Medicinal herbs have been extensively utilized in the remediation of various health conditions. Dialium guineense fruit pulp, also well known as Velvet Tamarind is widely consumed in West Africa for its dietary and medicinal properties. The study aims to analyze the phytochemical constituents, vitamin content and the in vitro antioxidant effect of Dialium guineense fruit pulp (DGFP). The phytochemical constituents, vitamins (C, E, B1-12) composition, and in vitro antioxidant activity were examined utilizing standardized analytical methods. The qualitative and quantitative phytochemical screening of the fruit pulp of Dialium guineense was also carried out; the result indicated the presence of flavonoids, alkaloids, saponins, tannins, terpenoids, phenols, steroids, and cardiac glycosides in varying concentrations. The vitamin composition revealed that vitamin C was higher than other vitamins in the fruit pulp. The DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) and nitric oxide scavenging assay showed high radical scavenging activity while the FRAP (Ferric reducing antioxidant power) assay revealed significant reducing power. This indicates that Dialium guineense fruit pulp has potential health benefits.

A problem in post-harvest of avocado (Persea americana Mill.) is the heterogeneity in fruit ripening, due to differences in the time of fruit set and the inability to ripen on the tree, a situation that causes inconsistencies in quality and differences in the response to preservation and processing technologies. In postharvest, the application of ethylene gas in hermetic chambers has been used to advance ripening; however, the use of ethylene releasers in liquid form (ethephon) has been proposed as an alternative, mainly for the treatment of low volumes of fruit. The present work was carried out in the production zone of Salvador Escalante (Michoacán, Mexico) with the objective of evaluating the effect of the application of two concentrations of ethephon on the time and homogenization of fruit ripening of avocado cultivars (cv.) Hass and Méndez. Fruits with 23.4% (cv. Hass) and 24% (cv. Méndez) of dry matter were harvested; one group was immersed in a solution of ethephon 500 mg/L and the other in 1,000 mg/L, both for 5 minutes; the treated fruits plus a control were stored at 20 °C for 11 days. Changes in respiration, ethylene production, weight loss, firmness, epicarp and pulp color, total phenol, chlorophyll and total carotenoid concentrations were evaluated. The results showed that ethephon doses of 1,000 mg/L in cv. Hass and 500 mg/L in cv. Méndez presented a ripening process 2 days earlier than the control.

Kinnow production is hampered due to the lack of micronutrient applications such as zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), and manganese (Mn), which play a significant role in the metabolic activities of the plant, affecting yield and quality. The farmers of the region use mineral micronutrient fertilizers, but it leads to phytotoxicity due to unoptimized fertilizer application dose. In the present investigation, an attempt has been made to optimize the Zn, Mn, and Fe minerals dose as tank mix foliar application for improvement of fruit yield, quality, and uptake of nutrients. The twelve combinations of different doses of zinc sulphate, manganese sulphate, and ferrous sulphate fertilizers replicated three times were tested at kinnow orchards established at Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Bathinda, Punjab, India. The data revealed that the fruit drop was significantly low in the treatment F₁₂ (43.4%) (tank mix spray of 0.3% ZnSO₄ + 0.2% MnSO₄ + 0.1% FeSO₄ ) compared to control treatment. The fruit yield per tree was significantly higher in the treatment F12 compared to untreated control. The juice percentage was also recorded higher in treatment F12 as compared to control, and the juice percentage improved by 2.6%. The leaf nutrient analysis also revealed translocation of higher amount of nutrient from leaf to fruit under optimized supply of micronutrient. Thus, the application of tank mix spray of 0.3% ZnSO₄ + 0.2% MnSO₄ + 0.1% FeSO₄ may be used for better fruit yield and quality.

One significant importance of street vending in South Africa is its role in providing livelihoods and economic opportunities, especially for marginalized and vulnerable populations. However, Street vendors, particularly those selling agricultural commodities, face numerous challenges. Street vending in Moletjie Mmotong is a vital source of income and employment, offering affordable goods and services, including food, clothing, and household items. One potential solution is online selling, but there is limited knowledge about it in the informal sector. This study aims to analyze the factors affecting street vendors’ willingness to sell fruits and vegetables online in Moletjie Mmotong under Polokwane Municipality. Data was collected from 60 street vendors using a questionnaire and simple random sampling. Descriptive statistics identified and described the socio-economic characteristics of the vendors, while a binary logistic regression model analyzed the factors influencing their willingness to sell online. The study found that age, education level, gender, household size, and access to online selling information significantly influenced their willingness to sell online. The findings highlight the potential benefits of online selling for street vendors, such as increased sales and a broader customer base. The study recommends that governments provide training and workshops on online selling, develop educational programs, distribute educational materials, and create marketing strategies to support street vendors in transitioning to online platforms.

The development of the personal innovative competences in workers is of capital importance for the competitiveness of organizations, where the ability of the employees must respond in an innovative way to diverse situations that arise in specific contexts. Considering this, the question arises: How do innovative employees’ competences affect the sustainable development of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)? Therefore, the objective of this work is to present a multi-criteria method based on the Analytic Network Process (ANP), to relate innovative personal competences and the sustainable development of MSMEs. An instrument was applied to groups of experts from 31 Ecuadorian fruit-exporting MSMEs, to develop a multi-criteria decisional network that allowed identifying the innovative personal abilities that have the greatest impact on the sustainable development of these organizations. The results demonstrate the relevance of the elements of innovative personal competencies, with a cumulative participation of 39.15%, Sustainable Export Development with 32.18% and Improvements with 28.66%. It also presents three types of analysis: i) Global to establish the weight of each variable; ii) Influences, to establish solid cause-effect relationships between the variables and iii) Integrated. The most relevant innovative personal competences for sustainable development and improvements for exporting SMEs are teamwork, critical thinking, and creativity within the international context.