Tainan, Taiwan
February 20, 2009
Source:
AVRDC - The World Vegetable
Center Newsletter
Technology transfer of
promising vegetable lines through sustainable seed production in
East Africa (September 2005 to September 2008)
This project aimed to increase
agribusiness opportunities and improve household food security
of resource-poor farmers through sustainable vegetable seed
production, distribution, and marketing in East Africa. To
achieve this goal, the Regional Center for Africa engaged
several seed companies to promote and market quality vegetable
seed.
The project started with ten seed companies. Capacity building
for seed company personnel on vegetable seed production and
marketing was conducted to promote and institutionalize seed
production and supply.
Several improved lines of nightshade, Ethiopian mustard,
vegetable cowpea, tomato, spider plant, okra, mungbean, African
eggplant, jute mallow and amaranth were either formally or
informally released by the project. Seed multiplication,
bulking, and commercialization of some of the varieties have
taken place in East
and Southern African due to the effort and initiative of project
participants.
The project helped to scale up the seed production, processing,
and commercialization of previously released AVRDC tomato lines.
More seed companies are now producing and selling seed of these
varieties throughout East and Southern Africa.
Seed Companies
In Uganda, the
Victoria Seed Company released okra line ARP-1 (RCA-1)
named ‘Spear Clemson’ for commercialization (to replace
commercial variety ‘Clemson Spinelaro’).
In Kenya, the Simlaw Seed Company released
nightshade line SS52 (‘Alro Lagioted’) and cowpea ‘Tumaini.’
Contract farming
In Tanzania, 40 new
contract growers have been recruited by the Alpha Seed
Company.
In Kenya, 12 seed growers (Vagrotheck) registered
with the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS)
for cultivated nightshade seed. The short growing cycle of
indigenous vegetables has brought about good seed production
efforts in Uganda.
by Gloria Sikustahili, AVRDC
Regional Center for Africa |
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