Prevalence and risk distribution of schistosomiasis among adults in Madagascar: a cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: The goal to eliminate the parasitic disease of poverty schistosomiasis as a public health problem is aligned with the 2030 United Nations agenda for sustainable development goals, including universal health coverage (UHC). Current control strategies focus on school-aged children, systematically neglecting adults. We aimed at providing evidence for the need of shifting the paradigm of schistosomiasis control programs from targeted to generalized approaches as key element for both the elimination of schistosomiasis as a public health problem and the promotion of UHC. METHODS: In a cross-sectional study performed between March 2020 and January 2021 at three primary health care centers in Andina, Tsiroanomandidy and Ankazomborona in Madagascar, we determined prevalence and risk factors for schistosomiasis by a semi-quantitative PCR assay from specimens collected from 1482 adult participants. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression were performed to evaluate odd ratios. RESULTS: The highest prevalence of S. mansoni, S. haematobium and co-infection of both species was 59.5%, 61.3% and 3.3%, in Andina and Ankazomborona respectively. Higher prevalence was observed among males (52.4%) and main contributors to the family income (68.1%). Not working as a farmer and higher age were found to be protective factors for infection. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings provide evidence that adults are a high-risk group for schistosomiasis. Our data suggests that, for ensuring basic health as a human right, current public health strategies for schistosomiasis prevention and control need to be re-addressed towards more context specific, holistic and integrated approaches.

Fatal Animal Related Incidents on Australian Farms - a 20-Year Review.

Objectives To assess demographic and causal factors of fatal farm incidents involving animals in Australia. Methods Descriptive study of the National Coronial Information System for persons fatally injured by an animal on an Australian farm over the 2001-20 period. Data were analysed in relation to age, sex, state where incident occurred, work-relatedness and causal agents. Results There has been little change in the mean number of animal-related injury deaths across Australia in the 2001-20 period (mean 6.5), however this is a 35% reduction on an earlier 1989-92 assessment (mean 10). The majority of incidents (81%) involved horses (n = 75) and cattle (n = 31). Males were involved in 86 (66%) cases, with 54 female cases. People aged 60 years and over accounted for 46% of the cases, with more than half occurring during work. Of the decedents, 85% fell from or were struck by an animal at the time of the incident, with 40% resulting in a head injury. Conclusion While annualized case numbers have decreased slightly, the leading agents remain consistent with previous studies. The lack of genuine progress in addressing fatalities related to horses and cattle, along with the representation of older persons in the cohort, require attention drawing on the Hierarchy of Controls.

The effects of heat exposure on tropical farm workers in Malaysia: six-month physiological health monitoring.

Farmers in tropical countries have been impacted by slow-onset heat stress. By comparing the nature of farming activities performed by conventional farmworkers and agroecological farmers, this study examined the changes in physiological health in responses to heat exposure through a six-month longitudinal study. Throughout the six-month follow-up period, the heat stress index (HSI), physiological strain indices (PSI), and physiological health parameters (BMI, blood glucose level, blood cholesterol level, uric acid level) were measured and repeated every two-month. Physiological parameters were recorded twice daily, before and during their first lunch break. This study found that slow-onset heat stress affects farmers differently. The health of agroecological farmers is more resistant to slow-onset extreme temperatures. Pre-existing metabolic health effects from pesticide exposure make conventional farmers more susceptible to extreme temperatures, delaying their bodies' adaptation to rising temperatures.

Modelling the impacts of climate change on cereal crop production in East Africa: evidence from heterogeneous panel cointegration analysis.

Climate change has become an issue of concern for sustainable agriculture production. East African nations are heavily reliant on the agriculture sector, which accounts for a substantial amount of their gross domestic product (GDP) and employment. Due to climatic fluctuations, the output of the sector became very unpredictable. Hence, this study investigates the effects of climate change on cereal crop production in nine East African nations between 1990 and 2018. The study implemented pooled mean group (PMG) approach to examine the long-run and short-run dynamic impacts of the varying climatic circumstances on the output of cereal crops. The results reveal that rainfall and carbon emissions have favourable and significant long-run effects on cereal crop output, even though their short-run impacts are negligible. Additionally, cultivated land area and rural population have a constructive role in enhancing agricultural output both in the long-run and short-run. However, average temperatures have negative repercussions on cereal crop production in the long-run and short-run, even though the magnitude of sensitivity is greater in the short-run. Dynamic ordinary least squares (DOLS) and fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) validated the robustness of the long-run findings of the PMG technique. Besides, the Dumitrescu-Hurlin panel causality outcomes indicate that cereal crop output has a bidirectional causality with temperature, carbon emissions, and cropped area. The study further demonstrated unidirectional causation from rural population to cereal crop yield. The study recommends that East African policymakers improve the quality of farm inputs, the adoption of climate-resilient farming practices, the development of water retention facilities and the establishment of crop diversification initiatives.

