Investigation and analysis of concentrations of radium-226 and uranium in agricultural products around uranium tailings pond / 中国辐射卫生

@#<b>Objective</b> To investigate the radionuclide radium-226 and natural uranium content in the main agricultural products around a decommissioned uranium tailings pondand to determine the radioactivity level in the food around the tailings pond. <b>Methods</b> From 2017 to 2021, several samples of rice and beans were collected in the surrounding area of the tailings pond for five consecutive years, and the concentrations of radium-226 and natural uranium were measured by a high-purity germanium gamma spectrometer. The annual accumulated effective dose of internal exposure caused by radium-226 ingested through local standard human diet was estimated by the indirect method. <b>Results</b> The detection rate of natural uranium in rice was 96.0%, and the detection rate of radium-226 was 74.0%; the detection rate of natural uranium in beans was 96.7%, and the detection rate of radium-226 was 73.3%. The annual accumulated effective dose caused by radium-226 ingested through diet was about 170.22 μSv/a in surrounding residents. <b>Conclusion</b> The concentrations of radium-226 and natural uranium in the main agricultural products around the tailings pond are within the limit of the national standard. By comparing with the research results in related fields in China, the radiation effects caused by radium-226 ingested through dieton the residents around the tailings pond are acceptable.

Non-carcinogenic health risk assessment of nickel in agricultural products and drinking water in an e-waste dismantling area of Qingyuan City, Guangdong Province / 中华预防医学杂志

Vegetables, rice, eggs and drinking water samples were collected from e-waste dismantling area of Qingyuan City, Guangdong Province. Nickel (Ni) was analyzed in each sample, and the non-carcinogenic health [the daily intake (DI) and hazard quotient (HQ)] of each sample was evaluated. In this e-waste dismantling area, the contents of Ni in rice and eggs were (0.46±0.24) and (0.16±0.13) μg/g, which were higher than those in the control area [the contents of Ni in rice and eggs were (0.17±0.03) and (0.02±0.02) μg/g, respectively] (both P values<0.05). The DI values of rice, vegetable, eggs, and drinking water were (3.61-5.86), (1.75-2.99), (0.11-0.24), and (0.08-0.12) μg·kg-1·day-1, respectively. The HQ values were 0.180-0.290, 0.090-0.150, 0.005-0.010, 0.005-0.006, respectively. Although the HQ values of rice, vegetable, eggs, and drinking water were all lower than 1, which was an acceptable level. However, considering the possibility of combined exposure of heavy metals, the non-carcinogenic health risks of Ni in the e-waste dismantling area should still be concerned.

Recognition of Environmentally-friendly Agricultural Products for School Foodservice of Nutrition Teachers and Parents in 2018 at Seongnam in Gyeonggi province / 대한지역사회영양학회지

OBJECTIVES: This study examined the nutrition teachers' and parents' recognition of environmentally-friendly agricultural products (EAPs) used in school foodservice. METHODS: A questionnaire survey was given to 128 school foodservice nutrition teachers in Seongnam and 189 parents from Oct. 16 to Oct. 31, 2018 at Seongnam in Gyeonggi province. The survey included information on the recognition, satisfaction, and improvement of EAPs, and the results of the two groups were compared. RESULTS: A comparison of the recognition of EAPs showed that nutrition teachers knew more about the EAPs and local government support in school foodservice than the parents. On the other hand, the parents were more aware than the nutrition teachers in that children have a higher affinity for EAPs than for general agricultural products in the school foodservice. A comparison of the level of satisfaction with the EAPs by nutrition teachers and parents revealed the nutrition teachers to be significantly more satisfied than parents in terms of the color, taste and nutrition of EAPs. Among the items that should be provided with EAPs, more than 50% of each group of nutrition teachers and parents answered that vegetables must be provided first. Some 70.9% of nutrition teachers and 84.5% of parents were aware of the certification standards of EAPs. The nutrition teachers had showed a slightly higher score than the parents in the certification system (3.51 vs. 3.25). In terms of improving the EAPs, 36.2% of nutrition teachers answered a reasonable price preferentially, whereas 56.4% of parents answered maintaining quality. In the expected effects of using EAPs, 57.9% of nutrition teachers answered an improvement of parents' satisfaction on the school foodservice. On the other hand, 38.0% of parents answered an improvement of children' satisfaction on school foodservice. CONCLUSIONS: Nutrition teachers and parents need to be educated on the certification systems that would enhance the trust in EAPs.

