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African indigenous vegetables (AIVs) have been part of the food systems in sub-Saharan Africa for generations. The region is a natural habitat for more than 45,000 species of plants, of which about 1,000 can be eaten as green leafy or fruit vegetables that happen to be the mainstay of traditional diets. During the colonial era, adventurers and slav...
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... the colonial era, adventurers and slavers brought many exotic crops and vegetables to Africa. Farmers integrated these crops into their age-old livelihood strategies, while traditional vegetables lost their prominence and became known as ‘poor people’s’ crops. African indigenous vegetables (AIVs) are all categories of plants whose leaves, fruits or roots are acceptable and used as vegetables by rural and urban communities through custom, habit and tradition ( Figure 1). The sub-Saharan Africa region is a natural habitat for more than 45,000 species of these plants, of which about 1,000 can be eaten as green leafy or fruit vegetables that happen to be the mainstay of traditional diets (MacCalla, 1994). They still play a highly significant role in the food security of the underprivileged in both urban and rural settings (Schippers, 1997). A survey carried out at the turn of the millennium on consumers of AIVs at different income levels to determine their knowledge and use indicated that high-income earners associated these vegetables with poverty (AVRDC, 2006). The middle- and average-income earners, especially in urban centres, consumed little in fear of risking their health. It was believed that most of the vegetables were grown with untreated sewage along open sewer lines or near sewage treatment plants. In this class, most of the consumers were optimistic that if AIVs were grown and handled in a cleaner way and sold in formal markets, they would definitely consume them. The low-income earners, on the other hand, consumed these vegetables regularly. In some instances, AIVs were considered to belong to certain ethnic groups or regions. Most young consumers in urban centres did not even know what they were. Some of them knew, but had a negative atti- tude towards their consumption because they considered them as not trendy and unfashionable when compared to fast foods like French fries. Quite a number of consumers hardly consumed AIVs due to lack of reliable information regarding their nutritive value and limited availability. Research shows that AIVs contain essential vitamins, particularly A, B and C, and minerals (such as calcium and iron) as well as supplementary protein and calories. The high protein and vitamin contents in these vegetables can eliminate deficiencies among children, pregnant women and the poor (Habwe et al ., 2008). People suf- fering from diseases such as high blood pressure, HIV/AIDS, cancer and hypertension have been advised to consume AIVs because of their medicinal value (Lyatuu et al ., 2009). Since 1985, FARM-Africa has continued trans- forming the lives of over two million people in East and South Africa regions. The organization visualizes a prosperous rural Africa with reduced poverty among marginal African farmers and herders. FARM- Africa’s priorities are in pastoral development, community forest management, smallholder agriculture and livestock development, among other issues such as HIV/AIDS, mitigation of resource-based conflict and gender mainstreaming. Through the Maendeleo Agricultural Technology Fund (MATF, 2006), FARM-Africa has been improving the agricultural gross domestic product and livelihoods of rural and peri-urban communities in East Africa by incubating innovations, linking small-scale farmers to profitable markets, enabling them to access new technologies and skills, generat- ing models of good practice and scaling out successful impact. In 2004 the World Vegetable Center (AVRDC), an agricultural research centre dedicated to vegetable research and development, received financial support from FARM-Africa to increase the productivity, utilization and marketing of AIVs, stream- line the efficiency of the AIV sub-sector value chain, and improve the health, nutrition and income of vulnerable groups in Kenya and Tanzania. The project was implemented in four villages (Manyire, Karangai, Olevolosi and Kiranyi) in Arumeru District, Tanzania, and in Kiambu (Githunguri and Kikuyu Divisions), Thika (Juja Location, Ruiru Division) and Kajiado (Kiserian) Districts of Kenya as well as in areas surrounding Nairobi. The project targeted both home gardens and commercial farming systems. The project was meant to address food and nutrition security and economic empowerment of vulnerable groups in society. The goal of the project was to enhance the economic empowerment of vulnerable members of society, mostly women farmers, through enterprise development. The project objectives were to empower farmers through sustainable production, seed supply and marketing of AIVs in selected areas in Kenya and Tanzania. The project also intended to increase utilization, improve nutrition and health, and stream- line the efficiency of the AIV sub-sector value chain (FARM-Africa, 2006). Although the agricultural sector in these two countries was riddled with a poor marketing system, poor infrastructure and lack of adequate extension services, the MATF intervention came when farmers were in search of a solution where collective marketing and linkages helped solve the challenge of a single farmer with less than half an acre of land to put under food production and a five-member household. MATF managed the AIV