An Epidemiological Study to Investigate Links between Atmospheric Pollution from Farming and SARS-CoV-2 Mortality.

Exposure to atmospheric particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide has been linked to SARS-CoV-2 infection and death. We hypothesized that long-term exposure to farming-related air pollutants might predispose to an increased risk of COVID-19-related death. To test this hypothesis, we performed an ecological study of five Italian Regions (Piedmont, Lombardy, Veneto, Emilia-Romagna and Sicily), linking all-cause mortality by province (administrative entities within regions) to data on atmospheric concentrations of particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) and ammonia (NH3), which are mainly produced by agricultural activities. The study outcome was change in all-cause mortality during March-April 2020 compared with March-April 2015-2019 (period). We estimated all-cause mortality rate ratios (MRRs) by multivariate negative binomial regression models adjusting for air temperature, humidity, international import-export, gross domestic product and population density. We documented a 6.9% excess in MRR (proxy for COVID-19 mortality) for each tonne/km2 increase in NH3 emissions, explained by the interaction of the period variable with NH3 exposure, considering all pollutants together. Despite the limitations of the ecological design of the study, following the precautionary principle, we recommend the implementation of public health measures to limit environmental NH3 exposure, particularly while the COVID-19 pandemic continues. Future studies are needed to investigate any causal link between COVID-19 and farming-related pollution.

More pests but less pesticide applications: Ambivalent effect of landscape complexity on conservation biological control.

In agricultural landscapes, the amount and organization of crops and semi-natural habitats (SNH) have the potential to promote a bundle of ecosystem services due to their influence on ecological community at multiple spatio-temporal scales. SNH are relatively undisturbed and are often source of complementary resources and refuges, therefore supporting more diverse and abundant natural pest enemies. However, the nexus of SNH proportion and organization with pest suppression is not trivial. It is thus crucial to understand how the behavior of pest and natural enemy species, the underlying landscape structure, and their interaction, may influence conservation biological control (CBC). Here, we develop a generative stochastic landscape model to simulate realistic agricultural landscape compositions and configurations of fields and linear elements. Generated landscapes are used as spatial support over which we simulate a spatially explicit predator-prey dynamic model. We find that increased SNH presence boosts predator populations by sustaining high predator density that regulates and keeps pest density below the pesticide application threshold. However, predator presence over all the landscape helps to stabilize the pest population by keeping it under this threshold, which tends to increase pest density at the landscape scale. In addition, the joint effect of SNH presence and predator dispersal ability among hedge and field interface results in a stronger pest regulation, which also limits pest growth. Considering properties of both fields and linear elements, such as local structure and geometric features, provides deeper insights for pest regulation; for example, hedge presence at crop field boundaries clearly strengthens CBC. Our results highlight that the integration of species behaviors and traits with landscape structure at multiple scales is necessary to provide useful insights for CBC.

Assessing the cascading impacts of natural disasters in a multi-layer behavioral network framework.

Natural disasters negatively impact regions and exacerbate socioeconomic vulnerabilities. While the direct impacts of natural disasters are well understood, the channels through which these shocks spread to non-affected regions, still represents an open research question. In this paper we propose modelling socioeconomic systems as spatially-explicit, multi-layer behavioral networks, where the interplay of supply-side production, and demand-side consumption decisions, can help us understand how climate shocks cascade. We apply this modelling framework to analyze the spatial-temporal evolution of vulnerability following a negative food-production shock in one part of an agriculture-dependent economy. Simulation results show that vulnerability is cyclical, and its distribution critically depends on the network density and distance from the epicenter of the shock. We also introduce a new multi-layer measure, the Vulnerability Rank (VRank), which synthesizes various location-level risks into a single index. This framework can help design policies, aimed to better understand, effectively respond, and build resilience to natural disasters. This is particularly important for poorer regions, where response time is critical and financial resources are limited.

Relationship of insect biomass and richness with land use along a climate gradient.