Research progress of pretreatment technology for mycotoxin detection in Chinese materia medica and complex matrices / 中国中药杂志

In the processes of planting, harvest, transport and storage, improper treatment of Chinese materia medica (CMM) and foodstuffs and agricultural products will result in fungal growth and mycotoxins contamination, which will not only directly affect the quality, safety and efficacy of these complex matrices, but also seriously threaten the consumers' health and lives. Therefore, the establishment of high-throughout analytical methods with high sensitivity for the determination of mycotoxins in CMM and foodstuffs and agricultural products at trace levels will provide reliable references for reducing the risk of mycotoxin exposure in humans. Due to the matrix complexity of CMM and foodstuffs and agricultural products, highly-effective pretreatment technologies are necessary for the establishment of such analytical techniques. In this review, the current extraction and purification methods commonly used for the detection of mycotoxins were summarized, the importance of pretreatment techniques for the precise quantification of mycotoxins in complex matrices such as Chinese herbal medicines was highlighted, as well as the development tendency about the pretreatment techniques for mycotoxins in complex matrices in the future was proposed.

Perception of Use of Environment-friendly Agricultural Products during School Foodservice of Mothers of Elementary School Students in Gyeonggi / 대한지역사회영양학회지

OBJECTIVES: This study was to investigate the perception of mothers of elementary school students regarding environment-friendly agricultural products in school foodservice. METHODS: A total of 282 mothers whose children were receiving environment-friendly agricultural products during elementary school foodservice in Gyeonggi participated in this questionnaire survey. The survey was conducted to investigate respondents perception and satisfaction with environment-friendly agricultural products in their children's school meals from May 29 to June 9, 2017. RESULTS: About 79% of the subjects were satisfied with school foodservice. The most important aspects of school foodservice were nutrition (35.8%) and sanitation (34.8%). Over 80% of the subjects were aware of environment-friendly agricultural products and about 54% of the subjects checked for a certification mark when purchasing environment-friendly agricultural products. Additionally, 72.3% of the subjects knew that environment-friendly agricultural products were used at school. The advantages of using environment-friendly agricultural products in school foodservice were safety (75.5%) and high food quality (16.3%). About 66% of the mothers knew the school was receiving support from the city or education office for using environment-friendly agricultural products. Additionally, 74.5% of the mothers responded that they are willing to pay for use of environment-friendly agricultural products when subsidies were not supported. CONCLUSIONS: The positive perception and high support for use of environment-friendly agricultural products in school foodservice among elementary students' mothers can be used as basic data for expansion of the use of environment-friendly agricultural products in school foodservice.

Perception of Use of Environment-friendly Agricultural Products during School Foodservice of Mothers of Elementary School Students in Gyeonggi / 대한지역사회영양학회지

OBJECTIVES: This study was to investigate the perception of mothers of elementary school students regarding environment-friendly agricultural products in school foodservice. METHODS: A total of 282 mothers whose children were receiving environment-friendly agricultural products during elementary school foodservice in Gyeonggi participated in this questionnaire survey. The survey was conducted to investigate respondents perception and satisfaction with environment-friendly agricultural products in their children's school meals from May 29 to June 9, 2017. RESULTS: About 79% of the subjects were satisfied with school foodservice. The most important aspects of school foodservice were nutrition (35.8%) and sanitation (34.8%). Over 80% of the subjects were aware of environment-friendly agricultural products and about 54% of the subjects checked for a certification mark when purchasing environment-friendly agricultural products. Additionally, 72.3% of the subjects knew that environment-friendly agricultural products were used at school. The advantages of using environment-friendly agricultural products in school foodservice were safety (75.5%) and high food quality (16.3%). About 66% of the mothers knew the school was receiving support from the city or education office for using environment-friendly agricultural products. Additionally, 74.5% of the mothers responded that they are willing to pay for use of environment-friendly agricultural products when subsidies were not supported. CONCLUSIONS: The positive perception and high support for use of environment-friendly agricultural products in school foodservice among elementary students' mothers can be used as basic data for expansion of the use of environment-friendly agricultural products in school foodservice.

