CGIAR Breeding for Tomorrow science program

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/10568/163084

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Consumers’ acceptance and valuation of healthier rice: implications for promoting healthy diets in the Philippines
(Journal Article, 2025-02-13) Custodio, Marie Claire; Ynion, Jhoanne; Demont, Matty; De Steur, Hans
Purpose This paper aims to analyze and compare consumers’ acceptance and valuation of brown, colored and low glycemic index rice and identify the factors that influence their willingness to pay (WTP). Design/methodology/approach A stated-preference survey was conducted among 600 middle-class urban consumers in the Philippines, using a contingent valuation approach with a between-subjects design. The data were analyzed using hierarchical multiple linear regression. Findings Consumers accepted healthier rice types, but they discounted them relative to premium white rice, despite receiving product-specific information on health benefits. Consumers’ household income, attitude toward healthy eating and their diet quality had significant effects on WTP. Snack occasions could serve as entry points for healthier rice rather than targeting the substitution of white rice during main eating occasions. Generic information on nutritional benefits of healthier rice products was insufficient to nudge consumers’ intentions toward integrating these products into their diets. Practical implications The empirical contribution provides insights for breeding programs on the design of rice target product profiles that incorporate nutritional attributes. Originality/value The current study addresses the gap in consumer preference studies by evaluating nutrition-related attributes of rice. Measures of attitude toward food-based dietary guidelines and indicators of diet quality were included in the set of predictors that may influence WTP. The results provide insights for designing nutrition education programs to promote healthier rice in the context of healthy eating habits and to enhance the health benefits of consumers’ current diets. Future studies should further explore different types of nutrition nudges that encourage consumers to eat healthier rice-based dishes and test nutrition communication strategies that move from a narrow product focus to a broader emphasis on dietary diversity by promoting healthier dishes based on healthier rice products.
Market segmentation for peppers and tomatoes in Africa
(Brief, 2025-05) Ambali, Mwasilwa; Zohoungbogbo, Herbaud; Ayenan, Mathieu; Eybishitz, Assaf; Barchenger, Derek; Schreinemachers, Pepijn
The agricultural sector is facing a critical gap in data regarding the future preferences and requirements of key stakeholders such as farmers, processors, and consumers, particularly in the context of public-sector vegetable breeding research. While the CGIAR mandate crops benefit from the Seed Product Market Segment Database, vegetables are notably absent, despite their significance for nutrition, health, income, and biodiversity. This brief explains the process used to determine market segments and Target Product Profiles for tomatoes and peppers in Africa through workshops and research conducted by the World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg) in collaboration with the CGIAR Initiative on Market Intelligence. WorldVeg, which develops both finished and nearly-finished breeding lines, conducted a market segmentation exercise for tomatoes and peppers in Africa. This exercise was based on the eight market segmentation criteria with necessary customizations to address the unique characteristics of each vegetable crop. For East and West Africa, the study found 16 tomato segments. Tomato production in East and West Africa is distinguished by altitude, with West Africa featuring lowland cultivation below 300 m and East Africa featuring highland cultivation above 300 m, thus necessitating region-specific disease resistance traits. For hot peppers in East and West Africa, 15 different segments were identified. West Africa prefers habanero peppers, while East Africa’s market is diverse, with chili peppers being the primary crop, along with varying market segments across countries. The market segmentation for tomatoes and peppers provides a foundational understanding of market requirements.
