural exports, export horticulture has declined sharply after reaching the peak in 2006, exhibiting high volatility in both production and export volumes .  reveal that the share of export horticulture to total non-traditional exports has declined from 11.1 percent in 2003 to about 1.2 percent in 2009 representing a 64 percent  reduction in the industry’s income. This identifies the need to understand the major determinants of the industry’s growth and contribution to the nation’s export earnings. A number of studies have considered the impact of export horticulture on poverty in Africa. A national survey by  in Zambia has shown that smallholders who produce fresh produce are more likely to move out of poverty compared to their counterparts who mostly produce cereals. The study found farmers who sold horticultural products earning annual mean per capita incomes of USD 183 compared to USD 139 for non-sellers. Similarly,  in Kenya found that households involved in export horticulture were better off, particularly in rural areas.

They further contend that enabling more households to participate in the sector could reduce poverty substantially. A similar result was found by  in Senegal, who also argued that the sub-sector could cut regional poverty by 12 percent and extreme poverty by half. Furthermore, since the industry is highly labour intensive, horticulture production has been proposed as a pro-poor development strategy in many African countries . In Zambia, the sub-sector is believed to be among the government’s poverty reduction programs in agriculture that can substantially reduce poverty . According to Medina-Smith , dutch buckets system countries that have relied on outward oriented development strategies have done better over the medium and long term than inward-looking ones. For agriculture-based economies like Zambia’s, such an outward oriented development strategy implies development of traditional agricultural exports and diversification into non-traditional exports of different price elasticities . However, there is a dearth of empirical evidence on the drivers of export hor- ticulture and producers’ responsiveness to changes in price and non-price incentives. A better understanding of the factors affecting horticultural export performance is central in crafting informed decisions and interventions. Most studies have focused on characterizing domestic horticulture supply and value chains, and have not provided information on the important determinants of export horticulture in Zambia . According to , deficiencies in information and analysis have led to policy and market failures in developing countries. The study reported in this paper uses annual time series data from 1990 to 2010 and error correction models to identify determinants of Zambia’s flower exports. Overall, the results suggest that in addition to the determinants of production, flower exports are equally determined by policies that affect a country’s trade position. Particularly, the results imply that programs, policies and practices that promote trade are clearly required and important ingredient for both farmer export decisions and the competitiveness of the industry. In the rest of the paper, we first review export horticultural production and export trends in Section 2, followed by a discussion of the determinants of agricultural exports in Section 3. Empirical methods and data sources are presented in Section 4, followed by results and conclusions in Sections 5 and 6. Zambia has been exporting horticultural products since the early 1980s. The industry was launched by comercial farmers, who needed foreign currency to import equipment for their main activities, beef, dairy and cereal production . However, the industry only expanded rapidly in the 1990s and early 2000s due largely to an increase in the number of producers, raising export volumes of vegetables and flowers from USD 6 million in 1994 to over USD 33 million in 2001 when the sector employed about 10,000 people . This rapid growth was mainly due to the support of the European Investment Bank  through the Export Development Project  which provided long-term credit to some investors and cold storage facilities at airports that allowed producers to import the necessary but locally unavailable inputs, often under subsidized air freight charges .

At its peak in 2006, the horticulture industry employed over 12,000 people of whom more than 50 percent were women widely engaged in growing and packaging stages of the value chain . At that point the industry was generating annual earnings in excess of USD 50 million . During the same time, about 95 percent of the domestically produced fresh produce was exported to the EU, with the UK, the Netherlands and Germany, among others, as the main destinations . Small quantities were exported to South Africa, Australia and the Far East . Most of these gains have, however, been lost during the past seven years mainly due to the collapse in 2004 of the largest horticultural export company, Agriflora . The bankruptcy of Agriflora not only deprived smallholder farmers who participated under contract with the horticultural firm of reliable income, transport logistics, and technical support but also caused most of them to stop production . This development led to a reduction in the number of people that were employed at every stage in the chain from 16,000 to about 5000, causing output and exports to reduce. In addition, the industry has continued to face other challenges such as exchange rate fluctuations , high air freight costs due to high cost of aviation fuel in the country  and high operating costs that exceed levels observed in most other countries in the region .

The area of each elementary plot was 1350 m2 . These plots were not previously treated with herbicides. 24 h before the beginning of the test, 5 microcosms were prepared and placed on each elementary plot. They were each made up of circular frames of 22 cm × 10 cm sunk to a depth of 5 cm in the soil so that they were firmly attached. Three juveniles of the species Achatina fulica were placed in each microcosm. Before the start of the test, measurements of the snails were taken. The length, shell diameter and mass of the snails were 3 ± 0.5 cm; 1.8 ± 0.4 cm; 5 ± 1 g respectively. A quantity of 50 g of food was deposited every three days in each environment, i.e. 10 g of leaves and 40 g of papaya fruits. The experimental units were then covered with a mosquito net to prevent the escape of snails and the intrusion of other organisms. Wooden stakes were used to hold the nets to the ground. A total of 20 microcosms were used throughout the experimental plot. The test was conducted in undergrowth, a preferred environment for snail development.Each elemental plot underwent a single herbicide treatment of 2,4-D, glyphosate or nicosulfuron at concentrations recommended by the manufacturer. The solutions were prepared with fountain water. Another elementary plot close to the previous ones is used as a negative control. Some pawpaw trees at the study site were treated with 2,4-D, glyphosate, or nicosulfuron at the beginning of the test, at a rate of one pawpaw per herbicide. The leaves and fruit of these pawpaws were used as food for the snails during the test. The first foods deposited in the microcosms were not pre-treated. They were treated at the same time as the experimental plot. Another untreated papaya tree was used as food for the control snails. The snails stayed in the environment for 28 days. Snail mass, length and shell diameter were measured weekly. Each snail was weighed individually. The length and diameter of the shell were measured with a caliper. The growth of exposed and control individuals was calculated from the increase in length, diameter and weight mass of the snail from the beginning to the end of the test. During the exposure to the different treatments, the more or less disturbed behaviors of the snails were described.The experimental unit was a 500 mL transparent plastic box. These boxes contained 200 g of decomposed wood litter previously crushed and dried, to which were added 50 eggs of Achatina fulica from the breeding environments. 24 h after oviposition, the microcosms were buried in holes whose bottom was lined with stones to ensure efficient water drainage and so that the level of the boxes was 2 cm above the surrounding soil. The microcosms were humidified with 50 mL of fountain water to bring the temperature of the environment to 26˚C ± 1˚C which is the optimal temperature for egg incubation.

