Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2023
Authors
Stefano PulitiAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Matthew M. McIntosh Andres F. Cibils Shelemia Nyamuryekung'e Richard Estell Andrew Cox Danielle M. Duni Qixu Gong Tony Waterhouse John P. Holland Huiping Cao Laura Boucheron Huiying Chen Sheri Spiegal Glenn Duff Santiago A. UtsumiAbstract
Objective: Precision livestock farming technologies show great promise for the management of extensive, arid rangelands, but more practical knowledge is needed to allow ranchers to determine potential applications and limitations for adoption. We tested a long-range wide area network (LoRa-WAN) precision livestock system over 3 mo (April–June 2020) in a ranch in southwest New Mexico, USA. The system monitors cattle position and movements, precipitation, and water trough water levels at pasture and ranch scales, in real time. Materials and Methods: Here we describe the components of the system and share what we have learned from our preliminary experiences. This system included a solar-power LoRa-WAN receiving station with the corresponding gateway, radio frequency antenna (824–894 MHz), and Wi-Fi bridge for data transmission into the Internet. The testbed network for testing LoRa-WAN sensors included 43 GPS-trackers deployed on lactating beef cows and 2 environmental sensors used to monitor precipitation regimens and trough water levels, respectively. Results and Discussion: The system collected data consistently for the trough levels and precipitation, whereas data from the cow GPS-trackers was highly heterogeneous. On average, 46 ± 4% of daily data packets logged by GPS-trackers were successfully transmitted through the LoRa-WAN system, exceeding 80% of successful transmission in several cases. This report documents the necessary infrastructure, performance, and maintenance of system components, which could be of significant information value to ranchers and researchers with a desire to deploy similar monitoring systems. Implications and Applications: This Technical Note documents the implemetation of a LoRa-WAN monitoring system at the ranch scale for a 3-mo period. The system has allowed the ranch manager and assisting staff to efficiently manage cattle inventories and promptly address animal welfare concerns. However, further research is required to assess the scalability of this system across commercial operating cattle ranches in the Southwest United States, thereby unlocking its potential for broader adoption and effect.
Authors
Antje Gonera Anna Birgitte Milford Katja-Maria Prexl Jonathan Romm Ingunn Berget Paula VarelaAbstract
A more plant-based diet will contribute to food sustainability. Achieving this change requires collaboration across disciplines which is not easy to achieve. This article illustrates how interdisciplinary collaboration in a large research project can be facilitated through a design-led innovation process juxtaposing approaches from design and science. Consumer insights were used in creative workshops to ideate and develop packaging and product concepts for plant-based food focusing on ‘environment’, ‘health’ and ‘Norwegian’ design imperatives. Learning loops of alignment – creation – feedback were applied to design and test six packaging prototypes of two product categories (Pea Porridge, Faba Bean Drink). Qualitative feedback was collected from 147 consumers and a quantitative survey with 1102 Norwegian consumers tested product expected liking and product-concept match. Younger consumers and users of plant-based products exhibited a higher expected liking vs. non-users and older respondents. Packaging design adopted for specific consumer segments can positively contribute to a shift to more plant-based diets. We show how a dynamic interdisciplinary innovation approach can be powerful to creating new product ideas, getting consumers’ input and fostering collaboration and learning among disciplines. We offer other researchers and the food industry actionable opportunity areas and design imperatives for their innovation activities around plant-based food.
