Transdisciplinary approaches to target product profile (product concept) design: NARES-IRRI partnerships in Africa

Mangwana, K., Dixit, S., Menge, D., Panchbhai. A. 2024. Transdisciplinary approaches to target product profile (product concept) design: NARES-IRRI partnerships in Africa. A Poster presented at the CGIAR Initiative on Market Intelligence WP1-WP2 Workshop, 14-18 October 2024, Harare, Zimbabwe.

Rice is becoming an increasingly important food and commercial crop in many African countries, driven by shifts in dietary habits and population growth. In 2023, Africa’s self-sufficiency stood at around 60%, leading to substantial imports to meet the growing demand. To maximize return on investment in research and the deployment of new climate-resilient varieties, key target market segments, their sizes, and impact possibilities have been identified for East and Southern Africa (ESA) where four key market segments have been mapped i.e. TMeLS-R, TMeLS-I, TMeLS-I (salinity) and DELS-R.

To provide valuable insights and feedback on these market segments and their corresponding target product profiles, transdisciplinary teams have been engaged to assess market needs, guide breeding efforts, and ensure the alignment of new rice varieties with the specific demands of each segment. These transdisciplinary teams, comprising agronomists, breeders, economists, social scientists and market experts, collaborated to integrate scientific knowledge with practical insights from farmers, consumers, millers, and policymakers. In addition to the formal Product Design Team meetings, there are multiple transdisciplinary events where IRRI gathers feedback from the rice value chain that feeds into fine tuning the TPPs e.g. annual advancement meetings and crop tours. The evaluations and feedback during the crop tour are crucial for informing subsequent advancement meetings, where the results of field tests are reviewed, and decisions are made regarding which varieties should proceed to the next round of testing and registration. For instance, during the 2023 advancement meeting six promising materials from Kenya were advanced for OFTs, including nutrient-fortified varieties. By aligning breeding objectives with the preferences of target markets, the teams have been able to prioritize traits such as grain quality, yield potential, and abiotic stress tolerance that are important to improve rice productivity in Africa.