New bean varieties developed in Africa through ACIAR-funded research will significantly reduce cooking times and promote greater uptake of the nutritious crop among rural communities.
With ACIAR support, The University of Western Australia (UWA) and The Pan-Africa Bean Research Alliance (PABRA) have reduced cooking time by 24% while preserving the crop's iron and zinc nutritional qualities.
The findings were reported during a recent review of the A$2.48 million initiative aimed at reducing the large amounts of water, fuel and time demanded by common beans. The faster-cooking varieties will make beans more attractive to farming communities and will promote greater consumption of the nutritious food.
The research team will now shift to identifying areas and partnerships needed for further technology development and distribution to farmers to combat malnutrition in Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.
Working with UWA, African bean breeders will harness cutting-edge plant breeding techniques and aim to release improved varieties to smallholder farmers across the 6 countries by 2030. As well as integrating new breeding methods, the strategic alliance has fostered a sense of shared achievement and unity among farmers, researchers, universities, policymakers and the private sector.
'The project has shown African plant breeders that using a new approach developed at UWA, they can tackle complex challenges such as breeding beans that cook faster while maintaining iron and zinc content,' said Prof Wallace Cowling, an Associate Director at The UWA Institute of Agriculture.
'They also focus on improving grain yield, seed size and disease resistance, particularly in market-preferred climbing and bush bean varieties. Despite the difficulty, these goals are achievable with the new breeding methods.'
Capacity-building efforts have also been instrumental, with young plant breeders and researchers receiving training in advanced methodologies. These efforts are crucial for driving technical improvements, reducing errors and enhancing breeding accuracy.
'ACIAR is very satisfied with this project's achievements and impact,' said Dr Eric Huttner, ACIAR Research Program Manager, Crops.
'We have empowered African plant breeders to apply modern breeding methods through close collaboration and a commitment to innovation. The improved varieties resulting from this work will advance agricultural development and improve farmers' lives and the nutrition of bean consumers across the 6 countries.'
'Armed with the new breeding approach, the bean scientists have enhanced their capacity to tackle complex traits that depict a step change in performance compared to the current varieties and respond to the demands of the evolving markets and climate change and variability,' said Dr Clare Mukankusi, the Global Program Lead for the Alliance of Bioversity International.
'Being embedded within PABRA, a program of the Alliance of Bioversity International and the CGIAR, the methodology will be popularised with other legume crops to provide similar achievements to ensure sustained food, nutrition, and income security.'
As awareness and adoption increase, these innovative bean varieties have the potential to revolutionise diets, improve livelihoods, create jobs and safeguard the health of future generations.
In the project's next steps, the bean breeding programs from the 6 eastern African partner countries will select improved varieties adapted to their farmer's needs and release the varieties in their countries. At the same time, the research team will continue to select improved bean populations to supply even better material to the breeders. It will continue to build African breeder's capacities to apply the modern breeding methods the project has been using.
Learn more about this project via the ACIAR website.
