Food insecurity remains a major challenge affecting the rural poor households in South Africa. The consumption of green leafy vegetables is important to address micronutrients deficiency in rural communities and, at the same time, it contributes to fibre intake. This study investigated the people’s attitude towards the cultivation and utilisation of ILVs in rural communities. A cross-section survey study was conducted among 1 000 respondents in randomly selected households in communities. The majority of respondents were not willingly consuming ILVs. This is because most consumers were black and of the low-income group. ILVs that are consumed grow mainly in the wild. The regular consumption of these vegetables as indicated in this study is interesting, as this will help in mitigating micronutrient deficiency. Furthermore, these vegetables could be incorporated in formulated food to improve iron and zinc, especially in infant foods formulation. Based on the findings of this study it would be important to find ways of encouraging cultivation of ILVs for both nutrition and as income generating activities. / Business Management / M. Consumer Science

The consumption of indigenous leafy vegetables is a significant tradition and culture of South Africa. The purpose of this research was to investigate the access and consumption of indigenous leafy vegetables in rural and informal settlements of the West Coast District Municipality (WCDM), Western Cape, South Africa. The research identified ILV being available and accessible in WCDM, methods of preparation used as well as the factors influencing the consumption of ILV. A cross sectional descriptive survey design was used and data collection was done using a structured questionnaire. Respondents were randomly selected from the five local municipalities in the West Coast District Municipality. A total of 205 respondents representing 205 households in the rural and informal settlements of the West Coast District Municipality were interviewed. Majority of respondents were black females, unemployed and had no formal qualification. Seventeen indigenous leafy vegetables were identified in the West Coast District and the majority of the respondents consumed indigenous leafy vegetables as part of their diet mainly because of the health benefits and taste. Four methods of cooking, namely stewing, boiling, steaming and frying were used by the respondents to prepare indigenous leafy vegetables and most of the respondents added additional ingredients during cooking such as mealie meal, fish oil and salt. The informal sector was identified as the major source of indigenous leafy vegetables and cultivation of ILV was very limited. The majority of the respondents consumed ILV at least once a week. Preservation of ILV was not a common practice. Factors such as employment status, higher household size and higher income levels did not influence the frequency of ILV consumption. / Life and Consumer Sciences / M. Sc. (Consumer Science)

Thesis (M. Agricultural Management (Agronomy)) -- University of Limpopo, 2018 / A survey study identified indigenous leafy vegetables (ILVs) utilized by rural communities in Limpopo Province in the three districts of Capricorn, Sekhukhune and Vhembe focusing on their availability, agronomic practices, marketing, medicinal and cultural roles, as well as their nutritional value. An ILV that was highly preferred and with good marketing potential was identified for further studies on its response to planting density and nitrogen fertilizer rate. A questionnaire survey was used to gather information about types of ILVs utilised, their production practices, marketing of ILVs and their importance in medicinal and cultural roles. Data collected were subjected to analysis using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) using descriptive statistics. Results showed that there were 45 different types of ILVs identified from the three districts in Limpopo Province. Farmers indicated that cultivation of these vegetables was mostly done from October to January in Sekhukhune and Capricorn district while in Vhembe it was practiced all year round. Most of farmers in Vhembe district used inorganic fertilizer during planting while farmers in Sekhukhune and Capricorn districts used organic fertilizers such as cattle manure. Irrigation was commonly used in Vhembe district through furrow irrigation system whereas in Capricorn and Sekhukhune districts most farmers relied on rainfall. Farmers indicated that harvesting was done at an early growing stage of the crop. Indigenous leafy vegetables were mostly marketed in local communities. Several ILVs were identified as preferred and regularly consumed as vegetables. Spider plant (Cleome gynandra) and nightshade (Solanum retroflexum) were identified as the most consumed ILVs in the three districts. Comparing the market potential of the two vegetables, S. retroflexum was chosen for further studies on its response to plant density and nitrogen fertilizer rate. The first study investigated the effect of varying plant density (inter and intra-row spacing) and the second study evaluated the response of intra-row spacing and nitrogen fertilizer (LAN-28%N) rate on growth and yield of S. retroflexum during 2014 (April to May) and 2015 (March to May) growing seasons. The plant density experiment was laid out as a 3 x 4 factorial arrangement in a randomised complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. The treatment factors were 3 inter-row spacings of 30, 45 and 60 cm and 4 intra-row spacings of vi 7.5, 15, 22.5 and 30 cm. The data collected included plant height, plant vigour, number of leaves and branches per plant as well as plant leaf yield. Data were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using STATISTIX 10.0 package and mean treatments were separated using Turkey HSD at 5% probability level. The results revealed that growth parameters (plant height, plant vigour, number of branches and leaves) and plant leaf yield were significantly influenced by the combined inter and intra-row spacings. Closer inter-row spacings of 30 cm and 45 cm, and intra-row spacings of 7.5 and 15 cm produced the highest values of parameters and plant leaf yield. The combined spacings of 30 x 7.5 cm produced the highest plant leaf yield. The second study was also laid out as a randomised complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. The treatments were 6 x 2 factorial arrangement: 6 levels of nitrogen (LAN-28%N) at 0, 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 kg N/ha and two intra-row spacings of 15 and 30cm. Inter-row spacing of 30 cm was used. The nitrogen fertilizer was applied a week after transplanting and repeated a week after first harvesting. Data was subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using STATISTIX 10.0 package. Where significant differences were detected, means were separated using Turkey HSD at 5% propability level. The results suggested that both nitrogen fertilizer and spacing can be used to enhance growth and leaf yield of S. retroflexum vegetable. Nitrogen fertilizer rate and plant density significantly (P≤0.05) affected plant growth and plant leaf yields. Growth parameters and leaf yield were optimised using closer spacing of 15 cm and applying nitrogen at 60 kg N/ha. The application of 60 kg N/ha and 15 cm spacing was therefore recommended for the production of S. retroflexum as a vegetable, if planted at 30 cm inter-row spacing. Key words: Indigenous leafy vegetables, agronomic practices, Solanum retroflexum, planting density, nitrogen fertilizer, planting date

