RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: In an environment where the adoption of improved varieties resulting from plant breeding programs is limited, it is essential to identify end-user preferences beforehand. A participatory survey was conducted in eight localities in Korhogo and Bouaké regions (central and northern Cote d'Ivoire respectively) to identify producers' preferences and increase the adoption of improved varieties. The study involved 160 producers and consumers through focus group discussions and individual interviews. RESULTS: Sweetpotato is mostly grown on small plots (<1 ha) of land (89.2%), with women (66%) as the main producers. In the Bouaké region, sweetpotatoes are grown on mounds (100%), whereas in Korhogo they are grown on ridges (86.2%). The main food products or forms of preparation from roots are fries (34.7%), boiled (34.3%), mashed (12.4%), and sweetpotato stew (9.1%). Major constraints, including low price of roots (26.3%), low productivity (16.2%), and post-harvest storage issues (14.5%), were identified as affecting sweetpotato production. CONCLUSIONS: The selection of new varieties should be oriented towards high-yielding varieties with high dry matter content, deployed stems, and roots of round, oblong, or elliptical shape with good culinary characteristics (dry matter, sweet taste, dry texture, absence of fiber). Plants must be drought resistant, be tolerant to poor soil, diseases, and pests, and have a good yield. The color of skin and flesh of the sweetpotato, although constituting criteria of choice, are not essential for the acceptance or the rejection of a variety by users. © 2023 The Authors. Journal of The Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.
RESUMEN
Family farms play an essential role in agroecological transition in Sahelian countries and worldwide. They present diversified features in terms of socio-economic organization, agrobiodiversity management and cropping systems diversity. Decentralized participatory breeding approaches aim to sustain the diversity of varieties adapted for such smallholder farmers' contexts. However the lack of clear target population of environments limits the focus and the efficiency of these approaches given the large diversification of the local contexts. In this study, we surveyed variables linked to agrosystems, crop management options and farmers' criteria of varietal evaluation from 254 family farms sampled along 13 locations spanning the target area of a decentralized participatory breeding program of cowpea crop (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp) in Niger. The objective of our study was to infer typologies of family farms in the study area based on relevant variables supporting the setting of target population of environments (TPEs) to be considered in the breeding program. We used factorial analysis of mixed data (FAMD) and the Discriminant Analysis of Principal Components (DAPC) to infer the clusters. Chi square test, analysis of variance and generalized linear model were used to identify key variables discriminating the clusters. These clusters were geographically mapped to analyze their multilocal distribution. So, we identified and characterized four clusters structuring the diversity of the local agrosystems (Typologie G), five clusters structuring the diversity of cowpea cropping management options (Typologie C) and five clusters structuring the diversity of criteria used by farmers to evaluate the performance of cowpea varieties in the local contexts (Typologie P). Typology G distinguished farms based on discriminating variables linked for instance to secondary activities, cultivated species, soil fertility management practices and farm resources including land and livestock. Typology C distinguished farms based on cowpea management pratices including the secondary crop intercropped with cowpea (sorghum, Guinea sorrel, sesame or groundnut) and the use of cowpea harvest products (seeds, haulms, hulls). Typology P was based on discriminating performance criteria including cycle length, insect resistance, striga resistance, drought resistance, haulm production and economic value of cowpea variety. This methodology provides a robust and replicable way for the definition of clusters capturing the diversity of farms and local contexts. We discussed the perspective of using these clusters to set target population of environments for decentralized breeding programs.
RESUMEN
The Translational Chickpea Genomics Consortium (TCGC) was set up to increase the production and productivity of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.). It represents research institutes from six major chickpea growing states (Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh) of India. The TCGC team has been engaged in deploying modern genomics approaches in breeding and popularizing improved varieties in farmers' fields across the states. Using marker-assisted backcrossing, introgression lines with enhanced drought tolerance and fusarium wilt resistance have been developed in the genetic background of 10 elite varieties of chickpea. Multi-location evaluation of 100 improved lines (70 desi and 30 kabuli) during 2016-2017 and 2018-2019 enabled the identification of top performing desi and kabuli lines. In total, 909 Farmer Participatory Varietal Selection trials were conducted in 158 villages in 16 districts of the five states, during 2017-2018, 2018-2019, and 2019-2020, involving 16 improved varieties. New molecular breeding lines developed in different genetic backgrounds are potential candidates for national trials under the ICAR-All India Coordinated Research Project on Chickpea. The comprehensive efforts of TCGC resulted in the development and adoption of high-yielding varieties that will increase chickpea productivity and the profitability of chickpea growing farmers.
RESUMEN
Rice is the staple food and provides livelihood for smallholder farmers in the coastal delta regions of South and Southeast Asia. However, its productivity is often low because of several abiotic stresses including high soil salinity and waterlogging during the wet (monsoon) season and high soil and water salinity during the dry season. Development and dissemination of suitable rice varieties tolerant of these multiple stresses encountered in coastal zones are of prime importance for increasing and stabilizing rice productivity, however adoption of new varieties has been slow in this region. Here we implemented participatory varietal selection (PVS) processes to identify and understand smallholder farmers' criteria for selection and adoption of new rice varieties in coastal zones. New breeding lines together with released rice varieties were evaluated in on-station and on-farm trials (researcher-managed) during the wet and dry seasons of 2008-2014 in the Indian Sundarbans region. Significant correlations between preferences of male and female farmers in most trials indicated that both groups have similar criteria for selection of rice varieties. However, farmers' preference criteria were different from researchers' criteria. Grain yield was important, but not the sole reason for variety selection by farmers. Several other factors also governed preferences and were strikingly different when compared across wet and dry seasons. For the wet season, farmers preferred tall (140-170 cm), long duration (160-170 d), lodging resistant and high yielding rice varieties because these traits are required in lowlands where water stagnates in the field for about four months (July to October). For the dry season, farmers' preferences were for high yielding, salt tolerant, early maturing (115-130 d) varieties with long slender grains and good quality for better market value. Pest and disease resistance was important in both seasons but did not rank high. When farmers ranked the two most preferred varieties, the ranking order was sometimes variable between locations and years, but when the top four varieties that consistently ranked high were considered, the variability was low. This indicates that at least 3-4 of the best-performing entries should be considered in succeeding multi-location and multi-year trials, thereby increasing the chances that the most stable varieties are selected. These findings will help improve breeding programs by providing information on critical traits. Selected varieties through PVS are also more likely to be adopted by farmers and will ensure higher and more stable productivity in the salt- and flood-affected coastal deltas of South and Southeast Asia.