Archive for October, 2009
Investing in the Dairy Sector to Improve Rural Livelihood in India
The growth in agriculture sector influences the economical growth of closely linked rural non-farm sectors. In this article titled Investing in the Dairy Sector to Improve Rural Livelihood in India, author Awudu Abdulai analyses the linkages between agriculture and non-agriculture sectors. The results of survey conducted on the income, consumption patterns and investment interests of 150 households in the Karnal district of Haryana State shows that technology induced increase in agriculture income would influence the consumption pattern of farm households, increases non-farm investment and generates rural employment. The article also highlights the importance of dairy in particular, and agriculture in general in determining current and future incomes in rural areas.
Read the entire article here.
Energy-Efficient Grain Drying Resources
The following is an abstract of an original publication by authors Jeff Schaahczenski, Katherine Adam and Mike Morris, specialists at the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Services.
The ambient air system for grain drying recommended for the United States by The Ohio State University and other grain belt research institutions, as well as the Saskatchewan Ministry of Agriculture, is now state of the art and slowly replacing systems using fossil fuels, chiefly natural gas. Although not as much recent research has focused on solar technology for grain drying, solar was shown by University of Maryland studies to be feasible for small- and medium-size facilities for drying grain for on-farm use. Payback time for installing a solar system varies with the cost of fossil fuels and the costs of labor and materials for a solar installation. Resources for evaluating these two systems include links to key sources and a condensation of two reports from the University of Maryland.
Read the full article here.