AgBio4SSA

Why are AgroBiologicals important?

Conventional agroproducts, such as chemical pesticides and fertilizers, have been widely used in agriculture to improve crop yields or protect plants from different stress conditions. While they are easy to apply and effective, the use, and overuse, of chemical products can possess risks and threats to human health, biodiversity and the environment.

Various global policies urge reducing the use and risks of chemical pesticides, especially those with hazardous substances. For instance, major environmental frameworks, like the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework from the Convention on Biological Diversity, Rotterdam Convention and Stockholm Convention, recommend measures to protect human health and the environment from the impacts of harmful pesticides.

As a promising alternative to reduce the need and use of chemical pesticides, the use of agricultural biologicals has recently gained more attention. Agricultural biologicals are nature-based solutions used in farming systems as

• biostimulants, 
• biocontrol agents, 
• resistance inducers, 
• biofertilizers.

They can be living organisms or derive from naturally occurring organisms, plant extracts or other organic matter. Their implementation should be safe and support a sustainable transformation of agriculture. They boost crop yield, improve plant health and manage crop pests and pathogens. If correctly introduced, they can increase agricultural resilience by providing a more sustainable and safe agriculture.

In SSA, the use of agricultural biologicals is reduced due to issues with effectiveness, availability, and affordability. As a result, smallholder farmers have limited exposure to biologicals. When used correctly, biologicals are eco-friendly, target specific, and have the potential to create new business opportunities towards circular bioeconomy. Thus, they can both increase food security and decrease poverty. Their introduction in SSA would potentially contribute to reduce the use and risks from chemicals pesticides, especially hazardous chemical pesticides and align with global efforts on reduction of agrochemicals. Importantly, for smallholder farmers in SSA, agribiologicals need to be introduced in a manner that does not threaten their food security and livelihoods.

Project objectives

1. Engage
Engage smallholder farmers and stakeholders through living labs to facilitate the introduction, learn and test of agricultural biologicals in SSA.

2. Showcase
Establish a showcase in the living labs by addressing the urgent current issue of the insect pest Tuta absoluta in tomato by demonstrating two types of biologicals: plant resistance inducers and biopesticides.

3. Knowledge transfer
Knowledge transfer by sharing the results and insights from the prior AgriFoSe2023 project with stakeholders in Tanzania.

4. Surveys and interviews
Conducting a Knowledge, Attitude and Practice analysis in Tanzania by using surveys and interviews to multiple stakeholders such as smallholder farmers, agro-dealers and regulators on agricultural biologicals.

5. Best practices
Develop best practices and protocols for testing and adapting biologicals based on co-creation processes during the living labs together with policy recommendations suited for smallholder farming in SSA.