Sorghum and Pearl Millet Improved Seed Value Chains in Zambia: Challenges and Opportunities for Smallholder Farmers

Sorghum and millet are a very important source of food and farm income for smallholder farmers, which can be enhanced especially if linked to new markets. These two crops have been widely viewed as minor traditional crops in the Zambian food systems. The two crops were displaced by maize in the 1900s with the opening of the copper mines. However, they remain important food crops for semi-arid areas of the country. In recent years, there have also been new market developments requiring farmers to increase productivity and production. Unfortunately significant productivity enhancements are impeded by low access to improved technologies such as high-yielding seed varieties. This paper reports the results of a sorghum and millet seed value chain study. Its main objective has been to understand the different actors in the chains, and to identify the factors that determine the observed low level of technology used. Information from 130 farming households, 57 seed dealers, five seed companies, and two research and development institutions was collected with the view to understand their characteristics, key roles, competitiveness, and constraints with respect to the improved seed value chain. Most seed value chain actors play multiple roles, ranging from varietal development, inspection and certification, seed production, processing, marketing, and provision of extension services. Research results found that yield levels for both sorghum and millet have been stagnant at about 0.5 tons per hectare for over 20 years. Farmers depend too much on farm saved seed for planting the next year. The average seed replacement rate was 13.7 years compared to a three year replacement rate recommended by researchers. Several higher yielding varieties of sorghum and millet, developed in the 1990s, have not been adopted by farmers. The most widely adopted varieties of sorghum (Kuyuma & Sima) and millet (Lubasi) were released in 1989 and 1993, respectively. No new varieties have been released since 1999. The government maize support programs, such as fertilizer and seed subsidies of 50-60 percent and direct price support have contributed to the expansion of maize production, even in drought prone areas where sorghum and millet are superior crops to grow. The more recent diversification policy, and changes in consumer preferences were found to be some of the factors affecting the competitiveness of the chain. Seed companies identified lack of stable markets and low quantities of improved seed purchases as key constraints in sorghum and millet markets. Constraints faced by seed traders in the selling of improved seed in the area were low quantities of seed purchased by buyers, delayed payments by farmers and stiff competition among traders. Limited access to input markets, extension services, lack of desired varieties and processing technologies were some of the challenges that farming households faced. In addition, despite the new markets for sorghum in the brewery industry, farmers still view marketing as a challenge. The study recommends developing and offering a range of improved seed varieties to farmers to increase demand, and also focus on initiatives which will link farmers to market opportunities through outreach, institutional improvements and further research

Using a Discrete Choice Experiment to Elicit the Demand for a Nutritious Food: Willingness-to-Pay for Orange Maize in Rural Zambia

Using a discrete choice experiment, this paper estimates the willingness to pay for biofortified orange maize in rural Zambia. The study design has five treatment arms, which enable an analysis of the impact of nutrition information, comparing the use of simulated radio versus community leaders in transmitting the nutrition message, on willingness to pay, and to account for possible novelty effects in the magnitude of premiums or discounts. The estimation strategy also takes into account lexicographic preferences of a subset of our respondents. The results suggest that (a) orange maize is well liked and can compete with white maize in the absence of a nutrition campaign, (b) there is a premium for orange maize with nutrition information, and (c) the mode of nutritional-message dissemination does not have a large impact on consumer acceptance, and (d) novelty effects do not translate into higher willingness to pay for orange maize.

Consumer acceptance of provitamin A orange maize in rural Zambia:

This study analyzes consumer acceptance of biofortified orange maize in rural Zambia by eliciting consumers' willingness to pay. It attempts to examine the impact of nutrition information, comparing the use of simulated radio versus community leaders in transmitting the nutrition message, on consumer acceptance. Finally, it assesses whether product experience in a home-use setting influences the magnitude of premiums or discounts. The results suggest that (a) the negative perception of yellow maize does not affect orange maize which is well liked, (b) there is a premium for orange maize with nutrition information, (c) the mode of nutritional-message dissemination does not have a large impact on consumer acceptance, and (d) product experience does not translate into lower willingness to pay for orange maize.maize, willingness to pay, consumer acceptance,

Consumer acceptance of provitamin A orange maize in rural Zambia (HarvestPlus Working Paper No.4)

This study analyzes consumer acceptance of biofortified orange maize in rural Zambia by eliciting consumers’ willingness to pay. It attempts to examine the impact of nutrition information, comparing the use of simulated radio versus community leaders in transmitting the nutrition message, on consumer acceptance. Finally, it assesses whether product experience in a home-use setting influences the magnitude of premiums or discounts. The results suggest that (a) the negative perception of yellow maize does not affect orange maize which is well liked, (b) there is a premium for orange maize with nutrition information, (c) the mode of nutritional-message dissemination does not have a large impact on consumer acceptance, and (d) product experience does not translate into lower willingness to pay for orange maize

Improved seed variety value chains in Zambia: A missed opportunity to improve smallholder productivity

Sorghum and millet are very important sources of food and farm income for smallholder farmers, which can be enhanced especially if linked to new markets. Though viewed as minor traditional crops in Zambia, sorghum and millet remain important food crops for semi-arid areas of the country. Production and productivity of these crops is low and has been stagnant for over 20 years. In recent years, there have been new market developments creating incentives for farmers to increase productivity. This study uses a value chain framework to examine the challenges and opportunities for sorghum, millet, and maize in Zambia. Information from 130 smallholder farmers, 57 seed dealers, five private seed companies, and two research institutions was collected in Lusaka and Siavonga districts in 2008. Results showed that despite new market opportunities farmers were slow to adopt new technology. Development and release of improved varieties was very slow due to policy and institutional constraints. Also, significant productivity enhancements were impeded by poor access to high-yielding seed varieties, fertilizer, and by government policies and institutions. The value chains for these crops did not promote productivity gains due to low volumes traded, inadequate access to support services of extension, finance and roads as well as policies that subsidize maize to the exclusion of sorghum and millet. These constraints need to be addressed throughout the value chain to ensure productivity gains

