Nigeria and Malawi
have released three improved soybean varieties that can enhance the
productivity of the crop and offer farmers better opportunities,
scientists at the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture,
IITA have said. The three varieties are code-named TGx1740-2F,
TGx1987-10F, and TGx1987-62F. TGx1987-10F and TGx1987-62F were
developed by IITA in collaboration with Nigeria’s National Cereal
Research Institute (NCRI).TGx1740-2F was developed by IITA in
collaboration with the Department of Agricultural Research Services
(DARS) in Malawi.
The on-station and
on-farm testing of the various varieties was funded by the Tropical
Legumes II project. The Malawi Agricultural Technology Clearing
Committee (ATCC) officially approved the release of TGx1740-2F on 18
January 2011, while the Nigeria Varietal Release Committee released
TGx1987-10F and TGx1987-62F on 2 December 2010.
According to Hailu
Tefera, IITA soybean breeder based in Malawi, the varieties
outperformed the standard and local checks grown in the two countries,
offering high grain yield in multiple locations under on-station and
on-farm trials.
“In Nigeria,
medium-maturing varieties TGx1987-10F and TGx1987-62F proved highly
resistant to rust, bacterial blight, and Cercospora leaf spot,” Ranajit
Bandyopadhyay, IITA pathologist said.
The varieties are
preferred by many farmers because they smother weeds and reduce the
cost of weeding. Farmers that participated in the on-farm trials of the
varieties last year said they preferred them especially for their
golden
High in value
High in nutritive
value, soybean is fast gaining appeal in Africa, as it offers a cheap
source of protein. The crop is also emerging as an important feed,
food, as well as raw material for producing high-quality protein
products. For smallholder farmers it is an important cash crop and also
improves soil fertility because of its ability to fix high amounts of
atmospheric nitrogen.
“The development of
these varieties serves as a boost to African nations as, together with
partners; they strive to reduce hunger and poverty,” Godwin Aster,
IITA’s spokesman said.
Improved cassava varieties
The institute had
also, in early January, announced the release of four improved cassava
varieties that will boost production and keep the country in the lead
as the world’s largest producer of the root crop.
The varieties,
which are a product of about a decade-old conventional breeding
research, were bred by scientists working at the Ibadan branch of the
institute and Umudike-based National Root Crops Research Institute
(NRCRI) and the Colombian-based International Centre for Tropical
Agriculture (CIAT) respectively.
On-farm pre-release
trials involving local farmers in eight states of the country show that
the improved varieties out-performed local checks with an average yield
of about 31 tons per hectare as opposed to 26 t/ha recorded by the
local varieties. Farmers love the varieties for their excellent
culinary qualities, high yield, and resistance to pest and diseases.
“The release of the
varieties is good news for Nigerian farmers in particular and African
farmers in general,” Peter Kulakow, IITA cassava breeder said. “We
expect to see more cassava produced in Nigeria.” Over the last decade,
cassava has evolved in Nigeria from a mere food security crop to a cash
and industrial crop.
Annual production has increased from 32 million metric tons in 1998
to 45 million metric tons in 2008, thanks to crop improvement programs
by IITA and partners.
