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Effect of molybdenum treatment on the element uptake of plants in a long-term experiment
121-125Views:398Molybdenum as a constituent of several inmportant enzymes is an essential micorelement. It can be found in all kind of food naturally at low level, however, environmental pollution, from natural or anthropogenic sources, can lead to high level of the metal in plants. Our study is based on the long-term field experiments of Nagyhörcsök, where different levels of soil contamination conditions are simulated. Plant samples were collected from the experiment station to study the behaviour of elements: uptake by and transport within the plants, accumulation in different organs, phytotoxicity and effects on the quantity and quality of the crop.
In this work we present the effect of molybdenum treatment on the uptake of other elements. Molybdenum is proved to be in an antagonist relationship with copper and sulphur, while molybdenum-phosphorus is a synergist interaction.
However, in most of the plants we studied increasing molybdenum-treatment enhanced cadmium-uptake. We have found the most significant cadmium-accumulation in the case of pea, spinach and red beet. -
Effect of noninvasive castration method on weight gain, behavior and meat quality of ram lambs
21-29Views:391In the course of producing heavyweight lambs (above 35 kg), males need to be separated from females at the end of the fattening period. If not, the rams must be castrated because they reach sexual maturity, and their activity bothers the ewes or unwanted pregnancy may occur. The present study surveys if the Hungarian sheep keepers know or use the non-surgical elastrator method for castration and assess the effect of castration (surgical and non-surgical) on daily weight gain, behavior, moving activity, and meat quality of rams, respectively. We found many advantages regarding the use of the elastrator method. Based on the survey results, 100% of farmers who used elastrator had a positive experience and favorable opinion about this method. There is no need to separate the rams, which allows for less area requirement and more economical technological conditions. The traditional castration (with a knife) process is longer (4–6 minutes), and caused longer-lasting stress while the elastrator application is bloodless, took only 20–30 seconds, and were stress-free. The number of steps of ring-gelded individuals was much lower than that of the non-castrated rams. The difference in steps number could also be seen in ewes separated into different ram groups. The weight gains of individuals castrated by the ring were better than the surgically castrated ones and also individuals with testicles. The palatability of the meat from the non-castrated group was less favorable, and the chewiness of the ringed group was the best. Finally, our results highlighted the benefits of the noninvasive elastrator method in animal welfare aspects.
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Congruency Analyses in Agricultural Organizations
56-61Views:176Management is one of the ancient activities. Managerial behaviour helped humans to become sociable creatures. The aims and roles of management have continually changed along with social and economic changes. Some management theories in the early literature interpret the managerial function as „to instruct” and „to control” subordinates. The manager – having the appropriate authority – unilaterally appoints the expected activities in accordance with the objectives of the organization and his/her own wish. Its form is the instruction or the command.
Later, organizations and management theories defined the managerial function rather as the impact on the employees than (or instead of) a unilateral manifestation of will. These focus on collaboration and imitation instead of on obedience. These theories were based on the fact that the employees work hard to succeed in meeting organizational goals because they want to meet their own needs, desires and wishes.
Today, management means being in a relationship with colleagues, effective and successful working methods and, last but not least, commitment and liability for the company. The responsibilities of directors are to estimate the employees’ competences and to apply the workforce expediently.
In our opinion, the two most important questions of human resource management (HRM) will be:
• the expectations made of the manager by the subordinates,
• the expectations made of the subordinates by the manager.
The expectations of management have continuously evolved along with the social, political and economical improvement. We consider the most important requirements will be the following:
• the exploitation of employees’ abilities (especially the leaders’),
• the exploitation of human resource,
• aim-oriented leadership related to different management levels.
The actual research covers only the examination of managerial requirements. We experienced that the expectations are affected by many factors starting with the fulfillment of a specific task to the social environment as a whole. Managements of the last century did not require such self-reliance, creativity and broad knowledge from their subordinates as they do today. Employees have to be able to adapt to new tasks, technology and methods; have to react quickly against the problems; and be loyal to the company and the manager.
