| Sumario: | This brief examines how production and consumption traits, seed access, and gender dynamics are associated with smallholder farmers’ adoption and disadoption of newly bred crop varieties across five countries in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Using qualitative data from focus group discussions and interviews conducted under the CGIAR Breeding for Tomorrow Science Program, we compare participants’ experiences with two complementary interventions: seed trial packs (STPs), which allow farmers to plant new varieties, and consumption-focused activities, such as cooking demonstrations and food product evaluation. The results show that, although consumption traits, such as taste, texture, and color, shape household preferences, production traits, particularly yield and pest resistance, remain the dominant drivers of adoption, especially among men, who often control planting decisions. Qualitative findings indicate that STPs could play an important role in varietal turnover by easing initial seed access and supporting seed recycling and diffusion through local networks, compared with consumer-focused activities. The findings further highlight that feedback on certain consumption traits comes mainly from women, given their central role in processing and preparation, yet their limited decision-making power reduces the influence of these preferences on variety uptake. This underscores the importance of coupling seed access strategies with gender-inclusive and gender-transformative, as well as market-aware, approaches to accelerate and sustain varietal access and thus turnover in smallholder systems.
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