Distributions of Bacillus cereus, Pseudomonas, Enterococcus, and coliforms Isolated from Agricultural Products

A survey was conducted on the bacterial contamination levels from 128 agricultural products, and identified 31 coliforms, 34 Bacillus spp., 35 Pseudomonas spp., and 3 Enterococcus spp.. Antibiotic susceptibility testing of eight Escherichia coli (E. coli) isolates, thirteen Bacillus cereus (B. cereus) isolates and seven Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) reveled that none of the E. coli isolates shows multidrug resistance pattern. However, one B. cereus isolate was resistant to Amoxicillin/clavulanic acid + Ampicillin/sulbactam + Cephaloxin, and twelve B. cereus isolates were resistant to Amoxicillin/clavulanic acid + Ampicillin/sulbactam + Cephaloxin + Tetracycline. The data from the current study points out that many agricultural products contain multidrug resistant bacteria, and it can be suggested for the need of proper guidelines and special management on the use of antibiotics in agricultural products.

Distributions of Bacillus cereus, Pseudomonas, Enterococcus, and coliforms Isolated from Agricultural Products

A survey was conducted on the bacterial contamination levels from 128 agricultural products, and identified 31 coliforms, 34 Bacillus spp., 35 Pseudomonas spp., and 3 Enterococcus spp.. Antibiotic susceptibility testing of eight Escherichia coli (E. coli) isolates, thirteen Bacillus cereus (B. cereus) isolates and seven Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) reveled that none of the E. coli isolates shows multidrug resistance pattern. However, one B. cereus isolate was resistant to Amoxicillin/clavulanic acid + Ampicillin/sulbactam + Cephaloxin, and twelve B. cereus isolates were resistant to Amoxicillin/clavulanic acid + Ampicillin/sulbactam + Cephaloxin + Tetracycline. The data from the current study points out that many agricultural products contain multidrug resistant bacteria, and it can be suggested for the need of proper guidelines and special management on the use of antibiotics in agricultural products.

Multivariate analysis and neural networks application to price forecasting in the Brazilian agricultural market / Aplicação de análise multivariada e redes neurais para previsão de preços no mercado agrícola brasileiro

ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study is to apply the methodology proposed by PINHEIRO & SENNA (2015) to a set of agricultural products traded in Brazil. The multivariate and nonlinear character of this methodology has shown to be suitable, as compared to the neural network model, since it allows for a better predictive performance. Results obtained in an out-of-sample period, by using the calculated error and statistical test, confirmed this statement. This study will be useful to farmers as price forecasting based on their tendency is relevant.

RESUMO: O objetivo deste estudo é aplicar a metodologia proposta por PINHEIRO & SENNA (2015) a um conjunto de produtos agrícolas negociados no Brasil. O caráter multivariado e não linear dessa metodologia mostrou ser adequado, quando comparado com o modelo de redes neurais, pois ele permite um melhor desempenho preditivo. Os resultados obtidos em um período fora da amostra, usando o erro calculado e o teste estatístico, confirmam isso. Este estudo será útil aos agricultores, pois a previsão dos preços com base em sua tendência é relevante.

