malawi desk review groundnut value chain

National Smallholder Farmers’ Association of Malawi

GROUNDNUT VALUE CHAIN IN MALAWI:

Challenges and research opportunities

24th April, 2013


Presentation Outline• Brief Introduction

• Groundnut Value Chain Actors

• Opportunities and Challenges

• Current research efforts

• Recommendations


Introduction• Key legume crop grown by SHF

• Multiple Uses– Nitrogen fixing– Nutritional– Vegetable oil– Shells-briquettes


Major areas currently producing


Groundnut Value Chain • Broad activities: Production, Processing and

Marketing. • Supporting and advisory activities: • - Technical, • - Financial, • - Business,• - Regulatory, • - Input and Export services• - Policies and legislations.


Production Challenges• Erratic rainfall and dry spells

• Limited/poor access to quality seed

• Poor crop husbandry practices

• Pest and diseases


Production Challenges

A farmer planting 10kg of certified seed should yield at least 90kg of high quality grain (and quite possibly more), whereas the same farmer planting 10kg of recycled grain might yield as little as 18kg of grain, of poorer quality.


Post Harvesting Challenges

• Harvesting methodologies

• Hand shelling

• Storage facilities - increases chances of post harvest losses from pest and disease

• Post harvest handling farmer education


Marketing Constraints• Poor marketing arrangements

• Poor road and market infrastructure

• Poor quality- low incomes

• Undefined/ non-adherence to standards

• Regulatory framework

• Poor linkages amongst VC actors


Processing constraints• Little value addition amongst the processors• High maintenance cost for groundnut processing

equipment • Groundnut produces less oil compared to other

legumes such as soya beans and therefore is not attractive for processors to produce oil.

• High levels of aflatoxin affects the market for the groundnut seed cake which is used as feed for livestock


Financing constraints• Limited credit financing

• High interest rates

• SHF limited access to financial services

• Weather risk insurance issues- uncertainty of production


Policy related constraints• Uncoordinated policies

• Price controls

• FISP programmes- market distortion

• Certification challenges

• Poor agro-dealer network in rural areas

• Poor private sector participation


Opportunities• Political will: ASWAp; Crop Diversification

Strategy; Export Diversification Strategy

• Seed systems development – research-FO linkages

• Legumes Platform

• Challenges in tobacco

• Domestic, Regional market

• Agro-processing


Some of the Current research efforts

Research topic Researchers

Mapping the Path of Peanut in Malawi Miriam Rich, Office of International Research, Education and Education of Blasburg, Virginia

Technical efficiency in groundnut production in Malawi: An application of a frontier production function

A. K Edriss and F. Simtowe, Bunda, College of Agriculture, Malawi

Assessing Adoption Potential of New Groundnut Varieties in Malawi

H A Freeman, P J A van der Merwe, P Subrahmanyam, A J Chiyembekeza, and W Kaguongo, ICRISAT, Malawi

Economic Analysis of Groundnut Production in Kasungu District, Malawi: A production Economics Approach

Vincent Kapopo and Maganga Assa, University of Malawi

Assessing the Competitiveness of Groundnut Production in Malawi: A Policy Analysis Matrix Approach

Abiba Longwe-Ngwira , Franklin Simtowe, and Moses Siambi, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Kenya; and The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Malawi


Possible Research Questions• What is the economic value of Value addition

and reduction of post harvest losses in groundnuts

• To what extent can collaborative partnerships help to control aflatoxin levels in the Malawi groundnuts

• What are the optimal input levels for groundnuts for maximizing gross margins


Possible Research Questions• Mobilization of farmers operating individually into

groups for collective action• Developing regulatory mechanisms for small scale

buyers, especially in light of the fact that these buyers are known to be exploitative.

• Supporting the efforts of smallholder farmers to enable them benefit from their linkages with various market scenarios and players in the value chains

• Assess the effect/impact of the current agricultural policy environment in Malawi on smallholder farmers production, processing and marketing of groundnuts


Possible Research Questions• What could be done to improve access to the knowledge on

approaches and options for expanding groundnuts marketing for smallholder farmers in the country – lessons from the region

• Logistical challenges in the groundnut value chain in Malawi• Identifying possible areas of intervention or investment in the

value chain that would give the industry the biggest boost • Cost benefit analysis of smallholder groundnut farming in

Malawi


Possible Research Questions• What are the impacts of the institutional reforms and

the participation of smallholder farmers in the groundnuts value chain

• How growth in production can be increased through increasing yields and disease and pest control

• How to improve groundnuts marketing and technical information flow to smallholder farmers

• To conduct adaptive research on technologies and adoption potential of smallholder farmers for improved groundnuts value addition


Thank you