The lid of the boxes was also perforated to allow good aeration of the environment. Note that this study was conducted at the same time as the study of the effects of 2,4-D, glyphosate, and nicosulfuron on the growth and reproduction of juvenile Achatina fulica snails. Microcosms for both tests were arranged horizontally at a distance of 1 m from each other. 10 microcosms were used for this test and placed on each elementary plot. These plots were treated with a single type of herbicide,either 2,4-D, glyphosate or nicosulfuron. Another plot close to the previous ones served as a negative control. Some behaviors due to the exposure of snails to herbicides could be observed during this study. These are: the ability of snails to feed normally or avoid food, nft hydroponic the activity of the animals and their spatial position in the test chamber: for example, active or inactive in the high position or on the supports, or active or inactive on the food. These behaviors are observed, on days of food change. The snails were inactive at the time of observation. They hid at the bottom of the microcosm in a hole of about 3 cm that they dug in the ground. After one minute, the snails started to be active. In the microcosms in the control and nicosulfuron-treated plots, no food remains were observed. In contrast to the above, a significant amount of decaying feed residue was observed in the microcosms on the glyphosate and 2,4-D treated plots. The greatest amount of feed was observed in the microcosms treated with 2,4-D.Statistical analyses at this level showed that growth parameters varied with the different types of 2,4-D, glyphosate and nicosulfuron treatments. Snail weight mass, shell length, and shell diameter showed significant differences at the 5% threshold . Compared to controls, 2,4-D, glyphosate and nicosulfuron inhibited snail growth. In order of toxicity, our results show that nicosulfuron is less toxic than glyphosate, which is almost equal in toxicity to 2,4-D.Egg laying took place 7 days after the establishment of the microcosms on the test and control plots. Moreover, the average number of eggs laid per microcosm and per plot was the same.From day 7 to day 14, the number of eggs laid increased significantly, reaching a peak around 200 eggs laid in the control snails. For snails treated with the different herbicides, a significant drop was observed. Oviposition was zero from day 14 to day 42 for snails in plots treated with 2,4-D and glyphosate. In the nicosulfuron-treated plot, egg laying dropped to zero on day 21.

Egg laying resumed on day 28 with an average of 150 eggs per microcosm and decreased slightly on day 35 before dropping sharply on day 42 with an average of 20 eggs. In the control snail plot, from day 14 onwards, egg laying began to decline progressively on days 21, 28, 35 and 42. This egg laying which was around 200 eggs on day 14 went down to around 80 eggs on day 42. Looking at the control curve, we can see that the egg laying starts on day 7, reaches the peak on day 14 and decreases from day 21 to day 42 . The mean number of eggs ± standard deviation laid per pair of snails in the contaminated environment was 41.66 ± 54.37; 48.83 ± 48.55 and 62.5 ± 57.81 for 2,4-D, glyphosate and nicosulfuron, respectively, compared to 123.16 ± 31.01 in the control environment. Statistical analyses revealed a significant difference at the 5% threshold between the different treatments and the number of eggs laid. From the averages obtained, it was found that all herbicide treatments of 2,4-D, glyphosate and nicosulfuron affected egg laying compared to the controls. In terms of toxic effect on oviposition, Tukey’s HSD test revealed that 2,4-D, glyphosate and nicosulfuron were equal .The phytosanitary treatments of 2,4-D, glyphosate and nicosulfuron carried out respectively on each plot induced a growth inhibition of the snails present on these plots. This growth inhibition resulted in a decrease in snail length, shell diameter and mass. This result could be explained by a decrease in consumption rate observed in the microcosms at the time of food change.Snails have the ability to detect high concentrations of pollutants in their food, which could lead to a decrease in consumption rate. Reference revealed that cadmium can disrupt the function of neurosecretory cells that secrete a growth hormone causing growth arrest. Furthermore, similar observations were made with studies conducted by. They claim that the extreme concentration of lead in the soil, detected by the snails, limits their consumption rate and thus partially inhibits their growth. Other authors have reached the same conclusion in their studies on metal contamination of Helix asperta. Compared to our where growth is inhibited, observed a dose-dependent decrease in growth and survival of snails induced by dimethoate.

According to, snails exposed by ingestion to thiamethoxam, tefluthrin and their mixtures experienced a reduction in length, shell diameter and weight mass under laboratory conditions. This difference could be due to the conditions under which the tests were performed. Our work was indeed carried out in situ in the natural environment of the snails contrary to theirs which were carried out in laboratory. Chemicals during their application are subject to several transfer mechanisms outside the plot. These matrices receive 97.7% of pesticides during phytosanitary treatments. Therefore, the amount of herbicides that could reduce snail growth is low. In addition, it was found in the present study that 2,4-D, glyphosate and nicosulfuron significantly reduce egg laying in Achatina fulica snails. This could be due to a reduction in energy reserves, nft system allocated for reproduction in the storage cells of snail tissues; this reduction is probably caused by the mobilization of these resources for the initiation of detoxification processes. Studies by revealed that the energetic cost of environmental stress results in a decrease in the amount of energy available for reproduction and growth and consequently in a reduction in the fitness of individuals. Our results are in agreement with those of. They showed that chronic exposure of snails to food contaminated with a mixture of metals composed of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn, delays reproduction. In contrast, those of showed after 240 days of exposure to herbicides no effect on the number of egg laying. The reduced hatching rate observed in Achatina fulica is probably due to the active substances contained in the herbicides used. According to, the snail egg capsule serves as a membrane for gas exchange from the interior of the egg to the environment or vice versa. It acts as an effective barrier against water loss during the incubation period without blocking the air supply. Our results are in agreement with those of who showed that, extracts of Barringtonia racemosa has an increasingly increasing concentration, and significantly affect the hatching of Pomacea canaliculata eggs. Tests conducted on the effects of herbicides on morphological parameters and hatching rate of Achatina fulica eggs revealed increasing toxicity in the following order: nicosulfuron < glyphosate < 2,4-D. These different responses of snails exposed to these three types of herbicides could be attributed to the different nature and behavior of each herbicide in the environment. These results corroborate those of. Their studies revealed a significant reduction in snail weight mass and shell diameter as a function of treatment type.

The government’s prioritization of the sub-tropical fruit and nut sectors and the promotion of small-scale farmer integration in HVC markets raise concerns for sustainability and require investigation into whether farmers can sustain these HVC systems over time. There is a need for farmers to invest in various land use and management aspects that will affect the long-term sustainability of the farming systems. The study examines the land resource used under different commodities i.e., HVCs in the Vhembe district of Limpopo and how the land characteristics are driving the sustainable production of these commodities under different land ownership and management systems. In order to achieve the overarching goal of sustainability that will ensure long term food security in the country there is need to explore what land characteristics will support production.The two farming systems in the study i.e., small-scale and large-scale are recog-nised as systems due to the multi-variable nature of the processes within the farms and the non-linear interconnectedness that exists between them. The commodities grown in these farming systems are recognized as HVC based on the definition provided by. The four drivers of production i.e., land, labour, capital and enterprise drive the two farming systems and the pathway of agricultural enterprise i.e., production, management, marketing and value adding for each of the systems which have the potential to produce the same outcome in different ways. Future scenarios for sustainable agriculture within the different commodities must consider how production can be sustained under the two main farming systems. The land resource and its use are arguably one of the most important drivers of sustainable agriculture as they highlight numerous environmental interactions that can either be detrimental or beneficial to the sustainability of farming systems. Land is a highly politicized issue in the South African context due to historical allocation of land based on race by the previous government prior to democracy in 1994. There is a need for an emphasis on scale in the analysis of these two main South African farming systems in order to accurately investigate what land variables will drive sustainable agriculture in the country.

