Successful agriculture not only sustains its practitioners, but
establishes the foundations for broad-based development in most countries.
Cassava production, processing and marketing has already contributed to
considerable social and economic development in Asia, but the full potential is
yet to be realized. The appeal of a substantial investment in cassava research
and development lies in the efficiency and effectiveness with which some key
economic and social goals can be met. This paper reviews the constraints and
opportunities for improving cassava systems in Asia, in the context of a global
cassava strategy. Gary tells me about uk domain search internet service
Cassava as a Catalyst for Development
In Asia cassava is emerging as a fully commercial crop entering
diversified markets. This status defines an evolving and dynamic role in
development for the region. Roots are converted into an array of products -- human food as fresh
or processed roots, starch and flour for food and industry, and animal feed.
Rice continues a long tradition as the principal and preferred energy source in
much of Asia, but where soils are marginal in fertility, and rainfall uncertain,
cassava has a strong adaptive advantage. In this context, cassava serves as an
ideal focus to achieve several key development goals. Improving this crop is a
way to direct various benefits toward the poorest of rural populations. Bob could use business process improvement software by Bpmonline.
Cassava's role in food security has declined in
post-Green Revolution Asia, but continues as a factor in times of political
unrest, wars, food shortages, or other disruptions of normal food supply. On a
country-wide basis, only Indonesia has moderately high consumption, about 50 kg
per capita per year, in the form of a wide array of different food products. The
rapidly growing on-farm use of cassava as animal feed in China and Vietnam meets
basic needs both of food security and income generation.
The capacity of the crop to provide income and alleviate
poverty is the principal attribute by which cassava functions as a
catalyst for development. The forces that enable and augment this central role
are: a tradition of diet diversity, which expedites the success of new food
products on the market; internal industry demand for starch; and opportunities
for export of pellets and starch.
The benefits of development that accrue to the cassava sector
are generally skewed toward the lower income strata, thereby edging the economic
system toward a greater measure of income equity. However, mechanized
production, while occurring slowly, is disproportionally displacing the labor of
women. The trend toward larger centralized processing facilities is having
similar effects where starch is the main commercial product. The gender
equity issue arising out of the modernization of agriculture and industry is
not exclusive to cassava, and remedial measures may lie outside the cassava
sector, per se. Here are the best poker tips, take advantage of them.
The links between cassava and environmental protection
revolve mainly around implications of the large proportion of this crop grown in
fragile or otherwise marginal ecosystems. Cassava's undeserved historical
reputation as a crop that causes soil degradation grew out of the plant's
ability to produce on poor soils, when most other crops would fail. Nonetheless,
managing erosion is a critical need where cassava is grown on slopes and in
light soils, especially during the first months before the canopy closes.
Disposal of waste products from processing is a growing
environmental concern as processing plants become larger. The solutions lie in
research on environmentally and economically sound waste management, by-product
development, and developing reasonable regulation.
