Agriculture Grade 11: Mechanized Farming, Human Nutrition, and Diversified Food Production

Flashcards covering mechanized farming equipment, levels of mechanization, human nutrition requirements, malnutrition types, and strategies for dietary diversification based on the Agriculture Grade 11 curriculum.

Mechanization

The use of machinery to replace human or animal labor in agricultural activities such as land development, crop production, and processing.

Low level mechanization

A level of mechanization where the manual power used exceeds $33\%$.

Fair level mechanization

A level of mechanization where animal power used is between $34\%$ and $66\%$.

High level mechanization

A level of mechanization where mechanical power used is between $67\%$ and $100\%$.

Combine harvester

A versatile machine designed to efficiently combine four separate harvesting operations: reaping, threshing, gathering, and winnowing.

Subsoiler

A tractor-mounted equipment used to break up and loosen the soil during deep tillage to improve crop growth in compacted soil.

Cultipacker

A piece of equipment used for crushing soil clods, eliminating cracks, and pressing small stones to form a smooth, firm seedbed.

Baler

A machine that compresses hay or straw into bales for easy transport and storage.

Egg Incubator

A device with a fan and heater designed to keep fertile eggs warm for $21$ days of incubation.

Nutrition

The science of ingestion, digestion, absorption, assimilation, and biosynthesis of nutrients in the body.

Macronutrients

Nutrients needed in large amounts to maintain the body’s structure and systems, specifically carbohydrates, fat, and protein.

Micronutrients

Nutrients needed in small quantities for a healthy life, such as minerals and vitamins, used to produce enzymes and hormones.

Carbohydrates

Sugars, starches, or fibers that provide energy, where one gram generates $4\,kcal$; they should constitute $45\%$ to $65\%$ of daily calories.

Lipids (Fats and Oils)

A concentrated source of energy generating $9\,kcal$ per gram; they serve as fuel reserves and make diets more palatable.

Complete Proteins

Proteins from animal products, including eggs and milk, that contain all of the $20$ amino acids required by the body.

Fat soluble vitamins

A group of vitamins including vitamins $A$, $D$, $E$, and $K$ that can be stored in the body.

Water soluble vitamins

A group of vitamins including vitamins $B$ and $C$ that are not stored in the body and need to be eaten more frequently.

Major minerals

Elements with a Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) greater than $150\,mg/day$, such as magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, and potassium.

Food Security

A state that exists when all people at all times have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food.

Four pillars of food security

The essential components of food/nutrition security: availability, access, utilization, and stability.

Nutrition-sensitive agriculture

A food-based approach to agricultural development that prioritizes nutritionally rich foods, dietary diversity, and fortification to overcome malnutrition.

Stunting

A form of chronic or recurrent undernutrition where a child’s height-for-age is below the average for their age.

Wasting

An indicator of acute or short-term undernutrition where a child is very thin for their height and sex, defined as weight-for-height less than $-2$ standard deviations ($<-2\,SD$).

Body Mass Index (BMI)

A person’s weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters ($kg/m^2$); a normal range for adults is $18.5$ to $25$.

Integrated farming system

A sustainable agricultural system that integrates livestock, crop production, fish, and poultry based on the concept that 'there is no waste'.

Bioavailability

The ability of a nutritional substance to be absorbed and used by the body.

Food fortification

The practice of deliberately increasing the content of essential micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, trace elements) in a food supply.

Germination

A traditional processing method where grains or pulses sprout, increasing digestibility and nutrient content, such as vitamin $C$ increasing nearly $10$ times.

Fermentation

A process where microorganisms like bacteria or yeast break down nutrients into simpler forms, used in making products like Injera and yogurt.

Chuko

A traditional rich food common in Oromia made from barley flour mixed with concentrated butter.