Demand-driven vegetable breeding for impact
(Brief, 2025-05) Barchenger, Derek; Zohoungbogbo, Herbaud; Ambali, Mwasilwa; Nalla, Manoj Kumar; Eybishitz, Assaf; Schreinemachers, Pepijn
The success of vegetable breeding programs depends not only on yield but also on the development of cultivars that align with the needs and preferences of actors across the value chain. Pest and disease resistance as well as key quality traits are critically important for ensuring the adoption of new varieties, particularly by smallholder farmers. To achieve this, vegetable breeding must be demand-driven, incorporating comprehensive feedback from users throughout the value chain. At the World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg), breeding efforts begin with strong partnerships with the private seed sector, which shares common objectives for varietal improvement. This collaboration is further validated through a systematic approach that includes experimental diagnostics of pest and disease resistance, field visits to assess performance under real farming conditions, and stakeholder engagement with farmers, nursery owners, traders, exporters, and processors. Participatory cultivar selection, particularly at the final stage before variety registration and release, is a critical component of this approach. A feedback mechanism ensures that breeding decisions are informed by end-user needs, ultimately enhancing the adoption of improved cultivars by smallholder farmers and contributing to sustainable agricultural development.
Exploring future rice market segments and trait priorities in the face of climate change in Southeast Asia
(Brief, 2025-05) Valera, Harold; Bayot, Ruvicyn; Pede, Valerien; Demont, Matty; Connor, Melanie
Rice production provides food security for billions of people in Southeast Asia (SEA). However, it is negatively influenced by changing climatic conditions, such as extreme weather events and increasing temperatures. This is exacerbated by increasing marginal cropping areas (e.g., those with high salinity, poor soil quality, high soil toxicity, etc.). There is thus a need to review and explore the current seed product market segmentation and the corresponding target product profiles for potential future requirements that increase climate mitigation and adaptation potential. This brief uses the findings from the latest research on farmer requirements and future climate change scenarios to identify future market segments and important traits that enhance sustainability and resilience in SEA. We used Impact Opportunities, Market Segments, and Target Product Profile (TPP) portals hosted in the Global Market Intelligence Platform (GloMIP) to offer background information on the relevance of the SEA rice market. Climate change scenario analysis points to adverse effects on rice production in SEA. Possible strategies could focus on including agronomic traits such as water-use efficiency, nutrient-use efficiency, and shifting to short-duration varieties in the TPPs. In addition, the recent increased importance of direct-seeded rice and the shift from transplanting to direct-seeding in Thailand could create a major change in the size of some transplanted market segments in Viet Nam and Myanmar vis-à-vis direct-seeded segments. Furthermore, two potential new market segments were identified: perennial rice and rice ratooning, which could help to address climate change.
Effectiveness of KASP-SNP markers in selecting for grain quality traits in rice
(Journal Article, 2025-09-01) Asante, Maxwell Darko; Ofosu, Kirpal Agyemang; Frimpong, Felix; Alphonso, Deladem Kwami; Nartey, Elizabeth; Obeng, Agyei Elvis; Bam, Ralph K.; Gamenyah, Daniel D.; Ribeiro, Priscilla F.; William, Harindra Manilal
Grain quality is a crucial factor for rice consumers, and as such, it is a major focus for breeders. Phenotyping for grain quality traits can be a laborious and costly process. In this study, we evaluated the effectiveness of KASP-SNP markers in selecting for grain quality traits, including aroma, gelatinization temperature, grain length, grain width, and grain length: width ratio. We phenotyped 300 diverse rice genotypes for these four traits and genotyped them using their respective KASP-SNP markers. A regression analysis of the phenotype on the genotype was performed. The markers associated with the fgr-1 and GS3 genes explained 97 % and 94 % of the phenotypic variation for aroma and grain length, respectively. Two SNP markers (snpOS00440 and snpOS00441) associated with the GW5/SW5 gene each explained 82 % of the phenotypic variation for grain width, which increased marginally to 85 % when combined. However, two markers, snpOS00036 and snpOS00450, for gelatinization temperature explained only 2 % and 25 % of the phenotypic variation, respectively, indicating that these markers were not efficient in predicting this trait. Our findings suggest that the markers associated with aroma (fgr-1), grain length (GS3), and grain width (GW5/SW5) are highly efficient and reliable for marker-assisted selection.
