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Study on Human Resource Management in Agriculture
171-181Views:93The human factor has been reassessed with regard to strategic initiatives towards obtaining and preserving competitive advantage. Knowledge, experience and special skills are a specific form of capital, forming part of the organisations’ assets and serving as an organisational strategic resource. Their development and use require major investments, both on the part of the individual and the organisation. In a Europe undergoing integration, the quality of human resources enjoy priority among our really important values and specific features. The opportunities of the near future can be utilised, and agricultural economic organizations can survive and increase their organizational effectiveness, if they possess a basis of human capital which is able to make a shift in perspective and behaviour which is of primary importance from the point of view of incorporating market mechanisms and implementing them in practice. My investigations were focused on the current position of human resource management in a comprehensive manner; further, on the approach of top managers regarding the future. Analysing the business and other indicators of the companies studied, I have set the objective to describe the differences and special features of the human resource management practice of companies, which are different in size, operational form, and from the perspective of success or failure.
Human resource management is directed to attracting, retaining, motivating and utilising labour. A given work process can be successful or unsuccessful – given the same conditions – depending on who performs it. Therefore, human resource management related tasks require special attention when enterprises are planned, established and operated. On analysing the responsibilities of human resource management, I have found that the functions and responsibilities of human resource have low or medium importance in the operation of economic organisations today. Regarding the future, top managers have expressed higher expectations of human resource management responsibilities in all areas and they consider individual functions to be more important. The establishment and operation of a human resource information system has been presented as the most important need for change. Correlation analyses have proved that the higher the sales revenues of a company, the higher the development of human resources is regarded by its manager, and the same holds for training, career support and a proper establishment and continuous evaluation of job profiles. -
Microbiological quality of bulk tank raw milk from two dairy farms in Hajdú-Bihar County, Hungary
105-112Views:327Two main channels have been identified to be responsible for microbiological contamination of raw milk and milk products. Firstly, contamination has occurred due to udder infection from the cow or the blood which harbours most bacteria that come in contact with the raw milk. Secondly, via external factors (may include faeces, skin, contaminated water, environment etc.) which are associated with the operation of milking. There is direct contact with the milk and/or surfaces before, during or after the milking, posing public health risk and economic decline. The aim of this study was to examine the bacteriological quality of bulk tank raw milk samples collected from two different size dairy farms (Farm 1 and Farm 2) of different housing forms (cubicle loose and deep litter) in Hajdú-Bihar County, Hungary in July, 2017. Three samples were taken from each farm, and the total plate count, coliform count, Escherichia coli count, Staphylococcus aureus count, and yeast and mould count were determined in them.
The results clearly showed low level of all measured bacteria group load in Farm 1 samples in comparison to Farm 2 with the exception of coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CNS) which represented high level in general, indicating significant difference (P<0.05). The mean value of total plate count in Farm 2 samples was higher (1.0 × 105 CFU/mL) than Farm 1 samples (2.8 × 104 CFU/mL). There was a significant difference (P<0.05) in mean count of coliforms in raw milk samples between Farm 1 and Farm 2. Similarly, results of E. coli were significantly different (P<0.05) with mean count of 1.44 × 102 CFU/mL and 2.02 × 103 CFU/mL for Farm 1 and Farm 2 respectively.
Results of Staphylococcus aureus also showed significant difference (P<0.05) with mean count of 9.7 × 101 CFU/mL for Farm 1 and 6.28 × 102 CFU/mL for Farm 2. The mean of mould count recorded was 1.07 × 102 CFU/mL and 4.93 × 102 CFU/mL for Farm 1 and Farm 2 respectively. The recorded mean of yeast count was 1.68 × 103 CFU/mL and 3.41 × 103 CFU/mL for Farm 1 and Farm 2 respectively; however, both farms showed no significant difference (P>0.05) in terms of mean of mould and yeast count. Although Farm 2 produced six times lower milk quantity than Farm 1, the measured microbial parameters were high. Both farms’ microbiological numbers were higher above the permitted limit values as stated by Regulation (EC) No 853/2004, Hungarian Ministry of Health (MoH) 4/1998 (XI. 11.).
This could be an indication of non-conformance to effective GMP, ineffective pre–milking disinfection or udder preparation, poor handling and storage practice, time and temperature abuse and inadequate Food Safety Management System Implementation. Therefore, our recommendation is as follows; establish control measures for pre- and postharvest activities involved in the milking process which would be an effective approach to reduce contamination of the raw milk by pathogenic microorganisms from these farms, strict sanitation regime and hygiene protocol be employed and applied to cows, all equipment, contact surfaces and minimize handling of the milk prior, during and after milking. This will also serve as scientific information to the producers for continual improvement in their operations.
