Understanding the relations between farmers’ seed demand and research methods: The challenge to do better

TLDR

Despite advances in improved seed development, smallholder farmers’ adoption remains variable, driven by highly context‑specific factors such as social position, crop role, market linkage, and agro‑ecological conditions, a pattern supported by the theory of the social life of methods. The study proposes that current research methods shape seed availability and advocates for a holistic, integrated approach to seed‑system research that captures farmers’ variable real‑life contexts and supplies actionable metrics for seed actors and policymakers. The findings indicate that existing research methods fail to reflect farmers’ real‑life decisions and preferences, offering fragmented snapshots that bias understanding of seed demand.

Abstract

Although the development of improved seeds has witnessed significant advances over the last decades, the adoption of improved seeds and varieties by smallholder farmers is variable. This suggests that research methods for studying farmers’ seed demand are not yielding information that reflects the real-life decisions and behaviours of farmers in the choice and acquisition of their seeds. We suggest that research methods for analysing farmers’ seed demand shape seed availability. This is supported by the theory of social life of methods. We argue that access to and attractiveness of seed are highly context-specific for a farmer, for example, influenced by his/her social position, the role of the crop or variety in the farming system, the linkage to the market, agro-ecological conditions, and that context is highly variable. We also argue that many of our research methods are weak on capturing real-life context and provide fragmented snapshot-nature understanding and biases of farmers preferences and needs for seeds. We call for more integrated understanding of seed systems as a whole and a more holistic methodological research approach that better captures the variable real-life context of farmers while providing the metrics that are needed by seed actors and policymakers to enable informed decisions.