project through a consor- tium of partners from the onset in 2004 until its completion in 2006. The AVRDC-Regional Centre for Africa (AVRDC-RCA), based in Tanzania, and Farm Concern International (FCI), a market development agency covering sub-Saharan Africa, were the main partners, with AVRDC being the grantee. They disseminated various appropriate vegetable production and seed multiplication technologies. In partnership with national agricultural research and extension institutions in both Kenya and Tanzania, they ensured a sustained supply of indigenous vegetable seeds. AVRDC focused on improving the productivity of superior lines, developing and demonstrating sustainable cultivation techniques and food preparation practices of AIVs, and supplying quality foundation seed of target species to target farmers for promotion. FCI, a lead partner, worked and collaborated with the various players, ranging from producer groups, extension officers, retail outlets and other institutions, in the implementation of this project. FCI introduced a factoring component (working capital, which bridges the gap between harvest and payment by buyers) in Kenya, which facilitated farmer business support units (BSUs) to manage the cost of transport directly. The factoring component also linked farmers to market players who offer transport and communi- cation services, a cost that would otherwise be shoul- dered solely by the farmers. The factoring component resulted in the establishment of a revolving fund that assisted the groups in acquiring additional business development services and inputs and covering other associated levies. The intervention further supported partnerships between targeted beneficiaries and support service providers such as seed-processing companies, stockists and agro-chemical product suppliers. MATF frequently carried out monitoring and evaluation visits to document lessons from the introduced innovations coupled with training on financial reporting and use of financial guidelines. Linkages were established with government extension services in Kenya and Tanzania for training farmers and for provision of extension services. In Kenya, the Ministry of Agriculture in the target areas organized field trials to enhance farmer adoption of the intervention. In Tanzania, AVRDC and FCI worked directly with the Ministry of Agriculture extension staff in the designated target areas to adopt new varieties, improve production technologies and market their produce as groups, to existing formal and informal markets. Farmer business groups were the main implementers of the project, as they were engaged in production and marketing. The project recruited more producers through various forums and exposed new producers to marketing opportunities in indigenous vegetables. New farmers were encouraged to form producer groups, which went through various processes to understand the concept, start production and market vegetables. AVRDC has carried out research and other development activities to enhance the productivity and utilization of over 15 common exotic and AIV species. The centre improves biodiversity through genetic enhance- ment of landraces, development of cultivation and production of seed protocols. It also provides advice on sustainable cultivation, processing and utilization techniques and dissemination to small-scale producers. The AIV project promoted six varieties: amar- anthus ( Amaranthus spp.), African ...
Citations
... Unlike major vegetables such as cabbages, AIVs are yet to receive global recognition as significant contributors to human health and nutrition, social systems and sustainable development [1]. Despite AIVs lacking global recognition, various African communities in both rural and urban areas largely value AIVs as this primarily attributed to the customs, and traditions [2]. This is largely attributed to African custom and tradition. ...
Rising awareness of various lifestyle diseases and illnesses has led to an increased understanding of healthy eating habits, the increased demand for African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs), and a strict healthier diet in Kenya. Apart from the awareness about the benefits of consuming the AIVs, their commercialization is still low due to how producers are less informed and not connected to market actors beyond their community. On the other hand, the literature on factors that influence commercialization is still limited. The purpose of this study is to sought to reduce that gap by determining the factors that influenced the commercialization of African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs) among smallholder farmers in Bungoma County. In order to identify 384 respondents from whom data was collected, multistage sampling was used through personally administered questionnaires. The fractional regression model (FRM) was used to determine factors influencing the commercialization of AIVs in Bungoma County. The FRM results indicate that the eight explanatory variables included in the model significantly influenced the commercialization of AIVs among smallholder farmers. These variables are the gender of the farmer, land size, mode of payment, distance to the markets, AIV yields, AIV cost of production, duration to reach the market, and value addition. The researcher recommended that all gender should be engaged in the commercialization of AIVs and that the government to put in place policies and regulations that support the commercialization of AIVs, as they support other cash crops, which would equally enhance the quality and quantity improvement of AIVs that are distributed to various markets.
