Integrating environmental, socio-economic, and biological data in a farmer-led potato trial for enhanced varietal assessment in Rwanda
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is crucial for food security in Rwanda, but its production growth has slowed. Improved potato varieties are urgently needed for Rwanda potato farmers. Crop breeding can effectively support smallholder farmers when it aligns with their environmental conditions and prefer...
| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Formato: | Journal Article |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
Cambridge University Press
2025
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/175541 |
| _version_ | 1855514621880827904 |
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| author | Kang, Geon De Sousa, Kaue Manners, Rhys Van Etten, Jacob Backes, Gunter Rukundo, Placide Nduwumuremyi, Athanase Ellison, James Tuyishime, Elyse Mendes, Thiago Griebel, Stefanie |
| author_browse | Backes, Gunter De Sousa, Kaue Ellison, James Griebel, Stefanie Kang, Geon Manners, Rhys Mendes, Thiago Nduwumuremyi, Athanase Rukundo, Placide Tuyishime, Elyse Van Etten, Jacob |
| author_facet | Kang, Geon De Sousa, Kaue Manners, Rhys Van Etten, Jacob Backes, Gunter Rukundo, Placide Nduwumuremyi, Athanase Ellison, James Tuyishime, Elyse Mendes, Thiago Griebel, Stefanie |
| author_sort | Kang, Geon |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is crucial for food security in Rwanda, but its production growth has slowed. Improved potato varieties are urgently needed for Rwanda potato farmers. Crop breeding can effectively support smallholder farmers when it aligns with their environmental conditions and preferences. Additionally, integrating citizen science into variety development can enhance variety adoption and suitability for smallholder farmers. We assessed the insights from a crop trial following a triadic comparison of technology options (tricot) approach, linking the results with environmental, socio-economic, and on-station trial data. Under a tricot trial, 460 farmers tested eleven potato varieties, randomly allocated in incomplete blocks of three, allowing each farmer to test and compare three varieties. Biological data, reflecting breeding and variety genotypic values, were generated from multi-environmental tests conducted during 2018–2019 to evaluate the adaptability of new varieties. This research revealed that Rwandan farmers preferred the pre-1990 varieties (Cruza and Kirundo), while Gisubizo and Kazeneza, post-2018 varieties, were also considered competitive. Farmers’ preferences were influenced by diverse environmental and socio-economic conditions, with taste being crucial for home consumption and yield prioritized for market sales. Additionally, seasonal temperatures influenced the yield performance ranking of potato varieties across regions, while economic considerations and gender dynamics shaped different patterns of variety preferences. Despite challenges in aligning on-station and on-farm data, our integrated approach provides actionable insights for breeding programmes to develop potato varieties that better align with farmers’ needs, as well as environmental and socio-economic conditions. This innovative method can enhance breeding efficiency, variety adoption, and potato productivity, contributing to food security and agricultural sustainability. |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | CGSpace175541 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| publisherStr | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1755412025-11-13T10:38:16Z Integrating environmental, socio-economic, and biological data in a farmer-led potato trial for enhanced varietal assessment in Rwanda Kang, Geon De Sousa, Kaue Manners, Rhys Van Etten, Jacob Backes, Gunter Rukundo, Placide Nduwumuremyi, Athanase Ellison, James Tuyishime, Elyse Mendes, Thiago Griebel, Stefanie food security data resilience participatory approaches breeding Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is crucial for food security in Rwanda, but its production growth has slowed. Improved potato varieties are urgently needed for Rwanda potato farmers. Crop breeding can effectively support smallholder farmers when it aligns with their environmental conditions and preferences. Additionally, integrating citizen science into variety development can enhance variety adoption and suitability for smallholder farmers. We assessed the insights from a crop trial following a triadic comparison of technology options (tricot) approach, linking the results with environmental, socio-economic, and on-station trial data. Under a tricot trial, 460 farmers tested eleven potato varieties, randomly allocated in incomplete blocks of three, allowing each farmer to test and compare three varieties. Biological data, reflecting breeding and variety genotypic values, were generated from multi-environmental tests conducted during 2018–2019 to evaluate the adaptability of new varieties. This research revealed that Rwandan farmers preferred the pre-1990 varieties (Cruza and Kirundo), while Gisubizo and Kazeneza, post-2018 varieties, were also considered competitive. Farmers’ preferences were influenced by diverse environmental and socio-economic conditions, with taste being crucial for home consumption and yield prioritized for market sales. Additionally, seasonal temperatures influenced the yield performance ranking of potato varieties across regions, while economic considerations and gender dynamics shaped different patterns of variety preferences. Despite challenges in aligning on-station and on-farm data, our integrated approach provides actionable insights for breeding programmes to develop potato varieties that better align with farmers’ needs, as well as environmental and socio-economic conditions. This innovative method can enhance breeding efficiency, variety adoption, and potato productivity, contributing to food security and agricultural sustainability. 2025 2025-07-08T09:04:09Z 2025-07-08T09:04:09Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/175541 en Open Access application/pdf Cambridge University Press Kang, G.; De Sousa, K.; Manners, R.; Van Etten, J.; Backes, G.; Rukundo, P.; Nduwumuremyi, A.; Ellison, J.; Tuyishime, E.; Mendes, T.; Griebel, .S. (2025) Integrating environmental, socio-economic, and biological data in a farmer-led potato trial for enhanced varietal assessment in Rwanda. Experimental Agriculture 61(e18): 26 p. ISSN: 0014-4797 |
| spellingShingle | food security data resilience participatory approaches breeding Kang, Geon De Sousa, Kaue Manners, Rhys Van Etten, Jacob Backes, Gunter Rukundo, Placide Nduwumuremyi, Athanase Ellison, James Tuyishime, Elyse Mendes, Thiago Griebel, Stefanie Integrating environmental, socio-economic, and biological data in a farmer-led potato trial for enhanced varietal assessment in Rwanda |
| title | Integrating environmental, socio-economic, and biological data in a farmer-led potato trial for enhanced varietal assessment in Rwanda |
| title_full | Integrating environmental, socio-economic, and biological data in a farmer-led potato trial for enhanced varietal assessment in Rwanda |
| title_fullStr | Integrating environmental, socio-economic, and biological data in a farmer-led potato trial for enhanced varietal assessment in Rwanda |
| title_full_unstemmed | Integrating environmental, socio-economic, and biological data in a farmer-led potato trial for enhanced varietal assessment in Rwanda |
| title_short | Integrating environmental, socio-economic, and biological data in a farmer-led potato trial for enhanced varietal assessment in Rwanda |
| title_sort | integrating environmental socio economic and biological data in a farmer led potato trial for enhanced varietal assessment in rwanda |
| topic | food security data resilience participatory approaches breeding |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/175541 |
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