Online platform to help farmers get quality seeds

An online platform that helps farmers to select seeds that suit their climatic conditions has been launched. The initiative is expected to play a role in stepping up food production in Kenya.

Poor quality seeds have for a long time been blamed for low agricultural yields and the new database is set to change this situation.

The online seedbank known as MbeguChoice was developed jointly by the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (Kalro), the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (Kephis), Agri Experience and seed companies. Kenya Markets Trust supported the project.

The platform allows farmers and local seed sellers to obtain a list of suitable seeds for specific weather conditions and soils.

Speaking during the launch of the portal in Nairobi, Agri Experience director Aline O’Connor said MbeguChoice is aimed at helping farmers increase food production.

The database targets maize, common beans, sorghum and cowpeas and other seed varieties. “A strong food production system starts with high-yielding crop varieties developed for specific farming environments,” he said, adding that good seeds are resistant to diseases and drought and mature early.

Currently, the online database contains more than 200 commercialised crop varieties. It has 61 breeds of maize, 25 of common bean, 11 of cassava, 13 of Irish potato and 12 of sorghum.

The database will ensure that only certified seeds are on the market as no unauthorised producers will be allowed to post untested inputs on the portal.
The site will be updated as new varieties of seeds come into the market.

There is a section for farmers to give feedback on the most preferred seeds for their climatic conditions.

Farmers have been relying on a trial-and-error method in choosing seeds and it could take them years before getting the right variety for their respective regions.

Planting the wrong seeds has been blamed for massive losses and dismal harvests, making the country food insecure as farmers earn poor incomes.
Kenya Markets Trust chief executive officer Paul Wanyagah said the portal is a vital link among seed producers, agro dealers, extension agents and farmers.

Seed Trade Associate of Kenya executive member and Agri SeedCo’s managing director, Mr Kassim Owino, noted that seed sellers now have a direct link to seed companies and can help farmers to get the right seeds, thereby helping the country achieve higher crop yields.

TELEPHONE FARMERS

Kalro breeder and research centre manager, Dr Philip Leley, said the trial-and-error method “is now long gone” and urged farmers to embrace the new portal.

Farmers will access the service through SMS and internet-enabled phones.

Those who will immensely benefit from the new platform are urban-based ‘telephone farmers’ who micro-manage their farms and assist relatives back home in selecting farm inputs without indepth knowledge on the existing climatic conditions.

“For example, if a farmer in the mid-altitude region of Makueni County searches for varieties of early-maturing, drought-tolerant maize to cultivate during the long rain season, MbeguChoice would show that there are two seed companies marketing a total of five varieties that breeders feel will meet the farmer’s criteria,” said the statement released following the launch of the platform.

The service also is intended to help agro-dealers and extension agents improve their knowledge of the assortment of crop varieties that plant breeders have developed for different areas of the country.