Plant breeding with farmers requires testing the assumptions of conventional plant breeding: lessons from the ICARDA barley program.

Abstract

AbstractIt is widely recognized that modern agriculture and plant breeding have been beneficial for better-off farmers in more optimal environments, but not so beneficial for the poorest farmers in marginal environments. Whether addressing optimal or marginal environments, plant breeding practice is often based on a number of assumptions which in turn are based on widespread conventional interpretations of theory regarding the biological or the social and institutional basis of plant breeding. This chapter documents tests of these assumptions using mostly data from the barley breeding programme at ICARDA, in collaboration with farmers and national breeding programmes in a number of countries in West Asia and in Africa. Results of these tests have led to greater understanding of the application of basic biological theory of plant breeding to marginal environments, about the potential of farmers to work with plant breeders and to contribute to professional plant breeding and to innovations in plant breeding methods and practice. We conclude that conventional assumptions about the application of basic plant breeding theory are often unfounded and that, therefore, small-scale, poor farmers in marginal environments could be served by a different way of doing plant breeding.