Demonstration farms to Improve sunflower production and productivity Five district (women) farmers associations in Eastern province of Zambia are engaged into sunflower oil processing. In order to boost the production at the farmers level selected lead farmers in these five districts are selected to make a demonstration plot in which proper treatment of plants will be shown  and record keeping will be practised. This is a joint investment of the organisations  the lead farmers  a seed company, a soil research institure and Agriterra. Agriterra will financially support the realisation of these trials through a small contribution for needed inputs. This will be paid from fundraising activities. Agriterra Zambia will manage the funds and ensure project contracts with the five clients. Goal: Establish 15 demonstration farms in 5 district with high potential in sunflower oil processing  offering a good learning ground for farmer field schools and further farmer training.

Results and Outreach: 
  
15 lead farmers and 5 extension officers trained in sunflower production
  The trials will be used as demonstration sites for extension purposes  so other farmers can learn from this practical and nearby experience. The lead farmers can directly involve their own and neighbouring farmer groups  which means an estimated outreach of about 3 * 150 = 450 farmers in each district.
  3000 unique farmers trained in sunflower production through a cascading approach by the lead farmers and extension officer.
  The extension goes hand in hand with record keeping training  as the lead farmers received recently a training on this. This will empower farmers and the associations to take well informed decisions regarding sunflower production and processing and can ultimately lead to a better position in the sunflower value chain. Chipata District Women’s Association (CDWA)  Chadiza District Farmers Association (CDFA)  Nyimba District Farmers Association (NDFA)  Petauke District Farmers Association (PDFA) and Mambwe District Women’s Association (MDWA) represent nearly 10 000 small-scale farmers in Eastern Province  Zambia. The main commodities that these small-scale farmers grow are maize  sunflower  groundnuts  soy beans  sweet potato and cotton. Agriterra focuses on capacity building of these farmer associations to improve their position in the sunflower value chain. The associations are engaged in collecting sunflower seeds from their members and processing the sunflower into cooking oil and sunflower cake (for cattle feed)  which are marketed and sold in the region.
  
2.0 Increasing sunflower yields through seed trials
  
A value creator analysis performed by Agriterra showed that the small-scale farmers need high-quality sunflower seed and good farming practices to maximise their sunflower yields. The current sunflower yield of farmers (600-1300kg/ha) is below the potential yield of 2500kg/ha  mainly due to poor farming practices and use of contaminated seed and recycled seed. The farmers need to invest more in their sunflower crop in terms of seeds and other inputs to improve the yields  increase sunflower oil content and thus increase their income. For this to happen  they need see the benefits of these investments through seed trials.
  
In collaboration with a Zambian seed company  the farmer associations together with Agriterra developed a protocol for seed trials to test different types of seed at selected farmer plots of the 5 farmer associations. The seed trials will show in a very practical way and close to the farmers the differences that can occur while using primary high-quality seeds and the next generations. At the same time  a comparison is made with good farming practices (in terms of soil quality  planting time  use of fertilizer  other inputs) and extra investments in fertiliser will increase their yield and thus income for the coming season. 
  
The objectives of the demonstration or seed trials are to:
  
Increase production through use of best agronomic practices,
  Reduce post-harvest losses,
  Realise a quality crop with more production and a higher percentage of oil,
  Reduce misconceptions around crop management practices.

3.0 Funding needed for seed trials
  
The seed trials will be held at 15 farm locations  being 3 model farmers to be selected per association. The trials will require a funding of €4 478 which will be used to procure the fertiliser  herbicides  lead farmer and extension officer trainings. Farmer field schools will be used during trainings to deliver knowledge and demonstrate good agronomic practices to farmers. Record keeping will be incorporated and practiced throughout the trails and trainings to ensure evidence based results. 
  
Certified seeds and technical support will be provided by Zamseed. Labour and land will be provided by the associations.