... these traditional african vegetables have continued gaining prominence due to their economic, health, nutritional and environmental benefits kazungu & nyagango, 2020;krause et al., 2019;Mphafi et al., 2019;Mworia, 2021). they constitute 1,000 different edible species of leafy and fruits which are economy, an easily accessible source of vitamins, minerals, also a good supplement of protein and calories (Muhanji et al., 2011;Oyedele & adenegan, 2017;senyolo et al., 2018). also, these vegetables are resistant to drought, diseases and pests (chepkoech et al., 2018;luoh et al., 2014;Mabhaudhi et al., 2022) and therefore are extremely important in reducing food insecurity in deprived rural and urban settings (sharma et al., 2021). ...
... additional factors contributing to increased demand include the growing potential in major supermarkets and green grocery stores, as well as a rise in consumers' willingness and ability to pay for high-quality processed aiV products. also, these traditional vegetables are cheap, environmentally friendly, and potential sources of minerals (like iron and calcium), vitamins (such as a, B and c), protein and calories kazungu and nyagango, 2020;Mabhaudhi et al., 2022;Mphafi et al., 2019;Muhanji et al., 2011;senyolo et al., 2018). ...
... Farmers of this age group have wide experience in vegetable production and farming practices (kimambo, 2016). Other reasons for the involvement of this age category include low level of education among the rural producers and insufficiency of formal employment opportunities and access to capital for off-farm trading activities in urban areas (lotter et al., 2014;Muhanji et al., 2011). nevertheless, there is a need to promote the involvement of more youths in the marketing of these indigenous vegetables. ...
While most studies on African Indigenous Vegetables (AIV) focused on their nutritional values, household income and consumer attitudes, little has been documented on their marketing patterns. This study examines the influence of socio-economic factors and market patterns on AIV marketing among smallholder farmers in Arusha Tanzania. The study applied a cross-sectional design, in which a structured questionnaire was adopted to capture information from 288 sampled AIV producers. The Cobb Douglas (Double Log) regression model was employed during data analysis. Findings indicate that smallholder farmers’ marital status, education level, and household size are positively and significantly influencing the marketing of these vegetables. Also, a positive and significant effect of smallholder farmers’ trade experience, marketing infrastructure, AIV varieties, marketing information and market channel was observed. The findings of this study extend the application of market orientation theory and resource-based theory in the context of AIV marketing. This study provides a marketing framework for policymakers and smallholder vegetable farmers on better marketing strategies for active involvement in vegetable markets. This study contributes to the body of knowledge on the need for policy reforms to enhance AIV marketing patterns in developing economies. Also, the findings of this study have both practical and policy implications.
... Some policymakers and policies depreciate the value of some indigenous foods [38]. The more disappointing issue is that some government agencies, such as the Department of Agriculture and Extension Service, do not often promote indigenous foods [162]. For example, some researchers in Africa, including: Oloko [144] in Nigeria, Aura et al. [155] in Kenya, Mudau et al. [93] in South Africa, and Afari-Sefa et al. [99] who investigated indigenous foods across Africa, have decried the lack of indigenous foods enhancing policy and the extant policies ignored the potentials of most indigenous foods. ...
