Patterns of Use of Residue Biomass in Cereal–Sheep Production Systems of North Africa: Case of Tunisia
This paper analyzes the complex relationships of factors influencing residue biomass management in cereal–sheep production systems in semi-arid areas of Tunisia. The Bayesian belief network (BBN) methodology was applied to identify factors enabling the better management of crop residue (CR) at the f...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-06-01
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| Series: | Agriculture |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/11/7/612 |
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| author | Wafa Ameur Aymen Frija Mohamed Arbi Abdeladhim Chokri Thabet |
| author_facet | Wafa Ameur Aymen Frija Mohamed Arbi Abdeladhim Chokri Thabet |
| author_sort | Wafa Ameur |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper analyzes the complex relationships of factors influencing residue biomass management in cereal–sheep production systems in semi-arid areas of Tunisia. The Bayesian belief network (BBN) methodology was applied to identify factors enabling the better management of crop residue (CR) at the farm level. Data were collected from 152 farms located in the governorate of Siliana in north-west Tunisia. After designing the complex interactions between different variables that have an influence on the allocation of CR, BBN was also applied as a predictive model by inserting evidence conditional probabilities on the quantity of CR left on the soil and simulating the incurrent changes in the probability state of the remaining network variables. The results show that around 70% of farmers in our sample retain an overall quantity of CR lower than 200 kg/ha. The share of livestock income, livestock herds, cost of livestock feed, and off-farm income are all factors that have a strong influence on residue biomass management. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T09:57:03Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b8e614de00b74a6781eee600a842d05d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-0472 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T09:57:03Z |
| publishDate | 2021-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agriculture |
| spelling | doaj.art-b8e614de00b74a6781eee600a842d05d2023-11-22T02:18:38ZengMDPI AGAgriculture2077-04722021-06-0111761210.3390/agriculture11070612Patterns of Use of Residue Biomass in Cereal–Sheep Production Systems of North Africa: Case of TunisiaWafa Ameur0Aymen Frija1Mohamed Arbi Abdeladhim2Chokri Thabet3Institut Supérieur D’agriculture de Chott Mariem (ISA CM), University of Sousse, 4042 Sousse, TunisiaInternational Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), INRAT-Rue HédiKarray-CP, 2049 Ariana, TunisiaEcole Supérieure D’agriculture Morgane (ESAM), University of Carthage, 1100 Zaghouan, TunisiaInstitut Supérieur D’agriculture de Chott Mariem (ISA CM), University of Sousse, 4042 Sousse, TunisiaThis paper analyzes the complex relationships of factors influencing residue biomass management in cereal–sheep production systems in semi-arid areas of Tunisia. The Bayesian belief network (BBN) methodology was applied to identify factors enabling the better management of crop residue (CR) at the farm level. Data were collected from 152 farms located in the governorate of Siliana in north-west Tunisia. After designing the complex interactions between different variables that have an influence on the allocation of CR, BBN was also applied as a predictive model by inserting evidence conditional probabilities on the quantity of CR left on the soil and simulating the incurrent changes in the probability state of the remaining network variables. The results show that around 70% of farmers in our sample retain an overall quantity of CR lower than 200 kg/ha. The share of livestock income, livestock herds, cost of livestock feed, and off-farm income are all factors that have a strong influence on residue biomass management.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/11/7/612crop residueslivestockBayesian belief network (BBN)natural resources managementlivestock incomeharvest index (HI) |
| spellingShingle | Wafa Ameur Aymen Frija Mohamed Arbi Abdeladhim Chokri Thabet Patterns of Use of Residue Biomass in Cereal–Sheep Production Systems of North Africa: Case of Tunisia Agriculture crop residues livestock Bayesian belief network (BBN) natural resources management livestock income harvest index (HI) |
| title | Patterns of Use of Residue Biomass in Cereal–Sheep Production Systems of North Africa: Case of Tunisia |
| title_full | Patterns of Use of Residue Biomass in Cereal–Sheep Production Systems of North Africa: Case of Tunisia |
| title_fullStr | Patterns of Use of Residue Biomass in Cereal–Sheep Production Systems of North Africa: Case of Tunisia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Patterns of Use of Residue Biomass in Cereal–Sheep Production Systems of North Africa: Case of Tunisia |
| title_short | Patterns of Use of Residue Biomass in Cereal–Sheep Production Systems of North Africa: Case of Tunisia |
| title_sort | patterns of use of residue biomass in cereal sheep production systems of north africa case of tunisia |
| topic | crop residues livestock Bayesian belief network (BBN) natural resources management livestock income harvest index (HI) |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/11/7/612 |
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