• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.87-100
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• 2019

The study was initiated to compare crop productivity as affected by a long-term application with homemade liquid fertilizers in leading organic cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) farms in Suncheon and Kimcheon provinces. A Suncheon farm have applied an EM (effective organism) liquid fertilizer for one year and fifteen years, designating as EM 1-year and EM 15-year plots, respectively, with 4-year and 5-year application of native microbes-liquid fertilizer in Kimcheon farm, designating as Micro 4-year and Micro 5-year plots, respectively. pH in the EM-liquid fertilizer was high to approximately 7.7, and EC in the Micro-liquid fertilizer was 0.1 dS/m higher than those of EM-liquid fertilizer, with similar macro-nutrient concentrations observed in the both liquid fertilizers. Soil EC was the highest to the 10.0 dS/m for the liquid fertilizer with EM 1-year and showed less than 1.5 dS/m for other liquid fertilizer plots. Micro-liquid fertilizer plots had soil OM contents less than 20 g/kg, which was approximately two times less than those of EM plots. Soil microbial properties were not significantly different among the liquid fertilizer plots. SPAD and PS II values were significantly increased by EM 15-year plots with high levels of soil OM and EC. Liquid fertilizer plot with EM 1-year had high concentrations of T-N, Ca, and Na in the cucumber crops but low concentrations of P and Mg, in particular for low K of 1.2% which was two times less than those of desired level for an optimum cucumber growth. The lowest fruit yield was observed for the liquid fertilizer plot with EM 1-year with the highest soil EC accumulated. Liquid fertilizer plot with EM 15-year produced the expanded volume of crop canopy and increased fruit yield. Therefore, long-term of continuous application with an organic liquid fertilizer would have sustainably improved soil stability and the crop productivity.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.27 no.6
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• pp.695-703
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• 2018

This study was conducted to suggest a sustainable farming practice forresource recycling in vegetable gardens of North Korea. In North Korea, farmers are allowed to own private vegetable gardens less than $100m^2$. However, usage of fertilizers in private vegetable gardens is very limited due to economic sanctions by UN security council. If North and South Korea initiated the cooperative action in the near future, agricultural sector would be the highest priority cooperation area. Considering the current North Korean situation in agriculture, we would like to suggest a method for producing organic fertilizer manure. For raw materials for producing manure, we selected corn byproduct, which is the most abundant material, and rabbits' feces, which are easily obtained from individual private farms in North Korea. As we cannot get corn byproducts and rabbits' feces from North Korea, we prepared samples of corn byproducts and rabbits; feces from many places in South Korea. After statistical analysis of variance, there was no significant difference in the T-N contents of corn byproducts from Gyeonggi, Gangwon, Chungnam, Chungbuk, Jeollabuk and Gyeongsangnam-dos, which indicates that the fertilizing quality of corn byproducts does not vary significantly in the spatial scale of South. Korea. In this sense, if we use corn samples from Gyeonggi province, they would not be very different from those of North Korean regions. Physicochemical properties of rabbits' feces were different between those eating feed grains and those eating plants only. Hence, we used rabbits' feces of the rabbits from Yeonchun area, which were fed by plants only. Using three different mixing ratios of corn byproducts and rabbits' feces, composting was conducted for 60 days. The mixing ratio of 1:1 produced the manure with % T-N of 1.98% and OM/N ratio of 31.7 after 30 days of composting, which is comparable to the quality of commercial manure.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.175-186
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• 2019

Efforts have been made to introduce the climate smart agriculture (CSA) for adaptation to future climate conditions, which would require collection and management of site specific meteorological data. The objectives of this study were to identify requirements for construction of agricultural meteorology information service system (AMISS) using technologies that lead to the fourth industrial revolution, e.g., internet of things (IoT), artificial intelligence, and cloud computing. The IoT sensors that require low cost and low operating current would be useful to organize wireless sensor network (WSN) for collection and analysis of weather measurement data, which would help assessment of productivity for an agricultural ecosystem. It would be recommended to extend the spatial extent of the WSN to a rural community, which would benefit a greater number of farms. It is preferred to create the big data for agricultural meteorology in order to produce and evaluate the site specific data in rural areas. The digital climate map can be improved using artificial intelligence such as deep neural networks. Furthermore, cloud computing and fog computing would help reduce costs and enhance the user experience of the AMISS. In addition, it would be advantageous to combine environmental data and farm management data, e.g., price data for the produce of interest. It would also be needed to develop a mobile application whose user interface could meet the needs of stakeholders. These fourth industrial revolution technologies would facilitate the development of the AMISS and wide application of the CSA.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2019.09a
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• pp.5-5
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• 2019