Authors
Dalphy Ondine Camira Harteveld Paul Goedhart Ilse Houwers Jürgen Köhl Peter Frans de Jong Marcel WennekerAbstract
European canker is one of the most devastating fungal diseases of apple in most temperate regions. The causal agent, Neonectria ditissima, infects trees through wounds in the bark forming cankers that girdle the stem and eventually cause tree death. Timely protection of the trees is challenged by stagnation of symptom expression after infections for a long period of time. The objective of this research is to use a novel TaqMan PCR assay to detect and quantify N. ditissima during the asymptomatic colonization of apple wood. Pruning wounds on branches of the cultivars Elstar and Gala were inoculated with N. ditissima and wood discs were sampled at 2–6, 10–14, and 30–34 mm distance from the inoculation site after 3 hours, 2 weeks, 4 weeks and 8 weeks for the detection and quantification of the pathogen. The TaqMan PCR assay detected N. ditissima in 51% of the inoculated apple tree samples. This was more sensitive than the culturing method detecting N. ditissima in 11% of the samples. An accumulation of N. ditissima DNA up to 34 mm distance from the inoculation site was observed without development of visible symptoms. To our knowledge this is the first time colonization of N. ditissima was detected and quantified in the absence of symptoms of European canker. The implications of this research are discussed.
Authors
Paulina Paluchowska Zhimin Yin Erik Lysøe Simeon Rossmann Marta Janiszewska May Bente Brurberg Jadwiga ŚliwkaAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Jana Fránová Jaroslava Pribylová Rostislav Zemek Jiunn Luh Tan Zhibo Hamborg Dag-Ragnar Blystad Ondrej Lenz Igor KoloniukAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Hadush Tsehaye Beyene Leif Sundheim Arne Tronsmo May Bente Brurberg Dereje Assefa Anne Marte TronsmoAbstract
Fusarium verticillioides is the most common fungal pathogen of maize in Ethiopia. Many strains of this pathogen produce fumonisin myotoxins that are harmful to human and animal health. This study was conducted to determine the fumonisin-producing ability of isolates of F. verticillioides isolated from maize kernels collected from different maize- growing areas of the country. Eighty F. verticillioides isolates were grown on autoclaved maize cultures for one month, and the fumonisin content was quantified using Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). All the 80 isolates evaluated were able to produce detectable levels of total fumonisins in the maize culture with values ranging from 0.25 to 38.01 mg of the toxin per kg of culture material (fungal biomass and maize kernels). The mean levels of total fumonisins produced by the F. verticillioides isolates were not significantly (p>0.05) different among maize growing areas, however, the total fumonisins levels produced by isolates obtained from the same area as well as agroecological zones were wide-ranging. The results indicate that the majority (57.5%) of the F. verticillioides isolates associated with maize grains in Ethiopia produced total fumonisins >4 mg/kg, while 35% of the isolates produced total fumonisins <2 mg/kg. The widespread occurrence of higher fumonisin-producing strains across all maize-growing areas in Ethiopia indicates a possible food safety risk. Thus, efforts should be made to prevent the spread of this fungus with good agronomic practices and to implore all possible ways to avoid maize contamination with fumonisin both in the field and in storage.
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
Fuad Gasi Naris Pojskić Belma Kalamujić Stroil Oddmund Frøynes Milica Fotirić Akšić Mekjell MelandAbstract
In order to determine the pollinizer success rates between twelve apple cultivars in 2021 and 2022, 671 apple embryos were collected from 19 different orchards in Ullensvang (southwestern Norway) and Svelvik (southeastern Norway). Genomic DNA was extracted from the collected embryos and, afterward, a genetic characterization with 15 polymorphic microsatellite markers was conducted. An identical set of markers was also used on all twelve mother cultivars, as well as on six crabapple pollinizers, which were found in the investigated orchards. The obtained molecular data enabled paternity analyses to be performed with the objective of assigning a male parent to each embryo. The paternity analyses identified pollen donors for all, except for 3% of the embryos. In most cases, it was possible to identify the most successful pollinizers for each cultivar, with ‘Aroma’ and ‘Discovery’ being the most efficient pollen donors overall. Tree abundance seems to be a major factor in pollinizer success, while semi-cross-compatible characteristics represent a hindrance. Only 7% of the analyzed embryos were determined to have been fertilized by pollinizers outside the orchard, confirming the significance of pollinizer proximity for efficient pollination.