Design factors influencing willingness-to-pay estimates in the Becker-DeGroot-Marschak (BDM) mechanism and the non-hypothetical choice experiment: a case of biofortified maize in Zambia

Two of the experimental methods used to estimate willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) for a non‐market good, the Becker‐DeGroot‐Marschak (BDM) mechanism and the non‐hypothetical choice experiment (nHCE) often lead to significantly different WTP estimates, complicating the choice between the methods. In Zambia the same group of researchers used both techniques to evaluate WTP for orange maize, which provides more vitamin A than other varieties. This provided an opportunity to analyse the sources of the difference. In the BDM experiment, one group of respondents was provided with more training opportunities than the other, and made higher bids. Accounting for lexicographic behaviour in the nHCE reduced the estimated WTP. These two design factors together resulted in a decrease in the WTP difference for orange maize (1,279–632 ZMK) although the difference remains statistically significant. More training was also shown to eliminate the effects of different orders in which maize varieties were presented.https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/147795522021-02-01hj2019Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural Developmen

Sorghum and Pearl Millet Seed Value Chains in Zambia: Opportunities and Challenges for Smallholder Farmers

Sorghum and pearl millet rank second and third, respectively, as important staple cereals after maize. -There are new market developments in the beer industry requiring farmers to increase productivity and production -These markets can significantly affect access to improved seed, and thus increase decisions on utilization -Even though market developments indicate great potential for the two crops, their supply has remained erratic -There was need therefore to identify the constraining factors to steady supply of sorghum & millet grain through conducting a seed value chain -Little is known about the existing seed acquisition channels, extent of utilization, how they function and how well they are positioned to enhance small-scale farmers’ access to improved seed Objectives: Determine farmer adoption of the improved seed, fertilizer use and yields for sorghum, maize, and millet crops since 1990 Identify key players, their functions, and value added at each stage of the chain Identify factors that limit adoption of improved seed varieties Determine strategies available to increase adoption and returns, and to reduce risk in the value chain

Demands for biofortified food crops in three sub-Saharan African countries

This study determines consumer demand for staple food crops biofortified with micronutrients in three sub-Saharan African countries. Specifically, the study investigates how the choice of a valuation technique for a nonmarket good or new product, and gender, influence acceptance of biofortified food crops. Biofortification, a new public health intervention for alleviating micronutrient deficiency problems in developing countries, is achieved by enhancing the micronutrient content of staple food crops using conventional plant breeding or biotechnology. The rural poor in developing countries are likely to benefit most from biofortification, for two main reasons. Firstly, their diets are primarily comprised of staple foods that are usually poor sources of micronutrients. Secondly, they have limited access to fortified food products, mineral and vitamin supplements. The novel property of biofortification, however, has been associated with changes in the intrinsic properties of staple food crops that may not be familiar to consumers. Thus, knowing consumers’ attitudes and potential reactions to such changes in their staple food crops has been important to researchers and marketers alike. The study employs hedonic evaluations and incentive-compatible economic experimental data from HarvestPlus that aimed at determining consumer acceptance of micronutrient biofortified staple food crops in three sub-Saharan countries, i.e., Nigeria, Rwanda, and Zambia. The first objective compares the Becker–DeGroot–Marschak (BDM) mechanism to the non-hypothetical choice experiment (nHCE) in revealing the willingness to pay (WTP) for a new maize variety biofortified with vitamin A, under a field setting in Zambia. A mixed logit model was used to determine consumers’ WTP for the biofortified orange maize, relative to the two local maize varieties in the nHCE. While a symmetrically censored least square (SCLS) model was used to determine consumers’ WTP for the biofortified orange maize in the BDM experiment. The results show that the nHCE yielded significantly higher WTP estimates than that from the BDM mechanism. The second objective, related to the first, explored potential reasons for the WTP disparity between the BDM and the nHCE. The results indicate that accounting for additional training in the BDM experiment and lexicographic behaviour in the nHCE, together resulted in a decrease by half in the WTP estimates difference between the two methods. This difference, however, remains statistically significant. The third objective determined whether the gender of the decision-maker is important in determining consumer’s attitudes and behaviour towards biofortified food crops. Specifically, the study explores gender differences in hedonic preferences and consumer valuations of food products made from biofortified food crops. Emphasis was placed on the statistical analysis methods that incorporate gender while fully accounting for sources of both the observed and unobserved heterogeneity across gender. Results suggest that the gender of the decision-maker may be an important factor in both hedonic preferences and WTP for biofortified food crops, although the results varied across three countries. In Zambia and Rwanda, gender differences were observed in hedonic preferences for vitamin A-biofortified orange maize and biofortified iron beans respectively, while no evidence of gender differences was observed in hedonic preferences for vitamin A biofortified cassava in Nigeria. On the other hand, gender differences in WTP for biofortified foods were observed across the three countries in the respective biofortified food crops. While it is not yet clear how the BDM and the nHCE can result in significantly different empirical estimates under similar conditions, these results suggest the solution could lie in controlling for design effects from the two techniques. Similarly, controlling for gender differences not only in the outcome variable but also in its determinants may be necessary to attain valid estimates of consumer acceptance of biofortified foods.Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2019.Agricultural Economics, Extension and Rural DevelopmentPhDUnrestricte