The objectives of this paper are (i) to analyze past trends and future directions of rice production, consumption and trade across the world and (ii) to discuss emerging challenges and future directions in the global rice industry. Rice is a staple food of over half of the world's 7.7 billion people. It is an important economic, social, political, and cultural commodity in most Asian countries. Rice is the $1^{st}$ most widely consumed, $2^{nd}$ largely produced, and $3^{rd}$ most widely grown food crop in the world. It was cultivated by 144 million farms in over 100 countries with harvested area of over 163 million ha producing about 745 million tons paddy in 2018. About 90% of the total rice is produced in Asia. China and India, the biggest rice producers, account for over half of the world's rice production. Between 1960 and 2018, world rice production increased over threefold from 221 to 745 million tons (2.1% per year) due to area expansion from 120 to 163 million ha (0.5% per year) and paddy yield increase from 1.8 to 4.6 t/ha (1.6% per year). The Green Revolution led massive increase in rice production prevented famines, provided food for millions of people, reduced poverty and hunger, and improved livelihoods of millions of Asians. The future increase in rice production must come from yield increase as the scope for area expansion is limited. Rice is the most widely consumed food crop. The world's average per capita milled rice consumption is 64 kilograms providing 19% of daily calories. Asia accounted for 84% of global consumption followed by Africa (7%), South America (3%), and the Middle East (2%). Asia's per capita rice consumption is 100 kilograms per year providing 28% of daily calories. The global and Asian per capita consumption increased from the 1960s to the 1990s but stable afterward. The per capita rice consumption is expected to decline in Asia but increase outside Asia especially in Africa in the future. The total milled rice consumption was about 490 million tons in 2018 and projected to reach 550 million tons by 2030 and 590 million tons by 2040. Rice is thinly traded in international market because it is a highly protected commodity. Only about 9% of the total production is traded in global rice market. However, the volume of global rice trade has increased over six-fold from 7.5 to 46.5 million tons between the 1960s and 2018. A relatively small number of exporting countries interact with a large number of importing countries. The top five rice exporting countries are India, Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan, and China accounting for 74% of the global rice export. The top five rice importing countries are China, Philippines, Nigeria, European Union and Saudi Arabia accounting for 26% of the global rice import. Within rice varieties, Japonica rice accounts for the highest share of the global rice trade (about 12%) followed by Basmati rice (about 10%). The high concentration of exports to a few countries makes international rice market vulnerable to supply disruptions in exporting countries, leading to higher world prices of rice. The export price of Thai 5% broken rice increased from 198 US$/ton in 2000 to 421 US$/ton in 2018. The volumes of trade and rice prices in the global market are expected to increase in the future. The major future challenges of the rice industry are increasing demand due to population growth, rising demand in Africa, economic growth and diet diversification, competition for natural resources (land and water), labor scarcity, climate change and natural hazards, poverty and inequality, hunger and malnutrition, urbanization, low income in rice farming, yield saturation, aging of farmers, feminization of agriculture, health and environmental concerns, improving value chains, and shifting donor priorities away from agriculture. At the same time, new opportunities are available due to access to new technologies, increased investment by the private sector, and increased global partnership. More investment in rice research and development is needed to develop and disseminate innovative technologies and practices to overcome problems and ensure food and nutrition security of the future population.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.53-68
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• 2020

The concentrations of ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and fine dust were measured in the compost facility of a full-time Hanwoo breeding farms. The experiments were conducted in stack type composting facility(T1) and mechanical-stirred composting facilities(T2, T3). In the stack type composting facility, the highest temperature of compost pile was 46℃, and in the two mechanical-stirred composting facilities, it rose to 63℃ and 68℃, respectively. The concentrations of PM2.5 at T1, T2 were 15 ㎍/㎥ and 5~10 ㎍/㎥, respectively. And the concentration of PM2.5 at T3 was below 10 ㎍/㎥. The highest concentration of ammonia generated at T1 was 4 ppm, but no hydrogen sulfide was detected. The ammonia concentrations at T2 and T3 were 3 ppm and 4 ppm, respectively. However, hydrogen sulfide was not detected in both facilities. At T3, the ammonia concentration increased to 65 ppm at the point where the compost was stirred with a mechanical agitator. During composting period, the pH of the compost pile decreased from 9.06 to 8.94 and then increased to 9.14 as the composting period elapsed. The NaCl content of compost was 0.09% after composting process was complete. Moisture content of compost decreased from 65.9% to 62% as composting progressed. As composting proceeded, the content of volatile solids decreased from 65.6% to 64.7% and the content of TKN decreased from 1.327% to 1.095%.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.109-122
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• 2022

