Drivers of fine-scale avian functional diversity with changing land use: an assessment of the effects of eco-estate housing development and management

Landscape Ecology - The effects of changing land use, and especially urbanisation, on species and functional diversity are of global concern. Eco-estates are a form of urban housing development...     

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on agricultural exports

The COVID-19 outbreak has shocked the world's economies in the year of 2020. As this pandemic spreads around the globe, many experts feared that the global food supplies might start running short, especially if supply chains were disrupted. COVID-19 also added to the uncertainty of the business operation. Therefore, it is critical to understand how COVID-19 pandemic affected global food supply and market. In this study, we investigate the impact of COVID-19 on agricultural export companies in China using a unique firm-level survey data. We found that although on average agricultural businesses experienced declines in the exports, exports of some agricultural products especially grain and oil held strong and even increased, implying the essential demand for staple food during the pandemic. Not surprisingly, exports of medicinal herb also increased significantly during the pandemic. However, exports of goods such as edible fungus and horticultural products sharply decreased. Our results also showed that in general, impact of COVID-19 on smaller firms was more severe than that on larger firms. The results of this study can provide useful guidance and implications for agricultural businesses and policy makers on their COVID-19 mitigation efforts to navigate this global pandemic.     

Development and validation of a short questionnaire to assess sodium intake

OBJECTIVES: To develop and validate a short food-frequency questionnaire to assess habitual dietary salt intake in South Africans and to allow classification of individuals according to intakes above or below the maximum recommended intake of 6 g salt day-1. DESIGN: Cross-sectional validation study in 324 conveniently sampled men and women. METHODS: Repeated 24-hour urinary Na values and 24-hour dietary recalls were obtained on three occasions. Food items consumed by >5% of the sample and which contributed > or =50 mg Na serving-1 were included in the questionnaire in 42 categories. A scoring system was devised, based on Na content of one index food per category and frequency of consumption. RESULTS: Positive correlations were found between Na content of 35 of the 42 food categories in the questionnaire and total Na intake, calculated from 24-hour recall data. Total Na content of the questionnaire was associated with Na estimations from 24-hour recall data (r = 0.750; P < 0.0001; n = 328) and urinary Na (r = 0.152; P = 0.0105; n = 284). Urinary Na was higher for subjects in tertile 3 than tertile 1 of questionnaire Na content (P < 0.05). Questionnaire Na content of <2400 and > or =2400 mg day-1 equated to a reference cut-off score of 48 and corresponded to mean (standard deviation) urinary Na values of 145 (68) and 176 (99) mmol day-1, respectively (P < 0.05). Sensitivity and specificity against urinary Na > or =100 and <100 mmol day-1 was 12.4% and 93.9%, respectively. CONCLUSION: A 42-item food-frequency questionnaire has been shown to have content-, construct- and criterion-related validity, as well as internal consistency, with regard to categorising individuals according to their habitual salt intake; however, the devised scoring system needs to show improved sensitivity.     

Isolation and purification of moniliformin

A bulk purification procedure is described for moniliformin, a mycotoxin produced by Fusarium moniliforme. The method involves methanol extraction of suitably molded maize, aqueous extraction of the methanol-free residue, ion exchange chromatography with a NaCl concentration gradient, desalination, and crystallization. A pKa value of 1.70 as well as molar absorptivities of 19100 (lambda (H2O) max 229 nm), 5600 (lambda (H2O) max 260 nm), and 4700 (lambda (MeOH) max 260 nm) L/mole/cm are reported for moniliformin.     

National fortification of staple foods can make a significant contribution to micronutrient intake of South African adults

BACKGROUND: A national survey found that micronutrient deficiencies are prevalent in South African children, particularly calcium, iron, zinc, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, vitamin A, E and C. Mandatory fortification of maize meal and wheat flour were introduced in 2003 to combat some of the deficiencies found in children. To date however, there has not been a national survey on dietary intake in adults. OBJECTIVES: The main objectives of this study were to evaluate the micronutrient intake of the diet consumed by the average adult South African by means of secondary data analyses and secondly to evaluate the effects of fortification on selected nutrient intakes. STUDY DESIGN: Secondary data analysis was carried out with numerous dietary surveys on adults to create a database that included sampling (and weighting) according to ethnic/urban-rural residence in line with the population census, of which 79% were black Africans and the majority resided in rural areas. The effect of fortification was evaluated by substituting fortified foods in the diet for the unfortified products. SUBJECTS: The combined database used in this study comprised 3229 adults. RESULTS: Mean calcium, iron, folate and vitamin B6 intakes were very low particularly in women. Mean intakes of most micronutrients were lower in rural areas. Fortification of maize meal and wheat flour (bread) raised mean levels of thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6 and folate above the recommended nutrient intakes (RNIs). In women, despite fortification, mean iron intakes remained below the RNIs, as did calcium since it was not in the fortification mix. CONCLUSION: The average dietary intake of adults was of poor nutrient density, particularly in rural areas. Fortification of maize meal and wheat flour (bread) considerably improved mean vitamin B6, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, folate and iron intakes as well as the overall mean adequacy ratio of the diet.