CASSAVA + Brochure

Cassava+ AFRICA’S CASSAVA BELT

Brochure_Cassava.indd 1 8/2/11 3:01:04 PM

AFRICA’S CASSAVA BELT



OverviewThe demand across Africa for cassava byproducts (cassava cake, high-quality cassava flour, starch and glucose) is expected to rise rapidly due to urbanization and the global increase in grain prices. These factors are now convincing manufacturers of national and international consumer and industrial products that cassava can be used as a substitute for higher-priced raw materials. With growing market demand for cassava, increased production can now generate increased benefits for Africa’s smallholder cassava farmers.

Cassava+1

p Cover image: Workers at a collection site sort cassava tubers into tubs for processing by an Autonomous Mobile Processing Unit (AMPU).

t A Cassava+ demonstration plot with unfertilized cassava in the foreground and fertilized cassava plants in the background.



Recognizing the important role that cassava and smallholder farmers can play in African agriculture, the Netherlands’ Directorate-General for International Cooperation (DGIS), the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC) and the Dutch Agricultural Development & Trading Company (DADTCO) launched the cassava public-private partnership (PPP) in 2010. The three-year PPP is financed by a Schokland Fund grant from DGIS and is supplemented by additional IFDC cost-sharing and DADTCO investments.

Under the project name Cassava Plus (Cassava+), an opportunity is being created for African farm families that currently grow cassava

only for home consumption and sale in local markets (including seven to eight million farm families in Nigeria, where the Cassava+ project was introduced). While it is a key staple food, cassava has remained a subsistence crop because of its rapid spoilage after it is harvested, an irregular and inadequate supply of raw cassava to “feed” the few processing facilities and inefficient processing systems.

The project’s mission is to shift cassava from a subsistence crop to a cash crop. While fulfilling this mission, Cassava+ does not negatively impact local food security, because substantial yield increases ensure that crop surpluses can be sold without jeopardizing local demand. Additionally, Cassava+ generates environmental benefits through advanced soil fertility management practices that help prevent soil degradation.

Cassava+ staff members are developing a commercial cassava value chain that is focused on increasing smallholder farmers’ sustainable cassava production while creating a guaranteed market for their crops. This improves farmer livelihoods by increasing crop yields and profitability. Since its launch, Cassava+ has developed cassava value chains in Nigeria’s Taraba, Kwara, Kogi and Osun states. In addition, the Rivers State Cassava Initiative (RSCI) was recently launched in the Niger Delta region (see page 12 for additional details).

p Field demonstration of the Rumptstad Thai Walking Tractor, developed expressly for smallholder farming in Africa. The tractors have implements specifically designed for all major crops.

u Cassava ready for processing by nearby AMPUs.

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Due to rapid spoilage, inadequate transportation and few processing facilities, raising cassava as a commercial crop has not been feasible – until now. DADTCO’s innovative “split” processing technology (in the field and at the factory) is dramatically changing the way cassava is perceived, grown and processed in Africa. The company’s Autonomous Mobile Processing Units (AMPUs) process fresh cassava on-farm or nearby (instead of attempting to transport the crop to traditional processing plants prior to spoilage). The AMPUs provide an efficient method to reduce costs and bring the first stage of processing close to the production fields, creating opportunities for thousands of smallholder farmers to supply cassava with a guarantee of purchase. DADTCO’s AMPUs are located in cassava production areas, while the primary factory is located near a low-cost energy source. One of IFDC’s key responsibilities is to identify primary

locations where farmers will be organized into production clusters and sub-clusters to “feed” the AMPUs.

Each AMPU processes harvested cassava into cassava cake, which can be used in that form by the brewing industry or can be transported to a DADTCO factory for further processing into high-quality cassava flour (HQCF) or glucose. The innovative processing technology opens up a new – and until now – untapped market for value-added raw materials that compete effectively with costly imports (glucose, starch and wheat flour). DADTCO’s wet processing technology releases starch granules from cassava tubers’ cells, creating a product that is in demand in both the consumer and industrial markets.

The Challengeand the Opportunity4



u Strengthen the capacities of more than 160,000 farm families by linking them with DADTCO, thereby developing sustainable and productive cassava and rotation cropping systems.

u Train and develop agro-dealers and other farm service providers and link them with participating farmers.

u Reduce poverty and increase economic development.

u Build a model PPP to prove that the cassava value chain has the potential to provide higher incomes to millions of farming families in the cassava belts of Africa. The project will also prove that replication and up-scaling are attainable.

