Darfour Bernard, Rosentrater Kurt A
Radiation Technology Centre, Biotechnology and Nuclear Agriculture Research Institute, Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, Accra, Ghana.
Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department, Iowa State University of Science and Technology, Ames, IA, United States.
Front Nutr. 2022 Aug 19;9:725815. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2022.725815. eCollection 2022.
Maize is a major staple crop mainly produced by smallholder farmers in developing nations. Grain losses happen in Sub-Saharan Africa, and therefore the objective of this study was to assess the different kinds of pre-harvest and post-harvest losses that maize farmers in Ghana encounter. The storage practices, and farmers' awareness and knowledge of mycotoxin contamination in maize were also assessed. The study area had five regions, and three districts per region. The study sites were selected purposefully because of the prior knowledge of farmers on maize production. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect the data, and a purposive sampling technique was used to select 75 maize farmers for the interview. The male maize farmers were many compared to females. Over 70% of farmers were at least 40 years. Over 50% of farmers had basic education except those in the northern region. Grain yields were generally low, and at least 60% of farmers experienced post-harvest loss. The period of grain storage and the storage techniques were the prerogatives of the farmers but largely dependent on farmers' financial status. Farmers basically used synthetic chemicals, and a few of the farmers decided to use plant materials during grain treatment.
玉米是一种主要的主食作物，主要由发展中国家的小农户种植。撒哈拉以南非洲地区存在粮食损失，因此本研究的目的是评估加纳玉米种植户面临的各种收获前和收获后损失。还评估了玉米的储存做法以及农民对玉米中霉菌毒素污染的认识和了解。研究区域有五个地区，每个地区有三个区。由于事先了解农民的玉米生产情况，研究地点是有目的地选定的。使用半结构化问卷收集数据，并采用目的抽样技术挑选75名玉米种植户进行访谈。男性玉米种植户比女性多。超过70%的农民年龄至少为40岁。除了北部地区的农民外，超过50%的农民接受过基础教育。粮食产量普遍较低，至少60%的农民经历过收获后损失。粮食储存时间和储存技术由农民自行决定，但很大程度上取决于农民的经济状况。农民基本上使用合成化学品，少数农民在粮食处理时决定使用植物材料。
