Difference between revisions of "Energy input in the Maize value chain in Benin"
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Worldwide, maize (''Zea mays l.'') is the most widely cultivated crop with a production of over a billion tons per year and is therefore of very high importance for global food security and livelihoods, especially in developing countries. According to Leroux et al. (2019), maize is the leading staple food in West African countries with a yearly consumption of more than 30 kg/capita. From 2007-2016, yields of rainfed maize systems in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) range between 1.68 to 1.99 t/ha, which is 15-25% of the yield potential for water-limited production (ten Berge et al., 2019). Maize can be prepared in different forms which include whole-maize foods, porridges or beverages (Ekpa et al., 2018). In, maize is the most important staple food and the most cultivated crop, with 85% of farmers growing it. The area devoted to maize production is about one-third of the total agricultural area in Benin (Amegnaglo, 2018). | Worldwide, maize (''Zea mays l.'') is the most widely cultivated crop with a production of over a billion tons per year and is therefore of very high importance for global food security and livelihoods, especially in developing countries. According to Leroux et al. (2019), maize is the leading staple food in West African countries with a yearly consumption of more than 30 kg/capita. From 2007-2016, yields of rainfed maize systems in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) range between 1.68 to 1.99 t/ha, which is 15-25% of the yield potential for water-limited production (ten Berge et al., 2019). Maize can be prepared in different forms which include whole-maize foods, porridges or beverages (Ekpa et al., 2018). In, maize is the most important staple food and the most cultivated crop, with 85% of farmers growing it. The area devoted to maize production is about one-third of the total agricultural area in Benin (Amegnaglo, 2018). | ||
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== Plant production == | == Plant production == | ||
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== Postharvest == | == Postharvest == | ||
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== Cropping calendar == | == Cropping calendar == | ||
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= Greenhouse gas emissions = | = Greenhouse gas emissions = | ||
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[[Category:Energy]] | [[Category:Energy]] | ||
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Revision as of 16:20, 23 January 2020
Introduction
Maize production
Worldwide, maize (Zea mays l.) is the most widely cultivated crop with a production of over a billion tons per year and is therefore of very high importance for global food security and livelihoods, especially in developing countries. According to Leroux et al. (2019), maize is the leading staple food in West African countries with a yearly consumption of more than 30 kg/capita. From 2007-2016, yields of rainfed maize systems in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) range between 1.68 to 1.99 t/ha, which is 15-25% of the yield potential for water-limited production (ten Berge et al., 2019). Maize can be prepared in different forms which include whole-maize foods, porridges or beverages (Ekpa et al., 2018). In, maize is the most important staple food and the most cultivated crop, with 85% of farmers growing it. The area devoted to maize production is about one-third of the total agricultural area in Benin (Amegnaglo, 2018).
Energy conversion factors
Maize value chain in Benin
Maize production has different processing steps, most of them are performed sequentially. Maize production starts with activities of land preparation, where fields are prepared for the planting. The activities of plant production include the processes from planting to harvest. Postharvest activities are the processing steps until reaching the final product.
Smallholder farmers usually do the land preparation and plant production manually, medium-sized farms commonly request the services concerning machinery for land preparation and equipment with or without operator. Large farms usually own the tractors for the cultivation of their crops.
Land preparation
During the clearing of the fields, bushes and shrubs are cut down manually and removed/burned by workers equipped with machetes. The ploughing is done either manually by farmers equipped with hoes or mechanized with the help of tractors.
Process |
Number of farms |
Labor inputs (Man-hour/ha) |
Manual clearing |
12 |
137.9 (± 84.2) |
Manual ploughing |
7 |
181.1 (± 85.2) |
Process |
Number of observations |
Fuel (l/ha) |
Machine-time (h/ha) |
|
Mechanized ploughing |
2 |
13.1 (± 4.9) |
2.3 (± 1.1) |
Plant production
Postharvest
Cropping calendar
Energy input
Greenhouse gas emissions