Recently reported insect declines have raised both political and social concern. Although the declines have been attributed to land use and climate change, supporting evidence suffers from low taxonomic resolution, short time series, a focus on local scales, and the collinearity of the identified drivers. In this study, we conducted a systematic assessment of insect populations in southern Germany, which showed that differences in insect biomass and richness are highly context dependent. We found the largest difference in biomass between semi-natural and urban environments (-42%), whereas differences in total richness (-29%) and the richness of threatened species (-56%) were largest from semi-natural to agricultural environments. These results point to urbanization and agriculture as major drivers of decline. We also found that richness and biomass increase monotonously with increasing temperature, independent of habitat. The contrasting patterns of insect biomass and richness question the use of these indicators as mutual surrogates. Our study provides support for the implementation of more comprehensive measures aimed at habitat restoration in order to halt insect declines.

The competitiveness analysis of shallot in Indonesia: A Policy Analysis Matrix.

Shallot is a national strategic commodity in Indonesia, but it is development has a fundamental technical, socioeconomic, and policy support problems. Therefore, it is essential to know the competitiveness of shallot in Indonesia and the incentive policy to implement the comparative advantage to become a sustainable competitive advantage. The purposes of this study are to (1) analyze the profitability of shallot farming privately and socially, (2) analyze the competitiveness of shallot farming from a competitive and comparative advantage perspective, (3) review the impact of government policy on shallot farming, and (4) formulate incentive policies in the development of shallot commodities. The empirical results of the Policy Analysis Matrix revealed that shallot farming in production centers in Indonesia has both competitive and comparative advantages. The highest competitive and comparative advantages were found in the dry season in the upland of Malang district with the coefficient values of PCR (Private Cost Ratio) of 0.268-0.508 and DRCR (Domestic Resource Cost Ratio) of 0.208-0.323. The lowest competitive advantage was found in the lowland of East Lombok district in the dry season with a coefficient value of PCR 0.728-0.844. The lowest comparative advantage in the dry season was found in East Lombok district with a DRCR of 0.448, while in the rainy season, it was found in Wonosobo district with a DRCR of 0.522. These results mean that it is more profitable for Indonesia to increase domestic shallot production than to import. Improving shallot competitiveness can be carried out by implementing advanced technology, agricultural infrastructure, capacity building of farmers' resources, and government incentive policies to increase productivity and competitiveness sustainability.

Preliminary Study on Survey and Population Dynamic of the Terrestrial Snail Monacha obstructa (Pfeiffer) (Hygromiidae, Mollusca) at Crop Fields in Fayoum Governorate, Egypt.

<b>Background and Objective:</b> <i>Monacha obstructa</i> has a serious harmful impact as agricultural pest infested field crops, fruits, vegetables and ornamental plants nurseries in multiple Egyptian governorates. The objective of this research was estimating the population dynamic of the terrestrial gastropod species <i>Monacha obstructa</i> (Pfeiffer) (Hygromiidae) on two economic crop fields and its correlation with temperature degree and relative humidity, the level of infestation on other economic crops had been estimated as well. <b>Materials and Methods:</b> This study was conducted in three sites in Fayoum governorate, 1) Forkous village at Tamiya District, 2) Dar Ramadsite including the Experimental farm and research station of the Faculty of Agriculture, Fayoum University, Fayoum District and 3) Feedimeen village at Sannoris District. The distribution and population dynamics of <i>Monacha obstructa</i> were assessed as one of dominant species on two field crops Egyptian clover <i>Trifolium alexandrinum </i>L. and wheat <i>Triticum aestivum</i> L. at Forkous village, Tamiya District and Dar Ramad site, Fayoum District, during two successive seasons 2016/2017 and 2017/2018. <b>Results:</b> Majority of the examined crops in the sites were found with heavy infestation of this species, while the two species <i>Cochlicella acuta</i> (Müller) (Geomitridae) and <i>Massylaea vermiculata </i>(Müller) (Helicidae) recorded in December, 2017 and in January, 2018, respectively, on mango trees in Feedimeen at Sannoris district for only one time. High density of <i>M. obstructa</i> recorded on Egyptian clover more than wheat at Forkous village and Dar Ramad site for the both seasons in this study. <b>Conclusion:</b> Results concluded that <i>Monacha obstructa</i> has a serious harmful impact as agricultural pest infested field crops, fruits, vegetables and ornamental plants nurseries in Forkous village and Dar Ramad site, respectively.

