Postsecondary nutrition program education in the hashemite Kingdom of Jordan: A brief report

BACKGROUND

Obesity is a growing public health concern in Jordan, which has experienced a noticeable transition associated with increased morbidity and mortality, due to nutrition-related noncommunicable diseases. The nutrition profession has also advanced in Jordan, but the expansion is not as robust as changes happening in other healthcare sectors. This brief report examines the current nutrition-affiliated programs offered in postsecondary institutions in Jordan.

METHODS

An electronic review of university websites and department webpages of all private and public universities in Jordan was conducted to identify the nutrition programs offered.

RESULTS

A total of 29 universities were identified; 10 public and 19 private universities. Eight universities (three private and five public) offered nutrition degree programs; all eight offered bachelor's degrees in human nutrition. One offered a PhD in nutrition and dietetics, and three offered master's degrees in nutrition and food sciences.

DISCUSSION

Postsecondary education in Jordan is progressing; however, few institutions offered nutrition education programs that prepare students to practice. The nutrition profession still lacks an official organization in Jordan compared to its European and U.S. counterparts. Establishment of a nutrition and dietetics organization that cooperates with universities to develop national recognitions and guidelines is necessary.

Greetings from foodland: Teaching biochemistry to BS students in food-related courses in Italy

Biochemistry has always been a mandatory topic within BS courses aimed at food science students at the University of Milan, namely: Food Science & Technology and Catering Sciences. Addressing biochemistry topics in this peculiar setting requires: (i) specific focus on topics that are seldom considered in courses offered in bio-medical curricula; (ii) close integration with other area disciplines, such as food biotechnology; (iii) ad hoc design of laboratory classes; and (iv) an array of elective courses covering specific aspects of biochemistry. In this context, for example, protein chemistry is presented by using food proteins of known structure and discussed in terms of structural features in the raw materials and of structural and chemical modifications occurring upon processing. Along the same lines, metabolic pathways and their regulation are presented starting from widespread metabolism-related issues and to issues related to food safety (including food allergies and intolerances). A similar "hands on" approach is used for laboratory classes, that cover about one third of total credits and are aimed at providing fundamental-type information by analyzing practical situations in the food chain. In spite of their inherent complexity and volume, biochemistry courses score very well with the students in mandatory anonymous surveys. Our approach to biochemistry courses seems to help the students in "visualizing" the practical implications of concepts acquired in other courses within their curricula. The students' appreciation is confirmed by the sizeable attendance to elective and specialized biochemical-themed courses. © 2019 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 47(4):394-403, 2019.

Food control and a citizen science approach for improving teaching of Genetics in universities

A Citizen Science approach was implemented in the laboratory practices of Genetics at the University of Oviedo, related with the engaging topic of Food Control. Real samples of food products consumed by students at home (students as samplers) were employed as teaching material in three different courses of Genetics during the academic year 2014-2015: Experimental Methods in Food Production (MBTA) (Master level), and Applied Molecular Biology (BMA) and Conservation Genetics and Breeding (COMGE) (Bachelor/Degree level). Molecular genetics based on PCR amplification of DNA markers was employed for species identification of 22 seafood products in COMGE and MBTA, and for detection of genetically modified (GM) maize from nine products in BMA. In total six seafood products incorrectly labeled (27%), and two undeclared GM maize (22%) were found. A post-Laboratory survey was applied for assessing the efficacy of the approach for improving motivation in the Laboratory Practices of Genetics. Results confirmed that students that worked on their own samples from local markets were significantly more motivated and better evaluated their Genetic laboratory practices than control students (χ(2)  = 12.11 p = 0.033). Our results suggest that citizen science approaches could not be only useful for improving teaching of Genetics in universities but also to incorporate students and citizens as active agents in food control. © 2016 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 44(5):450-462, 2016.

Food-based science curriculum yields gains in nutrition knowledge

BACKGROUND

Students may be receiving less than an average of 4 hours of nutrition instruction per year. Integrating nutrition with other subject areas such as science may increase exposure to nutrition education, while supporting existing academics.