Project Objectives

t An AMPU appears simply to be a large truck as it travels to a new location, but is in fact a “factory on wheels.”

u Students from the College of Agriculture in Jalingo, Taraba State, planting cassava.

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u Support and build the capacity of organized farm groups and develop logistics for root delivery. These components are accomplished by developing training materials and conducting training on farm group organization, leadership, marketing and logistics, as well as by developing marketing systems that link farmers and factories.

u Adopt improved farming practices through participatory learning and on-farm demonstrations. These components are accomplished through: field and agronomic trainings; field demonstrations; exchange of ideas through study tours; mechanization; and mapping of site-specific farmer field information.

u Strengthen agro-dealers and service providers (inputs, mechanization and credit) to support improved cassava production. These components are accomplished by helping improve service providers’ business skills, efficiency and profitability. There is a focus on agro-dealers, agricultural mechanization specialists and financial institutions working in the project’s target areas.

u Provide support for cross-cutting interventions including project management, communications, monitoring and evaluation (M&E) and gender equity. The support is provided through the development of a baseline linked to a comprehensive database of cassava farmers to help monitor and evaluate the project’s success.

Project Components

t Farmers look on as Cassava+ staff use hand-held GPS technology to map cassava farms in Nigeria.

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The Cassava+ project implemented activities during 2010 that assisted targeted smallholder farmers to boost cassava crop yields in a sustainable manner. Project staff focused on identifying and working with core groups of farmers in five Nigerian states to increase their cassava yields and profitability and link them to DADTCO’s processing factories. Other key activities included:

u Identification of Mega-Clusters – Rapid market assessments were conducted to identify appropriate locations where smallholder cassava farmers could produce competitively for DADTCO’s factories. Identification of these clusters determined the future optimal locations for the AMPUs and the project-supported farm groups within the cluster intervention area.

u Technology Development and Dissemination – More than 20 project-supported groups of smallholder farmers (averaging 25 farmers per group) from various clusters and sub-clusters visited one another at their demonstration sites. These farm visits encouraged farmer group formation, enabled farmers to observe that the project’s Package of Practices brings about major changes in production and income, and facilitated farmer-to-farmer learning.

u Adoption of the Package of Practices – Continuous and thorough training prior to and during planting encouraged project-supported smallholder farmers to implement improved technologies and integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) practices. The adoption of these methods promises increased crop yields, improved soil fertility and high-quality cassava.

u Agro-Dealer Census – In partnership with another IFDC project (Nigeria Agro-Dealer Support), a census of agro-dealers supplying the intervention areas was completed. The survey identified the shops of key agro-dealers and provided a basis for establishing linkages between agro-input suppliers, agro-dealers and smallholder farmers.

u Successful Public-Private Partnerships – Partnerships between IFDC, DADTCO, state governments, agro-dealers and smallholder farmers were established during the first year. In Taraba State, a partnership led the state government to subsidize the transportation costs of planting material that was purchased by agro-dealers and sold to cassava farmers.

2010 Highlights

t Farmers at a Cassava+ meeting.

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NIGERIA/WEST

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The Potential of the Cassava Market

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Cassava can be used as a primary component in many consumer and industrial products. DADTCO’s unique processing provides cassava cake and flour that can be used as a substitute for costly imports such as glucose, starch and wheat flour. DADTCO signed a contract to supply SABMiller with cassava cake, saving ingredient and transportation costs while creating a guaranteed market for processed cassava. Negotiations with other companies to purchase significant quantities of cassava are underway.

DADTCO currently operates processing facilities in Taraba and Osun states and is beginning construction on a similar facility in Rivers State. Each plant can produce as much as 15,000 metric tons (mt) of HQCF per year. However, Nigeria’s HQCF market requirements are at least 1.5

million metric tons (mmt) per year, so a huge opportunity exists for smallholder farmers to increase their cassava production.

Studies were recently conducted on the market potential for value-added cassava products. For example, DADTCO’s cassava cake is a significantly more cost-effective ingredient for the brewing industry than imported glucose syrup or starch from barley. Macaroni and spaghetti also can be made with locally produced HQCF, replacing a portion of the more expensive imported wheat flour. Tests indicate that Nigerian consumers like both the taste and texture of the mixed flour products. HQCF also can serve as a binding agent for food and industrial purposes. Market opportunities are as diverse as bouillon cooking cubes and mosquito coils. Finally, DADTCO’s HQCF, which consists of 95 percent starch, can be further processed into sugar substances for additional market opportunities, such as glucose (a simple sugar that is the human body’s main source of energy) used in making canned soups, beer, snacks, tomato paste, etc., and sorbitol (a sugar substitute) used in toothpaste, chewing gum, cough syrups and other products. n

u Cassava cake after initial processing by an AMPU.

q Cassava tubers shortly after harvest.


