Promoting the Growth and Development of Smallholder Seed Enterprises for Food Security Crops

Promoting the Growth and Development of Smallholder Seed Enterprises for Food Security Crops PDF Author: Paul J. H. Neate
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO)
ISBN:
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 38

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Book Description
"Agriculture is the mainstay of the economies of developing countries and the source of livelihood for the majority of their populations. In view of this, it is considered crucial that the performance of agriculture should ensure food security and provide a strong economic base. Towards this aim, improved seeds have been widely recognized as a key ingredient for enhancing farm productivity and overall crop production and thereby attaining the goal of food security. However, medium to large private companies, so far, do not effectively produce and distribute seeds of most major non-hybrid food security crops in developing countries. Case studies undertaken in Africa, Asia and Latin America indicate that smallholder seed enterprises could provide a valid alternative if supported. This publication aims at raising the awareness of decision makers and provides guidelines of best practices and policy options for promoting and supporting the growth and development of smallholder seed enterprises."--P. [4] of cover.

Promoting the Growth and Development of Smallholder Seed Enterprises for Food Security Crops

Promoting the Growth and Development of Smallholder Seed Enterprises for Food Security Crops PDF Author: Paul J. H. Neate
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO)
ISBN:
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 38

Get Book Here

Book Description
"Agriculture is the mainstay of the economies of developing countries and the source of livelihood for the majority of their populations. In view of this, it is considered crucial that the performance of agriculture should ensure food security and provide a strong economic base. Towards this aim, improved seeds have been widely recognized as a key ingredient for enhancing farm productivity and overall crop production and thereby attaining the goal of food security. However, medium to large private companies, so far, do not effectively produce and distribute seeds of most major non-hybrid food security crops in developing countries. Case studies undertaken in Africa, Asia and Latin America indicate that smallholder seed enterprises could provide a valid alternative if supported. This publication aims at raising the awareness of decision makers and provides guidelines of best practices and policy options for promoting and supporting the growth and development of smallholder seed enterprises."--P. [4] of cover.

Seeds Toolkit - Module 1

Seeds Toolkit - Module 1 PDF Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
ISBN: 9251309493
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 124

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Book Description
This toolkit – made available in English, French and Spanish – will be promoted as practical guidance to assist in the implementation of the national seed strategies. It will provide a number of practical capacity building tools for essential stages of the seed value chain and targeted primarily at seed sector practitioners who will participate in special training workshops to acquire pertinent technical knowledge and will be expected in return to create a multiplier effect through further follow-up FFS trainings down to the level of seed traders and farmers. In doing so, the toolkit will be used as guidance for conducting country-led workshops and other training activities aimed at strengthening quality seed delivery systems and seed regulatory mechanisms in selected countries. The development of capacity in the production of high quality seeds, the seed replacement rates, true seed cost and realistic seed pricing mechanisms as well as the role of different stakeholders are of critical importance in the process of the formulation of national seed policies, which is one of the core areas of FAO’s delivery at the national level.

Regulatory options to improve seed systems for vegetatively propagated crops in developing countries

Regulatory options to improve seed systems for vegetatively propagated crops in developing countries PDF Author: Spielman, David J.
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 55

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Book Description
In many developing countries, smallholder farmers cultivating vegetatively propagated crops (VPCs) have limited access to quality planting material. This constraint can limit both the yield of and returns on VPC cultivation. Yet policy and regulatory initiatives designed to strengthen access to quality VPC planting materials have been relatively unsuccessful to date. Part of the problem is the unique biological and economic characteristics of vegetative propagation and its distinctness from cereal crops, which dominate narratives on seed system reforms. Drawing on qualitative analysis of policy and practice, this study examines reform options related to quality assurance regulations in four crop-country combinations: cassava in Nigeria and Vietnam, and potato in Kenya and Vietnam. The study highlights theory and evidence on existing models of regulation; alternative models that may better incentivize cost-effective multiplication and distribution; and recommendations for policy, regulation, and investment in VPC seed markets. Findings indicate that regulations designed around strict and centralized quality control systems tend to limit market size, while more localized production systems are limited by both capacity and reach. These findings suggest the need for alternatives that balance a permissive regulatory regime with decentralized production systems, grassroots capacity development, market surveillance, and systems that integrate internal (producer-level) quality assurance with external (regulatory) quality assurance.

African Seed Enterprises

African Seed Enterprises PDF Author: Paul van Mele
Publisher: CABI
ISBN: 1845938437
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 254

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Book Description
In most developing countries, good quality seed is hard to obtain and farmers struggle to save seed from one year to the next. This title takes a people-centred look at the companies, public agencies and family farms that are taking on this role and making a difference to food security across Africa.

