Impact of Nutritional Perceptions of Traditional African Vegetables on Farm Household Production Decisions: A Case Study of Smallholders in Tanzania

Abstract

SUMMARYRecent years have seen increasing political interest and growing public health awareness and advocacy for diversifying diets into highly nutritious traditional vegetables, fruits and other nutrition-sensitive crops as a more viable approach to mitigate the growing scourge of malnutrition due to unhealthy and imbalanced diets. These foods contribute essential micronutrients, vitamins, antioxidants, and other health-related phytochemicals to staple-based diets and their consumption is crucial for the attainment of several Millennium Development Goals. Despite their nutritional benefits and the high farm gate values per unit of land, the production and marketing of traditional vegetables from Tanzania and other countries in sub-Saharan Africa are constrained by factors such as poor quality seeds, lack of appropriate market information and support systems, and lack of consumer awareness of their nutritional importance. This paper investigates the determinants and pathways for smallholder participation in traditional African vegetable production and identifies entry points for farmers to increase traditional vegetable production by linking nutritional awareness and promotion with potential high value markets. A primary survey of 181 traditional vegetable growers from five regions of Tanzania indicates that perceptions about the nutritional value of traditional African vegetables are a main driver of household production decisions in the sector. The results of this study provide evidence that farmers tend to grow more African traditional vegetables as compared to other crops based on their increased level of perception towards nutritional value of traditional vegetables along with other factors such as their market value, timely availability of quality certified seeds, willingness to invest in labour, required training for women and better access to credits. Farm size negatively affects growing traditional vegetables, implying that on a comparative basis, smallholders tend to grow more traditional vegetables than larger-farm operators. Thus, more attention should be given to reducing production and its associated transaction costs by ensuring timely access to quality certified seeds, ensuring optimal use of inputs and increasing labour productivity, particularly for smallholders.

How promoting consumption of traditional African vegetables affects household nutrition security in Tanzania

“…1). Afari-Sefa et al (2016) also reported similar results that amaranth is the most preferred traditional African vegetable cultivated followed by African eggplant, Ethiopian mustard and African nightshade. Traditional vegetables such as baobab leaves ( Adansonia digitate ), false sesame ( Ceratotheca sesamoides ), black jack ( Bidens pilosa ; ‘Vishonanguo’ in Swahili) and Crotalaria (‘Majerea’ in Swahili) were not consumed by the sampled households.…”

“…Spider plant ( Chlorophytum comosum ), Roselle ( Hibiscus sabdariffa ) and Hair lettuce ( Lactuca sativa ) are excellent sources of iron (Weinberger and Msuya, 2004) while African nightshade ( Solanum nigrum ), jute mallow ( Corchorus olitorius ) and moringa ( Moringa oleifera ) are substantive sources of provitamin A (Muchiri, 2004). Farmers are more likely to produce traditional vegetables compared with other crops when they are aware of their nutritional and health benefits (Afari-Sefa et al, 2016).…”

Transition pathways - analyzing transitions in food systems : A synthesis of seven case studies

“…Past and present aims to reach food security have put an emphasis on staple crops production and consumption rich in calories such as cereals, tubers and roots although medical properties and taste are still associated to traditional vegetables(Afari-Sefa et al, 2016).The horticultural sector is one of the fastest growing sub-sector in the Tanzanian agriculture, with a growth from 9 to 12% per year, as well as the major employer sub-sector in agriculture. The vegetable production is today dominated by small-scale commercial farmers (around 70%) who have a limited access to good quality inputs, lack of information and knowledge as well as access to national and international output markets (Match Maker associates, 2017).…”

“…The production of traditional vegetables is supposedly possible, requiring low investments while seeds and other inputs are already available on the market. In addition, farmers are somewhat able to invest and to take limited risks to improve their production quality and productivity of non-traditional vegetables, usually offering more interesting returns compared to traditional ones(Afari-Sefa et al, 2016). The production of vegetables has a comparative advantage over staple crops, knowing that their crop cycle is usually shorter than staple crops, making them less prone to pest and disease infestations.…”

“…Diversifying their cropping strategies has also environmental benefits, limiting the nutrient soil depletion and the creation of soilborne diseases. Eventually, vegetable crops prices on the market is higher than staple crops prices: the production of vegetable crops could have a double benefit through an increase in their income and the availability of nutritious food(Afari-Sefa et al, 2016). Therefore, the Dutch vegetable (seed) sector could play a role in increased vegetable production in Tanzania and thereby contribute to address issues such as poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition.SEVIA is a public-private partnership between the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, WageningenUniversity and Research and two vegetable breeding companies East-West Seed and Rijk Zwaan.…”