Local seed systems and their importance for an improved seed supply in developing countries

Almekinders, Conny; Louwaars, N.P.; Bruijn, G.H. de

doi:10.1007/bf00027519

Cited by 301 publications

(256 citation statements)

References 14 publications

(11 reference statements)

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“…Thus overall the results confirm the several opportunities and benefits to be achieved by the formal and the informal systems working together (Almekinders et al 1994;Thiele 1999) and provide a practical example of the ISSD principle that informal systems can be improved in this way (Louwaars and de Boef 2012). The results confirm for sweetpotato the idea of using the informal seed system to distribute planting material, especially of new cultivars developed by the formal system and support the concept of ISSD (Almekinders et al 1994;Thiele 1999;Louwaars and de Boef 2012).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

“…The results confirm for sweetpotato the idea of using the informal seed system to distribute planting material, especially of new cultivars developed by the formal system and support the concept of ISSD (Almekinders et al 1994;Thiele 1999;Louwaars and de Boef 2012). They also show how the formal system can provide technologies and fresh ideas to revitalize the informal system; these should enable it to provide larger quantities of better quality planting material so that food supplies can then be sustainably increased across the Lake Zone.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

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Delivering New Technologies to the Tanzanian Sweetpotato Crop Through Its Informal Seed System

Lukonge¹,

Gibson

Laizer³

et al. 2015

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems

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Delivering new technologies to the Tanzanian sweetpotato crop through its informal seed systemThe concept of integrated seed sector development (ISSD) to-type. Tanzania has the second biggest production (3.0 x 10 6 MT) in Africa after Nigeria (3.4 x 10 6 MT). Sweetpotato is the third largest crop by weight (FAOSTAT 2014) and the Great Lakes region is a major area of production where, as throughout Africa, the crop is especially important to smallholders (Kapinga et al. 1995). There is a very long dry season there, crops being harvested as they reach maturity and to avoid loss through desiccation and weevil damage, so most farmers have no vines to plant when the rains come. Consequently, insufficient quality planting material at the start of the rainy season is a prime constraint on production there (Kapinga et al. 1995;Namanda et al. 2011) as in many African countries Gibson et al. 2009). In the informal seed system of sweetpotato, farmers with access to wetlands or land that can be irrigated and the 'skills, talent and gumption' Promoting such changes through interventions aimed at multipliers would require fewer resources, be self-maintaining and more sustainable than interventions aimed at sweetpotato farmers in general. It would also be consistent with the ISSD approach. The purpose of this paper is to describe the range and capacity of the informal sweetpotato seed system to supply vines sustainably to large numbers of farmers in Shinyanga and Meatu districts of the Lake Zone of Tanzania and then to document how the formal sector can supply improvements to it, using small demonstration trials to introduce improved technologies such as: fertilizer to boost vine production;  modern cultivars including OFSP;  RMT including more efficient irrigation.Furthermore, the paper assesses transporting vines from an area where they are easy to grow to sell them in Shinyanga and nearby markets. This longer-distance marketing is a strategy learnt from Uganda (Rachkara et al. 2015), can supplement vines from local multipliers' farms and provide a more comprehensive service. In documenting outcomes, this paper serves as one of the first evidence-based demonstrations that the ISSD approach can deliver improvements efficiently to the informal sector. In this case, delivery of the technologies was by members of a Tanzanian government agricultural research institute, the Agricultural Research Institute (ARI)-Ukiriguru, part of the Lake Zone Agricultural Research and Development Institute (LZARDI). The work is an outcome of many years of experiences by the authors and their institutes to develop a successful strategy for interacting with the sweetpotato vine supply system in order to achieve lasting improvements.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 68%

Delivering New Technologies to the Tanzanian Sweetpotato Crop Through Its Informal Seed System

Lukonge¹,

Gibson

Laizer³

et al. 2015

Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems

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“…Trust, in particular, is an important factor in social networks of seed exchange (1,9). Trust orientates farmers' choice of seed providers, and farmers tend to choose them among relatives or people with whom they are socially connected (9) or whose folk taxonomical expertise they recognize.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Exchanging seeds not only allows farmers to obtain new landraces but also to recover lost types or to renew their stock of seeds (1). Through these exchange networks, farmers compile highly diversified portfolios of landraces capable of buffering the effects of unpredictable environmental changes (2).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Marriage exchanges, seed exchanges, and the dynamics of manioc diversity

