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Agronomy
Special Issues
Ethnic Crops in the United States of America
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Ethnic Crops in the United States of America

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Innovative Cropping Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 September 2021) | Viewed by 21063

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Albert Ayeni

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Plant Biology, Rutgers' SEBS, Foran Hall, 59 Dudley Road, New Brunswick, NJ 08901, USA
Interests: agronomy; ethnic/exotic crop production and marketing; entrepreneurial agriculture; weed management; horticulture; sustainable agriculture; international agriculture
Dr. O. Adewale Osipitan

E-Mail Website
Co-Guest Editor
Department of Plant Sciences, University of California, Davis, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA 95616, USA
Interests: agronomy; agroecology; weed science; weed management; crop protection; agronomic crops; ethnic crops; speciality crops; herbicide resistance

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Objective: To build a knowledge repository for standardizing communication in the ethnic crop industry in the United States of America.

Background and rationale: Data from the US Census Bureau showed that the minority content of the US population rose from 20.4% in 1980 to 36.3% in 2010. It is projected to rise to 50.1% by 2042 (https://www.census.gov/newsroom/cspan/1940census/CSPAN_1940slides.pdf  (accessed 02/12/21)).  This rapidly changing demographic in the United States brings with it a rapidly changing food culture, increasing quite rapidly the diversity of ethnic crops being added to the national food basket annually. Currently, the ethnic crop industry is amorphous, but needs to be characterized as an evolving powerhouse of US agricultural economy. The current and future dimension of the ethnic crop industry in the United States serves as motivation to launch a conscious and painstaking effort whereby available information will be published in readily accessible and reputable sources. Such publications will convey the information one needs to be able to navigate the industry with minimum difficulty. This will facilitate the management and regulation of this industry by policy makers and assist the academic community, private sector, and general public in communicating and collaborating for the advancement of national food security, nutrition, and health.

Definition of Ethnic Crops: For this Special Issue of Agronomy journal, ethnic crops are defined as non-mainstream crops introduced to the United States from Africa, Asia, the Americas, and the Caribbean. Essentially, these crops are naturally adapted to tropical environments and may not survive under freezing temperatures (<32 °F). Ethnic crops may belong to field, horticultural, or specialty crop groups, including vegetables and herbs.

Subject Areas of Interest: Scientific research and survey articles are requested in the following subject areas:

  • Crop origin, botanical description (including scientific and common names), adaptation, and distribution in the United States of America
  • Crop role in and current (and potential) contributions to the US economy
  • Food, nutrition, and health values of the crop(s)
  • Utilization options (food, fiber, medicine, industrial applications, etc.)
  • Crop agronomy, crop protection, harvesting and postharvest handling, including storage.
  • Crop marketing (at community, national, and international levels)
  • Government regulation and integration into the breadbasket of the United States.

Dr. Albert Ayeni
Dr. O. Adewale Osipitan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • crop origin
  • botanical description
  • ecological adaptation
  • national distribution
  • economic significance
  • nutritional value
  • crop protection
  • harvesting and postharvest handling
  • government regulation

