Use of World Vegetable Center breeding lines by seed companies in Africa: Results of a survey
Creators: name: Ambali, Mwasilwa
name: Kaki, Rodrigue
name: Traore, Ousmane
name: Schreinemachers, Pepijn
name: Editing: Nick Pasiecznik
Publisher: name: World Vegetable Center
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: tomato
subject: PEPPERS
subject: OKRA
subject: ONIONS
subject: AMARANTH
subject: MUNGBEANS
subject: PUMPKINS
subject: AFRICAN EGGPLANT
subject: GERMPLASM
subject: BREEDING
subject: FARMERS' ASSOCIATIONS
subject: Africa Vegetable Breeding Consortium (AVBC)
subject: African Seed Trade Association (AFSTA)
subject: Seed companies
subject: Germplasm
subject: Breeding programs
subject: Questionnaire survey
subject: Breeding traits

description: The Africa Vegetable Breeding Consortium (AVBC) was established in 2018 as a partnership between the African Seed Trade Association (AFSTA) and the World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg). AVBC membership fees were waived during 2021 and 2022 to promote the consortium. AVBC had 54 members in 2022, with 36 companies joining the consortium for the first time in 2022, while 15 companies that subscribed in 2021 did not renew their membership. Of these 54 members, 44 are seed companies (full members) and 10 are associate members, including knowledge partners such as universities and NGOs interested in vegetable variety development. Associate members do not pay membership fees and do not have access to AVBC exclusive lines. Of the 44 companies, 33 have operations in one country only (categorized as ‘national’), four companies operate in more than two countries in Africa (‘regional’), and seven companies operate in multiple continents (‘international’). A questionnaire survey was conducted among all AVBC members to collect data on key performance indicators for 2021; 12 companies completed the survey. Of these, six have a breeding program for tomato, six breed habanero, five breed chili pepper or okra, three breed onions, two breed African eggplant, pumpkin or amaranth, and one breeds sweet pepper or mungbean. The data showed that three seed companies used WorldVeg-developed tomato germplasm in their breeding programs, three used pepper (Capsicum annuum) germplasm, one used habanero germplasm, and one used amaranth germplasm. None of the surveyed companies used WorldVeg-developed germplasm of sweet pepper, African eggplant, onion, okra, pumpkin, or mungbean. Consortium members sold two pepper varieties, two African eggplant varieties, two onion varieties, and five okra varieties based on WorldVeg germplasm. No companies reported selling tomato, sweet pepper, habanero, pumpkin, amaranth or mungbean varieties based on WorldVeg germplasm. Reported seed sales of WorldVegrelated varieties were 15 kg for pepper, 22 kg for African eggplant, 25 kg for onion and 319 kg for okra. Companies expressed a need for technical training in a range of topics, including breeding for horticultural traits, biotic resistance, and abiotic tolerance. AVBC members ordered more than 200 seed samples from WorldVeg in 2022, which indicates a strong interest in WorldVeg material and a high potential for future impact. Therefore, it is important to monitor the use of this material over time. This is the first round of data collection among seed company members of the Africa Vegetable Breeding Consortium (AVBC). Few companies responded to an earlier survey, and those results therefore heavily underestimated the true impact of World Vegetable Center material. Scientific research in East Africa have proven beyond doubt the widespread use of WorldVeg breeding lines and varieties of tomato, African eggplant, mungbean and amaranth (Ochieng et al., 2019; Schreinemachers et al., 2017; Schreinemachers et al., 2019; Wanyama et al., 2023), and the authors are aware of many WorldVeg vegetable varieties commercialized in West Africa. Therefore, this report provides evidence of the use of WorldVeg material in other African regions, and should be considered as a baseline against which to measure future progress. Not many companies were accurately able to identify or prioritize breeding traits, however, and this part of the questionnaire needs to be improved in future by using a standard list of traits. It also shows that AVBC members have very different research and developmental capacities and needs, as some may not have defined breeding priorities for vegetable crops. Direct interaction with seed companies is important to understand their needs better. AVBC must continue to build trust with companies and strengthen relationships to ensure good data, crucial to measuring the effectiveness of donor investment in vegetable breeding for Africa. The survey should also be conducted annually to accurately track change.