Presentations
Dr. Bryan Mendieta is an Agricultural Engineer with a major in Animal Science from UNA-Nicaragua. His Masters degree was in Integrated Farming Tropical Systems at Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona-Spain and his PhD was at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Animal Science with a focus in Animal Nutrition.
Dr. Mendieta was Feed Science Lab Director at UNA for 15 years and has been working as a moringa researcher for 19 years. Since 2011 Dr. Mendieta was the national coordinator of PROMARANGO (National Program of Moringa in Nicaragua), in addition to the coordinator of the animal nutrition research group UNA for 20 years. He also worked as a regional expert for the Degraded Pasture Program in Central America.
Dr Mendieta's presentation will focus on animal feeding using non-conventional feedstuffs like Sachamoringa (which is a Fermentation in Solis State of Moringa) and its use in pigs, rabbits and hens; It will also cover moringa silage for cows and the use of moringa leaf meal as part of concentrate.
David Kennedy is the founder and director of Leaf for Life, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the reduction of global malnutrition through the optimum use of leaf crops. He has designed and implemented projects and workshops involving small-scale agriculture and innovative food processing in 13 different countries on four continents. The author of four books on edible leaves, David advocates for improving our health through home gardens that feature super-nutritious greens.
Presentation:
A GreenGarden Approach to Malnutrition Leafy vegetables have the most nutrients per calorie of any foods and there are over 1000 plant species with edible leaves. This nutrient density and great diversity make leaf crops ideal for reducing the two most common forms of malnutrition; micro-nutrrient deficiencies and obesity. This presentation will help you to choose the best leaf crops, how to grow them with hand tools in small gardens, and how to prepare the leafy vegetables so that they are appealing, especially to children.
Larry Smoak and his wife Allison along with their four children live and work in rural Honduras, Central America as directors of Campus Adullam, an integrated life- discipleship center for youth, and as coordinators of agricultural and community development in the local villages. Larry, who was born to missionaries in Colombia and has an MA in Economics and BA in Missions and Intercultural Studies from Wheaton College, has been experimenting with inga species for soil conservation and in maiz alley cropping since 2004.