FeedSeed – a PPP innovation platform approach to scaling up forage seed systems

Barry I. Shapiro, Alexandra Jorge, and Jean Hanson

International Livestock Research Institute

FeedSeed PPP Project Vision and Purpose

Project Goal:

A sustainable forage seed system with a public forage seed business

incubator, private and public seed entreprises, leading to large #s of

farmers growing forage seed and feeding livestock better to adapt to

climate change

Project Purpose:

• Provide private and public entrepreneurs with the technical and

business skills needed to develop sustainable seed businesses

• Support development of forage seed businesses which will sell

forage seed to poor livestock keepers

• Train farmers to produce more and better forage seed and forages

• Train farmers in forage production and feeding to raise livestock

productivity and incomes, and adapt better to climate change

• Compare a range of seed system models partners can learn from

and scale up the most promising models

Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security CGIAR

Consortium Research Program (CCAFS CRP)

Overall Vision:

• Poor livestock keepers using improved forage crop seeds in

project pilot areas mitigating feed constraints for systems

intensification and leading to adaptation to climate change.

FeedSeed project activities fit with the CCAFS theme on 'Long

Term Adaptation':

Better and more forage seed and thus livestock feed leads to:

• Higher levels of productivity per animal , sustainable

production intensification and fewer animals

• Lower greenhouse gas emissions per unit of meat or milk

• Less land degradation through over grazing

• Less carbon loss in soils

From Innovation to Use and Scaling Up

FeedSeed “innovation to use” Public-Private Partner platform

approach:

• Facilitating PPP activities to impact thousands of farmers

• Bringing together research, training institute, entrepreneurs,

and farmers to work together to create and scale up a

sustainable seed system

• Piloting of various PPP approaches to scaling up forage seed

systems models – public and private seed company, coops,

and processor-farmer model

• Partner model – rather than cash, partners with shared

objectives do targeted activities to meet project objectives

• Leveraging BMZ/GIZ budget of Euros 300K and at least 300K

from partners – partner self-funding of activities and grant

funds for seed businesses

Project Outputs and Outcomes

Outputs:

• A well-functioning, sustainable forage seed business incubator

• Trained seed business entrepreneurs

• Established successful and sustainable seed enterprises

• Large numbers of poor livestock keepers trained in forage seed

and forage production and improved feeding

Outcomes: Large number of farmers…

• Growing and using better seed

• Feeding livestock better to raise livestock productivity and

incomes

• Better adapted, more sustainable feeding systems

• Better adapted, more sustainable use of land resources

Examples of Implementing Public and Private Partners

(so far)

ILRI (lead CGIAR partner with forage diversity gene bank)

Public and private sector agribusiness partners (examples):

• Ethiopian Meat and Dairy Industry Development Institute (EMDIDI)

(public training institute to house incubator)

• Eden Field Agri-seed, PLC (private sector seed company and partner as

learning site and demonstrations)

• Precise Consult (help with Business Development Services – BDS)

Research and development partners:

• LIVES (CIDA funded Livestock and Irrigation Value-Chains for Ethiopian

Smallholders)

• EDGET (Dutch Embassy funded SNV dairy project)

• Livestock Market Development (USAID and CNFA) – matching grants

Farmer partners:

• Farmer producer groups

• Framer Coops (Dairy and Feedlots)

• Irrigated seed production company investors

FEEDSEED Scaling up Model: PPP Value Chain Approach

Seed Sourcing from

Farmers for Forage

Seed Multiplication

NGO Grants

(or Bank Loans)

NGOs train

and organize

farmers

Incubator

trains and

mentors

entrepreneurs

Private &

Public Seed

companies,

farmer coops

Farmer Seed

Buyers

Farmers buy seed

and grow forage

NGOs Forage Seed

Companies

Seed sellers

Public Business Incubator

(Training & Mentoring)

Research Roles: Starter Seed, Scaling

up Facilitation, Learning

Farmer Seed

Suppliers Livestock

More productive and

fewer livestock

Start up phase: (by Jan 2014)

• Doing scoping study to assess existing and previous seed

system efforts, especially for sustainability

• Assessing existing institutional arrangements to promote

and provide seed supply and agribusiness development

services - clustering

• Identify private and public sector actors to partner provide

training and mentoring, seed business grants and seed

• Completing first year project work plan with partners

• Selecting learning sites to link into on-going seed systems

development partner activities (SNV EDGET, Humidtropics

CRP - Africa Rising and LIVES)

• Holding 3rd inception workshop to establish the project

participants

PPP Planning Meeting – the partner team

PPP Meeting Planning

PPP Planning Meeting Working Groups

PPP Planning Meeting

FeedSeed – a PPP innovation platform approach to

scaling up forage seed systems

Project Objectives

FeedSeed Project Objectives:

• Establish a well-functioning, sustainable forage seed

business incubator

• Train and pilot farmer and other individual entrepreneur,

coops, and public sector seed enterprise models

• Stimulate more and better quality forage seed production

thru PPPs that connect NGOs and investors with farmers to

increase seed production and marketed availability of seed

• Help farmers better adapt to climate change by intensifying

improved feed use and livestock production

Main project activities (Jan 2014-Sept 2015)

• Develop EMDIDI’s capacity to train and mentor seed entrepreneurs

through establishment of a seed business incubator

• EMDIDI to provide technical and business training and mentoring to

public and private sector entrepreneurs to form forage seed

agribusinesses

• Incubate private and public sector companies, coops, and farmer groups

• Provide training to farmers and farmer groups to produce quality seed

and link them to seed companies or create farmer seed companies

• Provide training to farmers through development partners, incl. NGOs,

public extension, private seed companies, and coops to grow forage seed

and forage, and feed their animals better

• Promote profitable forage seed systems by influencing policy makers,

NGOs, extension and the private sector

• Assess and compare a range of seed systems so partners can scale up the

most promising models

Project Goal and Purpose

Goal:

• Poor livestock keepers using improved forage crop seeds in project

pilot areas mitigating feed constraints for systems intensification

and leading to adaptation to climate change.

Purpose:

• Provide private and public entrepreneurs with the technical and

business skills needed to develop sustainable seed businesses

• Use PPP model - support development of forage seed businesses

to source from and sell forage seed to poor livestock keepers

• Train farmers to produce more and better forage seed and forages

• Train farmers in better forage production and feeding to raise

livestock productivity and incomes, and adapt better to climate

change