Africa Dryland Crops Improvement Network
(Brochure, 2025) Daudi, Happy M.; Oteng-Frimpong, Richard
The Africa Dryland Crops Improvement Network (ADCIN), established in August 2023, is a collaborative network initiated after a consultation meeting in Senegal in February 2022 and a network members’ meeting in Ghana in January 2023. It comprises more than 17 countries and over 200 scientists in various agricultural disciplines and organizations. Our vision is to create a dynamic and sustainable network for improving dryland crops in Africa by leveraging and enhancing the collective strengths of its members to accelerate farmers’ access to improved crop varieties.
Dryland Crops Program: Tackling the 50:20 challenge
(Brochure, 2025) Pixley, Kevin V.; Gandhi, Harish; Ojiewo, Chris O.
In 2024, CIMMYT’s Dryland Crops Program (DCP) laid the foundations to advance its vision and address the 50:20 challenge. This is possible through the efforts of over 200 scientists from partner institutions, working collaboratively to deliver impact.
Farmers' preferences for the next generation of maize hybrids: application of product concept testing in Kenya and Uganda
(Journal Article, 2025) Donovan, Jason A.; Rutsaert, Pieter; Mawia, Harriet; de Sousa, Kauê; Etten, Jacob van
Step-change innovation in seed product design by public sector crop breeding has led to major contributions to global food security. The literature, however, provides few insights on how to identify forward-looking innovation opportunities. Inspired by discussions in the product innovation literature, this article describes our application of product concept testing in the context of hybrid maize in Uganda and Kenya. We identified the following eight maize seed product concepts based on interactions with seed companies, crop breeders, and farmers: 'Resilience', 'Drought escape', 'Food and fodder', 'Home use', 'Green maize', 'Livestock feed', 'Intercropping', and 'Family nutrition'. These were described and presented to 2400 farmers using videos, where each farmer saw three concept-presentation videos. Farmers were most likely to have selected the resilience (Kenya and Uganda), drought escape (Uganda), and intercropping (Kenya) concepts. Farmers showed mixed interest in other concepts, such as home use and food and fodder, suggesting that investments in product production and promotion would be required in addition to investments in breeding. These results provide new entry points for conversations among transdisciplinary teams at regional and national levels on the current and future opportunities for crop breeding to respond to farmers' requirements for new seed products.
Variety use and preferences among smallholder sweetpotato farmers and how best to improve their access to quality seed: A gendered perspective and implications for breeding program design
(Journal Article, 2025-03-17) Bayiyana, I.; Okello, J.J.; Ojwang, S.O.; Mulwa, C.K.; Shikuku, Kelvin Mashisia; Mayanja, S.; Ssali, R.T.; Namanda, S.; Kemigisha, D.; Lagerkvist, Carl Johan
Uganda is a secondary centre of diversity of sweetpotato with most farmers maintaining at least four varieties in their fields. However, most of these varieties are landraces, with the uptake of improved sweetpotato varieties being quite low in the country, especially among women. Efforts to decrease the gender technology adoption gap are critical for inclusive impacts of innovations. This study aims to understand gendered drivers of sourcing and use of sweetpotato varieties among smallholder farmers exposed to behavioural interventions in Uganda. Key informant interviews (KII), focus group discussions (FGDs) and semi-structured interviews (SSI) were used to gather baseline information from farmers located in communities that received behavioural interventions. The results indicate that while men sourced seed-vines mainly from purchasing in the market, women farmers did so mainly from social networks including fellow farmers or neighbours. Men had higher tendency to source vines from the market likely because of higher mobility than women. Consumption traits, especially quality characteristics were strongly associated with variety use. Notably, sweet taste played a big role and was linked to preference for Iboi, Ejumula and Kakamega, the leading varieties. This was followed by high root yield. The challenges women face in sweetpotato production included limited labour force and shortage of farm equipment/machinery, lack of timely access to planting material at on-set of rains, and lack of access to affordable/ cost of improved varieties. These findings highlight the importance of paying attention to both quality and agronomic traits, and not only the latter, in variety development. They also suggest the need for implementation of effective promotional strategies including demonstration gardens, technical backstopping to extensionists to equip them, radio talk shows and market linkages.
