Cassava + Opportunities for Africa s Smallholder Cassava Farmers AFRICA S CASSAVA BELT

Transcription

1 Cassava + Opportunities for Africa s Smallholder Cassava Farmers AFRICA S CASSAVA BELT

2 AFRICA S CASSAVA BELT 1 Demand and opportunity The demand across Africa for cassava byproducts (such as cassava cake, high-quality cassava flour [HQCF], starch and glucose) is expected to rise due to urbanization and global increases in grain prices. These factors have convinced manufacturers of consumer and industrial products that cassava can be used as a substitute for higher-priced raw materials. With greater market demand, increased production can now benefit Africa s smallholder cassava farmers. Recognizing the important role that cassava and smallholder farmers 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 a public-private partnership (PPP) to promote commercial cassava production. Under the project name Cassava +, an opportunity is being created for African farm families that currently grow cassava only for home consumption and sale in local markets. p Cover: Cassava ready for processing at a nearby AMPU. t Left: Demonstrating appropriate mechanization (such as this Rumptstad walking tractor) was made possible by a grant to DADTCO by the Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF). q Below: Students from the College of Agriculture in Taraba State, Nigeria are shown planting cassava, which is propagated from stem cuttings (seen in the background photo). u Right: Using techniques taught by IFDC, a farmer applies mineral fertilizer to his cassava crop. 1 Cassava stems need to be carefully stored and handled prior to planting.

3 From subsistence to sustainability While it is a key dietary staple, cassava has remained a subsistence crop because of its rapid spoilage after harvest, an inadequate/irregular supply to feed the few processing facilities and inefficient processing methods. Working with governments, the private sector and smallholder cassava farmers, IFDC and DADTCO are changing those dynamics. The mission of Cassava + is to shift cassava from a subsistence crop to a cash crop. 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 while helping farmers move from the poverty cycle to the prosperity cycle. Moreover, Cassava + does not negatively impact local food security since substantial yield increases ensure that crop surpluses can be sold without jeopardizing local demand. Additionally, Cassava + generates environmental benefits, since beneficial soil fertility management practices help prevent soil degradation. Cassava + is working to develop a commercial cassava value chain focused on increasing smallholder farmers sustainable cassava production and also creating a guaranteed market for their crops. Farmers livelihoods are improved by increasing crop yields and profitability. q Background: A Cassava + demonstration plot with unfertilized cassava in the foreground and fertilized cassava plants in the background. q Below:An IFDC agronomist shows the difference between unfertilized cassava on the left, and fertilized cassava on the right. AFRICA S CASSAVA BELT 2 2 With appropriate mineral fertilizers, cassava growth is significantly improved.

4 AFRICA S CASSAVA BELT 3 Onsite processing changes the equation 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) dramatically changes the way cassava can be processed in Africa. DADTCO s Autonomous Mobile Processing Units (AMPUs) process fresh cassava on-farm or nearby (instead of transporting the crop long distances 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 a guaranteed market for thousands of smallholder cassava farmers. DADTCO s technology allows AMPUs to be located in cassava production areas while the factory is located near a low-cost energy source. One of IFDC s primary responsibilities is to identify key locations where farmers are 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 cassava flour factory for further processing into HQCF or glucose. q Background: Farmers harvesting cassava tubers. Cassava can be harvested one to two years after planting. q Below: An AMPU appears simply to be a large truck as it travels to a new location, but is in fact a factory on wheels. 3 Cassava tubers are harvested after one year for delivery to the AMPU.

5 Developing value-added raw materials 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 processing technology releases starch granules from the cassava tubers cells, providing a product that is in demand in both the consumer and industrial markets. Developments in the global food market are increasing the need for additional and cheaper sources of starch and sugar. Cassava can meet some of that demand, particularly in Africa. IFDC and DADTCO are pioneering innovative methods to change cassava from a subsistence food crop to a cash crop. Together, with support from DGIS, they are helping to build cassava value chains through which millions of smallholder farmers and their families across the continent can improve their financial circumstances. Cassava + has the potential to be a sustainable game-changer for Africa s agricultural sector. t Below left: Cassava tubers are cleaned, trimmed and sorted into bins prior to going to the AMPU. q Below: Cleaned tubers ready for processing by an AMPU parked near the fields. AFRICA S CASSAVA BELT 4 4 At the AMPU, the tubers are cleaned, trimmed and loaded by conveyor belt into the AMPU for processing.

6 AFRICA S CASSAVA BELT 5 Cassava + objectives IFDC is strengthening the capacities of farm families by helping them develop sustainable and productive cassava and rotation cropping systems and then linking them with DADTCO. IFDC is training and developing agro-dealers and other farm service providers and linking them with participating farmers. Reduce poverty and increase economic development through DADTCO s guaranteed market for cassava. Prove that the cassava value chain can provide higher incomes for millions of farming families in the cassava belt of Africa. q Background: Workers collect the initial stage of processed cassava, called cake, into tubs. Cassava cake can be used at this stage in the brewing process. It can be further processed into flour or other products. u Right: Cassava cake prior to further processing into HQCF. u Below right: View of the DADTCO processing factory s flash drying stack, which dries the cassava cake into HQCF. 5 Cassava cake is the first stage of the process, and is a useful material in its own right.

7 t Left: Cassava flour is packaged into 50 kg sacks after processing. q Background: Bags of finished product. u Right: HQCF can be used in food products such as these loaves of bread, made with a mix of wheat and cassava flours. AFRICA S CASSAVA BELT The Cassava + project was launched in 2009 in Nigeria. The project is now spreading to other countries in Africa s cassava belt. 6 6 At the DADTCO processing facility, cassava cake is dried and refined into cassava flour.

8 AFRICA S CASSAVA BELT East and Southern Africa Division IFDC Kenya icipe compound Duduville Kasarani, Thika Road PO Box , Nairobi, Kenya Tel +254 (20) Fax +254 (20) ifdckenya@ifdc.org North and West Africa Division IFDC Togo BP 4483 Lomé, Togo Tel / / / Fax ifdctogo@ifdc.org Headquarters P.O. Box 2040 Muscle Shoals, AL USA Tel. +1 (256) Fax +1 (256) general@ifdc.org Website IFDC All rights reserved. For additional information about IFDC and/or the Cassava + project, visit The Partners 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 Africa. 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. DADTCO is supported by the Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF). The AECF is a special partnership initiative of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa. AECF s aim is to make a positive contribution to pro-poor growth in selected African countries by making agribusiness, finance, information and renewable energy markets work better for the poor in rural areas. DADTCO s mobile split processing technology is an example of what AECF seeks to achieve as a pro-poor growth investment. 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. t SABMiller s newest beer is brewed using cassava cake supplied by DADTCO from the fields of farmers working with Cassava +. Many products can be made using processed cassava, from beverages to bread, and these new markets have the potential to provide smallholder farmers with a steady source of income.