Afghan pine nuts for export
9 Nov, 2020
November 9, 2020

Which are the best and healthiest nuts to eat?

They reduce cholesterol levels, help to lose weight, and even prevent cognitive deterioration. There is no problem in eating them because nuts have multiple capacities and enrich the diet.

Although they have bad press because of their high fat content, between 50% and 70%, and because of their energy density, 160 or 180 kcal per 100 grams, nuts bring more benefits than displeasure for health. In addition, in addition to being an excellent source of essential nutrients, they provide a high content of proteins, antioxidants, fiber, minerals and vitamins B and E.

To which is added that the fats they contain are ‘good’, that is, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated, which, as pointed out in the Mayo Clinic portal, “help to lower LDL cholesterol levels, lower triglycerides, decrease the coagulation of the blood and improve the health of the blood vessels”. With such properties, it is not surprising that the WHO recommends its inclusion in the framework of a healthy diet.

A handful a day

Moreover, the Spanish Heart Foundation advises eating 50 grams of dried fruit per day. Despite these indications, statistics reveal that one in three Spaniards never consume them and that less than 8% do so on a daily basis. In this sense, the medical community agrees to affirm that it is not convenient to leave aside the nuts.

Of course, we must take into account how they are consumed. The best way is to eat them in ‘raw version’, without additives or salt, or excluded from certain preparations. Moreover, although they do not have miraculous properties or cure diseases by magic, the truth is that they can cover various nutritional needs or help in the regulation of ailments.

You could say that there is a nut for every need:

Bone diseases: pine nuts and almonds

Almonds are the nuts that provide the most calcium, specifically 269 mg per 100 g. Therefore, they are a good option to complement or increase the levels of this mineral and prevent osteoporosis or combat bone discomfort. For their part, pine nuts contribute interesting amounts of zinc, 6.45 g per 100 g, which helps in the formation and mineralization of bones and joints.

The Spanish Heart Foundation advises the intake of 50 grams of dried fruit per day

Intestinal transit: nuts and pistachios

The shortage of fiber is, along with inadequate water intake and sedentary lifestyle, one of the main causes of constipation. With 10.6% of this nutrient, pistachios are good friends of the good functioning of the intestines. Closely followed by nuts, which contribute 6.5%, which makes them good enemies of constipation.

Cholesterol: hazelnuts, walnuts and almonds

These nuts have the power to contribute to the improvement of cardiovascular health. They are rich in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, which help maintain the health of blood vessels and control cholesterol levels. The most outstanding from the nutritional point of view is the nuts since they are the only dry fruit that contributes important quantities of omega-3.

This fatty acid is important because it helps reduce the cholesterol and triglyceride levels mentioned, as well as lower blood pressure. Hazelnuts and almonds lower blood lipid levels and homocysteine, an amino acid that in large quantities damages the lining of the arteries and increases the risk of blockage of blood vessels.

Diabetes: cashews, pine nuts, pistachios…

The data extracted from the study conducted by Dr. David Jenkins, published in the journal ‘Diabetes Care’, suggest that these nuts help control the levels of lipids and blood glucose in type 2 diabetics (always better without salt, obviously) .

On the other hand, it should be noted that they are rich in trace elements – minerals that the body needs in minimal amounts – especially magnesium. This is a coadjuvant of insulin resistance, which helps prevent the development of type 2 diabetes. The anarcardos, with 292 mg per 100 g, are the ones that contribute the most. For its part, pistachios also stand out for its high content of potassium -1,025 mg, whose deficiency prevents the control of diabetes.

Overweight: nuts, hazelnuts and almonds

Traditionally it has been linked to nuts with the increase in weight. However, it is not true and there are numerous studies that prove it. For example, the one published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, which concludes, “diets rich in nuts, compared to different control diets, do not increase body weight, body mass index or body circumference. The waist. Our findings support the inclusion of nuts in healthy diets for cardiovascular prevention.”

The oiliest nuts, such as walnuts, almonds and hazelnuts, provide healthy fats and have a powerful satiating effect, which leads to a decrease in the consumption of other foods, often unhealthy.