Production and consumption traits and the adoption of improved maize varieties: Evidence from seed sample packs and cooking demonstrations
(Working Paper, 2025-03) Van Campenhout, Bjorn; Nabwire, Leocardia; Kramer, Berber; Trachtman, Carly; Abate, Gashaw T.
In developing countries, semi-subsistence farmers typically assume dual roles as both consumers and producers of the same crops, which shape their adoption decisions as they balance household food security with market-driven incentives. This study, conducted in eastern Uganda, employs a field experiment with two intervention arms to assess the relative importance of these factors in farmers’ decisions to adopt improved maize seed varieties. The first intervention focuses on production traits, distributing free sample packs of an improved hybrid maize variety to showcase benefits such as higher yields, pest resistance, and drought tolerance. The second intervention emphasizes consumption traits, offering cooking demonstrations and blind taste tests using flour from the same improved maize variety to highlight its taste, texture, and ease of preparation. Our findings reveal that while seed sample packs positively influenced farmers’ perceptions of both production and consumption traits, cooking demonstrations primarily affected perceptions of consumption qualities. We find some evidence that the cooking demonstrations and tasting sessions significantly boosted adoption of the improved maize seed variety promoted by the intervention. However, farmers who received seed sample packs tended to recycle the harvested grain as seed in subsequent seasons, thereby crowding out fresh seed purchases. This practice led to productivity losses, suggesting that the seed trial packs did not translate into lasting improvements in food security or increased market participation.
Seeds of change: The impact of Ethiopia’s direct seed marketing approach on smallholders’ seed purchases and productivity
(Working Paper, 2025-03) Mekonnen, Dawit Kelemework; Abate, Gashaw T.; Yimam, Seid; Benfica, Rui; Spielman, David J.; Place, Frank
Several factors contribute to the limited use of improved seed varieties in Ethiopia. Among those, on the supply side, is the restricted availability of seeds in the volume, quality, and timeliness required by farmers, partly due to inadequate public and private investment in the sector. Beginning in 2011, the Government of Ethiopia introduced a novel experiment—the direct seed marketing approach—to reduce some of the centralized, state-run attributes of the country’s seed market and rationalize the use of public resources. Direct seed marketing was designed to incentivize private and public seed producers to sell directly to farmers rather than through the state apparatus. This study is the first quantitative evaluation of the impact of direct seed marketing on indicators of a healthy seed system: access to quality seeds and farm-level productivity. Using a quasi-experimental difference-in-differences approach suitable to handling variation in treatment timing, the study finds that direct seed marketing led to an increase of 15 percentage points in the proportion of farmers purchasing maize seed, an increase of 45 percent in the quantity of maize seed purchased per hectare, and an increase of 18 percent in maize yield. However, there are differences across crops, with the effects of direct seed marketing on wheat seed purchases and yields being statistically insignificant. These crop-specific differences in performance are likely explained by differences in the reproductive biology of maize (particularly maize hybrids) and wheat, which tend to incentivize commercial activity in hybrid maize seed markets more than in self-pollinating wheat or open-pollinated maize markets. These differences suggest a need for nuanced policy responses, institutional arrangements, and market development strategies to accelerate the adoption of improved varieties.
