Improved Varieties: Cassava in Nigeria

Farmers’ varietal diversification and adoption of improved varieties, and consumers’ preferences for variety attributes: The case of cassava in Nigeria

There are two principal aims of this HarvestPlus-funded project:

  • Adoption study: To identify the cassava varieties currently cultivated by farmers in order to generate varietal maps for commonly cultivated varieties and understand the factors (agro-ecological, market-related, institutional, variety performance-related, etc.) that affect farmers’ choices and the diffusion of cassava varieties.
  • Consumer acceptance study: To study consumers’ preferences for various cassava attributes, including those inherent in the breeding method used (conventional vs. genetically engineered).

The research is expected to improve:

  • the design of effective and targeted interventions to ensure the maximum adoption of biofortified cassava varieties,
  • the understanding of the cassava variety traits that farmers value the most and hence would be most likely to look for when adopting new varieties,
  • the identification of institutions (public, private, formal, and informal institutions, including social networks and markets) which should be strengthened and/or utilized to ensure the adoption of biofortified cassava,
  • the establishment of communication strategies to effectively inform cassava consumers and producers about biofortified cassava varieties, and
  • the estimation of price premia/discounts for biofortified cassava varieties.