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The past and present of Érmellék wine region
49-52Views:111Érmellék is an area of the Partium. It is situated between Szilágy and Bihar counties and between River Kraszna and Berettyó. Its name is from Ér, the small brook, which crosses the area. Érmellék is famous for its wine production, because its climate is favourable for this kind of trade. Only a few information sheets of the small Partium-belonging micro-region, Érmellék are published nowadays. Érmellék has extremely picturesque architectural wine cellar rows, of which ”szalacsi” wine cellar row (wine cellar row system) with its unique structure consists of about a thousand cellars.
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From Organic to Precision Farming (Contemporary Publication)
81-86Views:79The paper presents a short review of the different types of farming systems:
Biofarming, Organic farming, Alternatíve farming, Biodynamic farming, Low input sustainable agriculture (LISA)
Mid-tech farming, Sustainable agriculture, Soil conservation farming, No till farming, Environmentally sound, Environmentally friendly, Diversity farming
Crop production system, Integrated pest management (IPM), Integrated farming, High-tech farming
Site specific production (SSP), Site specific technology (SST), Spatial variable technology, Satellite farming.
Precision farming
It concludes that the various systems are applicable in different ratios and combinations depending on the natural and economic conditions.
The author predicts an increase in precision technologies , the first step being the construction of yield maps compared with soil maps and their agronomic analysis. Based on this information, it will be necessary to elaborate the variable technology within the field, especially for plant density, fertilization and weed control.
The changes in weed flora during the past fifty years based on 10.000 samples within the same fields using the weed cover method are presented. -
Examination of the sub-regions in the North Great Plain Region
158-163Views:119Before Hungary joined the European Union – in order to gain access to the sources of Structural Funds and to create the expected regional information service – a build up of five-level territorial system was indispensable. Both in the EU and in Hungary, there are significant differences among regions. The aim of regional policy is to reduce differences regarding development and living standards, in order to guarantee a reasonable living standard and income for every region’s inhabitants in the EU.
In Hungary, during the last decade, the effects of regional difference grew. While the advantage of the leading capital and its agglomeration and the eastern and western parts of Transdanubia was growing, meanwhile the most undeveloped areas' rates of development remained under the mean. The underdeveloped areas are in the northeastern part and in Southern Transdanubia. The developmental differences lead to such great social asymmetries, that these simply beg for remedying.
In this study, I would like to present the sub-regions of the North Great Plain Region and uncover the possible reasons of the developmental differences. -
Agricultural aspects in river basin management plans
149-152Views:104In the European Region agriculture is the second largest water user after power industry cooling water use. As part of the implementation of Water Framework Directive EU Member States prepared their river basin management plans by the end of 2009 or first half of 2010, In these plans impacts of agriculture on water bodies have received attention. The detailed information elaborated in the plans by countries and river basin districts were uploaded into the WFD section of the WISE system. This database provides opportunity for multi-criteria analysis for different water types. The paper discusses the effects of agriculture on hydromorphological pressures and impacts affecting surface water bodies. It was pointed out that among the pressures affecting European surface water bodies the hydromorphological and diffuse pressures represent the highest ratios (Figure 1). Within the hydromorphological pressures affecting classified surface water bodies the ratio of pressures related to agricultural activities is low,
it does not exceed 1% at European level. In case of Hungary the agriculture related river management pressures effect about 80% of the surface water bodies, which is much higher than the corresponding European average. The agricultural water abstractions affect about 10% of the Hungarian surface water bodies (Figures 2 and 3). The river and lake water bodies are impacted in significant ratio by nutrient enrichments and organic material enrichments, while in case of river water bodies the impact of organic material enrichments is also significant (Figures 4 and 5). -
Challenges and limtations of site specific crop production applications of wheat and maize
101-104Views:148The development and implementation of precision agriculture or site-specific farming has been made possible by combining the Global Positioning System (GPS) and the Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Site specific agronomic applications are of high importance concerning the efficiency of management in crop production as well as the protection and maintenance of environment and nature. Precision crop production management techniques were applied at four locations to evaluate their impact on small plot units sown by wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and maize (Zea mays L.) in a Hungarian national case study. The results obtained suggest the applicability of the site specific management techniques, however the crops studied responded in a different way concerning the impact of applications. Maize had a stronger response regarding grain yield and weed canopy. Wheat was responding better than maize concerning plant density and protein content performance.