Thesis (MSc. (Agricultural Economics)) -- University of Limpopo, 2014 / There are few plant species commercialised significantly globally and food requirements are mainly met by only few species. However, there is an enormous number of under-utilised species that play a vital role in the livelihood of rural households. These species are referred to as indigenous crops. Indigenous crops are adaptable to local agro-ecological conditions even where there is unreliable rainfall, which is the case in many parts of the country, require a minimum production management, mature early, and are easy to harvest and preserve and require less capital investments. Despite all these, in South Africa indigenous leafy vegetables (ILVs) were not commercialised and most researchers did not pay much attention to do research on possibilities of commercialising these crops. Thus this study investigated the economic potential of commercialising indigenous leafy vegetables in the rural South African context in general and in the study area in particular. The objectives of the study were (1) to identify the socio-economic characteristics of ILVs producers in rural areas of Capricorn district, (2), to investigate constraints faced by farmers in commercialising ILVs in rural areas of Capricorn district, (3), to determine the productivity of indigenous leafy vegetables in rural areas of Capricorn district, and (4), to assess different types of marketing channels of ILVs in rural areas of Capricorn district. The study used Stochastic Frontier Production Function to determine the productivity and to assess the socio-economic characteristics of producers of Indigenous Leafy Vegetables. Bubble chart was used to assess the marketing channels whilst consumer data was captured into a statistical package. The results indicated that there are several significant socio-economic factors that affect ILV production and there are also factors which constraint farmers from commercialising ILVs. Productivity of ILVs in the study area varied a lot among farmers; some farmers had a high productivity but most farmers had a low productivity. The results indicated that out of the factors included in the analysis significant production factors were; amount of labour used, cost of hiring tractor service and land devoted to ILVs and inefficiency factors were; gender, age, household size, farming experience, farm size, v hired labour, primary occupation and land ownership. ILV farmers had no formal marketing channels; they sold their product direct to consumers or through hawkers. Therefore, the study recommends the integration of science/modern technology and indigenous knowledge, to improve the productivity of ILVs. Since farmers were not technically efficient, therefore it is important to run workshops that will help them improve their production and marketing skills and how to market their products. Or create booklets that have information on how to efficiently produce ILVs. There should also be awareness campaign on the benefit of ILVs in both rural and urban communities. The study also recommends a multi-disciplinary approach in developing the crop; more stakeholders should be involved so as to make the crop appealing. Finally the study recommends the commercialisation of these crops due to the fact that they have the potential and are demanded in most parts of South Africa.