Inclusive and gender-transformative seed systems: Concepts and applications
(Journal Article, 2025-05) Galiè, Alessandra; Kramer, Berber; Spielman, David J.; Kawarazuka, Nozomi; Rietveld, Anne M.; Aju, Stellamaris
CONTEXT Seed is vital to the nutrition and livelihoods of millions of women and men small-scale farmers in low- and middle-income countries. Seed systems interventions can significantly enhance food security and nutrition by accelerating the adoption of improved varieties and the use of quality seed, which in turn increase the rate of genetic gain, productivity, and household welfare. These interventions can be particularly effective when advancing gender equality by supporting women's empowerment and addressing discriminatory gender norms. However, there is relatively little evidence on the ways in which seed systems can be an entry point for advancing gender equality by transforming discriminatory gender norms. OBJECTIVES We develop and illustrate a gender transformative approach applied to seed sector development. Our first objective is to provide a framework to better understand how seed systems interventions can contribute to gender equality by (1) integrating gender-accommodative and gender-transformative approaches; and (2) assessing their gendered impacts. Our second objective is to apply this framework to a particular innovation – gender messaging via information and communications technologies (ICTs) – and explore how seed system interventions can be made more gender-transformative. METHODS We first reviewed the existing literature to develop a framework that defines gender-transformative and accommodative seed system interventions and their impacts. We then synthesized lessons learned from the application of this framework to case studies from Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda that used ICTs that contained gendered components. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION We discuss how a gender-accommodative approach aims for gender considerations to improve seed systems, while a gender-transformative approach flips the goal around by aiming at progress toward gender equality through seed systems. We find growing evidence on the potential of gender-transformative seed systems interventions to influence positively the empowerment of women and also men, and to create more conducive gender norms, as shown by three case studies on ICT enablers. These case studies also show that accommodative and transformative approaches are often complementary. SIGNIFICANCE We introduce research questions that research and development practitioners can ask to develop accommodative or transformative approaches in seed system interventions, and show the potential of both approaches to progress toward gender equality. The case studies indicate the feasibility of gender-transformative, ICT-enabled seed system interventions, with clear indications of the potential for low-cost adaptation at scale. However, the transformative potential of these interventions requires careful consideration of messaging content, format, and context, as well as strategic public investment and strong political will.
Miracle seeds: Biased expectations, complementary input use, and the dynamics of smallholder technology adoption
(Journal Article, 2025) Miehe, Caroline; Nabwire, Leocardia; Sparrow, Robert; Spielman, David J.; Van Campenhout, Bjorn
To fully beneﬁt from new agricultural technologies like improved seed varieties, signiﬁcant investment in complementary inputs such as fertilizers and pesticides, and practices such as systematic planting, irrigation, and weeding are also required. Farmers may fail to recognize the importance of these complements, leading to disappointing crop yields and outputs and, eventually, dis-adoption of the improved variety. Using a ﬁeld experiment, we test an information intervention among smallholder maize farmers in eastern Uganda that points out these complementarities. We ﬁnd that farmers adopt less after they have been sensitized about the need to use complementary inputs to unlock the adoption premium. We rationalize this ﬁnding with a simple theoretical model where farmers have mis-speciﬁed mental models of the technology production function and conclude that most farmers in our sample do indeed believe in miracle seeds.
Low glycemic index rice: a healthier diet for countering diabetes epidemic in Asia
(Journal Article, 2024-11-29) Tiozon, Rhowell Jr; Lenaerts, Bert; Kor, Sakshi; Demont, Matty; Fernie, Alisdair; Sreenivasulu, Nese
The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is rising worldwide, particularly in Asia, where rice is a dietary staple. Hence, it is essential to consume low glycemic index (GI) food. Here, we review the potential of low GI and high resistant starch (RS) of rice to mitigate diabetes risk. Progress has been made in lowering the GI of rice without compromising yield and grain quality through marker-assisted breeding techniques. To enhance RS content, mutation breeding and genome editing were used. Deployment of these new varieties in global food systems remains critical through policy initiatives such as ‘Seeds without Borders’ and the widespread deregulation of genome editing plants that can expedite the wider adoption of low-GI and high-RS rice.
SC21-05c - Breeding for Tomorrow and Genebanks Science Program: intended governance and management arrangements
(Internal Document, 2024-11-15) CGIAR
Breeding for Tomorrow Program: Full design document
(Report, 2024-11-15) CGIAR Breeding for Tomorrow Science Program

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