Dementia: almonds and hazelnuts

Another of the benefits attributed to this type of fruits is its possible power in the prevention of cognitive dementia. Both almonds and hazelnuts are rich in vitamin E, which is related to less cognitive impairment and even a delay in it.

This is demonstrated by the US study conducted jointly by the Massachusetts General Hospital (HGM), the Bedford Medical Center, and the Harvard Medical School. Concludes, after the analysis of 540 patients in the Memory Disorders Unit of the HGM, that the intake of vitamin E delays the deterioration of cognitive functions in patients with Alzheimer’s.

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Fresh fruits and vegetables
9 Nov, 2020
November 9, 2020

Best Recommendations for the Export of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables

Best Recommendations for the Export of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables

This publication explains the procedures for the export of fresh fruits and vegetables and the considerations that must be taken into account.

The process of exporting fresh fruits and vegetables begins with their collection. This process plays a key role in the success of the sale, so it must be planned, in such a way that the products retain their organoleptic characteristics. For this planning, aspect such as:

  • Harvest indices: size, shape, color, age of the fruit, sugar content, starches, oils, etc.
  • Tools and packaging suitable for collection (containers, vessels, baskets, etc.)
  • Collection time: the best physiological conditions of fruits and vegetables are presented in the first hours of the day; collection should be avoided under extreme temperatures.
  • Temporary storage conditions: once the product has been harvested, it must be protected from rain, wind, and sun and kept in storage conditions at a temperature below 12 ° C.
  • Transport equipment: the mobilization of fruits and vegetables from the harvest area to the conditioning, packing, and storage, must be carried out in the shortest possible time.

The next process is the conditioning and packing in the plant, as the case may be.

The packaging and packaging plant must have a sufficient and technically distributed area that has the necessary infrastructure, such as:

  • Product reception (unloading, weighing, inspection, and preselection).
  • Conditioning (washing, disinfection, selection, etc.).
  • Treatments (immersion in hot water, waxing, irradiation, drying, etc.).
  • Classification (manual or mechanical).
  • Packaging and palletizing.
  • Cooling and storage.

The cooling stage plays a significant role in the handling of fresh products, to maintain its quality and prolong its useful life. For this, it is necessary to perform cooling quickly and store under specific temperature and relative humidity conditions for each product.

It should be borne in mind that, during the trip to the final recipient, the fruit or vegetable must remain in the same initial storage conditions, and that, therefore, when transporting to the port of shipment, in the cargo agent’s warehouses and in the main transport for export, the same temperature and relative humidity must be maintained, within the container or intermediate warehouses.

Once the cargo is conditioned and unitized, the next process is the transport of the cargo from the plant to the port of shipment, and its handling within it.

Transport should be carried out, where possible, by truck or refrigerated container, estimating the transit time in such a way that the product reaches the final destination at the optimum point for the consumer.

It is important to obtain, in advance of boarding, the reserves of space for transport; the following information is required for this process:

  • Name of the exporter,
  • Consignee’s Name,
  • Commercial and technical name of the product to be transported and tariff classification of the same,
  • Commercial or packaging unit,
  • Handling characteristics,
  • Type of packaging,
  • Weights and volumes,
  • Birthplace,
  • Port of shipment,
  • Port of landing,
  • Freight payment, and
  • Agent or representative.

It is convenient to keep in mind that refrigerated land transport equipment and containers are not designed to lower the temperature of the product, but to maintain it, so it is necessary to pre-cool the product to the recommended temperature for maintenance during storage and transport. The way to stow the product in the transport vehicle depends on the packaging, product, type, and size of the vehicle, but it must always be carefully planned and managed to minimize damage, both physical and environmental.

Finally, when it comes to handling cargo at the port of embarkation, aspects such as:

  • Coordinate delivery at the points of embarkation and disembarkation.
  • Establish customs and phytosanitary requirements.
  • Define conditions of capacity of the merchandise.
  • Determine cold storage needs.
  • Establish handling and transportation for delivery to the importer or distributor.

