BackgroundAgricultural practices such as the use of irrigation during rice cultivation, the use of ponds for fish farming and the storage of water in tanks for livestock provide suitable breeding grounds for anthropophylic mosquitoes. The most common anthropophylic mosquito in Nigeria which causes much of the morbidity and mortality associated with malaria is the anopheles mosquito. Farmers are therefore at high risk of malaria - a disease which seriously impacts on agricultural productivity. Unfortunately information relating to agricultural practices and farmers' behavioural antecedent factors that could assist malaria programmers plan and implement interventions to reduce risk of infections among farmers is scanty. Farmers' knowledge about malaria and agricultural practices which favour the breeding of mosquitoes in Fashola and Soku, two rural farming communities in Oyo State were therefore assessed in two rural farming communities in Oyo State.MethodsThis descriptive cross-sectional study involved the collection of data through the use of eight Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and the interview of 403 randomly selected farmers using semi-structured questionnaires. These sets of information were supplemented with observations of agricultural practices made in 40 randomly selected farms. The FGD data were recorded on audio-tapes, transcribed and subjected to content analysis while the quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics.ResultsMost respondents in the two communities had low level of knowledge of malaria causation as only 12.4% stated that mosquito bite could transmit the disease. Less than half (46.7%) correctly mentioned the signs and symptoms of malaria as high body temperature, body pains, headache, body weakness and cold/fever. The reported main methods for preventing mosquito bites in the farming communities included removal of heaps of cassava tuber peelings (62.3%), bush burning/clearing (54.6%) and clearing of ditches (33.7%). The dumping of cassava tuber peelings which allows the collection of pools of water in the farms storage of peeled cassava tubers soaked in water in uncovered plastic containers, digging of trenches, irrigation of farms and the presence of fish ponds were the observed major agricultural practices that favoured mosquito breeding on the farms. A significant association was observed between respondents' knowledge about malaria and agricultural practices which promote mosquito breeding. Respondents' wealth quintile level was also seen to be associated with respondents' knowledge about malaria and agricultural practices which promote mosquito breeding.ConclusionFarmers' knowledge of malaria causation and signs and symptoms was low, while agricultural practices which favour mosquito breeding in the farming communities were common. There is an urgent need to engage farmers in meaningful dialogue on malaria reduction initiatives including the modification of agricultural practices which favour mosquito breeding. Multiple intervention strategies are n...

This study reviews the current and future trends in the improvements being made in livestock nutrition and feed resources. There had been continuous improvements in global livestock production for past decades. Most of the improvements have been in response to increasing human populations, urbanization, income growth, production system efficiency, and environmental sustainability. To meet up with the increasing global demand for livestock products was the role earmarked to be played by animal nutritionists in a manner that there would be optimization of feed efficiency to achieve more livestock products from less feed. There has been the development and adoption of biotechnological applications such as the feeding of genetically modified plants and the use of in-feed additives such as antibiotics. In the past decades, the livestock feed industry had been centered on the use of antibiotics as livestock growth promoters. However, there has also been the negative development of microbial antibiotic resistance with various countries promulgating laws and regulations to ban and discourage in-feed antibiotic applications in the livestock feed industry. Thus, present and future improvements in livestock nutrition and feed resources are now being directed at the use of approved probiotics and the application of nanotechnology in livestock nutrition and feeding.

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Bovine meat and milk play a major role in the diet of humans and they have positive impact on global food security. The aim of this review work was to investigate the impact of bovine sources of meat and milk on food security in the low, medium and high income countries. Bovine source meat and milk could have impact on the nutritional, health, work, income, educational and recreational needs of humans. However, the feeding needs of bovine are mainly met with forage materials which do not compete with human foods. The beef and dairy cattle are raised mainly under the extensive system of production in the low and medium income countries, while the intensive system of production is that which is adopted majorly in the high income developed nations. The production of healthy beef and milk products may be observed to go a long way in preventing disease occurrence in both the cattle and the human consumers. The raising of fewer numbers of more genetically productive breeds of cattle under the intensive, semi-intensive and extensive systems of production could also have positive impact on global food security, sustainability and the mitigation of green house gas (GHG) emissions.