Currently, most of the pig manure generated from pig farms in Korea is in the form of a slurry with a moisture content of about 97%. Pig manure slurry is a mixture of pig manure and cleaning water in the pig house. In this study, changes in properties of pig manure liquid fertilizer according to whether air was supplied or not and with the passage of storage period were analyzed for 120 days. During the experimental period, the degree of maturity of the pig manure liquid fertilizer was higher in the experimental closed batch reactors supplied with air than in the same type reactors not supplied with air. As the liquid fertilizer storage period elapsed, there was a tendency that liquid fertilizer was converted to a state of complete maturity. In the batch reactor in which air was supplied, the moisture content of pig manure slurry, which had a moisture content of 97.90%, was reduced to 96.82% at the end of the experiment. On the other hand, the moisture content in the reactor without air was reduced to 97.33%. The pH of the liquid fertilizer, which was 8.82 at the start of the experiment, changed to 7.57 in the reactor with air supplied and 8.75 in the reactor without air at the completion of the experiment. The nitrogen content in the liquid fertilizer was 0.198 mg/L on average at the start of the experiment and it was lowered to 0.076 mg/L in the air supplied reactor at the end of the experiment. On the other hand, the nitrogen content of the liquid fertilizer was lowered to 0.121 mg/L in the reactor to which air was not supplied. The phosphoric acid (P₂O₅) concentration in the liquid decreased higher in the liquid fertilizer filled in the reactor without air than the liquid fertilizer filled in the reactor with air supplied as the storage period elapsed. Considering the experimental results, it is considered that the quality of pig manure liquid fertilizer is improved when air is supplied to pig manure slurry and the storage period of pig manure slurry is longer.

• The Journal of the Korean Institute of Forest Recreation
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.11-22
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• 2018

This study analyzes the economic feasibility on the transition of production structure to increase income for a local forest village in Laos PDR. The study area was the Nongboua village in Sangthong district where the primary product is rice from rice paddy. Possible strategies were considered to increase the villagers' revenue, and Noni (Morinda citrifolia) was production in the short-term. We assumed that the project period was for 20 years for the analysis, and a total of 1,100 Noni tree was planted in 1 ha by $3m{\times}3m$ spacing. This study classified basic scenario one, scenario two, scenario three by the survival rate and purchase pirce of Noni. Generally Noni grows well. However, the seedlings' average survival rate (= production volume) was set up conservatively in this study to consider potential risks such as no production experience of Noni and tree disease. The scenario one assumed that the survival rate of Noni seedlings was 50% for 0-1 years, 60% for 0-2 years, and 70% for 3-20 years; the scenario two, 10% less, i.e., 40%, 50%, and 60%; and the scenario three, 10% less, i.e., 40%, 50%, 60% and purchase price 10% less, i.e., $0.29 to $0.26, respectively. Our analysis showed that all 3 scenarios resulted in economically-feasible IRR (internal rate of return) of 24.81%, 19.02%, and 16.30% of with a discounting rate of 10%. The B/C (benefit/cost) ratio for a unit area (1ha) was also analyzed for the three scenarios with a discounting rate of 10%, resutling in the B/C ratio of 1.71, 1.47, and 1.31. The study results showed that the Nongboua village would have a good opportunity to improve its low-income structure through planting and managing alternative crops such as Noni. Also the results can be used as useful decision-making information at a preliminary analysis level for planning other government and public investment projects for the Nonboua village.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.21 no.12
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• pp.558-569
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• 2020