Land characteristics namely, farm size and ownership, topography, soil type and fertility, threats and hazards, mobile vertical rack water sources and irrigation, and the impact of climatic and its variability on the farming systems have been selected and are analysed between the two farm sizes and within three different commodities. These land characteristics are further analysed alongside two production characteristics, i.e., income and yield in order to determine to what extent they can drive sustainability.The study took place in the Vhembe district which is the northern most district municipality of the Limpopo Province in South Africa . It shares borders with Zimbabwe and Botswana in the north-east and Mozambique in the south-east through the Kruger National Park. The Vhembe district is one of five district municipalities in the Limpopo Province. It has an area of 2,140,708 hectares of which 247,757 hectares is arable land. The Vhembe district is comprised of four local municipalities: Thulamela, Mutale , Musina and Makhado. The South African governance structure regards the composition of local municipalities as towns and their surrounding rural areas. The main towns within the district are Thohoyandou, Malamulele, Musina and Makhado respectively for the four municipalities Thulamela, Mutale , Musina and Makhado. The district covers a geographical location that is largely rural. According to agriculture is the key contributor to employment and livelihoods in the district. Seventy percent of the farming activities in the district are attributed to smallholder agriculture and the remaining 30% is commercial agriculture. According to the Vhembe District Municipality’s Local Economic Development Strategy in 2019 the district produces 4.4% of South Africa’s total agricultural output, 8.4% of the country’s sub-tropical fruits and 6.3% of its citrus. The district is situated in a semi-arid area, is frequently affected by dry spells that often develop into drought with severe water shortages from May to August. Most commercial farmers in the district rely on irrigation systems for farming whilst the smallholder farmers generally depend on seasonal rainfall which typically falls from November to March..

The average rainfall ranges from 246 mm to 681 mm per annum. Soils in the district are variable and tend to be sandy in the west, but with a higher loam and clay content towards the east. The soils developed on basalt, sandstone and biotite gneiss and some have low inherent soil fertility. Maize is the predominant cereal grain grown in the district among smallholder farmers. Leguminous crops like groundnuts, Bambara nuts and cowpeas are also grown by smallholder farmers as well as vegetable crops which include spinach, cabbage, tomatoes and onions. These are grown for the farmers’ own consumption with any surplussold to neighbours or relatives. Rain-fed crop yields are generally poor due to low and erratic rainfall coupled with poor fertility. Commercial horticulture farming is well established in the south eastern side of the district  and includes stakeholders which grow mangos, litchis, bananas, avocados, citrus, pecan and macadamia nuts.A study was conducted using an analysis of primary and secondary data to identify and characterize large and small-scale farming systems of three tree crops, in the Vhembe district. The analysis was aimed at highlighting the connectivity of interactions between the farming systems in terms of the four drivers of production. The focus of the paper is on land as a driver of production. Secondary data were collected from: the official subtropical crop database obtained from the local Department of Agriculture located in the town of Thohoyandou, climate data from the Institute for Soil, Climate and Water , land type and soils data from the Agricultural Research Council , peer reviewed research papers and related books. The target population was a combination of large-scale commercial and small-scale farmers within the district. Based on the FAO definition of farming systems which informs the study, three different enterprises based on commodities grown at farm sites were chosen: 1) macadamia nut farming systems 2) mango farming systems and 3) avocado farming systems. Farming systems where initially broadly characterised based on available information extracted from the local Department of Agriculture database. The database is comprised of data on the farm location , farm size , gender of farmer, farmer name and telephone number. A purposive sampling method was employed in choosing four criteria for site selection, these were used in the study namely commodity, size of the farm, location of the farm and gender of the farmer. This information was available for six subtropical commodities, namely bananas , litchis , avocados , mangos , macadamia nuts  and citrus . According to the database there are a total of 1121 documented subtropical crop farmers in the Vhembe district. According to the database the three commodities selected in the study were the most commonly grown commodities in the district.

Avocados were selected based on the willingness of the farmers to participate in the study based on a preliminary interaction with the farmers at a local study group meeting. Macadamias were selected based on their significance to the South African agricultural economy as high value export crops. The next selection criterion was size. Farms were selected using a systemic random sampling procedure to ensure that there was equal representation of farms within the size categories that exist in the database, these were namely small-scale  as the study required both farmers with smallholdings and larger holdings.The next selection criterion was location. Farms were selected to ensure that there was equal representation of all 4 local municipalities that comprise the Vhembe district municipality namely Mutale, Makhado, Thulamela and Musina. Lastly, vertical grow table the farmers’ gender was also used as a farm selection criterion. A random number generation method was used to ensure that there was equal representation of both genders across the farms. The process of random number sampling involved allocating a number to the farmers selected from the database based on the above criteria, writing down the numbers and placing them in a container. Numbers were then randomly picked out of the container to make up a total of 12 farms. These 12 farms were comprised of 4 samples for each of the 3 commodities spread across the 4 local municipalities with 2 small-scale and 2 large-scale farms as well as an even mixture of male and female farmers. Once this initial site selection was made, a more detailed characterization of the three farming systems was done based on the significance of the 4 drivers of production i.e., land, labour, capital and enterprise. Primary data were obtained from in-depth interviews that were conducted with farmers in selected farm locations within the Vhembe district. A snowball sampling technique was used in response to this with the aim of maintaining the same sample size initially selected. The results of the snowball sampling produced samples that differed vastly in number to those from the initial sample selection: macadamia nuts , mangos  and avocados . A total of 19 farmers were selected to participate in interviews based on their availability and willingness to participate.Interviews were conducted over two visits to the Vhembe district in October and November 2020. Ethical clearance was obtained from the local Department of Agriculture and the University of the Witwatersrand, protocol number: H19/09/26. The researcher, together with a field assistant, who acted as an interpreter from the Mutale local municipality conducted the interviews. Interviews were conducted in the Vhenda language. Interviews were conducted face-to face with farmers on-site at the farm locations and recorded.A questionnaire was the main instrument of data collection made up of closed and open-ended questions to collect quantitative and qualitative data. Close-ended questions were used to elicit background information and for statistical information regarding the four drivers of production in the context of the selected farm sites. Open-ended questions were used to enable respondents to provide longer answers.