METHODS

During the 2009-2010 school year, researchers implemented the Food, Math, and Science Teaching Enhancement Resource (FoodMASTER) Intermediate (FMI) curriculum in 18 fourth-grade classrooms, whereas 16 classrooms served as comparison. FMI is a hands-on, integrative curriculum for children in grades 3-5 that uses food as a tool to teach mathematics and science. Researchers developed a 28-item multiple-choice questionnaire to assess students' nutrition knowledge in 6 content areas. Students were evaluated at baseline and post-intervention. Data were analyzed using independent t tests. Analysis of covariance was employed to control for differences at baseline when assessing the effectiveness of the FMI curriculum to increase nutrition knowledge.

RESULTS

A significant improvement was observed in total nutrition knowledge at post-intervention (adjusting for baseline) between groups (F [1] = 128.95; p < .01) and in all content areas post-intervention.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings from this study suggest teachers were successfully able to integrate science and nutrition to meet multiple academic standards. More specifically, results showed implementation of the integrative FMI curriculum effectively improved fourth-graders' nutrition knowledge compared with students not exposed to FMI.

[[The prevention of food wastage by restoring the value to food: reflections of an agroeconomist]

Each year, about one trillion USD worth of food sales is lost or wasted. In addition to its economic impacts, food wastage has significant societal costs that are born indirectly by taxpayers. Should damage costs associated with food wastage be accounted for, this global wastage appears much higher. In fact, the monetization of environmental costs such as the impact of greenhouse gases, land erosion, water use and pollinators loss amnounts to another trillion USD. Furthermore, a valuation of social costs, such as health effects of pesticides, loss of livelihoods and conflicts over natural resources adds another trillion USD. Noteworthy is the fact that not all food wastage reduction strategies are equal in terms of environmental efficiency and reducing food wastage must be a priority over energy recovery fromn food wastage. As a case study, the Italian National Plan for Food Waste Prevention (PINPAS) aims at reducing food wastage upstream the food chain, will be considered. PINPAS also seeks to improve recovery measures of unsold food. As indicated in the Guidelines on the preparation of food waste prevention programmes by the European Commission, PINPAS engages all stakeholders of the agri-food chain, from policy makers to civil groups aid producers. The first action will be the reintroduction of food education at school.

"Keeping our mission, changing our system": translation and organizational change in natural foods co-ops

Institutional theory has played a central role in the study of organizations for over half a century, but it often overlooks the actions of the people who bring organizations to life. This article advances an inhabited approach to institutional analysis that foregrounds the creativity of organizational members. It argues that people use local cultures to translate and respond to institutional pressures. The article analyzes qualitative data from countercultural co-op stores that have been pushed to conform to mainstream forms of business organization by a competitive market and demonstrates that translation explains why outcomes that institutional theory would not predict have come to pass.

Discovering terroir in the world of chocolate

The author investigates the applicability of the word “terroir” to chocolate. As a Master of Wine, wine journalist, and wine educator, the author has tried to understand how “terroir,” the environmental and human factors associated with growing vines and making wine, impacts the flavor of wine. Comparing and contrasting viticulture and winemaking to cacao farming and chocolate manufacture, the author analyzes to what degree terroir could be a concept that informs chocolate appreciation. He notes that the great distances between cacao farms and factories encourage the perception of cacao and chocolate as commodities. He observes that the varietal and origin nomenclature of cacao can be at worst misleading and generally lacks clarity and precision. He shows how the many steps that transform cacao into chocolate threaten the expression of terroir in the final product. Yet he acknowledges that there could be a basis for use of the word in the world of cacao and chocolate.

