Production and Marketing of African Indigenous Vegetables Linking smallholders to highvalue markets

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Production and Marketing of African Indigenous
VegetablesLinking smallholders to high-value
markets The examples of Kenya and Tanzania.

• Stefan Pletziger, Economist
• Value-Link Conference, Berlin
• May 31, 2007

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What is AVRDC The World Vegetable Center?

• The World Vegetable Center is the leading
  international institute for vegetable research
  and development worldwide.
• It is a not-for-profit research institute aimed
  at working towards reducing malnutrition and
  alleviating poverty in developing countries
  through improved production, marketing and
  consumption of safe vegetables.

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Amaranth (Amaranthus cruentus)
Spider-plant (Gynandropsis gynandra)
African eggplant (Solanum aethiopicum)
Moringa (Moringa Olifera)
Ethiopian mustard (Brassica carinata)
Okra (Abelmoschus esculentum)
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Peri-urban Vegetable Production One Project
Example from Kenya and Tanzania (1) (2004-2006)

• Aim Empowering Small Scale farmers through
  Sustainable Production, Seed Supply and Marketing
  of African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs) in Kenya
  and Tanzania
• Purpose To increase the productivity,
  utilization and marketing of AIVs to streamline
  efficiency of the value chain and to improve
  health, nutrition and income of vulnerable groups

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Peri-urban Vegetable Production One Project
Example from Kenya and Tanzania (2) (2004-2006)
1) Shift from poorly structured markets to
improved markets

• 2) Addressing important issues
• Improved marketing systems
• Job creation
• Reduced seasonality
• Safer vegetables for consumers (!)

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Peri-urban Vegetable Production One Project
Example from Kenya and Tanzania (3) (2004-2006)

• What are the advantages, benefits and challenges
  for the smallholders?
• Labor intensive production of short duration
  crops on a small piece of land favors small scale
  farmers more than large production units.
• However
• To compete effectively with large companies and
  large scale farmers they need to have their
  capacity well built and take advantage of
  collective sales and scheduled production that
  can lead to continuous supplies (!)

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What was reached so far? (1)

• The AIV farming has also proved to be one of the
  fastest sources of income
• due to the short growing period of vegetables
• less capital /inputs requirement for the
  production process
• Around 600 farmers (in Kenya) have started
  producing and selling below 30 tones per month
  and has been able to reach as high as 600 tones
  per month (within two years).

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What was reached so far? (2)

• The demand for African leafy vegetables has grown
  tremendously in both the urban and rural areas
  indicating a high potential in the every rural
  urban centers of the target areas (especially
  Nairobi and Arusha).

• A consumption study has estimated that 2006 only
  40 of the demand for AIV were covered in
  Nairobi.

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Questions for discussion

• Are high-value supply-chains the only option for
  smallholders?
• How realistic (and effective) are standards and
  grades for domestic markets in Developing
  Countries?
• How can small-scale farmers better and more
  reliably match the requirements of high-value
  supply-chain clients (volume, quality and time) ?