Seeds Toolkit - Module 5

Seeds Toolkit - Module 5 PDF Author: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Publisher: Food & Agriculture Org.
ISBN: 9251309531
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 114

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Book Description
Seeds are the vehicle for delivering the improvements in a crop to the farmer’s field. They are therefore a critical input in agricultural production. Seeds are also unique in that they must remain alive and healthy when they are used and that they are also the input that farmers can produce by themselves. Module 5 Seed Marketing, this module presents the underlying principles for valuing and exchanging seeds. This module describes all the activities which are undertaken in getting seeds from the producers to the end-users or farmers. The reader is provided guidance on how to conduct relevant research of the market for seeds, develop effective marketing strategies, articulate a marketing plan and manage the associated risks.

Gender dynamics in seed systems development

Gender dynamics in seed systems development PDF Author: Kramer, Berber
Publisher: Intl Food Policy Res Inst
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 6

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Book Description
All agricultural production—whether of crops, trees, forages, livestock, or fish—starts with seeds,* mak-ing seed security vital to food security. Seed secu-rity means that producers—smallholder farmers es-pecially—have permanent and unrestricted access to adequate quantities of quality seed that is suita-ble to their agroecological conditions and socio-economic needs. Efforts to enhance seed security should be inclusive, without disparities related to in-come, social class, age, or gender. Yet, gender gaps reveal themselves across the seed system, in-cluding in the breeding, production, selection, and distribution stages, as well as in how the seeds are used and who reaps the benefits from this use.

Seed Business Management in Africa

Seed Business Management in Africa PDF Author:
Publisher: CIMMYT
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description


Advances in Seed Production and Management

Advances in Seed Production and Management PDF Author: Ajay Kumar Tiwari
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 9811541981
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 623

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Book Description
High-quality seed is essential for healthy crops and greater agricultural productivity. At the same time, advances in breeding technology require equivalent advances in seed technology. In order to ensure food security, it is crucial to develop seeds that are high yielding, and resistant to drought, heat, cold, and insects. Gathering the latest research in seed sciences, the book includes contributions on seed production in crops such as legumes, sugar, rice, wheat and other cereals. It discusses a range of topics, like the effect of climate change on seed quality, production and storage; seed rouging; seed certification for different crop species; seed biology; and seed pathologies and their effective management. Integrating basic and applied research, this compendium provides valuable insights for researchers and students in agricultural and life sciences; professionals involved in seed certification and those working in quarantine laboratories; as well as plant pathologists.

Redesigning the Global Seed Commons

Redesigning the Global Seed Commons PDF Author: Christine Frison
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351403214
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
There is much current controversy over whether the rights to seeds or plant genetic resources should be owned by the private sector or be common property. This book addresses the legal and policy aspects of the multilateral seed management regime. First, it studies in detail the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (the Treaty) in order to understand and identify its dysfunctions. Second, it proposes solutions - using recent developments of the "theory of the commons" - to improve the collective seed management system of the Treaty, a necessary condition for its member states to reach the overall food security and sustainable agriculture goals. Redesigning the Global Seed Commons provides a significant contribution to the current political and academic debates on agrobiodiversity law and governance, and on food security and food sovereignty, by analyzing key issues under the Treaty that affect the design and implementation of regulatory instruments managing seeds as a commons. It also examines the practical, legal, political and economic problems encountered in the attempt to implement these obligations in contemporary settings. In particular, it considers how to improve the Treaty implementation by proposing ways for Contracting Parties to better reach the Treaty’s objectives taking a holistic view of the human-seed ecosystem. Following the tenth anniversary of the functioning the Treaty’s multilateral system of access and benefit-sharing, which is currently under review by its Contracting Parties, this book is well-timed to examine recent developments in the field and guide the current review process to design a truly Global Seed Commons.

Seed Development: OMICS Technologies toward Improvement of Seed Quality and Crop Yield

Seed Development: OMICS Technologies toward Improvement of Seed Quality and Crop Yield PDF Author: Ganesh K. Agrawal
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9400747497
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 592

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Book Description
The book is about the seed development in the model and crop plants. Seed development is a key step of the plant life cycle that determines the nutrient value of seeds – the life for human civilization, growth, and development. The nutrient value of seeds is mainly due to storage reserve products such as carbohydrates, lipids (triacylglycerols), and proteins. The book primarily focuses on application of the 21st century high-throughput technologies transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and systems biology in near complete understanding of the various processes involved in seed development in different crop plants. The book reveals how such technologies have revolutionized our understanding of the multilayer processes and regulations involved therein by generating large-scale datasets. Accumulated datasets provide basic knowledge to develop integrated strategies to eventually improve the nutritional value of plant seed and crop yield, a critical goal in food security issues around the globe.