"The intent of DLB is to lead to greater availability of new, high performing crop varieties"
Scientific Impacts
The intent of DLB is to lead to greater availability of new, high performing crop varieties that respond to customer needs and market demand, and which will, in the longer term, lead to increased adoption of new high performing varieties by farmers in Africa, contributing to food and nutritional security and income generation.
The scientific impacts are to better integrate all aspects of market demand into the design of new plant varieties. This involves the systematic use of product profiles to define the priority traits identified through consultation within the value chain for each crop and country. This includes incorporating demand from farmers (primarily addressing biological constraints), as well as demands from consumers (such as taste, color, quality) and demand from suppliers (e.g. storage quality).
Demand led breeding has developed product profiles that identify the priority traits required by various actors along the value chain. The following guidelines have been developed for a range of crops, environments, and markets and available under “Resources / Brochures & Fliers”.
Product Profiles
Product Profiles – examples
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Kersting's Groundnut - High-yielding, cream-seeded Kersting’s groundnut
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Mung bean/green gram (Vigna radiata) - High yielding, bold seed size green gram - Ethiopia
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Rice (Oryza sativa L.) - Early maturing, lowland, long slender grain rice
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Superior dry grain sugar bean variety - Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)
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Small white canning bean - Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)
The establishment of technical data sheets which compare the performance of new varieties against a check (currently grown) variety, will verify the breeding programs, and form part of the communications plan to promote new varieties and their desirable attributes.