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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11 pages, 3057 KiB  
Communication
The ‘Pick-Your-Own’ Model of Production and Marketing of Ethnic Crops in Central New Jersey, USA
by David Specca, Stephen Specca and Albert O. Ayeni
Agronomy 2022, 12(3), 751; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/agronomy12030751 - 21 Mar 2022
Viewed by 2143
Abstract
Specca Farms Pick Your Own (SFPYO) operates a 125-acre (50 ha) farm in Bordentown, Central New Jersey, USA, which attends to customers from many different ethnic regions such as Africa, the Americas, Asia, the Mediterranean region, Eastern Europe, and the Caribbean. The company [...] Read more.
Specca Farms Pick Your Own (SFPYO) operates a 125-acre (50 ha) farm in Bordentown, Central New Jersey, USA, which attends to customers from many different ethnic regions such as Africa, the Americas, Asia, the Mediterranean region, Eastern Europe, and the Caribbean. The company produces more than 100 ethnic crops that require unique agronomic and management practices tailored to central New Jersey’s ecosystem and the unique quality of produce demanded by various ethnic nationalities. This paper reviews the ethnic crop classifications at the farm, the agronomic and crop protection practices applied to different crop groups, and the factors that guide produce marketing to meet the unique quality demanded by different ethnic nationalities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ethnic Crops in the United States of America)
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11 pages, 1769 KiB  
Article
Consumers within the Spicy Pepper Supply Chain
by Jay Lillywhite and Sunshine Tso
Agronomy 2021, 11(10), 2040; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/agronomy11102040 - 11 Oct 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3238
Abstract
“Spicy pepper” is a term used to describe a variety of “pungent” peppers, sometimes referred to as hot, chili, or chile. The USDA reports that the per capita availability of chile peppers has increased more than 100% since the early 1980s. While the [...] Read more.
“Spicy pepper” is a term used to describe a variety of “pungent” peppers, sometimes referred to as hot, chili, or chile. The USDA reports that the per capita availability of chile peppers has increased more than 100% since the early 1980s. While the availability of spicy peppers has increased, easily accessible data regarding which varieties are consumed, how they are used by households, and who is most likely to consume them is not available. This paper provides insights into U.S. spicy pepper production and consumption as provided by a review of existing trade data and a survey of U.S. consumers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ethnic Crops in the United States of America)
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13 pages, 17095 KiB  
Article
The Performance of Representative Asian Vegetables in Different Production Systems in Texas
by Genhua Niu, Joseph Masabni, Triston Hooks, Daniel Leskovar and John Jifon
Agronomy 2021, 11(9), 1874; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/agronomy11091874 - 17 Sep 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2396
Abstract
Demand for Asian vegetables is rising rapidly due to changing demographics and increasing consumer awareness of their health benefits. However, growers are not familiar with growing these “foreign” crops due to insufficient technical information regarding suitable cultivars for different regions, production schedules, disease [...] Read more.
Demand for Asian vegetables is rising rapidly due to changing demographics and increasing consumer awareness of their health benefits. However, growers are not familiar with growing these “foreign” crops due to insufficient technical information regarding suitable cultivars for different regions, production schedules, disease and pest susceptibility, and postharvest management. The objective of this study was to conduct trials in different production systems and climate regions to demonstrate the potential of growing Asian vegetables in Texas. We conducted preliminary trials of nine leafy greens in the open field, high tunnel, and greenhouse (container and hydroponic production) to explore the suitability and potential for year-round production. We also conducted field trials for warm season crops in the open field in different climate zones. Results indicated that for cool season leafy greens, open field production has a limited growing season, high tunnel has the potential to extend the growing season, while greenhouse may provide year-round production using soilless substrate container culture or hydroponic system. For warm season crops, early planting is recommended for high yield. Additional research is warranted in different regions to test more species and cultivars and optimize the production system of high-performing cultivars to maximize production and profitability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ethnic Crops in the United States of America)
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Review

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16 pages, 295 KiB  
Review
Specialty Crop Germplasm and Public Breeding Efforts in the United States
by Thomas Orton and Albert Ayeni
Agronomy 2022, 12(2), 239; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/agronomy12020239 - 18 Jan 2022
Viewed by 1519
Abstract
The United States Department of Agriculture/Agriculture Research Service/National Germplasm System (USDA/ARS/NGS) plant germplasm collections contain more than 600,000 different accessions of 16,289 species, including virtually all the ethnic and specialty crops of interest to United States (U.S.) agriculture. These and additional collections of [...] Read more.
The United States Department of Agriculture/Agriculture Research Service/National Germplasm System (USDA/ARS/NGS) plant germplasm collections contain more than 600,000 different accessions of 16,289 species, including virtually all the ethnic and specialty crops of interest to United States (U.S.) agriculture. These and additional collections of plant seeds and asexual propagules are maintained at various laboratories and facilities geographically dispersed in the U.S. including NGS and many public land grant university institutions. The majority of these species fall under the definition of “specialty” crops since their utility is either narrow in scope or has not been fully developed. This paper summarizes the status of “specialty” and ethnic crop species germplasm in the U.S. including where the collections are maintained and how they are being used. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ethnic Crops in the United States of America)
10 pages, 1988 KiB  
Review
Production Systems and Prospects of Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.) in the United States
by O. Adewale Osipitan, Jeneen S. Fields, Sassoum Lo and Ivan Cuvaca
Agronomy 2021, 11(11), 2312; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/agronomy11112312 - 16 Nov 2021
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 10026
Abstract
Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.) is an important legume crop with enormous nutritional, agronomic and economic value. Cowpea constitutes a large portion of the daily diet among many people in Africa, Asia, Central America, and Southern America. The United States was among [...] Read more.
Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.) is an important legume crop with enormous nutritional, agronomic and economic value. Cowpea constitutes a large portion of the daily diet among many people in Africa, Asia, Central America, and Southern America. The United States was among the top 10 global producers of cowpea until 1967, when cowpea was grown primarily for soil management and livestock feed. With the projected increase in the minority population in the United States, from 25% in 1992 to 47% in 2050, it is expected that the consumption of cowpea in the nation will increase substantially. In this review, we provide information about cowpea production systems and prospects in the United States. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ethnic Crops in the United States of America)
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