Shift of bacterial communities in heavy metal-contaminated agricultural land during a remediation process.

Anthropogenic activities accompanied by heavy metal waste threaten the environment. Heavy metal pollution alters the soil microbial community composition, and the microorganisms that adapt to this stress increase in abundance. The remediation process of contaminated soil not only reduces the concentration of heavy metals but also alters the bacterial communities. High-throughput 16S rDNA sequencing techniques were applied to understand the changes in soil microbial communities. Using the remediation approach of the soil mixing, the concentrations of heavy metals in the contaminated areas were diluted and the soil environment was changed. The change of soil environment as a disturbance contributed to the alteration of microbial diversity of the remediated areas. The pH and heavy metals (Cr, Cu, Ni, and Zn) were the most influential factors driving the changes in community structure. The bacterial community structure was significantly different among sample areas. The decrease of heavy metals in soil may be the important factors that changed the microbial composition. This study provides the better understanding of the changes in composition of microbial communities affected by the remediation process in heavy metal-contaminated soil.

Farm diversification as a potential success factor for small-scale farmers constrained by COVID-related lockdown. Contributions from a survey conducted in four European countries during the first wave of COVID-19.

This paper explores to what extent product and marketing channel diversification contributed to the economic success of small-scale agricultural producers involved in short food supply chains after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. A survey was conducted between April and July 2020 in four countries of the European Union-Estonia, Hungary, Portugal and Romania,-resulting in a relatively large sample of farmers (N = 421). The analysis was built on a semi-nonparametric approach. Approximately 19 percent of small-scale producers were able to increase sales during the first wave of the pandemic, although country-level variation was significant. Fruits and vegetables were by far the most popular products. The importance of specific channels varied across countries, but farm gate sales were among the most important marketing channels both before and during the first wave. The importance of channels that were based on digital resources and home delivery increased. Our evidence indicates that diversification was a strategy that paid off, both in terms of marketing channels and different product categories. However, the impact appears to be nonlinear; the initial advantage generated by diversification rapidly tapered off, either temporarily (in the case of products), or permanently (in the case of marketing channels). Later research may clarify whether these findings are generalizable in other socio-economic contexts, as well as in a non-COVID situation.

Air quality-related health damages of food.

Agriculture is a major contributor to air pollution, the largest environmental risk factor for mortality in the United States and worldwide. It is largely unknown, however, how individual foods or entire diets affect human health via poor air quality. We show how food production negatively impacts human health by increasing atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM2.5), and we identify ways to reduce these negative impacts of agriculture. We quantify the air quality-related health damages attributable to 95 agricultural commodities and 67 final food products, which encompass >99% of agricultural production in the United States. Agricultural production in the United States results in 17,900 annual air quality-related deaths, 15,900 of which are from food production. Of those, 80% are attributable to animal-based foods, both directly from animal production and indirectly from growing animal feed. On-farm interventions can reduce PM2.5-related mortality by 50%, including improved livestock waste management and fertilizer application practices that reduce emissions of ammonia, a secondary PM2.5 precursor, and improved crop and animal production practices that reduce primary PM2.5 emissions from tillage, field burning, livestock dust, and machinery. Dietary shifts toward more plant-based foods that maintain protein intake and other nutritional needs could reduce agricultural air quality-related mortality by 68 to 83%. In sum, improved livestock and fertilization practices, and dietary shifts could greatly decrease the health impacts of agriculture caused by its contribution to reduced air quality.

What empowerment indicators are important for food consumption for women? Evidence from 5 sub-Sahara African countries.

This paper draws on data from five sub-Sahara African countries; Uganda, Rwanda, Malawi, Zambia, and Mozambique consisting of 10,041 married women who were cohabitating with a male spouse. The study aim was to investigate the relationship between women's empowerment and women's dietary diversity and consumption of different food items. Women's empowerment was measured using the indicators in the five domains of Women's Empowerment in Agriculture index (WEAI) and women's dietary diversity and food consumption was examined using the women's dietary diversity score (WDDS) measure. OLS and LPM regressions were used and analyses were confirmed using marginal effects from Poisson and logistic regressions. Results suggest that three out of the 10 WEAI indicators of empowerment showed different magnitude and direction in significant associations with improved WDDS and varied associations were found in three out of the five countries examined. In addition, the three significant empowerment indicators were associated with the consumption of different food groups in three out of the five countries examined suggesting that diverse food groups account for the association between the WEAI and WDDS. Improved autonomy, and input in production were associated with improved likelihoods of consumption of dairy products, and fruits and vegetables including vitamin A-rich produce. Empowerment in public speaking was associated with improved consumption of other fruits and vegetables including vitamin A-rich produce. The varied nature of empowerment indicators towards improving women's dietary diversity and food consumption suggests that different empowerment strategies might confer different benefits towards the consumption of different food groups. Further, findings imply that interventions that seek to empower women should tailor their strategies on existing contextual factors that impact on women.