Thesis (Ph.D. (Agricultural Economics )) -- University of Limpopo, 2021 / Regardless of the strategies adopted globally and nationwide to fight food insecurity within communities, particularly in the rural context, poverty becomes a major constituent which translates to most rural households experiencing food insecurity shocks. Given the high unemployment rate in South Africa which triggers several household’s vulnerability to food insecurity, the country has diverse natural resources which include indigenous plants such as Indigenous Leafy Vegetables (ILVs), which can be used as food and for business purposes by its residents. Irrespective of the diversity of ILVs in South Africa, there is a significant decline in the production and consumption of ILVs particularly in rural areas where these vegetables are mostly available. In addition, production and consumption of ILVs may not only address food insecurity but these vegetables may benefit households through the income obtained from their sales. The income generated from sales of ILVs may therefore assist towards improving and sustaining rural livelihood needs. Given this background information, the study aimed at assessing ILV production for income generation and food security among rural households in the Eastern Cape Province (ECP) of South Africa. The study was conducted within the three district municipalities of the ECP which were selected because statistics report these districts to be the most affected areas by poverty within the province. These districts are OR Tambo District Municipality (ORTDM), Alfred Nzo District Municipality (ANDM) and Joe Gqabi District Municipality (JGDM). Multistage and proportional random sampling procedures were employed to select households which could participate in the study. Thus, 407 households within these three (3) districts municipalities were used for the purposes of the study. The study also included interviewing role players within the ILV production value chain, thus a snowball sampling procedure was used to select role players. Sixteen hawkers and three input suppliers were interviewed from the three district municipalities. In addition, from the 407 households that were interviewed, 260 households from the three district municipalities reported to be producers of ILVs. A structured questionnaire was therefore used to collect pertaining data allied in achieving the aim of the study. The collected data was captured using Excel 2016, after data cleaning, it was then exported to Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25 for analysis. Numerous analytical models were used from SPSS 25. For instance, to identify and describe socio-economic characteristics of households, to assess the most produced ILVs from the study areas and to identify role players within the ILV production value chain, descriptive statistics in a form of means, percentages, frequencies, and standard deviation was used. To determine factors which influence production of ILVs, a Binary Logistic Regression Model was used. A Multinomial Logistic Regression model was used to determine factors which influence different uses of ILVs by households and to determine factors influencing food security status among households. A gross margin analysis was used to estimate viability from each ILV produced, harvested and sold, while Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) was used to measure food security status among households. Lastly, a correlation matrix was also used to determine the relationship between the role players and their functions among the ILV production value chain. Based on the results, the study therefore concluded that, from the three district municipalities used in the study, there are various ILVs growing naturally and produced. The production of ILVs from these municipalities is habituated by socio economic characteristics of households, wherein households use ILVs for various purposes which include these vegetables as source of food, medicine and livestock feed. The use of ILVs among households is influenced by socio-economic characteristics and seasonal availability of ILVs in ORTDM, while in ANDM and JGDM, the use of ILVs by households is conditioned by socio-economic characteristics of households, knowledge/ awareness related to nutrition and health benefits of ILVs and seasonal production of ILVs. Furthermore, this research concludes that, ILVs have a potential of diversifying diets and addressing food insecurity problems within rural parts of the three districts. Given the positive gross margins from the three districts, production and selling of ILVs has a potential to contribute to rural household income. Lastly, the study concludes that, the ILV production value chain system lacks governmental support in the form of institutional engagement since there is no evidence of extension officer support from these three district municipalities concerning ILVs production. To this end, the study recommends that, policy makers should further establish inclusion of ILVs in both farming and food systems. Also, government and related institutions which focus on sustainable rural development must intervene in promoting production of ILVs particularly within rural contexts since production of these vegetables may alleviate poverty through job creation, addressing food insecurity and income generation. Thus, a successful intervention of government and policy makers in ILV production would have a potential of translating to sustainable rural livelihoods / National Research Foundation (NRF)

Food insecurity remains a major challenge affecting the rural poor households in South Africa. The consumption of green leafy vegetables is important to address micronutrients deficiency in rural communities and, at the same time, it contributes to fibre intake. This study investigated the people’s attitude towards the cultivation and utilisation of ILVs in rural communities. A cross-section survey study was conducted among 1 000 respondents in randomly selected households in communities. The majority of respondents were not willingly consuming ILVs. This is because most consumers were black and of the low-income group. ILVs that are consumed grow mainly in the wild. The regular consumption of these vegetables as indicated in this study is interesting, as this will help in mitigating micronutrient deficiency. Furthermore, these vegetables could be incorporated in formulated food to improve iron and zinc, especially in infant foods formulation. Based on the findings of this study it would be important to find ways of encouraging cultivation of ILVs for both nutrition and as income generating activities. / Life and Consumer Science / M.CS.