Actual Status of School Dietitians' Recognition and Use of Superior Agricultural Products in Daegu / 대한지역사회영양학회지

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perception of the school dietitian on superior agricultural products (SAP) and the status of using superior agricultural products in school meals. Questionnaires were distributed to 185 school dietitians after face to face interview, and a total of 181 responses were used for analysis. 82.3% of the respondents were using SAPs in school meals and there was a significant difference between elementary school (95.1%), middle school (76.8%) and high school (66.7%) dietitians (p < 0.001). 85.2% of the dietitians, who were using SAP, were purchasing SAPs through electronic bidding, and the main reason of not using SAPs was the higher price of SAPs than that of general agricultural products. The good agricultural practices (GAP) product was considered the most appropriate agricultural products for school meals by the majority of respondents (66.9%), and organic products was the next (13.3%). In addition, the most important selection criterion for a SAP perceived by school dietitians was safety (58.0%), and the main reason of using SAPs in school meals, when two choices were allowed, was 'to provide healthful food to children' (98.9%). The major barriers to using SAPs in school meals (two choices were allowed) were 'too expensive' (73.5%) and 'unstable supply' (32.6). In conclusion, it was suggested that there should be an improvement in SAP supply and management systems to increase the use of SAPs in school meals.

Parents' perception on middle school foodservice using environment friendly agricultural products (EFAP) in Masan area

The purpose of this study was to investigate parent's perception of a middle school foodservice in Masan city, Korea that uses environmentally friendly agricultural products (EFAP). From May 29, 2009 to July 11, 2009, questionnaires were distributed to 350 parents of middle schools located in Masan city. A total of 295 responded and 276 (response rate, 78.9%) were used for the final analysis after excluding improperly completed questionnaires. First, 47.8% of the parents responded that they had participated in the school foodservice operation (receiving food, attending foodservice-related events, working as a meal service aid, evaluating suppliers). Receiving food (53.7%) accounted for the greatest proportion in the participating area. Second, most subjects (83.0%) responded that they were aware of the use of EFAP. Additionally, 96.4% of the subject approved expanding the use of EFAP for all items. Third, their degree of interest in the school foodservice was 3.86, and satisfaction with the school foodservice was 3.94 based on a 5-point Likert scale. The overall satisfaction on the quality of EFAP used in the school foodservice was 3.68 based on a 5-point Likert scale. Fourth, awareness that the school used EFAP in the foodservice by the parents who participated in school foodservice operations was higher than that of parents who did not participate. Satisfaction (4.10) with the school foodservice by parents who participated in school foodservice operations was significantly higher than that (3.79) of parents who did not participate (p < 0.001). In conclusion, parent's participation in school foodservice operations should increase to improve the quality of the school foodservice and improve communication between parents and the school.

School Dietitians' Satisfaction with and Needs for School Meal Service Support Centers / 대한지역사회영양학회지

The purpose of this study was to investigate school dietitians' satisfaction with and needs for School Meal Service Support Centers. A web-based on-line survey was conducted with 1,102 nutrition teachers or school dietitians using four School Meal Service Support Centers during the summer of 2011. The data from 578 respondents (52.5%), consisting of 165 (44.4%), 334 (53.4%), 41 (67.2%), and 38 (86.4%) dietitians using Seoul, Gyeonggi, Suncheon and Gyeongju centers, respectively, were analyzed. The main reason for using the centers was subsidies from local governments. The dietitians using the metropolitan centers, which were Seoul and Gyeonggi centers, tended to buy agricultural products through the centers only, and those using local centers, which were Suncehon and Gyeongju centers, bought those products from the private suppliers as well as from the centers. The dietitians' overall level of satisfaction with the centers was not high showing 3.3 out of 5 points; it was significantly associated with the operating system and services of the centers such as system efficiency, delivery accuracy, communication, and information provision rather than the agricultural products provided by the centers. The dietitians preferred joint operation of the centers by local governments and producers' groups. They wanted School Meal Service Support Centers to be evaluated every year. It was suggested that efforts should be made to improve the operation system and service of School Meal Service Support Centers for improving dietitians' satisfaction with the centers. In addition, an evaluation system for School Meal Service Support Centers should be implemented soon based on school dietitians' needs.