The questionnaire was divided into 4 sections: 1) land 2) labour 3) capital and 4) enterprise as drivers of production.Descriptive statistics were used to analyse quantitative data. This was done by calculating averages, percentages and standard errors. Chi squared and student t-tests were used to compare the means of different farming systems and between the two farm sizes. Pearson Correlation coefficients were used to establish the relationships between selected land and production variables within the two farm sizes and across the three different commodities which were then used to highlight possible relationships. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis using information from participant responses to open ended questions addressing issues relating to land variables between the two farm sizes and across the different commodities. The responses were categorized into predominant themes and percentages calculated. The resulting themes were triangulated with the quantitative data to explain the phenomenon.Data from the 19 participants were collated. Of the 19 participants there were 7  macadamia nut farmers, 4  mango farmers and 8  avocado farmers. Of the 7 macadamia nut farmers, 3  were classified as large-scale and 4  as small-scale. The average farm size amongst large-scale macadamia farmers was 576 hectares compared to 5 hectares amongst small-scale farmers. Of the 4 mango farmers only 1  was classified as a large-scale farmer on a 15 hectare farm and 3  as small-scale farmers. The average farm size amongst small-scale mango farmers was 4.7 hectares. The 8 avocado farmers were comprised of 2  large-scale farmers and 6  small-scale farmers. The average farm size amongst large-scale avocado farmers was 806 hectares compared to 4.9 hectares amongst small-scale farmers. The average tonnage for large-scale macadamia nut farmers was 290 tons compared to 2.7 tons amongst small-scale macadamia farmers while the average yield was 0.5 tons per hectare for both large and small-scale macadamia farmers. The only large-scale mango farmer interviewed had a tonnage of 4.5 tons with a yield of 0.3 tons per hectare compared to an average tonnage of 3.3 tons amongst small-scale farmers and average yield of 1.1 tons per hectare. The average tonnage amongst large-scale avocado farmers was 408 tons compared to 4.9 tons per hectare amongst small-scale farmers. Large-scale avocado farmers had an average yield of 0.7 tons per hectare while small-scale farmers had an average yield of 1.1 tons per hectare. Correlations between farm size and yield will be addressed later in the discussion of results under the heading crop yields.Results revealed that 79% of participants were male while 21% were female.

The large majority of the population of China and India  also are in favor of the use of modern biotechnology for both human diseases and pest-resistant crops, while the European countries are much more in favor of the use of modern biotechnology for human diseases than for food and agriculture. Some developing countries are considering the commercialization of genetically modified crops but they have been warned by the European Union that they may lose the European market not only for the commodities that have been genetically modified but possibly also for those that have not been genetically modified. This situation happened for vegetables with Africa exporter countries and seems to be also relevant with India government decision respecting Bt-eggplant. Developing countries who might wish to use genetic modification to improve agricultural productivity and nutritional qualities of their foods might therefore be faced with a choice between doing so for the domestic market while losing export opportunities or foregoing the potential benefits to its own people while maintaining export opportunities.One could argue that the European consumer has gained a great deal of political power over agriculture in her capacity as a consumer, while still agreeing to provide large subsidies to agriculture in her capacity as a taxpayer.The possibility that the application of modern biotechnology in European agriculture could reduce the need for farm subsidies does not seem to enter into the European debate. To the extent this potential contradiction has been considered by consumers and governments, the conclusion seems to be that consumers prefer to pay farmers not to produce genetically modified food either through additional subsidies or through high food prices, at least until now. Such a contradiction is not prevalent in the United States and Canada.The great opposition made by advocacy groups mainly in Europe and Japan to transgenic crops about food safety and possible health problems is denied by scientific data and various international and national organizations worldwide.

The objective of this appraisal has been to determine whether the transgenic crop is as safe as its conventional counterpart before transgenic modification. For this purpose, scientific data are provided to be reasonably confident that it will not damage consumers’ health. Several organizations have stated that transgenic crops approved for commercialization, hydroponic net pots do not pose more risk to human health than conventional crops. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations , the Royal Society of London, the US National Academy of Sciences, the Brazilian Academy of Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Indian National Science Academy, the Mexican Academy of Sciences and the Third World Academy of Sciences , the World Health Organization , the American College of Nutrition , the American Society of Toxicology, the British Medical Association,and the Union of German Academies of Sciences and Humanities , among others, have stated that transgenic crops approved for commercialization, do not pose more risk to human health than conventional crops, and they should be considered as safe as conventional ones.The World has witnessed a steady increase of transgenic crop area in the last 18 years. The potential impacts on human and animal health have been subject to extensive research, and no evidence has been found against transgenic crops. Some people, however continue to argue the potential long-term risks but without indicating what those risk maybe. Recently, the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety of Germany and partners  issued the report “Biological and Ecological Evaluation towards Long-term Effects”  with the aim of providing scientific data to the European Commission. The BEETLE report reviewed in excess of 100 publications and consulted 52 experts in health issues to assess the possible long-term effect of transgenic crops on the health of consumers and the environment. This report concluded that so far, no adverse effects to human health from eating GM food have been found. The report further stated that although unexpected negative effects are known in conventional crops, none has yet been detected in transgenic crops. The report concludes that there is a negligible probability for adverse effects to consumers’ health in the long term. Photovoltaic water pumping system is ideal in remote locations where grid electricity does not exist. All you have to do is to setup the solar system and it operates on solar power, free of charge, on its own.Solar pumps are powered by photovoltaic panels and the flow rate is determined by the intensity of the sunlight.Solar panels have no moving parts, and most have a warranty of at least 20 years.