This study examined the frequency of a broiler's stay in each area as stock density using an ICT-based image analysis technique from the perspective of precision livestock farming (PLF) according to the increase in the domestic broiler farms to understand the normal behavior patterns of broilers by age. The broiler was used in the experimental box (3.3×2.7 m) in a poultry house in Gyeonggi province. The stock densities were 9.5 birds/㎡ (n=85) and 19 birds/㎡ (n=170), respectively, and the frequency of stay by feeding, water, and rest area was monitored using a top-view camera. The image data of three-colored-specific broilers identified as the stock density were acquired by age (12, 16, 22, 27, and 29 days) for six hours. In the collected image data, the object tracking technique was used to record the cumulative movement path by connecting approximately 640,000 frames at 30 fps to quantify the frequency of stay in each area. In each stock density, it was significant in the order of the rest area, feeding, and water area (p<0.001). In 9.5 birds/㎡, it was at 57.9, 24.2, and 17.9 %, and 73.2, 16.8, and 10 % in 19 birds/㎡. The frequency of a broiler's stay could be evaluated in each area as the stock density using an ICT-based image analysis technique that minimizes stress. This method is expected to be used to provide basic material for developing an ICT-based management system through real-time monitoring.

• Journal of fish pathology
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.111-118
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• 2020

The genus Edwardsiella belonging to the family Enterobacteriaceae is a member of Gram-negative rod-shaped bacteria that cause disease in diverse aquatic organisms such as fish, amphibians and reptiles as well as avians and mammals including human throughout the world. This genus had been composed of three species, E. hoshinae, E. ictaluri and E. tarda, but recent researches erected two novel species, E. anguillarum and E. piscicida that were conventionally identified as E. tarda. In this study, we isolated seven strains belonging to the genus Edwardsiella from freshwater fishes that had been reared at inland fish farms in South Korea and investigated their biochemical characteristics and molecular phylogenetic relationships. The seven strains showed typical characteristics of four Edwardsiella species, E. anguillarum, E. ictaluri, E. piscicida and E. tarda, by biochemical analyses of Gram staining, indole and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) production, and API (Analytic Profile Index) 20E test. Molecular phylogenetic analyses inferred from DNA sequence data of both 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) and DNA gyrase subunit B (gyrB) genes were congruent with the biochemical characteristics. As a result, both biochemical and molecular phylogenetic analyses identified four strains isolated from three Anguilla species as E. anguillarum, E. piscicida and E. tarda, two strains from Pelteobagrus fulvidraco and Silurus asotus as E. ictaluri, and one strain from Moroco oxycephalus as E. piscicida. In this study, we isolated and successfully identified recently newly erected species, E. anguillarum and E. piscicida in addition to historically notorious pathogenic species, E. ictaluri and E. tarda. In the future study, systematic and comprehensive monitoring of the four Edwardsiella species are required for studying differences in pathogenicity among freshwater fishes.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Grassland and Forage Science
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.236-243
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• 2020

This study was to evaluate the feed value of whole crop rice silage (WCRS) and to investigate a suitable ratio of the WCRS and concentrate by an analysis of rumen fermentation. A total of 6 treatments were used according to WCRS: concentrate ratio on in vitro rumen fermentation: T1 (100:0), T2 (60:40), T3 (40:60), T4 (20:80), T5 (10:90), and T6 (0:100). The ruminal pH, total gas emission, ammonia nitrogen, and volatile fatty acid (VFA) were determined as fermentation parameters. Total nutrients digestibility trial was conducted by 4 treatments according to WCRS: concentrate ratio at 40:60 (W40), 20:80 (W20), and 10:90 (W10), respectively. Feed value was analyzed according to AOAC (2019) and nutrient digestibility was calculated based on NRC (2001). The levels of crude protein (CP), crude fat, and neutral detergent fiber of the WCRS were 12.29%, 1.67%, and 59.79%, respectively. It was found to be 51.49% as a result of predicting the total digestible nutrient of WCRS using the NRC (2001) model. In vitro rumen fermentation, T4, T5, and T6 treatments showed a greater gas emission and total VFA concentration compared with other treatments (p<0.05). Acetate and acetate to propionate ratio of T4, T5, and T6 were significantly higher than other treatments (p<0.05). There was a significant difference in the level of propionate and butyrate according to the WCRS: concentrate ratio (p<0.05). The digestibility of dry matter and CP was significantly lower in W40 than in other treatments (p<0.05); however, there was no difference in W20 and W10. In conclusion, the 20:80 (WCRS: concentrate) is beneficial for stabilizing the rumen that does not inhibit rumen fermentation and nutrient digestion. This ratio might have a positive effect on the economics of farms as a valuable feed.