The work of local culture: Wendell Berry and communities as the source of farming knowledge

When Wendell Berry and others criticize contemporary agriculture, their arguments are often dismissed as naive and grounded in longstanding agrarian myth, rather than engagement with contemporary problems. But Berry's proposals developed in response to a series of learning methods he encountered, and options for advocacy he explored, during the 1960s and 1970s. Agricultural institutions sought to assign more power to institutionalized scientific knowledge, shrinking the role of farmers. Berry sought an alternative definition of knowledge, drawing upon his training as a writer, as well as his experiences with manual farm work and the methods of environmentalist organic growers. He eventually concluded that only a community of farmers could produce and store effective knowledge and insisted that knowledge must be tacit -- largely situated in locality, skills, and culture. His ideas had little influence on most people employed in contemporary agriculture. However, those ideas profoundly shape the work of sustainable food advocates, such as Michael Pollan, who like Berry fear reductionism and celebrate the values of traditions.

Industrious peasants in east and west: markets, technology, and family structure in Japanese and Western European agriculture

Jan de Vries engages with Osamu Saito's discussion of Tokugawa Japan, in particular, his exploration of de Vries's concept of an industrious revolution for East Asia, which was published in this journal in 2010. The discussion bears on the ongoing debate over the timing and character of the Great Divergence, when advanced parts of Europe pulled ahead of Asia. de Vries argues that the constraint on the Japanese rural household to acquire and shed labour delayed the shift from supply-side industriousness to demand-motivated industriousness, which in turn meant that the Great Divergence was already in place before 1800.

Is international agricultural research a global public good? The case of rice biofortification

The status of international agricultural research as a global public good (GPG) has been widely accepted since the Green Revolution of the 1960s and 1970s. While the term was not used at the time of its creation, the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) system that evolved at that time has been described as a 'prime example of the promise, performance and perils of an international approach to providing GPGs'. Contemporary literature on international agricultural research as a GPG tends to support this view and focuses on how to operationalize the concept. This paper adopts a different starting point and questions this conceptualization of the CGIAR and its outputs. It questions the appropriateness of such a 'neutral' concept to a system born of the imperatives of Cold War geopolitics, and shaped by a history of attempts to secure its relevance in a changing world. This paper draws on a multi-sited, ethnographic study of a research effort highlighted by the CGIAR as an exemplar of GPG-oriented research. Behind the ubiquitous language of GPGs, 'partnership' and 'consensus', however, new forms of exclusion and restriction are emerging within everyday practice, reproducing North-South inequalities and undermining the ability of these programmes to respond to the needs of projected beneficiaries.

Impact of non-livelihood-based land management on land resources: the case of upland watersheds in Uporoto Mountains, South West Tanzania

Various land management strategies are used to prevent land degradation and keep land productive. Often land management strategies applied in certain areas focus on the context of the physical environment but are incompatible with the social environment where they are applied. As a result, such strategies are ignored by land users and land degradation becomes difficult to control. This study observes the impacts of land management in the upland watersheds of the Uporoto Mountains in South West Tanzania. In spite of various land management practices used in the area, 38% of the studied area experienced soil fertility loss, 30% gully erosion, 23% soil loss, 6% biodiversity loss and drying up of river sources. Land management methods that were accepted and adopted were those contributing to immediate livelihood needs. These methods did not control land resource degradation, but increased crop output per unit of land and required little labour. Effective methods of controlling land degradation were abandoned or ignored because they did not satisfy immediate livelihood needs. This paper concludes that Integrating poor people's needs would transform non-livelihood-based land management methods to livelihood-based ones. Different ways of transforming these land management methods are presented and discussed.

[Assessment of frequency of consumption of selected sources of dietary fibre by students]

The study deals with the evaluation of the frequency of food products consumption that are a source of dietary fiber in the diet of students. Survey was conducted in May 2010 among 96 second-year students of 'Food Processing Technology and Human Nutrition' at the University of Rzeszow. The Block's questionnaire was used to assess the frequency of consumption of selected sources of dietary fiber. In order to determine the frequency of consumption of fruits, fruit juices, salads, potatoes, legumes, white bread, dark bread and other cereal products the 5-degree scale with verbal terms (less than once per week--0 points, roughly once a week--1 point, 2-3 times per week - 2 points, 4-6 times per week--3 points, every day--4 points) was used. It was found that none of the examined persons, both women and men, had a sufficient consumption of fiber in the diet. The main source of dietary fiber in the diet of the examined students were white and dark bread and potatoes. A small percentage of the examined persons consume fruits and vegetables in their daily diet.

