towards eco‐efficient agriculture
Cassava is a high‐energy output and low‐water
input crop. CIAT cassava research benefits
smallholders and industry. Thus, we work with
a range of public and private sector
organizations.
Social equity
Benefits
Grows in low fertility soils and withstands
drought.
Smallholders often sell to industrial markets.
New varieties with better yields and root quality
increase farm profits.
Challenges
Increasing smallholder farmer earnings from
better market linkages.
Economic
Benefits
In Asia, farmers plant CIAT‐related varieties
on 50% of cassava fields.
Howeler, 2009
CIAT varieties and improved agronomy
increased yields 47% since 1984.
Economic value of increased production
= $900 million per year.
Challenges
Superior varieties for high‐value industrial uses
(specialized: flour, starch, bio‐ethanol).
Pests and diseases, common in Africa and Latin
America, are emerging in Asia.
Environmental
Benefits
Cassava can be a biofuel.
Contour hedgerows become natural terraces.
Challenges
Soil fertility and conservation investments can
be considered too expensive.
Market & institutional incentives to increase the
viability of better land management.
Thailand