The Housewives' Purchase Behaviors on Environment-friendly Agricultural Products in Daejeon Area / 대한지역사회영양학회지

This study was to investigate the housewives' purchase behaviors on the environment-friendly agricultural products (EFAP) by survey in Daejeon area housewives. 390 questionnaires were used and analysed. Most of the subjects were female (92.6%) distributed evenly in their 40's (55.4%), and graduated from high school (43.6%) or college (36.4%). Subjects' occupation was most housewives (64.1%) and 77.4% of the subjects had monthly family income of 2 million won or more. 76.9% of the subjects had purchased EFAP already. The reason of purchasing EFAP was mainly "good for health" (80.3%), and reason for non-purchasing was "high prices" (28%) or "not so trustworthy" (25.6%). The most purchasing frequency was "once a week" (29%). 46.7% of the subjects spent 20% of their agricultural product cost for EFAP and 38.7% of them spent less than 30,000 won per month for EFAP. On checking of EFAP labeling, the housewives scored 3.59 for the validate date, 3.25 for the place of origin, 2.8 for the quality certification mark by 4-point Likert scale. 65.1% of the subject had intention to increase purchasing of EFAP in future. To promote the consumption of EFAP, the improvement factors were price-cutting (47.9%), trust on producers (18.2%) and quality betterment (17.7%). Accordingly, the consumers prefer EFAP for wellbeing health of families; however, they hesitate to buy due to their high price and the low reliability on producers of EFAP. Thus the producers and the related organization of EFAP should contrive proper countermeasures to increase consumer's satisfaction level on their credibility and price of EFAP.

Satisfaction and Recognition Level of Environment-Friendly Agricultural Products in Cheongju Area / 대한지역사회영양학회지

The purpose of this study was to investigate basic data on the degree of parents' recognition and satisfaction with the use of environment-friendly agricultural products. The conclusions of this study are as follows. The survey on the use of environment-friendly products in households showed that 68.7% of the respondents used environment-friendly products at home. The frequency of purchasing organic products by household consumers showed that 25.1% of the respondents bought organic products one to two times per week. The most popular items of the environment-friendly agricultural products used were vegetables, comprising 63.9%. The households with more than 3,000,000 won of monthly income tended to consume more domestic livestock products (p < 0.05). In comparison to general agricultural products, environment-friendly agricultural products users showed higher satisfaction level with a better quality in term of safety, quality, nutrition, taste, appearance, diversity and price. The degree of satisfaction with safety was the highest (3.8 +/- 0.68), and price showed the lowest (2.76 +/- 0.79). The degree of parents' recognition of the governmental support for environment-friendly agricultural products showed that those who were aware of the supporting policy were 44.5%, but 55.5% of them didn't know about the fact that 46.6% of the respondents agreed that environment-friendly agricultural products should be used in more than 50% of the foods used for school food service. The respondents pointed out that vegetables (45%) sprayed with pesticide are the most urgent food item that need to be replaced by environment-friendly farm products.

A Survey on Use of Environment-Friendly Agricultural Products for School Food Service by Dietitians in Chungnam Province / 대한지역사회영양학회지

The purpose of this study is to analyze the school dietitian's cognition, practical use of environment-friendly agricultural products to provide fundamental information for the qualitative improvement in the school food service. The results of the study are as follows: 1. It was clearly recognized that the subsidy for the school food service is generally insufficient, the amount of additional appropriate subsidy for the school food service was different according to type of school and roughly 300~600 won in each of foods needs to be supported. 2. The environmentfriendly agricultural products that were often used in the school food service were vegetables and grains. 3. In the analysis of cognition and problems toward using environment-friendly agricultural products, the dietitians recognized that environment-friendly agricultural products should be appropriately used. A reason that environmentfriendly agricultural products were better than general agricultural products was composed of a use of less additive, good ingredient, and good outer condition. 4. In the analysis of countermeasure on increasing environment-friendly agricultural products in the school meal service, the response to that more additional subsidy was necessary for the school food service. The highest and the most positive effects after using environment-friendly agricultural products were students' health improvement and improvement in parents' satisfaction with the school food service.