China’s new-age small farms and their vertical integration: agribusiness or co-ops?

The future of Chinese agriculture lies not with large mechanized farms but with small capital-labor dual intensifying family farms for livestock-poultry-fish raising and vegetable-fruit cultivation. Chinese food consumption patterns have been changing from the old 8:1:1 pattern of 8 parts grain, 1 part meat, and 1 part vegetables to a 4:3:3 pattern, with a corresponding transformation in agricultural structure. Small family-farming is better suited for the new-age agriculture, including organic farming, than large-scale mechanized farming, because of the intensive, incremental, and variegated hand labor involved, not readily open to economies of scale, though compatible with economies of scope. It is also better suited to the realities of severe population pressure on land. But it requires vertical integration from cultivation to processing to marketing, albeit without horizontal integration for farming. It is against such a background that co-ops have arisen spontaneously for integrating small farms with processing and marketing. The Chinese government, however, has been supporting aggressively capitalistic agribusinesses as the preferred mode of vertical integration. At present, Chinese agriculture is poised at a crossroads, with the future organizational mode for vertical integration as yet uncertain.

Small farms, cash crops, agrarian ideals, and international development

This address is an exploration of a lifetime of disparate and often conflicting observations about how different people view what is right and good for agriculture, food, and farmers around the world. The exploration utilizes the concept of wicked problems to focus on the issue of differing historical interpretations of global agricultural development. Sandra Batie defines wicked problems as "dynamically complex, ill-structured, public problems" for which "there can be radically different views and understanding of the problem by different stakeholders, with no unique 'correct' view." The wicked problem construct is applied to four core ideas in the history of agricultural development -- small farms, cash crops, agrarian ideals, and international development -- to demonstrate the potential for using this concept to approach complex problems of historical interpretation and contribute to solutions to the challenges of global agricultural development. The author suggests historians should acknowledge contradictory interpretations adn work toward reconciliation and synthesis, where it is possible and, where not, toward a clear explication of the basis for remaining differences. The author also encourages historians to seek multidisciplinary research opportunities that will help bring insights about historical context to policy deliberations.

Understanding the evolution of rice technology in China - from traditional agriculture to GM rice today

This paper provides an historical survey of the evolution of rice technology in China, from the traditional farming system to genetically modified rice today. Using sociotechnological analytical framework, it analyses rice technology as a socio-technical ensemble - a complex interaction of material and social elements, and discusses the specificity of technology development and its socio-technical outcomes. It points to two imperatives in rice variety development: wholesale transporting agricultural technology and social mechanism to developing countries are likely lead to negative consequences; indigenous innovation including deploying GM technology for seed varietal development and capturing/cultivating local knowledge will provide better solutions.

Cross-country disparity in agricultural productivity: quantifying the role of modern seed adoption

Inequality of agricultural labour productivity across the developing world has increased substantially over the past 40 years. This article asks: to what extent did the diffusion of Green Revolution seed varieties contribute to increasing agricultural labour productivity disparity across the developing countries? We find that 22 per cent of cross-country variation in agricultural labour productivity can be attributed to the diffusion of high-yielding seed varieties across countries, and that the impact of such diffusion differed significantly across regions. We discuss the implications of these findings for policy directed at increasing agricultural labour productivity in the developing world.

Acting discursively: the development of UK organic food and farming policy networks

This paper documents the early evolution of UK organic food and farming policy networks and locates this empirical focus in a theoretical context concerned with understanding the contemporary policy-making process. While policy networks have emerged as a widely acknowledged empirical manifestation of governance, debate continues as to the concept's explanatory utility and usefulness in situations of network and policy transformation since, historically, policy networks have been applied to "static" circumstances. Recognizing this criticism, and in drawing on an interpretivist perspective, this paper sees policy networks as enacted by individual actors whose beliefs and actions construct the nature of the network. It seeks to make links between the characteristics of the policy network and the policy outcomes through the identification of discursively constructed "storylines" that form a tool for consensus building in networks. This study analyses the functioning of the organic policy networks through the discursive actions of policy-network actors.