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Applied EDI technologies in food traceability
69-74Views:95Due to globalisation, the new technological developments and the complexity of food supply processes, the European food sector is increasingly becoming more complex. The consumers’ trust in food, triggered and affected by a number of food crises, is low. Today, consumers increasingly expect safe and high quality food and demand information about the origin of their food. Also, economic health of food industry can be greatly affected by food crises; therefore efficient and effective mechanisms are required to assist food industry in tracking and tracing products along the food chain. In this paper we discuss the criteria for efficient and effective traceability system from an IT perspective (mainly data exchange) and we identify key requirements for ICT enabled traceability.
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Methods for the examination of the role of the time factor in managerial and organizational processes
24-32Views:76managerial efficiency. The system of investigations is in accordance with the method elaborated and applied by the Department of Management Science of UD, CAS, Faculty of Agricultural Economics and Rural Development (Berde, 2003). This method involves questionnaire interviews and corporate data collection. The first part of the questionnaire contains data with respect to the company, while the second part focuses on the manager being interviewed. The third part is a closed, directed interview-based preference assessment. I aim to assess the sample at my disposal in order to test the research model.
In the course of the assessment of questionnaires, I apply descriptive statistical methods for the assessment of the personal and professional features of the managers interviewed and the characteristics of the companies. In the case of questions substantively concerning the time factor – resource, managerial function, reaction time, and impact assessments – I carry out hypothesis testing. I draw up a zero hypothesis, whose appropriateness I test by means of statistical methods. I usually apply rank correlation for the evaluation of the relationship between the variables measured on an ordinal scale in my investigations. This can be applied if not the exact values of the given variables, but only their order in one respect or another is known. If the group building criterion is two-variable Mann-Whimey, if a multi-variable Kruskal-Wallis trial can be applied, which, after the rank transformation, gives information about the acceptance or refusal of the Ho hypothesis through the average of the ranks. The model also contains the managers’ evaluation of the time factor in management work. -
Presentation of sales price reserves for live lamb
37-45Views:99Although sheep breeding in Hungary is grounded in strong traditions, its activities only comprise 1% of the total production value generated from agriculture, and 2% of that for animal-based products. The most significant portion of incomes earned in the Hungarian sheep sector has, for years now, stemmed from the sale of live animals. The sector is decidedly export-oriented, as the domestic demand for its main product, i.e. lamb meat, and is minimal, equaling some 20-30dkg per person per year. Part of the sold animals is sold to market as dairy sheep, while the greater
part is sold in the category of lamb carcasses. For this reason, the average weight of slaughter sheep has lied between 19-22 kg for years now. The target markets for live lamb sales are predominately Italy and Greece. In Greece, movement on this market has shown an upward tendency in recent years; noteworthy are also sales to Austria, Holland, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Poland. In 2003, we exported sheep meat in the form of carcasses to Italy, as well as to Germany, and of these exports, 94% went to Italy, while the remaining 6% went to Germany.
Among sheep products, only the trade balance for live animal sales is positive. But even for such producers, only those who are specialized in intensive breeding and those sheep farms “targeting” meat production can obtain earnings. Specialized literature on the sector argues that the quality of Hungarian lamb has diminished dramatically and is beginning to lose its market position. If Hungarian lamb does not meet market expectations, then it will only be bought from producers at lower prices.
My research focuses on those factors which influence price. I separately discuss the question of quality, as one of the most important decisive factors on price. Within this discussion, I describe the market expectations which actually have an effect on the acceptance of live animals for sale on commission. In practice, after the problems of quality, the next most important question is that of when sale is made. In the course of my research, I studied the development of averages for sales on commission of live lambs using statistical methods. The most important problem of this sector is the hierarchical system used in sales: this is the topic hich neither the producer, nor the buyer, wish to discuss, not even with each other. On the basis of the information at my disposal, I outlined the levels of traders and individual levels used to arrive at commission prices. Finally, I examined the components of the production value of live lamb sales. The results I obtained quantified the key role of the prices and the yield, as well as the factors influencing income. -
Research on rheological characteristics of winter wheat varieties
266-272Views:188The gluten examination test is dominant in Hungary, comparing it to the qualification system of other countries. The determination of alveographic parameters is a basic criterion of winter wheat specifications in some western and southern European countries.
In the Hungarian and foreign winter wheat qualification systems, in the standards, there is no limit for extensographical parameters. Customers dictate the limits and make their claims as to the specifications.
We analyzed the alveographic and extensographical parameters of 19 winter wheat varieties grown by the Cereal Research Non-Profit Company in Hungary, and we made a comparison between the results in the challenges of the European Union expectations.
