Status of Grasspea (Lathyrus sativus) - Research and Development by A Sarker, ICARDA, South Asia - Regional Expert Consultation on Underutilized Crops for Food and Nutritional Security in Asia and the Pacific November 13-15, 2017, Bangkok

1. Status of Grasspea (Lathyrus sativus L)
Research and Development
Ashutosh Sarker & the Team
ICARDA- South Asia & China Program
13 November
Bangkok
(A Nutritious but under-researched crop)

2. Sustainable Agriculture Ecological Security
Nutritional Security
30% protein
Why Grasspea…
N2

3. Grasspea----A miraculous pulse Crop ….
• A Hardy crop, needs less care
• Easy to cultivate with low-cost
• Less biotic and abiotic stresses
• Can be grown in problematic soil
• Does not replace any other crops
• Multiple uses (various foods, feed)
• A crop for climate change adaptation
• Adapted to no/zero tillage cultivation
• Has Yield potential up to 4.1 tons
seeds, and 18 tons fodder
But it has an ambivalent reputation.
Its plant parts contain ODAP, a neurotoxin
that causes neurolathyrism when
consumed for prolonged period

4. 3
Nutritional Facts
Constituents Content/100 gm seeds
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Protein (g) 28
Fat (g) 1.0
Total Carbohydrate (g) 61
Calcium (mg) 90
Phosphorus (mg) 317
Iron (mg) 6.3
Potassium (mg) 644
Magnesium (mg) 92
Thiamin (mg) 0.39
Riboflavin (mg) 0.17
Niacin (mg) 2.9
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

5. Various food and feed products

6. Production Scenarios
• Major grasspea producing
countries: India, Bangladesh,
Ethiopia, Nepal, China
• It is grown in about 1.5 million ha
globally and producing 1.2 m
tons
• Its area has gone down in last
decades due to ban on its sale in
India and Nepal.
• Mostly landraces are being
cultivated, although few
improved varieties have been
released.
• Grown as relay crop in rice field,
mixed crop, inter-cropping

7. 6
Multiple uses of Grasspea
S. No. Product Usage
1. Leafy vegetable Young leaves (vegetative parts) are plucked and sold as green leafy
vegetable. Also, it is rolled and dried and kept for off-season use
as vegetable
2. Green pods Green pods are eaten directly as snacks directly, and whole pods
are cooked and eaten as vegetable
3. Dried grains:
Dal Dried grains are split to make dal and consumed with rice
Flour Flour is used to prepare pancake like preparation
Feed Ground split grain or flour are used as feed for lactating animals or
for bullock at time of heavy field use
4. Fodder It is also used as forage from the young vegetative stage to
maturity

8. 7
Genetic Resources
• Origin and Primary diversity of the genus Lathyrus is in the
Fertile Crescent of Near East. ICARDA genebank conserves
about 4,000 accessions of cultivated and wild species
• The Genus Lathyrus includes 160 species, of whih 16 species
are cultivated for food, feed, fodder and ornamental
purposes
• Of them, L. sativus, L. cicera, L. ochrus and L. annuus are
used as pulse, but L. sativus is cultivated widely
• Besides, India, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Nepal, Australia
conserves considerable number of germplasm

9. Genetic Resources at ICARDA
CollectMission: Conserve Characterize Evaluate Document Distribute
Crop Accessions
Barley 24,975
Wheat 34,227
Wild cereals 7,671
Forage legumes 28,469
Food legumes 35,313
Wild food legumes 957
Rangeland grasses 5,744
Make-up of the ICARDA collection
155,000 accessions : Collected from Center of Origin
and Primary Diversity

10. 9
 To develop free/low-ODAP short duration grasspea varieties with
high biomass suitable for cultivation as relay crop and sole/mixed
crop
 Development of high biomass grasspea cultivars for fodder
Genetic Enhancement Research

11. 10
Key Research Strategies
 Increasing productivity: Bridging yield gap
– Genetic Enhancement and promotion of quality seeds (VSH)
– Improved production practices
 Production through horizontal expansion
– Utilization of fallow lands
– Rotation with cereals
– Promotion of inter-cropping
 Lower cost cultivation: Mechanization, weed control,
 Reduce milling loss: seed traits
 Enhancing nutritional quality
 Sharing genetic materials with global partners