The majority of Rwandan population relies on agricultural activities. In the last years, Rwanda has been facing the problem of climate change resulting into changes in seasons, hence affecting farmers. This has been affecting the overall economy of the country due to lack of enough crop production. The use of solar pumping system for irrigation during dry seasons can be the best alternative way to overcome this problem.Irrigation is not new to Rwanda. Farmers have been traditionally practicing rice irrigation by lowering the ground water in marshlands through digging drains and creating unsaturated zones between the drains using heaped excavated soil. Onion is a consumer product in Senegal and imports represent 57% of vegetable volumes.In the Sudano-Sahelianzone, Senegal is one of the main producers, behind Niger, Ethiopia and Sudan .National requirements are estimated at 300,000 tons per year. In 2012, production is estimated at 210,000 tons and imports at 123,350 tons . Nearly half of this production comes from the Gandiolais,located 30 km south of Saint-Louis, where the soil is infested by Pyrenochaetaterrestris Gorentz, Walker and Larson. This soil fungus is responsible for the pink root disease of the onion, which is spreading gradually in other areas of the “Niayes”. Studies on the disease, conducted in the Gandiolais, have shown low productivity of nurseries and a high heterogeneity in the stand .Pink root symptoms are common in onion fields, especially in old nurseries, andon soils poor in organic matter.Pyrenochaeta terrestris infected plants often have a reduction in growth andmay die. Bulb quality and yields are also affected.Laboratory and field results showed tolerance of Pyrenochaeta terrestris toBenomyl, Iprodione and Procymidone fungicides, whereas they were effective against Fusarium oxysporum and Botrytis allii , respectively responsible for basalrot and collar rot   showed that the treatment of onion plants by the fungicide Basamid , favored their vegetable development.According to , products based on Azadirachta indica act as an insecticide,fungicide and antiviral. Cited Azadirachta indica, Moringa oleifera and Caricapapaya as fungicides. Cassia alata and Crotolaria retusa are also reported as fungicides by .The results obtained on the action of these natural fungicides and of synthesis deserve to be deepened. Thus the effects of some of them as well as others are sought, on the pink root disease, on soil infested by the pathogen.The objective of this study is to find natural fungicides effective against pink root disease of onions in the nursery. In all treatments, the rate of emergence is higher than 60%, except for Cassiaalata and Crotoloria retusa , which have the lowest rates. The best rates  are obtained with Pelt 44, Carbendazime, untreated control and Azadirachtaindica . Other treatments Carica papaya and Moringa oleifera have intermediate lifting rates. For survival, those of Crotolaria retusa and Cassia alata are the lowest, the highest are obtained respectively with the untreated control, Pelt44, Azadirachta indica and Carbendazime. The other treatments gave intermediate values varying between 47.01%  and 74.24% .For the infestation rate, the untreated control had the highest rate ,which means that more than half of the plants are infected. Crotolaria retusa and Cassia alata , which have low survival and survival rates and infestation rates of 21.87% and 18.27% respectively, blueberry grow pot give the following explanations for these contradictory results: The few plants that remained Live at the end of the nursery are because they are very little infested or not at all infested. If the percentage of infestation is calculated from this small number, the rate of infestation will below while the real rate is high, and it is this rate that has resulted in the low survival rate. For the control that has the highest infestation rate, this is due to the total lack of treatment.

It should be noted, however, that this infestation did not result in high mortality in the nursery. The incidence of this high infestation could be seen in the open fields, as it would be a second stress in addition to that due to transplanting, resulting in a high probable mortality after transplantation. Indeed, plants infested with P. terrestris , if they do not die, often have a reduction in growth. This is not however confirmed by  which showed a 13% efficiency of Trichoderma applied to onion. The rate of infestation of P. terrestris is 33% compared to 46% for the control. However, this improvement in onion resistance results in a loss of bulb yields due to Trichoderma :169 g per bulb and 70.9 t/ha for the control against 212 g of bulb and 80.9 t/hafor Trichoderma . Other Pelt 44, Carbendazime, Azadirachta indica , Carica papaya and Moringa oleifera treatments that have high survival and survival rates and low infestation rates are also useful to control the incidence of the disease in the nursery .Our results with synthetic fungicides are comparable to those of , which showed that Basamid  favors the vegetative development of onion plants on soil treated with this fungicide.In the case of Azadirachta indica , Moringa oleifera and Carica papaya , their fungicidal effect was cited by . The fungicidal properties of Cassia alata and Crotolaria retusa were studied by . In view of the results obtained during these various experiments, we find that plants with a fungicidal effect could be very useful for the protection of crops against certain enemies. However, beyond its fungicidal aspects, Azadirachta indica would also have insecticidal actions.These are confirmed by   on two Cabbage Lepidoptera  and on the mealybug  of pineapple,respectively. Rabbiteye blueberries  are the most prominent and the best adapted of the blueberry varieties for cultivation in the southeastern United States. Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas grow rabbiteye blueberry almost exclusively. Rabbiteye blueberries are native to the Southeast, tolerant to heat and droughts, more resistant to diseases and insects, grow on a wide range of soils, provide abundant yields, sweet fruit with excellent firmness, and a longer shelf life than other blueberry species . Rabbiteye blueberry bushes can grow to a height of 10 feet or more, have high vigor, and produce small to medium-large berries ranging from black to light blue . Commercial rabbiteye yields typically range from2,270 to 3,630 kg/acre on well-maintained fields, sometimes reaching as hig has 4,535 kg/acre, and a blueberry orchard can continue to be productive for 30years or more .Rabbiteye blueberries are historically an important commercial crop for Alabama,and many farms produce rabbiteye blueberries for sale in the fresh market either exclusively, or as a supplemental crop . The USDA ESMIS reports that in 2012 Alabama ranked 13 in the nation by farm-gate value of blueberry production. Essentially 100% of the blueberries currently produced in Alabamaare sold in the fresh market . In Alabama, 310 acres were harvested in 1998,yielding 730 kg/acre. According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service, over the next decade, there was only a 3% increase in harvested acreage, buta 71% increase in yield per acre in Alabama. The blueberry acreage almost doubled by 2009, when an additional 275 acres were established in the Dothan area alone . Alabama farm gate value for blueberries has increased in the same time period by approximately 13% .Public interest has likely aided this increase in demand and production due to the increased reports of the fruit’s health benefits. Blueberries contain vitamins A, C, and E, as well as carbohydrates, protein, fiber, and fat, and also contain organic acids and polyphenolic substances including chlorogenic, citric,malic, quinic, acetic, caffeic, p-coumaric, and shikimic acids . According toDruice and Percival , the combinations of these organic compounds give blueberries the highest oxygen radical absorbency capacity of over forty commercially available fruits and vegetables.

The nutraceutical compounds in blueberries have been linked to a number of health benefits, such their capability to reduce blood sugar, serum cholesterol, and triglyceride levels. Blueberries also have antiallergenic, anti-viral and antiproliferative activities , and they have been found to have a protective effect against diabetes, stroke, lung and stomach cancers. Additional health benefits of blueberries are their effect on reducing the loss of age-related motor skills and memory, and improving urinary tract and visual health.Cultivation of rabbiteye blueberries began in 1940 with a cooperative effort between the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the University of Georgia, and North Carolina State University. Superior selections from the wild were inter crossed, and thorough seedling screening was performed . The first cultivars were released in 1950 , but the planting of cultivated blueberries was initially slow in North America . Early cultivars tended to have fruit that were nearly black, with a poor taste, and large seeds, but have since been replaced by improved varieties .A narrow gene pool plagues rabbiteye breeding, as nearly all of the nucleargenes originate from four selections: “Myers”, “Black Giant”, “Ethel”, and “Clara”. Inbreeding has been used to promote desirable traits, but has resulted in the loss of vigor and fruit weight . In addition, narrower germplasms increase the risk of reduced pest/disease resistance, and efforts are currently being made in breeding programs to widen the germplasm of Vaccinium species but increased efforts are needed .Currently, Florida, Georgia, Texas, North Carolina, and Mississippi all have active rabbiteye blueberry breeding programs aimed largely at producing early ripening, low hilling, high yielding cultivars .