Examining the information of alveographic and extensographical values, we found that the experimental varieties provide high base to flour types suitable for baking bread and baker’s ware. The GK Élet, GK Petur, GK Memento, GK Csillag, GK Kapos and GK Marcel varieties can meet the market of paste flour needs, too.
In the variety series, the GK Kalász represents the highest values and the GK Garaboly shows the lowest parameters regarding the alveographic W and the resistance to extension.
On the basis of relation, we can establish that we can estimate the following little known and used quality indexes: the extensographical resistance to extension with extensographical energy and the alveographic W value, the extensographical energy with the alveographic W value and the alveographic P and L values with the other alveographic parameters. -
Regional strategies serving competitiveness
97-101Views:134In my study titled “Regional strategies serving competitiveness”, I examine the regional strategies whose development and implementation in practice play a determinant role in the medium- and long run economic and social development of the given region. The study primarily focuses on the infrastructural basic investments that are essential from the aspect of creating a knowledge-based information society. The study also deals with a stakeholder analysis used by investors in order to focus on the quality of state administration and institution system.
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Let's talk about 'One fungus One name'. Changes in the fungal taxonomy
11-14Views:223Mycologists have recorded a few hundred thousand Latin names for fungi and these are thought to refer to 70 000 or so separate species. The use of molecular techniques in fungal taxonomy and systematics in the last 25 years has provided massive amounts of information to clarify phylogenetic relationships, encouraged grant support, and complicated the jobs of classically-trained mycologists. Taxonomists have a reputation for being traditionalists, but the community has recently embraced the modernization of the nomenclatural rules by discarding the requirement for Latin descriptions, endorsing electronic publication, and ending the dual system of nomenclature, viz. teleomorph and anamorph names, which used parallel for the sexual and asexual phases of pleomorphic species. A group of taxonomists accepted ’The Amsterdam Declaration on Fungal Nomenclature’ and its basic principle the ’One fungus – one name’ has been incorporated in the Code of Nomenclature (’Melbourne Code’) in 2011. The next, and more difficult step will be to develop community standards for sequence-based classification. As the’One fungus – One name’ theory is a brand-new issue for the Hungarian plant doctors and practical specialists, it seems reasonable to review this to promote conversations between generations in Hungarian language.
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How does the S-locus determining self-incompatibility in stone fruits work in self-compatible peach?
93-100Views:126The majority of stone fruit species are self-incompatible, a feature that is determined by a specific recognition mechanism between the S-ribonuclease enzymes residing in the pistils and the F-box proteins expressed in the pollen tubes. Failure in the function of any component of this bipartite system resulted in self-compatibility (SC) in many cultivars of Prunus species. Peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch.) is the only species in the Prunoideae subfamily that is traditionally known to be self-compatible, but its molecular background is completely unknown. Isoelectric focusing and S-gene specific PCR revealed that SC is not due to functional inability of pistil ribonucleases. We hypothesize that SC may be a consequence of a kind of pollen-part mutation or the action of one or more currently unknown modifier gene(s). Only two S-alleles were identified in a set of peach genotypes of various origin and phenotypes in contrast to the 17–30 alleles described in self-incompatible fruit trees. Most important commercial cultivars carry the same S-allele and are in a homozygote state. This indicates the common origin of these cultivars and also the consequence of self-fertilization. According to the available information, this is the first report to elucidate the role of S-locus in the fertilization process of peach.
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Development of an Agricultural Soil Information System
60-63Views:81Since the development of remote sensing nearly 60 years ago, there have been many applications for agriculture. Some have proved effective, while others have not succeeded in assisting farmers with problem solving. Recent advances in the spatial, spectral and temporal resolution of remote sensing as well as potential positive changes in cost and availability of remotely sensed data may make it a profitable tool for more farmers. The target area of my research program is the fields cultivated by Kasz-Coop Ltd. considering that this firm is one of the main agricultural firms in the region and its cultivated fields are quite heterogeneous.
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Study of a Turkey Population for Gene Preservation
48-52Views:173Genetic variability is very important in small populations. We examined an indigenous bronze turkey population which is bred for gene conservation in order to see if the current mating system maintains genetic variability. The present generation was surveyed using microsatellite markers and a computer model was used to simulate changes in the population over 100 generations.
The data was analysed using the concept of entrophy from information theory instead of genetic variance so that we could more accurately measure genetic variability.
The results indicate that the breeding method currently in use, rotational line mating, is acceptable with respect to preserving genetic variability, but new selection methods may provide additional protection against the loss of alleles.