Biofuel, dairy production and beef in Brazil: competing claims on land use in São Paulo state

This paper examines the competing claims on land use resulting from the expansion of biofuel production. Sugarcane for biofuel drives agrarian change in So Paulo state, which has become the major ethanol-producing region in Brazil. We analyse how the expansion of sugarcane-based ethanol in So Paulo state has impacted dairy and beef production. Historical changes in land use, production technologies, and product and land prices are described, as well as how these are linked to changing policies in Brazil. We argue that sugarcane/biofuel expansion should be understood in the context of the dynamics of other agricultural sectors and the long-term national political economy rather than as solely due to recent global demand for biofuel. This argument is based on a meticulous analysis of changes in three important sectors - sugarcane, dairy farming, and beef production - and the mutual interactions between these sectors.

Alchemy in eden: entrepreneurialism, branding, and food marketing in the United States, 1880–1920

Through an investigation into the origins of American food marketing, this dissertation reveals how branding—specifically, the centennial brands Quaker Oats, Coca-Cola, and Crisco—came to underpin much of today's market-driven economy. In a manner akin to alchemy, the entrepreneurs behind these three firms recognized the inherent value of an agricultural Eden, then found ways to convert common, low-cost agricultural goods—oats, sugar, and cottonseed oil—into appealing, high-revenue branded food products. In the process, these ventures devised new demand-driven business models that exploited technology and communications advances, enabling them to tap a nascent consumer culture. Their pioneering efforts generated unprecedented profits, laid the foundation for iconic billion-dollar brands, and fundamentally changed how Americans make daily food choices.

Exploring the resilience of Bt cotton's "pro-poor success story"

Expectations play a powerful role in driving technological change. Expectations are often encapsulated in narratives of technological promise that emphasize potential benefits and downplay potential negative impacts. Genetically modified (GM, transgenic) crops have been framed by expectations that they would be an intrinsically "pro-poor" innovation that would contribute powerfully to international agricultural development. However, expectations typically have to be scaled back in the light of experience. Published reviews of the socio-economic impacts of GM crops among poor, small-scale farmers in the developing world indicate that these effects have been very mixed and contingent on the agronomic, socio-economic and institutional settings where the technology has been applied. These conclusions should modulate expectations about the pro-poor potential of GM crop technology and focus attention on the conditions under which it might deliver substantial and sustainable benefits for poor farmers. However, the idea of GM crop technology as an intrinsically pro-poor developmental success story has been sustained in academic, public and policy arenas. This narrative depends upon an analysis that disembeds the technology from the technical, social and institutional contexts in which it is applied. Agricultural development policy should be based on a more rigorous and dispassionate analysis, rather than optimistic expectations alone.

The tomato queen of San Joaquin

The life of Tillie Lewis exemplifies key moments in American food history from the rise of the canning industry to wartime rations to the craze for diet food. Her biography was consciously manipulated and fashioned through the years to make it a quintessential rags-to-riches story. Nonetheless, her accomplishments stand out, marking her as a brilliantly successful woman in an industry dominated by men.

Deepening, and repairing, the metabolic rift

This paper critically assesses the metabolic rift as a social, ecological, and historical concept describing the disruption of natural cycles and processes and ruptures in material human-nature relations under capitalism. As a social concept, the metabolic rift presumes that metabolism is understood in relation to the labour process. This conception, however, privileges the organisation of labour to the exclusion of the practice of labour, which we argue challenges its utility for analysing contemporary socio-environmental crises. As an ecological concept, the metabolic rift is based on outmoded understandings of (agro) ecosystems and inadequately describes relations and interactions between labour and ecological processes. Historically, the metabolic rift is integral to debates about the definitions and relations of capitalism, industrialism, and modernity as historical concepts. At the same time, it gives rise to an epistemic rift, insofar as the separation of the natural and social worlds comes to be expressed in social thought and critical theory, which have one-sidedly focused on the social. We argue that a reunification of the social and the ecological, in historical practice and in historical thought, is the key to repairing the metabolic rift, both conceptually and practically. The food sovereignty movement in this respect is exemplary.