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NIGERIA/WEST

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In May 2011, Cassava+ expanded into the Niger Delta of Nigeria through the RSCI. The RSCI is being led by the Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency (RSSDA), which is partnering with IFDC, DADTCO, the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) and Stanbic IBTC Bank.

IFDC is leading a training and development program at the village level to help participating subsistence farmers transition toward sustainable commercial cassava farming. In partnership with RSSDA, IFDC is linking these farmers to appropriate agricultural mechanization technologies, farm management techniques and seasonal credit so that they can purchase agro-inputs. The program will increase the farmers’ agricultural production, as well as generate increased incomes

and opportunities through market development. IFDC is working to ensure that farmers integrate a sustainable management component into their farming systems so the land – their most valuable asset – can continue to produce for generations to come.

By linking participating smallholder cassava farmers to a guaranteed market, the RSCI will assist them to increase yields and incomes, reduce poverty and generate economic development. Specific benefits of the RSCI include: doubling cassava yields of 4,500 participating Rivers State farmers from an average of 10 mt/hectare (ha) to 20 mt/ha; over 20,000 employed either directly or indirectly; over N1,500,000 (about $10,000) per day injected into rural villages in

payment for fresh cassava tubers; increased individual farm size through a Cassava+-supported mechanization package; improved food security; and a positive contribution to the implementation of the post-conflict amnesty program for the Niger Delta.

The amnesty program, negotiated by Nigerian authorities and militants, presents a unique window of opportunity to bring peace, stability and economic development to the cassava-producing areas of Rivers State (and possibly other states in the Niger Delta as well). The development model already proven by DADTCO and IFDC can substantially improve the chances of success for the armistice and help the region transition to peace. n

Rivers State Cassava Initiative

p Peter Bolt (short-sleeved shirt), managing director of DADTCO; Bert Ronhaar (pink tie), Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Nigeria; Noble Pepple (to Ambassador Ronhaar’s left), executive director of RSSDA and chairman of the RSCI; Rivers State dignitaries; and Cassava+ staff stand in front of an AMPU.

u Fertilizing a cassava field.

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The Way Forward –2011 and Beyond

The lessons learned during 2010 have been transferred to Rivers State in Nigeria. Project expansion into other African countries is expected later in 2011 and 2012. This expansion is planned with the assumption that the demand for processed cassava cake and HQCF will grow as expected.

During 2011, the project has intensified activities in the current intervention areas. Although a solid foundation was laid in 2010, a number of adjustments have been made:

u There is an increased focus on the technical aspects of cassava production (ISFM in particular). As farmers move from subsistence production to smallholder commercial farming, the issue of soil fertility is critically important. Much of this work is experimental in order to understand the crop rotation mix that farmers are willing to adopt on their farms to improve their fallow periods.

u As participating farmers expand their cassava production, the project is supporting the establishment of an appropriate mechanization support service. An increase in farm size requires an acceptable return on investment for both the farmer and the service provider. Cassava+ is working with Rumptstad, a company that has designed and manufactured a complete mechanization package for smallholder cassava farmers.

u The project is providing increased support for agro-dealers to guarantee a supply of inputs for cassava production (specifically cassava stems and fertilizer products). In 2010, agro-dealers accepted the challenge of supplying improved planting materials to the region’s cassava farmers, allowing project staff to scale-up this intervention.

u There is an increased focus on the organization and leadership of participating farmers’ groups. IFDC has signed a Memorandum

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of Understanding with Bridge to Markets 2, an agricultural project funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Bridge to Markets 2 will work with IFDC’s master trainers to strengthen their capacity to deliver a series of trainings focused on group dynamics, group leadership and farm business management.

u Logistical support is being initiated to organize the delivery of cassava from the field to the AMPU. As the number of these deliveries increases, linkages between DADTCO and the selected farmer groups are being strengthened to facilitate the development of an effective cassava value chain. This support includes the development of appropriate transportation systems and piloting of a functional market information system to generate streamlined communications between the farmers and the factory.

u Project staff members are assessing the adoption of technologies introduced in 2010. As new farming technologies are introduced, the majority of farmers will wait and observe if the technologies actually do what the “experts” say they will do. During 2011, project staff members are identifying which technologies are readily adopted by the targeted farming communities and which technologies farmers are not willing to adopt. Typically, development projects and agricultural research institutions do not look at the recommended package of practices from the farmer’s perspective or at actual adoption rates. This is a critical component during 2011 because the knowledge will help project managers modify strategies and recommendations for up-scaling and out-scaling.

t IFDC staff and farmers discuss techniques to grow healthier cassava plants.

u Stems of improved cassava varieties are stored in the shade while awaiting preparation for planting.