12. 11
Major Research Programs
• Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI)
• Indian Institute of Pulses Research (IIPR)
• Indira Gandhi Ag. University (IGAU)
• Bidhan Chandra Ag. University (BCAU)
• Ethiopian Institute of Ag. Research (EIAR)
• ICARDA

13. 12
Varieties Developed
• Australia: Ceora, Chaulus
• Bangladesh: Barikhesari-1, Barikhesari-2, Barikhesari-3,
Barikhesari-4
• Bulgaria: Strandja
• Canada: LS 8246
• Chile: Luanco, INIA
• Ethiopia: Waise
• Kazakhistan: Ali-Bar
• India: Ratan. Nirmal, Prateek, Mahatiwara
• Nepal: CLIMA Pink, 19A, 20B
• Poland: derek, Krab
• Turkey: Gurbuz-1
ODAP range of Landraces: 0.5-2.6%
Improved varieties:<0.1%

14. 13
Intervention in Rice-fallows: Grasspea in
an excellent option

15. Application of Geoinformatics
From Landscape to farm scale

16. Rice-fallow Mapping in West Bengal

17. Up-Scaling of Technologies
• Bangladesh: OFID, IFAD
- Barikhesari-2, Barikhersari-3
• India: NFSM, OCPF, IFAD
– Ratan, Prateek, Mahatiwara
(six states)
• Nepal: OFID, IFAD
– Clima pink – 2 districts
– -------------------------------------------

18. 17
Objectives
 Replacement of high-toxin and low-yielding local cultivars with low-toxin
and high-yielding improved varieties
 As a second crop in rice-fallows, thus improving cropping intensity and
improving soil health
 Introduction of high- biomass grasspea varieties for animal feed
 Educate consumers on safe consumption
 Back up research for further identification of grasspea varieties

19. 18
State District Collaborator Target
area
(ha)
Area
covered
(ha)
Village No. of
farmers
Assam Nagaon AAU, Nagaon 280 274.7 72 1331
Bihar Patna ICARDA , New Delhi 450 360 36 595
Chhattisgarh Bilaspur State Department of
Agri., Bilaspur
450 200 8 136
Durg IGKVV, Raipur 450 477.6 70 285
Uttar
Pradesh
Jhansi IGFRI, Jhansi 90 91.5 36 378
West Bengal Cooch Behar UBKVV, Cooch Behar 300 275 49 948
Bankura, 24 South
Parganas and Nadia
BCKV, Kalyani 450 461 133 2066
Murshidabad PORS, Berhampore 450 400 55 1663
Total 2920 2539.8 146 7402
An example: Details of Area , Villages and Farmers
covered in India

20. 19
Monitoring at various states in India

21. 20
Island Agriculture in Indian Ocean : Rangabelia, Sundarban

22. Grasspea in rice fallow in islands of West Bengal

23. 22
12.94
9.87
12.84
9.32
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
Rattan + IT Local + IT Nirmal + IT Local + IT
Rattan + IT
Local + IT
Nirmal + IT
Local + IT
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
Rattan +
IT
Rattan +
LT
Nirmal +
IT
Nirmal +
LT
13.57
9.48
12.26
10.85
Rattan + IT
Rattan + LT
Nirmal + IT
Nirmal + LT
Impact of HYV
Impact of
Technological
Intervention
31.10 % 37.76 %
43.14 % 12.99 %
GrasspeaYield(qha-1)
GrasspeaYield(qha-1)

24. CA-Relay cropping i
Variety: Nirmal and Ratan

25. 24
Rice
Jul-Oct
Grasspea
Nov - Feb
Sesame/Mung
bean
Mar - May
Fallow after rice
Nov - June
Example: Birbhum district, West Bengal

26. Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun
Aman rice Boro rice
New pattern: Aman rice -Pulses- Boro rice
25
Pea, Grasspea,
Super-early lentil

27. 26
Firoza Begum: A Successful Women Farmer grew improved
grasspea variety Barimasur-3. Earned Taka 45,000 (seed +
straw) from I acre of land

28. Women farmers in Madhya Pradesh , India are interested to grow
grasspea
27

29. 28
Glimpses of capacity development

30. 29

31. Thank you