An introduction of internationalisation in food science doctoral program: a case study of Bogor Agricultural University, Indonesia

The Department of Food Science and Technology- Bogor Agricultural University (DFST-IPB), Indonesia is one of the oldest Departments of its kind in Indonesia. The Department has been founded since 1964 under the Faculty of Agricultural Engineering and Technology. The Department has a core competence in the area of food science and technology, particularly in the development of food chemistry, food microbiology, food process engineering, food analysis, food quality and safety. The Department offers educational programs: Undergraduate Program in Food Technology and Master as well as Doctorate Program in Food Science. The Master and Doctorate Program are enrolled by 35 students annually. Globalisation as a global phenomenon has been influencing DFST doctoral program as internationalization in response to globalization is a common feature in majority universities. Facing this challenge, DFST Doctorate Program's has made some efforts to provide students with international atmosphere, including having international guest lecturers, inviting prospective international students, and initiating join program with international universities. In addition, research focusing in tropical food and collaboration with international universities may need to be improved to widen the network, increase publication and place DFST doctorate program visible in the international forum. This paper is intended to reveal the perceived challenges of globalization for food science doctoral program (DFST-IPB) and to what extent and in what form internationalization has been achieved. However, it should be noted that this article is selective rather than comprehensive in reflecting on the internationalization process of food science doctoral program (DFST-IPB).

Future perspectives of nutrigenomics foods: benefits vs. risks

Nutrigenomics, defined as the application of high-throughput genomics tools in nutrition research is now past its incubation phase. The poorly understood associations of diet and disease prevention in particular will likely be the single most important catalyst to its accelerated and continued growth. Whether the goal of matching foods to individual genotypes to improve the health of those individuals can be attained, and personalised nutrigenomic foods enter the world's food markets, depends on numerous hurdles being overcome: some scientific in nature, some' technical and others related to consumer, market or ethical issues. Public adoption of new technologies is an important determinant for their success. Many of the drivers behind the trend in personalisation of food are now known, particularly ethical, legal, and social issues (ELSI) are the major drivers. Future development in the field of nutrigenomics undoubtedly will place its seemingly huge potential in better perspective. From the scientific responsibility point of view, one hopes that the new perspectives to be gained and progress to be made in this field will be so managed as to take the public at large on board, if we are to avoid another nutrition education disaster of the genetically modified organism type and dimension.

"Hop to the top with the Iowa Chop": the Iowa Porkettes and cultivating agrarian feminisms in the Midwest, 1964-1992

Over the course of twenty-eight years, between 1964 and 1991, members of the Iowa Porkettes, the women's auxiliary to the Iowa Pork Producer's Association (IPPA), promoted pork products in order to assert their roles as agricultural producers. For the members of the Porkettes, technological change and the growth of agribusiness provided new opportunities to challenge patriarchal hierarchies in agricultural organizations. Over time, as the overall number of hog farmers declined and the agricultural marketplace increasingly demanded professional expertise, the Porkettes transformed a women's auxiliary into a female-led commodity organization. Initially, members participated in appropriately "feminine" activities including Pork Queen contests, lard-baking contests, consultations with high school home economics instructors, and the distribution of promotional materials. By the late 1970s, however, members began to employ a new rhetoric shaped by their labor on the farm to claim an important stake in the production and marketing of commodities. They took responsibility for large-scale advertising campaigns, managed a growing budget, and became leaders within the IPPA. Their experiences offer insight into broader developments of second wave agrarian feminisms that enabled farm women's organizations to renegotiate gendered divisions of labor, claim new public spaces for women, and demand greater recognition from male agricultural leaders.