The Perception for Management of School Foodservice Using of Environmentally Friendly Agricultural Products of Elementary School Children's Mothers in Gunsan / 대한지역사회영양학회지

The purpose of this study was to compare the degree of understanding about school foodservice management and environmentally friendly agricultural products between urban and rural elementary school children's mothers. The subjects were 280 elementary school children's mothers who lived in Gunsan city and the nearby countryside. The results are summarized as follows. The mothers in urban schools were higher on the degree of participation (p < 0.01) and interest (p < 0.01), but were lower on the degree of satisfaction (p < 0.001) for school foodservice than rural ones. The best improvement of school foodservice management was improving food tastes and qualities of the foodstuffs in urban schools and sanitation at the service area in the rural schools (p < 0.001). The school foodservice program contributed to cure the unbalanced diets and developing of bodies and minds; there was no difference of urban and rural schools. But eating habits in rural schools were more improved than urban schools (p < 0.001). The primary reason for using environmentally friendly agricultural products was to improve their health and in securing safe foods, there was no difference of urban and rural schools, but generating the farmer's income from the products in rural schools was higher than urban schools (p < 0.001). There are conflicting views between urban and rural schools for the additional costs brought by using the environmentally friendly agricultural products (p < 0.001). The order of preference on using environmentally friendly agricultural products was rice and various grains, vegetables, fruits, livestock, seasoning, etc. In conclusion, our central and local governments should change their roles in financially positive ways and reflect the issues in making the policy effective. Responsible administrators of school food suppliers run the system more faithfully with the above government support.

The Utilization of Environment-Friendly Agricultural Products of College Students in the Seoul and Incheon Areas / 대한지역사회영양학회지

The purpose of study was to investigate the utilization of environment-friendly agricultural products of the college students attending nutrition education. The subjects were 387 college students (male 53.2%, female 46.8%) at universities in the Seoul and Incheon areas. A cross-sectional study was conducted by a self-administered questionnaire. The percentage of subjects who purchased environment-friendly agricultural products was 37.2%. The most purchased environment-friendly agricultural products were vegetables. The main reason for preferring the environment-friendly agricultural products was good for health (53.7%). Also, the main motive of purchasing the environment-friendly agricultural products was for health (87.5%). For the quality of the environment-friendly agricultural products, they answered 'safety' (4.19), 'freshness' (4.03) and 'nutrition' (3.90), respectively. For college students' right choices of environment-friendly agricultural products, information and consumer education on these products are necessary.

The realities of internet shopping malls for agricultural products

Purchasing professionals utilize a e-commerce to sell or buy better products with good price. The marketers of agricultural products recognized that e-commerce has made significant inroads, and the Internet is fast becoming an essential tool for purchasing. The purpose of this research was to assess the realities of internet shopping malls of agricultural products including the actual condition of the sites, payment methods, order methods, membership and shipping methods. The results show that operating internet shopping mall of agricultural products are operated poorly in terms of buyer-seller relationship, payment and distribution. The results also provide some practical implication for marketers regarding the establishment of database, improvement of distribution and internet shopping mall operation, and importance of education on e-business for agricultural markets.

Wheat Esterase Inhibition Method for Determination of Organic Phosphorus Pesticide in Agricultural Products / 环境与健康杂志

Objective To estimate the application of the wheat esterase inhibition method for the determination of organic phosphorus pesticide residues in agricultural products.Methods The wheat esterase inhibition method was used for the determination of organic phosphorus pesticide residues in chive,the quality evaluation and principal component analysis were conducted.Organic phosphorus pesticide residues in five agricultural products were detected by this method,and compared with the confirmatory test with GC.Results The detection limit,standard deviation,relative standard deviation and average recovery of this method for various organic phosphorus pesticides were 0.05-0.52 mg/kg,0.26-3.09,2.9%-4.1% and 74.5%-92.1%,respectively.The inhibitory degree of pesticide and precision was the primary factor for influencing the result of quality evaluation.Conclusion The wheat esterase inhibition method is reasonable and is applicable for the semi-quantitative analysis of organic phosphorus pesticide residues in the agricultural products