The study was conducted to analyze productivity and resource use efficiency in sugarcane production by random selection of 120 out grower farmers. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the production function analysis. Results of the analysis revealed that majority of the respondents (60%) were males and 40% were females engaged in sugarcane production, a mean age of 42 ...

Increasing demand for biofuel has intensified land-use change (LUC) for sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) expansion in Brazil. Assessments of soil quality (SQ) response to this LUC are essential for quantifying and monitoring sustainability of sugarcane production over time. Since there is not a universal methodology for assessing SQ, we conducted a field-study at three sites within the largest...

BACKGROUND Sugarcane is one of the most important crops in Brazil, mainly because of its use in biofuel production. Recent studies have sought to determine the role of sugarcane endophytic microbial diversity in microorganism-plant interactions, and their biotechnological potential. Epicoccum nigrum is an important sugarcane endophytic fungus that has been associated with the biological control...

The Mexican rice borer, Eoreuma loftini (Dyar) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), is an invasive species that originated from Mexico, and it is threatening to cause major economic losses to sugarcane, Saccharum spp., and rice, Oryza sativa L., industries in Louisiana. The insect is expected to reach sugarcane and riceproduction areas inLouisianaby2008, and infest all ofLouisiana sugarcane and rice indus...

biofuels present promising opportunities for Latin-American countries, since most countries in the region have a strong potential regarding biofuel production. However, the technology is not without costs. Biofuel production has faced criticisms regarding its environmental and social impacts. Most of them are related to indirect land use changes due to biofuel expansion. This paper aims at pres...

DISEASES ARE LIMITING factors of sugarcane production and breeding for resistance to diseases is a major goal in sugarcane variety improvement. Diseases result from complex interactions between plants, pathogens and environment, including humans and insect vectors of pathogens. History has shown that durability of resistance of sugarcane to diseases varies according to the host cultivar and to ...

Sugarcane is a major crop used for food and bioenergy production. Modern cultivars are hybrids derived from crosses between Saccharum officinarum and Saccharum spontaneum. Hybrid cultivars combine favorable characteristics from ancestral species and contain a genome that is highly polyploid and aneuploid, containing 100-130 chromosomes. These complex genomes represent a huge challenge for molec...

The aim of this study was to determine the effects of a bacterial inoculant and chemical additives on nutrient composition, in vitro degradation, total loss, aerobic stability, microbiological quality, and fermentative profile of sugarcane silage. Treatments were distributed to forty-eight mini-silos in a 2 × 4 factorial arrangement: two levels of microbial inoculant (INO, 0 or 4 g/t of fresh s...

The selection of sugarcane varieties is an important problem facing companies in Brazil that exploit sugarcane harvest for energy production. In the light of current concerns regarding the reduction of environmental damages and the efficiency of the production system, research into this problem is called for. In this context the authors begin by outlining the sugarcane variety selection in acco...