Since the continued need for fundamental breeding research is critical to sustain development of new technology and expansion of the knowledge base that supports cultivar development, competition among proprietary cultivars results in owner-companies striving to do the best possible research to develop their own products and to compete on genetic and physiological quality of vegetable seed in the marketplace. Reasonable profit margins are necessary to pay back the R&D costs to the owner and to fund future research on developing even better vegetable cultivars to stay competitive . There is considerable genetic variation within the various vegetable species, which can be exploited in the development of superior proprietary cultivars grow bucket. The consequences of this dynamic situation mean that relatively short-lived cultivars are replaced by either the owner of the cultivar or a competitor seed company. This intense competition means constantly improved and more sophisticated cultivars for the vegetable industry.

Seed companies are in the business of manipulating genes to improve plant cultivar performance for a profit. The success of the research is judged by the success of the product in making a reasonable profit. The research must improve economic performance starting with the seed production costs and include the grower-shipper/processor and the end user. If any link in this sequence of events is weak or broken, the new cultivar likely will fail . Private breeding companies are placing more and more emphasis on the development of hybrids to exploit heterosis, and to combine multiple disease and stress resistance, but also for economic purposes to ensure growers must purchase seed for each planting. Control of the parents prevents other seed companies from reproducing the hybrid. pay all the breeding work and seed marketing costs when purchasing improved or hybrid vegetable seed. International seed companies are mainly interested in the breeding and production of vegetable seeds with a high commercial value. Traditional vegetable landraces have largely been neglected by seed companies, policy-makers, and researchers. But while their production often takes place under low-input conditions, they contribute substantially to household food and livelihood security, particularly for small resource-poor farmers .

For example, in Africa traditional landraces constitute an important source of micronutrients, contributing between 30% and 50% of iron and vitamin A consumed, respectively, in poor households . Worldwide the share of hybrid seed is increasing at a fast pace of 8% 10% annually in most of the vegetables. More than two-thirds of the 5000 non-hybrid vegetable cultivars available in 1984 seed catalogs from North America were dropped during last 25 years . Hybrid vegetable technology has made significant impact on most vegetable crops in developed countries, but a major limitation to vegetable production in many developing countries is the unavailability of high quality seeds. Hybrid seed production is a high level technology and cost intensive venture. Only well organized seed companies with good scientific manpower and well- equipped research facilities can afford hybrid seed production. The public sector in developing countries frequently does not have sufficient capacity to supply adequate quantities of good quality vegetable seed to poor farmers and at present, there are few private sector seed companies adapting cultivars to local environments, especially in the poorer countries . Farmers themselves often produce seeds of locally preferred or traditional landraces,dutch bucket for tomatoes as the individual markets are too small and private companies have little interest in producing open pollinated cultivars .

Without prop-er seed production, processing technology, quality assurance, and management supervision, locally produced seeds are often contaminated by seed transmitted viruses and other disease organisms, and are genetically diverse. Lack of proper storage facilities and an effective monitoring mechanism often leads to low or uncertain seed viability and vigor. Moreover, low capital resources and poor market information discourage the development of seed-related agribusinesses. Seed quality and treatment are keys to product quality, and there is a need for up-grading quality control laboratories to meet international standards. By those reasons in modern vegetable production the seed business is usually conducted as a distinct industry . The global seed trade is now dominated by international corporations whose vast economic power has effectively marginalized the roles of public sector plant breeding and local, small scale seed companies.

In general, vegetable production requires more plant protection products per hectare. Because of their cultivation intensity, vegetables suffer from many biological stresses including pests, diseases and weeds. Because of the diversity within and between plant families, their pest loads are far more varied and complex compared to field crops. Considerably fewer resources have been directed at improving their production and pest and disease management options, compared to field crops such as rice, wheat and maize . Since vegetables are high value commodities with high “cosmetic” standards, the main method for controlling pathogens, pests, and weeds has been the use of pesticides. Vegetables are often consumed in fresh form, so pesticide residue and biological contamination in them is a serious issue. Vegetables ac-count for a significant share of the global pesticide market. About 20% of the world’s annual pesticides expenditures  are spent for growing vegetables . Almost 25 kg/ha of active pesticide substances are used on average in vegetable production in the European Union .

Vegetable production accounts for less than 1% of the United States crop area, but 14% of its total pesticide use ebb and flow trays. Insecticides are regularly applied to control a complex of insect pests that cause damage by feeding directly on the plant or by transmitting pathogens, particularly viruses. Despite pesticide use, insects, pathogens, and weeds continue to cause a heavy toll on world vegetable production. Preharvest losses are globally estimated as 15% for in-sect pests, 13% for damage by pathogens, and about 12% for weeds . Studies on pesticide levels in vegetables, in some developing and developed countries, found that the pesticide residues sometimes exceeded tolerance limits . For example, in India a survey of pesticide residues in vegetable crops taken at the farm gate and in markets from 1999 to 2003 confirmed that of the 3,043 samples, two-thirds were found to have pesticide residues and 9% contained residues above the maximum residue levels. The increase of residues in vegetables is a major concern to consumers and there are some concerns about the ability of small growers to meet exacting quality and safety standards of the commercial sector.

The problem of residues is not restricted to developing countries. In Europe, a recent survey of pesticide residues in vegetable and fruit crops taken by the EU coordinate pesticide monitoring programme in 2008, carried out in 27 EU member states and two EFTA states , and analysing 78 pesticides, confirmed that 21.2% of the samples have measurable residues and from the 58,784 of samples analised, 3.7% exceeded the MRLs . In USA, about 35% of the food purchase by American consumers, have detectable levels of pesticide residues, and 1% to 3% of these foods have pesticide residue that are above the MRLs. Residue levels may be higher because the analytical methods now employed in the US detect only about one-third of the more than 800 pesticides in use on crops . Pesticide residues are often attributed to the failure of growers to restrain application before harvesting and the use of prohibited pesticides. Residues affect the health of growers and consumers and contaminate the environment Also the presence of pesticide residues may restrict trade opportunities. In South Asia,4×8 flood tray pest and disease vectors of eggplant, tomato and legumes, notably eggplant fruit and shoot borer, cotton bollworm, root knot nematode, white fly, and legume pod-borer have been identified as the major targets of pesticide use and abuse with frequent and excessive applications of pesticide.

However, eggplant fruit and shoot borer pheromone traps and net houses developed by AVRDC  have helped reduce pesticide application significantly.The use of improved vegetable cultivars with resistance or tolerance to dis-eases and pests can also contribute to the reduction of pesticide applications and pesticide residues . Genetically Modified Crops  are now widely used in a number of countries for the production of largescale agronomic crops, especially maize, soybean and canola . This is, however, not the case for vegetables crops where concerns and debates about the safety and the wider justification of genetic modification prevail in many countries . Of concern, is the lack of awareness about the role that conventional plant breeding plays in the production of new cultivars and the confusion that often prevails between conventional breeding and plants produced using gene transfer technologies. The changes outlined above are merely some of the factors that are impacting on current production practices for horticultural crops.