ERA5-based global assessment of irrigation requirement and validation.

While only 20% of harvested lands are actually irrigated, 40% of global agricultural production originates from irrigated areas. Therefore, assessing irrigation requirements is essential for the development of effective water-related policies for an efficient management of water resources. Moreover, global-scale analyses are becoming increasingly relevant, motivated by globalized production and international trade of food as well as by the need of common strategies to address climate change. In this study, a comprehensive model to estimate crop growth and irrigation requirements of 26 main crops at global scale is presented. The model computes a soil water balance using daily precipitation and reference evapotranspiration based on a high-resolution ERA5 reanalysis dataset from the European Copernicus Program. The irrigation requirement, defined as the minimum water volume to avoid water stress, is computed for year 2000 at the resolution of 5 arc-min (or 0.0833°) and aggregated at different spatial and temporal scales for relevant analyses. The estimated global irrigation requirements for 962 km3 is described in detail, also in relation to the spatial variability and to the monthly variation of the requirements. A focus on different areas of the world (California, Northern Italy and India) highlights the wealth of information provided by the model in different climatic conditions. National data of irrigation withdrawals have been used for an extensive comparison with model results. A crop-specific validation has also been made for the State of California, comparing model results with local data of irrigation volume and independent estimates of crop water use. In both cases, we found a good agreement between model results and real data.

Agricultural land use curbs exotic invasion but sustains native plant diversity at intermediate levels.

Unveiling the processes driving exotic plant invasion represent a central issue in taking decisions aimed at constraining the loss of biodiversity and related ecosystem services. The invasion success is often linked to anthropogenic land uses and warming due to climate change. We studied the responses of native versus casual and naturalised exotic species richness to land uses and climate at the landscape level, relying on a large floristic survey undertaken in North - Eastern Italy. Both climate and land use drove exotic species richness. Our results suggest that the success of plant invasion at this scale is mainly due to warm climatic conditions and the extent of urban and agricultural land, but with different effects on casual and naturalized exotic species. The occurrence of non-linear trends showed that a small percentage of extensive agricultural land in the landscape may concurrently reduce the number of exotic plant while sustaining native plant diversity. Plant invasion could be potentially limited by land management, mainly focusing on areas with extensive agricultural land use. A more consciousness land management is more and more commonly required by local administrations. According to our results, a shift of intensive to extensive agricultural land, by implementing green infrastructures, seems to be a win-win solution favouring native species while controlling the oversimplification of the flora due to plant invasion.

Farming System for Nutrition-a pathway to dietary diversity: Evidence from India.

Farming is the main livelihood of a majority of people in India. The country is also home to a large population of undernourished people. This indicates potential for mainstreaming the nutrition dimension in the farming system to impact on nutrition outcomes. A Farming System for Nutrition (FSN) study was conducted in two agro-ecologically different locations from 2013-2018, to explore the feasibility of nutrition-sensitive agricultural interventions. The baseline survey in 2013-2014 revealed that the population in the study area was largely undernourished and that household diets were cereal-dominated. The FSN model was designed in consultation with community members, to increase availability of nutrient-dense cereals and pulses, by enhancing production and crop diversification at the farm level, promoting cultivation of nutrient-rich fruits and vegetables in nutrition gardens and supporting interventions to promote access to animal foods. Nutrition awareness initiatives were undertaken to build capacity at the local level and translate production diversity to consumption diversity. An endline survey was conducted in 2017 (July-October), following three years of intervention. Crop, vegetable and animal food production and food consumption was compared with the baseline data. There was evidence of higher production and consumption of nutrient rich foods, improved household dietary diversity; and understanding and acceptance of nutrition-sensitive agriculture. The number of items consumed under each food group, frequency of consumption of food and average per capita intake of nutrient-rich foods were found to have improved. The results provide evidence regarding feasibility of location-specific FSN models to promote sustainable and healthy diets, using locally available plant and animal food resources, to address nutrition deficiencies in farm families.