Utilisation pattern and economic potential of indigenous fruits and vegetables among rural communities in Akure, Nigeria

Abstract

Plants including indigenous/naturalised fruits and vegetables (IFVs) have the potential towards meeting the food and nutrition needs of humans. Currently, IFVs are threatened by human activities such as deforestation, environmental degradation and acculturation. As a result, the need for ethnobotanical surveys that focus on the documentation of IFVs remains pertinent. The aim of the study was to explore the diverse uses, knowledge and economic potential of indigenous fruits and vegetables among 40 rural communities in Akure, Nigeria. Ethnobotanical information was collected among 400 participants using semi-structured questionnaires. Thereafter, the frequency of citation (FC) was calculated. An inventory of 46 indigenous and naturalised plant species from 19 families were identified as a source of food, nutritional and therapeutic purposes as well as energy source (fuel) in the study area. The FC ranged from approximately 32-90% and IFVs such as Ageratum conyzoides (L.) L. (89.5%), Citrus aurantiifolia (Christm.) Swingle (89.5%), Talinum fruticosum (L.) Juss. (88.8%), Amaranthus hybridus L. (87.8%), Vernonia adoensis var. adoensis (86.8%) and Vernonia amygdalina Delile (86.8%) were the most cited plants. The dominant plant families were Asteraceae (8 IFVs) and Malvaceae (6 IFVs) while the leaves (35%) and fruit (21%) were the most frequently used plant parts. In terms of use-categories, the IFVs served as food (53%), medicine/health benefits (46%) and fuel/energy source (1%), which is an indication of their diverse potential in the study area. Elaeis guineensis Jacq. was recorded as a highly diverse IFV with applications in the three use-categories. The demographic overview of the study area revealed that male participants (60.5%) are more than female (39%). In addition, the study indicated that most of the participants acquired formal education at the secondary (42.3%), primary (36.8%), and tertiary level (7.3%), while 7.5% of the participants had no formal education. Overall, the current findings contribute to the on-going global research efforts aimed at documentation of indigenous plants. The value of the efficient utilisation of rural lands to cultivate indigenous fruit and vegetables to improve the livelihood of farming households cannot be overemphasized. This study applied probit regression, principal component analysis (PCA) and propensity score matching (PSM) models to investigate the factors that determine the decisions of households to utilize their lands to cultivate indigenous fruit and vegetables. The impact of their cultivation on the participants’ livelihood was assessed and found that they were profitable (₦19,187.8/USD 42.60/Ha). The farmers who cultivated indigenous fruits and vegetables (n= 277) made an additional 29.40% average total farm revenue than those (n=123) who did not. Based on the probit regression analysis, factors such as educational attainment,

access to government subsidies and knowledge of the nutritional benefits of the indigenous fruit and vegetables influenced the farmers’ decisions to cultivate indigenous fruit and vegetables. The PSM model established that indigenous plant’s cultivation increases farm revenue and livelihoods outcomes by 17604.85 and 2.265, respectively. In this context, the cultivation of indigenous fruits and vegetables in the selected rural communities is important for the improving the livelihoods of households and suggests the need to rethink present dominant policy narrative that neglects these indigenous products. Concerted effort needs to focus on increasing their productivity and commercialization as a primary pathway to improved rural livelihood and transformation. The current findings reveal the rich biodiversity and potential of IFV for nutrition and health benefits in the study area. However, the determination of the nutritional and phytochemical content of identified IFVs collected from the study area will be essential for their characterisation which may enhance their acceptance among the local and wider populations.