Coordination and integration among farms within agri-food chains are crucial to tackle the issue of fragmentation within the primary sector, both at the European and national level. The Italian agri-food system still complains about the need to aggregate supply to support market dynamics, especially for niche and quality products that characterize the Made in Italy. It is well known that the Italian agri-food sector is closely linked to the relationship between agriculture on one hand and culture/tradition on the other, which is reflected in the high number of quality products that have obtained EU PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) and PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) recognition. The development of vertical forms of coordination has found significant support in recent years from the integrated supply chain design approach, which is increasingly becoming an essential tool for implementing rural development policies. In this context, the study provides a comparison between companies that have joined the Integrated Supply Chain Projects of the Rural Development Program and those that have not applied. The aim is to highlight any differences in order to understand policy impact. The analysis is based on the Emilia-Romagna region Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) data, and the sample consists of more than 2 thousand farms. The statistical analysis conducted compares treated and non-treated using the Welch-t-test for independent unmatched samples. The main results show higher values for treated farms when structural variables are analyzed, like the utilized agricultural area or the agricultural work unit. In general, higher balance sheet performances emerged for treated farms. In conclusion, this study shows that the Integrated Supply Chain Projects represent a worthwhile tool both to increase cooperation, food quality, and to enhance a competitive agricultural sector.
Considering the need to adopt more sustainable agricultural systems, it is important that sweet potato breeding programs seek to increase not only root productivity, but also the productivity and quality of branches for silage production. The objective was to evaluate the genetic divergence and the importance of traits associated with the production and quality of branch silage in sweet potato genotypes. The experiment was conducted on the JK Campus of the Federal University of Vales do Jequitinhonha and Mucuri Valleys in a randomized block design with 12 treatments and four repetitions. Twelve characteristics of branches and silage were evaluated. There was genetic variability between the genotypes, making it possible to select parents divergent for future breeding programs for silage production. The genotypes BD-54 and BD-31TO were the most divergent in relation to the others, being indicated its use in crossbreeding aiming the improvement of the culture for silage, once the high performance per se of all genotypes evaluated has already been verified in previous works. The characteristics Na, TDN and NDF were those that most contributed to the divergence.
The current with the rapid development of Internet and new media technology, the information openness and diversity makes ideological education is facing big challenge, in accordance with the "five a three-ring four law" teaching mode,the fundamental task of implementing ideological and political education, fostering values and cultivating talents is comprehensively carried out. We are advancing the resonance of the “three classrooms” and promoting the synchronous implementation of the “four transformations”, aiming to enhance the “five capacities” of students, according to the current construction of" big education courses "concept, change education thought and idea.
The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of potassium concentrations applied via fertigation on the growth, yield and chemical composition of eggplant ‘Ciça’ in a distroferric red Latosol. The treatments were composed of five concentrations of K2O (0, 36, 72, 108 and 144 kg ha-1 supplied via fertigation), using potassium chloride as a source, divided into six applications. The irrigation system was of the drip type and irrigation management was done via a “Class A” evaporometer tank. Harvest started at 62 days after transplanting (DAT) and lasted for five months. The variables evaluated were: plant height, number of leaves, fresh fruit mass, number of fruits per plant, yield per plant, productivity and classification of the fruits according to their length and diameter. At 85 DAT, fruit were collected for characterization as to the percentage of lipids, proteins and fibers. Although the potassium fertigation in cover provided a reduction in the production and productivity, the concentrations of 36 kg ha-1 and 72 kg ha-1 of K2O applied via fertigation, increased the physical-chemical characteristics of the fruits.
The purpose of this study is to investigate whether the strategic orientations of organizations have an impact on the resilience levels of employees in the digitalized world. The sample for this research is based on the convenience sampling method. In this study, the sub-factors of strategic orientation, namely innovation, technological orientation, customer focus, and competitor focus, are examined, and their potential effects on resilience are analyzed. Our research emphasizes the importance of psychological resilience in organizations that undergo continuous changes due to the impact of digital transformation, as it enhances employee performance and has positive implications for firms. The field study associated with this research was conducted on 316 individuals working in the service sector in the context of Turkey. The data collected for the research were analyzed using SPSS 25 software. The research findings indicate that the components of strategic orientation have an impact on the levels of psychological resilience.
Attempts were made in the present study to design and develop skeletally modified ether linked tetraglycidyl epoxy resin (TGBAPSB), which is subsequently reinforced with different weight percentages of amine functionalized mullite fiber (F-MF). The F-MF was synthesized by reacting mullite fiber with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) as coupling agent and the F-MF structure was confirmed by FT-IR. TGBAPSB reinforced with F-MF formulation was cured with 4,4’-diamino diphenyl methane (DDM) to obtain nanocomposite. The surface morphology of TGBAPSB-F-MF epoxy nanocomposites was investigated by XRD, SEM and AFM studies. From the study, it follows that these nanocomposite materials offer enhancement in mechanical, thermal, thermo-mechanical, dielectric properties compared to neat (TGBAPSB) epoxy matrix. Hence we recommend these nanocomposites for a possible use in advanced engineering applications that require both toughness and stiffness.
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