As a result, most of the fruits get damaged leading to reduced fruit quality, and shelf life is also affected . Then they are stored under poor storage conditions for ripening purposes with less attention is given to control the temperature, relative humidity, and air circulation of ripening rooms. The farmers and sellers also have limited knowledge of post-harvest handling practices of bananas. All these have aggregated negative impacts on the post-harvest losses and delivery of poor quality and external bruised fruits to the local markets . This poor handling reflects lack of awareness in the whole post-harvest handling system including lack of appropriate harvesting technology, transportation, storage, and ripening facilities .The 2017/2018 survey results  also show that the ripening system followed in Eritrea in which smoke generated from kerosene burning systems are mainly used is very poor. In this smoke-based system,vertical grow table banana fruits are separated from the bunch during unloading and packed into wooden boxes and kept in air-tight rooms where kerosene stove is burned for about 24 to 48 hrs depending on the external environmental conditions.

Less attention is given to controlling temperature, relative humidity and air circulation inside the ripening rooms. All these will have a cumulative effect on the fruit quality and shelf life of bananas. On the other hand, lack of infrastructure facilities has limited the implementation of improved ripening systems and storage practices.Banana ripening with ethylene is a well-known process; while the effectiveness of the traditional ripening methods practiced in Eritrea has not yet been evaluated from the fruit quality and shelf life point of view . Under the current economic situation and lack of improved technologies in Eritrea, ethylene-based ripening methods are unlikely to be expanded. In addition to that, cheaper alternatives such as ethephon and acetylene which are widely used in many other poor countries have been banned due to the negative effects on human health. Therefore, it is important to search for better alternative methods that have no negative effect on human health and at least can be applied at a small-scale ripening system which may have collective contribution towards improving the quality of banana fruits displayed in local markets. Thus, this study was designed to assess the currently practiced post-harvest handling method and the smoke from kerosene burning-based ripening methods compared to other methods and find out a better and safer alternative for improving the quality and shelf life of banana. 

The first group of fruits  was harvested by the researcher directly from the farm and was handled properly until it has reached the laboratory in the college in a way that post-harvest damage was avoided or kept as minimum as possible. The second group of fruits  was of the same variety and from the same farm,but harvested by the farmer and transported by the wholesalers to the ripening room in Keren . This allowed the fruits to pass all the common post-harvest handling practices applied in Eritrea. As soon as the fruits reached the ripening room, samples were collected and transported to the laboratory in HAC. For avoiding variation due to time factors between the two groups; it was arranged to be harvested, transported, and reach the laboratory at HAC on the same day. When the banana fruits reached the laboratory, they were carefully unloaded,and to remove the field heat they were stored in a cool place  for about two hours. Then fruits were graded based on size, maturity stage,mobile vertical grow tables and level of damage. Following that, damaged fruits were removed to avoid spoilage of the other fruits, and the remaining good fruits were assigned to the treatments. Peel colour change from green to yellow is a result of chlorophyll degradation and is the most important eating criterion used by consumers to determine fruit ripening  and .

The results of the current study showed significant differences among the different ripening methods for attaining stage 6, the acceptable stage of peel colouration for consumers . Fruits ripened using smoking from kerosene burning attained the acceptable peel colour change after six days of storage followed by bananas treated with moring a leaf with a mean of 6.17 days after storage. The difference between the smoking and moringa treatments was not significant. Fruits ripened using ripened tomato was the slowest  to reach stage six . The results are in agreement with  and  who used smoke from kerosene and straw respectively. Similarly, reported faster peel colour change of fruits treated with kerosene smoking compared to ethrel treated related the faster colour change in smoke-treated banana fruits to increased temperature from the kerosene burner in addition to ethylene.

The authors sought to know the extent to which horticultural firms have adopted environmental aspect of TBL dimension. Questions revolving on the environmental issues were then asked to the respondents of which they rated the statements on likert scale of 1 to 5 i.e. 1-not at all and 5-to a very large extent.The results indicate the environmental factors and their corresponding statistics where most horticultural firms practice and take some environmental issues more seriously than others. The firms having clearly stated environmental objectives and plans, use of pesticides that are not harmful to the environment, andthe use of environmentally friendly cleaning materials are the most valued factors highest mean of 4.76, 4.65 and 4.43 respectively.On Social Sustainability, from the results it is evident that most companies have realized the benefits that accrue on the social dimension aspect.Corporate social responsibility, Job satisfaction of workers,hydroponic nft channel Attainment of worker quality of life and Facilitation of worker skill development are the most key concerns of the horticulture firms as shown by means of 4.67, 4.51, 4.27 and4.11 respectively.

It is also clear that economic factors are still key concernto the management as it manifests itself by the highest means scored. Costsavings, maximization of shareholders’ wealth and profit maximization, use ofsustainable sources of energy such as solar and wind, minimum packaging materialson products to preserve the natural resources, and use of sustainablesources of raw materials are some of the interventions that work favorably tomost horticultural firms.The authors also sought to know if the economic factors are considered moreto the expense of the environmental and social dimensions. From the results, itis clear that economic factors are a still key concern to the management. Costsavings, maximization of shareholders’ wealth and profit maximization, use of sustainable sources of energy such as solar and wind, minimum packaging materialson products to preserve the natural resources, and use of sustainablesources of raw materials are some of the interventions that work favorably tomost horticultural firms.

Among the factors that contribute to the social and environmental dimensionsis the positions created that relates to the same with the sole purpose ofadvocating and advancing the agendas that relate to their portfolios. The authorssought to understand the existence of various positions apart from the SupplyChain Manager and Operations Manager in the horticulture firms.The results show that there is a corporate environmental policy in place as isshown by 97.3%, a clear indication the steps that majority of the horticulturefirms are taking towards environmental dimension nft growing system. The management does realizethe importance of the dimension and the long-term benefits that come alongwith being environmental conscious. There is also a clear indication that most firms have established environmental board of directors, a position of environmentalmanager and a position of corporate social responsibility manager asshown by 89.2%, 75.7% and 78.4% respectively. Consequently, there are somefirms which have not realized the importance of environmental and social dimensionsand therefore having not seen the reason to have a position of environmentalmanager and corporate social responsibility manager as shown by24.3% and 21.6% respectively. 

The model summary is presented in Table 1. The model has an R square valueof 0.950 indicating that the percentage of the dependent variable variance that is explained by the independent variables is 95%. The P-value of 0.000 which isless than 0.05 implies that the model of environmental dimensional is significantat the 5 per cent significance. R is the correlation coefficient which shows the relationshipbetween the study variables, from the findings shown in the table belowthere is a strong positive relationship between the study variables as shownby 0.975. Durbin-Watson is the number that tests for autocorrelation in the residualsfrom a statistical regression analysis. The Durbin-Watson statistic is alwaysbetween 0 and 4. A value of 2 means that there is no autocorrelation inthe sample. Values approaching 0 indicate positive autocorrelation and valuestoward 4 indicate negative autocorrelation. The findings show that Durbin-Watson value is 2.131 hence no autocorrelation in the sample.ANOVA findings  in Table 2 show that there is correlation between the predictor’s variables and response variable.