Boustan Sabz Company works with leading brands in all areas of fruit and vegetable production. We are the most leading agriculture company with the greatest innovation in the agricultural sector. Distribution, Export of fruits and vegetables of the best quality.

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apiculture in Afghanistan
9 Nov, 2020
November 9, 2020

Apiculture: How is pure honey produced?

Apiculture: How is pure honey produced?

In the spring and early summer months, when flowers flood the fields of our geography, we can see thousands of bees working tirelessly to collect pollen, water and resin, among other juices directly from the flowers. To these juices they add other substances that they produce from their own organism, to transform them into pure honey.

Sweet, thick, golden, bright, delicious and healthy … These attributes deserve the honey of bee, whose production occurs in several parts of Afghanistan, but where do the bees take the nectar that turn into golden honey?

Today we will explain to you in very simple and non-scientific terms the way in which honey is produced.

It is important, first to know the division of this work by these insects, which is perfect in a hive since they all have their role. The queen, as her name says, the one who commands and all the others work for her. Then there are the workers, who collect the nectar and the pollen; and there are the drones, called parasites, who follow the workers, but they are the pimps.

In the organization, there are other bees as the explorers, who go out to look for flowers and then return to warn the collectors about the location. There are also the builders of the cells of the hives, the sentinels or soldiers who take care of the hive and even some so-called fans, responsible for cooling the combs.

In sweet words, all the bees of a hive or honeycomb have their functions, they must fulfill their work; otherwise, we humans could never enjoy the true honeys of life.

Now, how is the honey production process?

The scout bees leave the house early in search of nectar. They arrive at the hives and notify the collectors.

The collectors collect the nectar with the tongue. They suck it and store it in what is called the stomach of honey.

In this process, they add enzymes and nutrients. Once the nectar is collected, they take flight and move to the outside of the hive, where the receiving bees take it to take it inside, that is, to the wax cells.

The bees themselves produce the wax, and now of building the cells of the combs, they secrete it through the stomach. In these cells, they not only deposit the nectar for honey, but also the eggs that, after 21 days, become bees.

About a week is needed for that nectar to turn into honey.

The development of the beekeeping industry is important in agriculture, since this activity is possible to extend several services, such as the pollination of crops, in addition to the production of honey, pollen and propolis, among other derivatives of this industry.

How good honey is produced.

Honey is a product produced by the bees themselves, with the sole objective of permanently feeding their hungry larvae and thus ensure life during the harsh winter.

However, the bees in their flights only collect a few milligrams of pollen, nectar and water, but having several thousand bees making several thousand daily flights, they get to collect impressive amounts of food for their hives.

Most of the pollen and nectar will be consumed by themselves and their larvae during the months of maximum work, that is, in spring and summer and the rest of their production will be used to procure food during the harsh months of winter and the the rest of the year.

When one begins, it takes between eight and nine months to give the first harvest. The best thing to do is to start from February, which is the best months, and to place the apiary as close to a water source, no farther than 500 meters, and with lots of vegetation around so that the bees pollinate better.

How are the castes?

The queen puts on the offspring and can give 3,500 eggs a day. It is the only fertile female and lives up to years. The drone paired with the queen. They can live between 60 and 65 days. The workers are responsible for cleaning the hive and pecoring. They can live up to 65 days.

Conclusion

Honeybees are the best and most effective pollination agent for fruit trees and other plants, because they carry pollen from a flower and transfer it to another flower resulting from high flowering and pollen yields and harvest levels of a farm. In addition, they bring the garden 100% to its maximum. At least four honeybee hives are required for a thousand square meter of land, where cultivated trees are planted.

Boustan Research and Development Farm is home to an apiary of 60 honeybee hives each containing several thousand bees. These honeybees play a vital role in crop pollination, which greatly affect yields and business productivity.

Considering the economic benefits of honeybees, Boustan plans to expand its apiary with the addition of hundred plus hives by the beginning of 2020 thereby capitalizing on their pollinating capabilities, contribution to honey production and supply to the local markets.

It should be mentioned that the main purpose of the maintenance of bees on the farm is the pollination of trees, and honey is the second objective.

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