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u This photo of the DADTCO processing facility in Osun State shows the central drying stack (which dries cassava cake) and processing machinery (which converts cassava cake into HQCF). Two AMPUs are visible in the lower right corner of the photo.

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Cassava+: Expected Results

u Increased annual net income of at least $250 for each hectare of cassava and $500 each for more than 160,000 farm families, for a total of nearly $100 million in additional net income.*

u Improved access to, and use of, improved agro-inputs (e.g., increase the number of farmers planting improved cassava varieties from 10 percent to 80 percent and double fertilizer use), farming techniques and services.

u Strengthened the capacity of over 100 groups of farmers to organize and manage the tasks needed in order to benefit from value chains and strengthened public and private organizations to better serve farmers.

u A highly visible and easily replicable PPP model that improves the lives of farmers and their families.

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* Estimates of annual per capita income in Nigeria range from $1,100 to $2,300.



ConclusionsDevelopments in the global food market are increasing the need for additional and cheaper sources of starch. Public and private sector entities are recognizing the potential for cassava, and IFDC and DADTCO are convinced that cassava can help address the starch and sugar requirements of Africa.

As the world’s largest producer of cassava, Nigeria is working with IFDC and DADTCO as they pioneer innovative methods to change cassava from a subsistence food crop to a commercial cash crop. Developing the cassava value chain can improve the economic situation for millions of smallholder farmers and their families across the continent. Cassava+ has the potential to be a sustainable “game-changer” for Africa’s agricultural sector. n

t Exploratory visit to Ghana to prepare for Cassava+ project expansion.

u Dr. Paul Ilona (right) of HarvestPlus works with the Cassava+ team and project-supported cassava farmers at a demonstration plot in Ibi, Nigeria.

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IFDC is a public international organization, governed by an international board of directors with representation from developed and developing countries. The nonprofit Center is supported by various bilateral and multilateral aid agencies, private foundations and national governments. IFDC focuses on increasing and sustaining food security and agricultural productivity in developing countries through the development and transfer of effective and environmentally sound crop nutrient technology and agribusiness expertise.

DADTCO is a Netherlands-based company with a primary goal of initiating a rural development revolution by creating guaranteed markets for crops grown by smallholder farmers in West Africa. The DADTCO strategy to guarantee these markets is to choose crops that are imported in large volumes (such as cassava, rice, etc.). When these crops are grown and processed locally instead of being imported, they can provide farmers with a decent and guaranteed income while also providing normal processing margins.

DGIS Development cooperation is a stated goal of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Through its Directorate-General for International Cooperation (DGIS), the Netherlands contributes toward the development of poor countries around the world. The Netherlands development policy emphasizes more Dutch investment in fragile states and in countries which have the most ground to make up in achieving the Millennium Development Goals.

The Partners

u Product samples of cassava flour.

Back cover: Cassava plants are tolerant of drought and poor soils.

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Abbreviations and AcronymsAMPU .............autonomous mobile processing unitDADTCO ........Dutch Agricultural Development & Trading CompanyDGIS ................Netherlands’ Directorate-General for International

CooperationHQCF ..............high-quality cassava flourIFDC ................International Fertilizer Development CenterPPP ..................public-private partnershipRSCI .................Rivers State Cassava InitiativeUSAID .............U.S. Agency for International Development



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IFDC NigeriaNo. 6, Ogbagi Close, Off Oro Ago CrescentCadestral Zone, Garki II – AbujaP.O. Box 1048 – Abuja, NigeriaTel. +234 94130874 / 94130873Fax +234 94131005Email [email protected]

HeadquartersP.O. Box 2040Muscle Shoals, Alabama 35662 USATel. +1 (256) 381-6600Fax +1 (256) 381-7408Email [email protected] www.ifdc.org

© IFDC 2011. All rights reserved.

For additional information about IFDC and/or the Cassava+ project, visit www.ifdc.org.



Documents

CASSAVA + Brochure