"Not to intrude": a Danish perspective on gender and class in nineteenth-century dairying

This study follows the thread of gender divisions in dairying in Denmark and the American Midwest in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Gender organization of dairying shifted at this time in diverse European and North American contexts. As agriculture mechanized and production scale increased, access to advanced education and international markets became critical. Women, who had been in the forefront of the development of dairying, ceded their leadership to men as these changes occurred. While some scholars see this shift as a strategic loss for women, this study finds that variables of class, marital status, rural demographics, and alternative occupations mediated the rural women's experience of change. Not all women experienced the change as a loss. The question of which women were invested in dairying is critical to understanding the course of change. Increasingly, middle-class farm women were turning away from the hard work of dairying and investing themselves in new ways in the upward mobility of their family farms. Rural life shaped distinct gender patterns in European and American history, and the rural experience shaped the larger trajectory of women's economic and political evolution, even though few rural women were involved in the organized women's movement.

Peasant friendly plant breeding and the early years of the green revolution in Mexico

Despite their success in boosting cereals production overall, the Green Revolution programs of the 1950s and 1960s were often criticized for failing to achieve their declared aim of alleviating world hunger. Most critics argued that the programs had produced a technology unsuited to the needs of small peasant farmers. This paper explores why such inappropriate technology might have been developed, focusing on the early years of the Rockefeller Foundation's Mexican Agricultural Program (MAP). It shows that some foundation officers as well as agricultural advisors had prior experience of the problems faced by small farmers in the United States and elsewhere. Moreover, the foundation's expressed concern for rural poverty does not appear to have been mere posturing by an organization anxious to be seen as an agent of philanthropy. Furthermore, the program's early work in maize-breeding was well tailored to the conditions of Mexican agriculture. Once the MAP was up and running, however, it became apparent that the task of getting new varieties and cultivation practices to small farmers was going to be difficult. Needing to make some kind of impact quickly, MAP staff chose to concentrate upon projects that were likely to find a rapid uptake. This meant setting aside the needs of peasant farmers to develop high-yielding varieties suited to large commercial farms.

Ranching modernization in tropical Brazil: foreign investment and environment in Mato Grosso, 1900-1950

Accompanying the expansion of modern beef production in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries were technologies and methods that proponents assumed were applicable to all ecosystems. successes in Europe, the United States, and Argentina convinced ranchers, investors, and animal scientists that these could be applied in the tropical Americas with ease. This assumption contributed to a wave of foreign ranching investment in semi-tropical Mato Grosso, Brazil, beginning in the early twentieth century. However, such a view failed to consider the specific characteristics of such environments and led to difficulties for several ventures and a re-evaluation of the relationship between ecosystems and the type of ranching appropriate to them. Ultimately, local Brazilian practice and experimentation proved more successful in tropical and semi-tropical Brazil, forcing foreign ranching concerns to adapt their techniques. Following the logic of earlier decades, more recently cattle-raising practices developed in Mato Grosso and similar regions have been applied in the tropical Amazon, resulting in widespread ecological devastation. The uneven experiences of foreign entrepreneurs in Mato Grosso offer valuable lessons for understanding the application of modernization technologies to diverse ecosystems; such knowledge can lead to a more sustainable approach to meat production.

Diversification of de-agrarianization? Income diversification, labor, and processes of agrarian change in southern and northern Malawi, mid-1930s to mid-1950s

This article investigates the links between market-oriented activities and subsistence production among peasant farmers in the Thyolo and Mzimba districts in Malawi from the mid-1930s to the mid-1950s. The two districts were chosen because of their differences in terms of land-labor ratios, quality of soils, and structure of market engagement. Exploring the different paths of agrarian change in these two districts demonstrates that they were dependent on the structure of market engagement and its effects on the supply and flexibility of labor. African agricultural history is best understood when agricultural systems are viewed in connection to the overall economic activities of rural households. More simply put, the dynamics of agrarian change in rural Africa cannot be understood without linking such changes to the wider economy and their impact on local labor processes.