Delêtre

McKey

Hodkinson

2011

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The conservation of crop genetic resources requires understanding the different variables-cultural, social, and economic-that impinge on crop diversity. In small-scale farming systems, seed exchanges represent a key mechanism in the dynamics of crop genetic diversity, and analyzing the rules that structure social networks of seed exchange between farmer communities can help decipher patterns of crop genetic diversity. Using a combination of ethnobotanical and molecular genetic approaches, we investigated the relationships between regional patterns of manioc genetic diversity in Gabon and local networks of seed exchange. Spatially explicit Bayesian clustering methods showed that geographical discontinuities of manioc genetic diversity mirror major ethnolinguistic boundaries, with a southern matrilineal domain characterized by high levels of varietal diversity and a northern patrilineal domain characterized by low varietal diversity. Borrowing concepts from anthropology-kinship, bridewealth, and filiation-we analyzed the relationships between marriage exchanges and seed exchange networks in patrilineal and matrilineal societies. We demonstrate that, by defining marriage prohibitions, kinship systems structure social networks of exchange between farmer communities and influence the movement of seeds in metapopulations, shaping crop diversity at local and regional levels.seed transmission | social reproduction | traditional economic systems I n smallholder farming systems, farmers maintain a large diversity of cultivated species and recognize many different types (landraces) within each of their crops. Farmers dynamically manage this agricultural biodiversity by continually collecting, testing, and selecting new strains with unusual and interesting traits, sourcing "seeds" (here understood as propagules, i.e., true seeds, tubers, rhizomes, or stem cuttings) through different networks, most of which involve exchanging germplasm with other farmers.Several studies have highlighted the importance of informal seed exchange networks as an essential component of the resilience of local farming systems (1, 2), e.g., in potato (3), maize (4, 5), and manioc (6-8). Exchanging seeds not only allows farmers to obtain new landraces but also to recover lost types or to renew their stock of seeds (1). Through these exchange networks, farmers compile highly diversified portfolios of landraces capable of buffering the effects of unpredictable environmental changes (2). Seed exchange represents a key mechanism in the dynamics of crop genetic diversity (9-11). However, the rules that channel the movement of seeds within and among farming communities have received little attention from geneticists and ethnobotanists alike (12).In small-scale farming communities, circulation of crop landraces is often channeled by marriage networks (7,8,13,14). By defining marriage prohibitions, kinship systems structure social networks of exchange between kin (related by descent) and affines (related by marriage). Kinship systems thus determine the conn...

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“…A second process, however, maintains genetic diversity in the 'local gene pool' through mutation, introgression from wild and weedy relatives, hybridisation between varieties and the introduction of new landraces or formal (i.e. modern) varieties (Almekinders et al 1994;Almekinders and Elings 2001). It has sometimes been argued that the introduction of formal varieties halts this process in its tracks, and thus reduces genetic diversity in farming systems (Altieri and Merrick 1987;Ceccarelli et al 1992).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatial and temporal dynamics in genetic diversity in upland rice and late millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.) in The Gambia

Nuijten

Treuren

2007

Genet Resour Crop Evol

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Ambiguity exists about the level of genetic diversity represented by farmer crop varieties, how it develops over time and how it relates to the diversity comprised by formal varieties. As part of an interdisciplinary technological/sociological study on farmer management of gene flow, upland rice (Oryza sativa L.) and late millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R.Br.) from The Gambia were investigated for morphological and molecular variation. The goal of these analyses was to obtain insight into the level of crop genetic diversity of farmer's materials planted in several case study villages in The Gambia. For both crops, samples were collected from villages and various research institutes. Based on variety names, different rice and millet varieties were expected to be used in different villages. In fact, there was a large overlap in genetic diversity for both crops, masked by the use of synonyms. The considerable similarity in rice genetic diversity between villages most likely results from the exchange of varieties between farmers. For millet this seems the result of development of varieties from the same gene pool. Some farmer varieties of rice, however, are apparent hybrid forms between the species O. sativa and O. glaberrima Steud., and farmer varieties in general displayed higher levels of genetic diversity than formal varieties. This indicates that, for rice, genetic diversity develops in farmers' fields and may have potential use in formal breeding programs.

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Local seed systems and their importance for an improved seed supply in developing countries

Cited by 301 publications

References 14 publications

Delivering New Technologies to the Tanzanian Sweetpotato Crop Through Its Informal Seed System

Delivering New Technologies to the Tanzanian Sweetpotato Crop Through Its Informal Seed System

Marriage exchanges, seed exchanges, and the dynamics of manioc diversity

Spatial and temporal dynamics in genetic diversity in upland rice and late millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.) in The Gambia

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