Lenticels are sites of initiation of microcracking and russeting in 'Apple' mango.

The mango cultivar 'Apple' is an important fruitcrop in Kenya, but it is highly susceptible to russeting. The objective was to establish whether lenticels predispose cv. 'Apple' mango to russeting.

Digital health systems strengthening in Africa for rapid response to COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic has painfully exposed the constraints of fragile health systems in low- and middle-income countries, where global containment measures largely set by high-income countries resulted in disproportionate collateral damage. In Africa, a shift is urgently needed from emergency response to structural health systems strengthening efforts, which requires coordinated interventions to increase access, efficiency, quality, transparency, equity, and flexibility of health services. We postulate that rapid digitalization of health interventions is a key way forward to increase resilience of African health systems to epidemic challenges.

Exploring the Status of Preference, Utilization Practices, and Challenges to Consumption of Amaranth in Kenya and Tanzania.

African leafy vegetables such as amaranth have been utilized since time immemorial both as food and as medicine. These vegetables grew naturally in most rural environments, but currently most of them are cultivated both for home consumption and for sale. The aim of this study was to identify the most preferred amaranth species and cooking and utilization practices, as well as the beliefs and attitudes that encourage or discourage use of this vegetable.

Baobab pulp authenticity and quality control by multi-imaging high-performance thin-layer chromatography.

Globalization of trade and increasing demand for baobab fruit pulp powder (Adansonia digitata) has led to more adulteration incidence with physically similar products, e.g. sifted cereal flours.

Microbial Contamination and Occurrence of Aflatoxins in Processed Baobab Products in Kenya.

Baobab fruit demand has been on the rise in the recent past, and in an attempt to match the demand, farmers and middlemen are forced to harvest immature fruits which are not fully dried. To ensure an acceptable moisture content, baobab fruits are subjected to solar drying, which is a slow process and often carried out in open and unhygienic conditions raising safety concerns. This study was conducted to investigate the microbial and aflatoxin contamination levels in ready-to-eat baobab products from selected formal and informal processors in specific counties of Kenya.