We plan to expand our research backwards as well, in which we will search for the answer what kind of expectations are formulated by subordinates on the manager. Thus, we can approach and reveal the expectations (the examined factors) from two sides.
Due to this method, we would like to work out such coherences which can help us to demonstrate the opinions of the differently qualified employees of the organisations. The applied method provides us facilities to carry it out in various organisational parameters, such as functional form, size, effectiveness, range of activity. -
New and innovative consumer demands and expectations on the Hungarian food market
485-499Views:163Food and eating have always encompassed more than the simple intake of nutrients; therefore, when thinking about food consumption, we need to examine several groups of influencing factors whose correlations from the aspect of the consumer are described by a complicated matrix. This paper focuses on the selection of signs indicating new and innovative consumer behaviours, and on the megatrends that are the driving forces of transitions and that lead to the consequences of strikingly reconsidered consumer decisions nowadays. The authors stress that there are qualitative and structural changes in food consumption in Hungary, with an increasing quantity of differentiated consumer demands appearing, a few of them influencing our everyday decisions even at
the concept level. The findings of primary research originated from a personal questionnaire survey consisting of 2001 respondents, in which we also focused on the attitude towards eating and media consumption related to gastronomy.
This paper is an introduction to the market segments detectable in the present Hungarian population aged 15–74 in the topics concerned. -
The Present and Future of Tokay Aszú
87-92Views:230Tokay wine is Hungary’s noblest wine. Beyond doubt, it is one of those uniquely Hungarian products, which has been without rival for centuries. Today the role of quality has become increasingly important and consumers who are ready to pay more for quality wines expect it. This wine will be able to get back its original popularity if the message of its excellence reaches the public. Knowledge of historical wine-producing regions constitutes a part of basic education and wine-marketing could take important measures to spread it since good products need to be sold properly and consumers require information about wines – with gastronomy – and wine producing regions.
With foreign invested capital, advantageous changes have been started in Tokay-Hegyalja. However, there is much still to do in order to produce, sell and consume Tokay wine on such conditions that are really worthy of a Hungaricum. It is essential to approach the famous oenologists of Europe and the world and to establish suitable production conditions for every winegrower. In addition to following consciously prepared wine-marketing directions, our country needs to make an expected name for this Hungaricum. These aims are important mainly because of approaching EU-accession. There is timely to study on what conditions Hungarian viticulture and oenology could access. It would be a great success of the Hungarian delegation if they could make current Hungarian laws of Tokay-wine-production accepted in the EU. Of course, all of these would be valid after EU-accession. During the pre-accession period, our country needs to fulfil several stipulations. For example, origin-protection, establishment of a registry system, law harmonisation, development of an institutional system.
Strengthening of home consumption has always been an inspirational tool in a product’s life cycle. It is important not only to take the requirements of foreigners into consideration and to produce for export, but we also need to satisfy the home market. Considerable stress should be laid on establishing and preserving viticulture. Increasingly, buyers expect high standards and they are ready to pay more for quality wines. They also demand appropriate professional information and consultation. So there is a lot to do and theoretical approach should be followed by action. In order to get to know what quality expectations exist, we have to examine the consumers of the Hungarian wine-market. Study of the Hungarian people’s consumption behaviour, referring to Tokay „aszú”, was closely connected with my work.
Participants of my study were consumers who buy Tokay „aszú” mainly in shopping centres, supermarkets and low-price shops specified for wine selling. Wine shops have important roles as they give opportunity for salespersons to make closer relationships with buyers. These shops could be communication channels of spreading wine culture. It would be favourable if in every town or city there were at least one wine shop giving the opportunity of consultation besides commercial activity and also providing services that support the improvement of wine culture’s position. The majority of questioned people spend less than 4.000 Forints on buying of Tokay „aszú” in a year. Results of the questionnaire survey support the fact that there is a demand for these wine-specialities, but lack of money strongly effects demand.
The Following summarises the history of Tokay wine, tasks of Hungary and the expected effects relating to EU-accession. Regulation of oenology and the wine-market, referring to quality wines and main results of the survey are also overviewed in the text.