Assessment of seed quality along the rice seed value chain in Tanzania

ABSTRACT

This article reports on a study that assessed the qualities of rice seeds collected from formal and informal channels in Tanzania. Seed sources used by farmers and the seed selection and management practices followed also were examined. More than 90% of farmers’ seed samples met the national standards for key seed quality parameters. Field grow-out tests revealed that only about a fifth of the samples from the two systems met the minimum standard for genetic purity. Because most farmers rely on their own saved seed, enhancing skills in seed selection and maintenance is needed to ensure higher paddy productivity and marketability.

KEYWORDS:

• Civil society – Partnership
• Environment (built and natural) – Agriculture, Food security
• Sub-Saharan Africa

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Setegn Gebeyehu works for the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) based in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. He develops and leads research and extension programmes on seed systems and innovative crop and natural resource management approaches for intensifying and diversifying rice production in irrigated and rainfed lowland environments of East and Southern Africa. He has a PhD in Agriculture from Justus-Liebig Universitaet Giessen, Germany, and over 25 years’ experience in agricultural research, agriculture development, and teaching.

Joseph Kangile is an Agricultural Research Officer and Head of Socioeconomics and Farming Systems Research Section at Dakawa Agricultural Research Institute. He holds an MSc in Agricultural and Applied Economics from the University of Pretoria, South Africa and Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania. He has carried out research and consultancy in the areas of production economics, value chain development, policy analysis, trade, marketing, and economics of value addition for food and cash crops.

Emmanuel Mwakatobe is a National Seed Sampler and Seed Certification Officer at Tanzania Official Seed Certification Institute (TOSCI) headquarters in Morogoro. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from Sokoine Unviversity of Agriculture (SUA), Tanzania.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Stress Tolerant Rice for Africa and South Asia Project funded by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.