Women's Nutribusiness cooperatives in Kenya: an integrated strategy for sustaining rural livelihoods

With funding provided by the Center for Higher Education of the United States Agency for International Development, The Pennsylvania State University and Tuskegee University collaborated with the University of Nairobi in establishing women's NutriBusiness Cooperatives in the Rift Valley and Central Provinces of Kenya. Between 1992 and 1999, the cooperatives were established, facilities and equipment were supplied and extensive participatory training was provided by university-affiliated investigators and project staff. This initiative enabled approximately 2500 rural Kenyan women farmers to add value to their crops by processing and locally marketing nutritious, convenient, culturally-appropriate weaning food mixes. Implementation of the NutriBusiness model is described and challenges of cultural engagement are highlighted.

The online professional master of science in food safety degree program at Michigan State University: an innovative graduate education in food safety

A market-research study conducted in 2000 indicated a need for a degree program in food safety that would cover all aspects of the food system, from production to consumption. Despite this, such a program was not enthusiastically supported by employers, who feared losing their valued employees while they were enrolled in traditional on-campus graduate programs. A terminal professional degree was successfully created, offered, and modified over the succeeding five years. The innovative, non-traditional online program was developed to include a core curriculum and leadership training, with elective courses providing flexibility in specific areas of student interest or need. The resulting Professional Master of Science in Food Safety degree program provides a transdisciplinary approach for the protection of an increasingly complex food system and the improvement of public health. Enrollment in the program steadily increased in the first three years of delivery, with particular interest from industry and government employees. The curriculum provides a platform of subject material from which certificate programs, short-courses, seminars, workshops, and executive training programs may be delivered, not only to veterinarians but also to related food and health specialists. The program has fulfilled a need for adult learners to continue as working professionals in the workforce. The benefit to the employer and to society is an individual with enhanced knowledge and networking and leadership skills.

People's concerns about biotechnology: some problems and some solutions

Pharmaceuticals and vaccines made by genetic engineering are well accepted all over the world. In contrast, there are many people, particularly in Europe, who are worried that food, made by the same new technology, may harm their health or cause damage to the environment. This is despite the growing evidence that genetically modified crops have the potential to improve world food security and the fact that there have, as yet, been no adverse results of their use in the food chain. Because of these worries and the mechanisms of politics, agricultural biotechnology has become the target of concerns about food safety (BSE, Foot & Mouth Disease), along with globalisation and the power of multinational companies. These concerns will, hopefully, be overcome by a more open and well-informed dialogue between scientists, opinion leaders, educators and the public. If judiciously applied, genetically modified crops will help increase sustainability and the fight against hunger in the world.

Using pork to teach students quality variations and how they are measured. 1998 UW-AS-305 Class

Using a total of eight pork loins representing DFD (dark, firm, and dry) and PSE (pale, soft, and exudative) conditions, 35 students conducted a series of objective and subjective measurements to demonstrate extremes in meat quality in a single 2-h laboratory. Students learned to objectively assess appearance, water-holding and water-binding capacity, ultimate pH (pHu), and shear force (cooked samples) by operating seven commonly known laboratory instruments. They also learned how to prepare and present samples for organoleptic analysis using hedonic and triangle tests. Finally, the students learned the factors related to meat quality and how extremely they can vary. Within one laboratory, they observed that DFD, when compared with PSE, averaged 1.5 units higher in pHu, 4.7% (absolute) less drip loss, bound 136% (absolute) more water, was darker in color (26 units lower L* value), was firmer with a more attractive structure requiring 1 kg/cm less force to shear, and was superior in organoleptic properties (overall 21% more desirable). Having 35 replicates to use for the data set, the results illustrated statistically significant variations in meat-quality traits and how they could be objectively measured. Nine months later, 12 of the students were surveyed. It was their perception that the laboratory was not any more effective than other laboratories in the same class, but they were able to remember 85% of the methods used to measure quality; about twice that of other methods taught in other laboratory sessions.