Farmer-Led Seed Multiplication

Definition

Farmer-led seed multiplication is a process whereby farmers use certified seeds on their farm to produce clean seeds that can be used by other farmers as alternatives to the often unaffordable and unavailable certified seeds. The production of clean seeds by farmers is done following guidelines from farmer training. Clean seeds can be reused a limited number of times (2-3 seasons) according to good agricultural practices (GAP), making them more affordable than one-time use certified seeds while maintaining their quality.

Lead Actors

Input Provider

Target Demographics

Farmer Organisations; Farmers; Smallholder Farmers; Women; Young Farmers

Objectives addressed

Farmer related

Improve yields: Farmer-led seed multiplication can create affordable access to high quality seeds that are often designed to produce higher yields.

Increase farmer income: For farmers engaging in seed multiplication, the sale of certified or clean seeds serves as an additional revenue stream. For farmers purchasing certified or clean seeds locally, the improved access to leads to higher yields and improved resistance to pests and diseases, both of which contribute to an increase in farmer incomes.

Increase climate resilience: Clean seeds are more likely to be resistant to drought, pests, and diseases, as compared to seeds purchased through informal markets.

Address gender inequalities: When targeting women as clean seeds multipliers, women benefit from increased income opportunities. Additionally, the external knowledge women gain through training on seed multiplication can strengthen their credibility and boost their influence on agricultural decisions, positively contributing to women’s increased decision-making power at the household level.

Strengthen income stability: Because they are engaging in income diversification, farmers producing certified or clean seeds can be more resilient to market shocks. Additionally, the improved seed quality can increase crop yields and quality.

Business related

Address sourcing needs: Seed multipliers can help fill gaps in the market when availability of quality seeds is poor or cost of certified seeds is high. This increases the overall quality and quantity of available produce and contributes to more reliable procurement for off-takers.

Reduce cost-to-serve: Farmer-led seed multiplication can reduce the cost of input provision by reducing the costs of the seeds themselves. Additionally, in cases where there are local shortages of a specific variety, farmer-led seed multiplication can create a local supply, thereby reducing the cost of logistics for getting that variety to the farmer.

Contexts Best Suited to

Supportive legal structures: in some countries, clean seeds are in a legal grey area as farmers are reproducing and selling another company's seeds.
Crops with expensive or insufficient certified seed access: to ensure there is value add.
Regions with ample land availability and block farms: as a place to efficiently produce seeds.

Key Risks

May not directly translate to revenue: no guaranteed market access.
Loss of local seed varieties: focusing on commercial seed varieties can lead to loss of local varieties.

Environmental Impact

Ambiguous: While overall, it does take more agrochemicals to produce seeds on many small plots than it does at scale, this effect can sometimes be mitigated through the use of block farms. Additionally, this innovation gives farmers access to seeds that are more resilient and less prone to pests and diseases than the seeds that those farmers may have purchased from informal markets. Furthermore, these seeds have the potential to provide higher yields, which could reduce overall land use. These effects may lead to reduced agrochemical use in the future.

Ambition level
Medium

Time

Can require less time to produce than the crop itself.
For some crops, 2 rounds of seed production are feasible in a single growing season. However, training and oversight of seed multipliers is required.

Investment Need

Certified seeds and other inputs necessary for production (varies by crop).
Farmers would need access to an available plot of land, which sometimes companies need to facilitate.