Safety of horticultural and livestock products in two medium-sized cities of Mali and Burkina Faso

Abstract

Despite their contribution to food security, animal products and vegetables from urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) often raise public health and environmental concerns, given high use of agrochemicals, organic fertilizers and wastewater. This study exemplarily investigated contamination of selected horticultural and livestock products (milk and irrigated lettuce with a potentially high microbiological contamination; and tomato and cabbage on which various pesticides were used) from Bobo Dioulasso (Burkina Faso) and Sikasso (Mali). Samples of irrigation water, organic fertilizer and lettuce were collected from six gardens; cabbage and tomato samples were collected from 15 gardens, and samples of raw and curdled milk were collected from six dairy herds in February, May, and November 2009. Thermo-tolerant coliforms and Escherichia coli in irrigation water significantly exceeded WHO recommendations for unrestricted irrigation of vegetables consumed raw. Microbial contamination of lettuce at garden level and market place in Bobo Dioulasso, and at garden level in Sikasso was higher than at Sikasso market (P<0.05). Pesticide residues were detected in only one cabbage and one tomato sample and were below the maximum residue limit for consumption. Counts of thermo-tolerant coliforms and E. coli were higher in curdled than in raw milk (P<0.05). Given the differences in microbial load between produce of different origin and subsequent stages along value chains, there is scope for low-cost improvement of the safety of UPA smallholders' products. However, studies of higher spatial and temporal resolution along all stages of the value chains for these products are needed in order to derive respective recommendations.

Intra-urban and peri-urban differences in cattle farming systems of Burkina Faso

“…Also, despite its numerous benefits, city authorities are concerned about pollution and public health issues associated with keeping large farm animals in close proximity to human populations. Yet, the development and establishment of proper policy interventions to minimize public health risks that might ensue from urban livestock enterprises (Amadou et al, 2014) require a clear distinction between urban, peri-urban and rural locations as well as a better understanding of the diversity of production systems and their resources use efficiencies.…”

Cabbage Production in West Africa and IPM with a Focus on Plant-Based Extracts and a Complementary Worldwide Vision

“…They cultivate plots generally less than one hectare in size and adopt practices as they see fit, without real technical recommendations or supervision. In the Sudano-Sahelian zone, in Mali (Sikasso) and Burkina Faso (Bobo Dioulasso), cabbage production is conducted on plots of 900 to 5000 m 2 per farmer [ 48 ]. In Niger (Dosso and Zinder), cabbage is grown on areas measuring 100 to 5000 m 2 [ 49 , 50 ].…”

“…In West Africa, the application of active substances belonging to the major families of synthetic pesticides (synthetic pyrethroids, organophosphates, carbamates, organochlorides and avermectins) is reported [ 6 , 7 , 14 , 48 , 67 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 ]. Synthetic pyrethroids, organophosphates and organochlorides are the most represented.…”

Détermination de la teneur en résidus de cinq pesticides organochlorés dans le lait des grands bassins laitiers au Mali-Sud

“…Des travaux conduits dans la zone de production cotonnière de la région de Sikasso ont permis de signaler la contamination des sols et des eaux de puits (Dem et al, 2007). Une autre étude réalisée dans la même zone a également révélé la présence de résidus de pesticides dans les produits maraichers (Amadou et al, 2014). Sur la base des résultats du suivi des polluants organiques persistants qui ont révélé la présence du DDT dans le lait maternel ainsi que de la dieldrine et du lindane dans l'air ambiant au Mali (UNEP, 2012) et de l'inventaire de 1100 tonnes de pesticides obsolètes dans le pays (PASP, 2009), une liste prioritaire de cinq pesticides organochlorés (dieldrine, DDT, endosulfane α, endosulfane β et lindane) à rechercher a été définie.…”