an artificial neural network (ann) approach was used to model the wheat production. from an extensive data collection involving 40 farms in canterbury, new zealand, the average wheat production was estimated at 9.9 t ha-1. the final ann model developed was capable of predicting wheat production under different conditions and farming systems using direct and indirect technical factors. after exa...

Issues of enhanced food security depend primarily on increasing agricultural production. Given this challenge, existing and new, appropriate technologies need to be integrated into agricultural research, to focus on the problems related to improving nutritional security. Among the different approaches, mutagenesis and the isolation of improved or novel phenotypes in conjunction with conventiona...

The economics of farming continues to be one of the major agricultural problems in the U.S. One important component of the solution is to increase profitability by crop improvement through plant breeding. Improved forage cultivars provide economic opportunities for livestock and crop farming operations and promote a more stable, sustainable agriculture. Farmers benefit by greater animal product...

The realization of sustainable development depends on the efficient use of energy resources. Energy consumption productivity and efficiency are among important indices that play a critical role in explaining the behavior of energy consumption structure of different economic sectors, which in turn, plays a key role in policy making. From among economic sectors, the agriculture sector, as an impo...

Altieri, M.A., 1992. Sustainable agricultural development in Latin America: exploring the possibilities. Agric. Ecosystems Environ., 39:!-2 I. This paper concentrates on what are perceived as critical issues which should be addressed if a productive and sustainable agriculture is to be achieved in Latin America. The attainment of such an agriculture is dependent on new technological innovations...

Bioelectrochemical systems (BES) are a newly emerged technology for energy-efficient water and wastewater treatment. Much effort as well as significant progress has been made in advancing this technology towards practical applications treating various types of waste. However, BES application for agriculture has not been well explored. Herein, studies of BES related to agriculture are reviewed a...

The most important recent political development has been the accession to the European Union in 2004 of eight former communist states and their integration to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The CAP as a largely uniform policy trying to cater for the needs of the very varied agricultural industry in 27 states across both Eastern and Western Europe is itself undergoing a radical transforma...

We propose a framework with endogenous allocation of land between agricultural production, sustainable forest management, and unsustainable forest exploitation in the form of illegal logging to explore deforestation and agricultural and timber supplies when property rights are insecure. Uncertainty over property rights arises through risk of confiscation on sustainably-managed forest land, and ...

Agricultural sustainability has the highest priority in all countries, whether developed or developing. Aero-space Remote Sensing and GIS technology are gaining importance as useful tools in sustainable agricultural management and development. This paper discusses the integrated use of Remote Sensing and GIS technology in several areas for sustainable agricultural development and management in ...

Agricultural residues have significant potential as a feedstock for bioenergy production, but removing these residues from the land can have negative impacts on soil health. Because of this computational tools are needed that can help guide decisions on the amount of agricultural residue that can be sustainably removed. Models and datasets that can support decisions about sustainable agricultur...