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Digital technologies are essential for improving efficiency and unlocking new opportunities in various domains. The purpose of this study is to assess whether digital technologies can ameliorate servitization among manufacturing firms via the interaction of organizational slack and research and development (R&D) intensity.

Drawing on resource-based and service-dominant logic, the study employs a deductive approach and gathers empirical evidence from 1,929 listed A-shares manufacturing firms in the top-seven China mainland industrial provinces spanning the period 2012–2021. It used fixed-effect logistic regression techniques while controlling for various factors to analyze the relationship between digital technologies and manufacturing firm servitization.

The findings revealed that digital technologies significantly ameliorate manufacturing firms' servitization. Moreover, the study uncovers the contingent nature of this relationship, demonstrating that high levels of both internal and external slack, which provide flexibility and support, intensify the direction of digital technologies towards servitization. Additionally, R&D intensity reflects the firm's commitment to innovation, thereby enhancing synergistic effects in the relationship.

This study contributes robust and comprehensive empirical evidence that validates and establishes a clear baseline relationship reflecting the most current digital technology landscape and its implications for manufacturing firms servitization. Moreover, it provides a more patterned understanding of how internal and external slack typologies and R&D intensity contextualize our study’s findings. Additionally, it demonstrates how our theoretical synthesis advances firms’ strategic shifts towards service-oriented business models through digital technologies.

This study aims to review processing and utilization of snail meat in alleviating protein malnutrition in Africa. Most countries in Africa are faced with a major challenge of protein malnutrition as a result of high cost of animal proteins. This has encouraged more research works in the use of wild or game meat to meet the much-needed animal proteins.

Previous literatures on the above subject matter were reviewed. In many African countries, the use of snails, rodents and other small livestock in the wild could help in improving the nutritional needs of the people in both urban and rural areas, as well as adding economic value through income generation to the local people.

Snails are very rich in dietary protein, low in fat and cholesterol and are good sources of iron, magnesium, calcium and zinc. Previous studies showed that snail meat contains 70 per cent of water and its dry matter contains high amounts of essential amino acids such as lysine, leucine, arginine and tryptophan. Research studies have shown that snail contains calcium orthophosphate, a chemical substrate that could alleviate and reduce kidney diseases. Also, the glandular substances found in edible snails were found to have antimicrobial activities that cause agglutination of certain bacteria, which could be used against some ailments like whooping cough. As snail meat products have high nutritional value, spoilage sets in after one or two days after harvesting, and therefore, the preservation of snail meat has become a major concern to farmers, processors and consumers. Several preservation techniques could be adopted, which include smoking, sun drying, convectional drying and the use of natural or artificial preservatives. These methods have been found to reduce microbial load of snail meat and help to extend shelf life and keeping quality of snail meat.

This review X-rayed the importance of snail meat in the human diet and how this could be explored to enhance protein nutrition in developing countries.