But had different results in Nigeria, Pakistan, and South Africa, where the majority of youth involved in agricultural activities were in the age bracket of 15 to 22years old. High involvement of youth above 20 years on-farm activities earns income to feed their families as most youths are married in the study areas.These findings also agreed with , who reported that rural youth families have long been directly and indirectly dependent on agriculture as a source of income for their livelihood.About 47.1% of youth who participated in agricultural activities were married.This conformed with the findings of . Contrarily with our findings, reported a high percentage of youth that are single and involved in agricultural activities and perceived that high percentage of single youth might be due to lack of job or just starting on a new job and they do not want to be distracted with other activities. Table 2 reveals that 52.9% of youth attained senior secondary education, 33% having post-matric, and 13.5% had primary education.

It is assumed that the more percentage of educated youth involved in different economic activities, flood and drain table there is likely to be more improvement in rural areas’ development challenges. In agreement with , 29.3% of youth interviewed were middle to matric, 26.7% were above matric, and 23.3% were up to primary education level. The present study’s findings negate results, finding that half  of the sampled youth had only attained primary education in Zambia. Contrary to our findings, reported that Somalia’s average family size was 5.9 people in a household. In general, family size differences may be attributed to the low level of family planning awareness in rural areas.Alternatively, many household members might be advantageous in providing labour to perform various agricultural activities.Our study also observed that more than 80% of the youth belong to families with a farming background, whereas only 11.5% belong to families with anon-farming experience. This implied that most youth might have gotten the inspiration to be involved in agriculture from their parents, who were also engaged in farming.

This is in line with findings that more than 80 % of Pakistan’s youth who participated in agriculture belong to families with farmback grounds.  reported that parent’s influence is considered an essential source of social capital.Table 2 revealed that 72.1% of youths had an annual family income level <R20.000 while 24% has an income within R20.000 – R50.000 and 3.8% had income above R50.000. In agreement with , who attributed that parent’s contribution income increases youth involvement in agriculture activities by 0.2 %.High participation of youth in households where parents earn income rather than agricultural activities might be due to advanced technology like tractors rather than animals for soil preparation. The majority of rural youth had been involved in agriculture for less than 5 years . Another 39.4% had between 5 – 10 years, rolling bench while the remaining8.7% had above 10 years of farming experience. It is assumed that youth lacking experience might not have access to funding as they are incompetent. In contrast, youth with more than 5 years of farming experience can set realistic goals and are more committed to various farming activities.

The overall average landholding per household in the study area was2.1 hectares . However, the average landholding per household varied among different gender, age group, farming enterprise, and family size. A significant proportion of land in the study area was allocated for homestead ,followed by crop and vegetable production  and rangelands . A possible reason for this might be due to an increase in the human population,unfavorable land tenure systems, and customary practices. The findings concurred with those reported by in Kenya, where the average farm size per household in 2010 was 2.1 ha.  Crop production in Nigeria is essentially rainfed. Agriculture is therefore heavily dependent on the seasonal characteristics of rainfall which has been shown to diminish in amount and duration as one move from the south to the northern part of the country. Current evidence clearly shows that rainfall variability is a real threat and that the need for action today cannot be ignored .

The diverse cropping systems of traditional farmers allow for greater diversity of local produce on the market . Diverse cropping systems allow for cost effective approaches for integrated pest management systems . Yield stability and insurance effect are benefits of crop diversification since the farmer could rely on other crops if one fails. Sustainable agriculture systems can be effectively tied to agro-ecological models for farmers, especially those producing non-traditional crops, and expanded to export markets.Although conventional agriculture has improved food production globally,incurrence of high economic and environmental costs due to heavy dependencies on off-farm inputs and use of specific crop varieties or hybrids that have been bred specifically to exploit high input conditions have been observed .Therefore, improving the availability of local produce can reduce the importation of similar products as well as contribute to exportation of non-traditional crops that may also be considered exotic, stackable planters derived from agro-ecological and traditional cultivation.

In a report for improving world food security, the FAO  advised that the agricultural sector could contribute to substantial improvements in GDP,employment and tax revenue if well managed . Here, as a first step, we have performed an agro-ecological assessment of production of non-traditional crops and livestock in a highly impoverished region, North-East Trinidad. This region historically was not part of the traditional agricultural areas under cultivation. The United Nations Development Programme /Central Statistical Office  Trinidad & Tobago ranked Sangre Grande and its environs, the third lowest in the country with respect to human development. In regards to dimensions of health, education and income this region was also ranked among the lowest . This study is the first of its kind to survey non-traditional crops in an area of agro-ecological significance with the potential to be a source of income for the region and if expanded,nation as a whole. Field research was coordinated and conducted by students of the Biosciences,Agriculture and Food Science department at the University of Trinidad and Tobago.The team contacted and surveyed 639 farmers and householders in the North East Region of Trinidad , over a twelve week period between June to August of 2016 .

Sample size was determined by both the willingness and availability of all farmers within the study area to participate and the accessibility of the individual farms to the surveyors. Surveys were conducted in person and all data was collated and later analyzed using basic statistical software packages. The north-eastern region of Trinidad surveyed in this study  presents an excellent snapshot of rural, agro-ecological production that can be utilized to bolster sustainable agricultural system in this area. The areas included Tamana,Kernaham, Plum Mitan, Fishing Pond, Cumuto and Manzanilla which are included in the Sangre Grande region. The 2011 Population and Housing Census calculated the population of Sangre Grande and its environs at 5.7% of the national population vertical grow rack. The region is the second least densely populated area of Trinidad and Tobago, significantly lower than the national average of ~259 persons per square kilometre . The area for the study was selected due to the highly impoverished, low-income society with under utilised available agricultural land, where the community consist of farmland with agro-ecological potential for non-traditional export crops.

According to the Central Statistics Office as of 2016, only 3.35% of the Sangre Grande municipality has a registered business in operation,depicting a need for economic expansion .The produce from these areas surveyed in this study are derived from cultivated crops, fruits from forest trees and livestock. Most of their farming practices limit the use of heavy pesticides or antibiotics as feed promoters. Table1 describes the general statistics gathered on the farmers of North-East Trinidad.The majority of farmers belong to commercial households while the rest belong to non-commercial households . We also found that most of the commercial farmers own 1 – 10 acres of land for agriculture while the majority of non-commercial farmers had a farm size of less than 1 acre. Further, 67% of the commercial farmers produced vegetable crops as compared to non-commercial farmers who produced 43%.