Indigenous foods are the ancestral diet endemic to and consumed by the local people for ages, but there has been a recent discrepancy in their acceptability, growth and development. While some research suggested frequent consumption and growth of indigenous foods, others reported poor development and declining consumption despite their rich nutrition content. Moreover, research has failed to investigate and compile indigenous foods’ growth and developmental trends in whole and niche areas to ensure their promotion and competitiveness with their exotic counterparts due to reports highlighting their rambling and anecdotal pictures of economic significance and nutritional potential. The study reviewed literature and collated past research to examine and forecast the developmental growth of indigenous foods for more than two decades (2000–2022). It identifies niche areas that have received more or less growth of indigenous food, and the type of research (review, data, and experimental research) contributing to its growth and development. Through the review of related literature, this study demonstrates that indigenous foods contribute to improving household health, food, and nutritional security. For example, 80% of South Africans depend on indigenous foods for medicinal purposes. It also enhances the dietary diversity of household and reduces poverty through income generation and employment. Some indigenous foods (green leafy vegetables) are richer sources of mineral elements than their exotic crops counterparts. Some indigenous foods play a crucial role in the cultural identity of people/ethnic groups. Indigenous foods are beneficial in terms of income, as research shows that some households generate more than 25% of their income from the sales of indigenous foods harvested from the wild. Indigenous foods agribusiness is dominated by rural dwellers, the poor, and vulnerable people, with most (75%) of the stakeholders being elderly women. Most indigenous foods transactions occur in an open market structure and are overshadowed by vendors and middlemen. 951 articles were used to investigate the growth show steady growth and development of indigenous foods research. However, the growth is skewed toward a few niche areas. Medicinal, food, and nutritional composition analysis are some niche areas witnessing indigenous foods’ rapid growth and research development. Some indigenous foods have also seen growth in research development in a domestication niche area, but growth and development are lacking in the genetic improvement of many indigenous foods. Lack of awareness campaigns, value addition, marketing, and private/entrepreneurial investment and managerial/logistic techniques are other niche areas slowing the growth of indigenous foods, as revealed by the limited research. In decades (2000–2022), only 5.99% and 3.79% of research focused on indigenous foods value addition and awareness campaigns. More pragmatic research, policies, promotions, and value-additions approaches are needed.
... Out of the 45,000 plant species available in SSA, 1000 of them can be eaten as leafy vegetables 7 . According to Muhanji et al. 8 , there has been active cultivation of African indigenous vegetables in SSA for many generations as part of the food systems. African indigenous vegetables form part of Kenyan culture and cuisine. ...
Background and Objective: African indigenous vegetables (AIVs) are important food crops used in combating malnutrition and food insecurity. However, their production is constrained by poor soil fertility caused by soil degradation and poor farming practices. The objective of this study was to evaluate the Impacts of climate-smart agricultural practices on the yield parameters of two AIVs in Kenyan drylands over two growing seasons. Materials and Methods: Separate research plots were laid out in randomized complete block design and sowed with cowpeas (Vigna unguiculata L.) and black nightshade (Solanum nigrum L.) seeds six treatments of organic manure, commercial organic fertilizers, irrigation, mulching, farmer practices and control were used. The ANOVA was conducted on the data and post hoc analysis was carried out for significant means using Tukey's Honest Significant Difference (HSD) Test at p#0.05. Results: The results revealed significant differences in plant height and the primary yield across all climate-smart treatments (p#0.05). Plots applied with dry grass mulches had significantly higher yields followed by plots applied with organic manure (p#0.05). Control plots had the lowest amounts of yields. The African indigenous vegetables and pulses yield levels were significantly influenced by the climate-smart agricultural products (CSAPs) used. Conclusion: The African indigenous vegetable yield levels were significantly influenced by the CSAP products used. Organic manure, mulching and organic fertilizers had significantly higher yields. Control plots had the lowest yields followed by farmer's practices.
... To combat hunger in African countries that suffer from undernourishment, it could be useful to promote indigenous foods and crops, building on traditional knowledge and technologies and the customs of local farmers and communities (e.g. Baldermann et al. 2016;Chivenge et al. 2015;Li and Siddique 2018;Muhanji et al. 2011;Kuhnlein et al. 2013;Honfo et al. 2012). However, a major obstacle is that local people are not valuing indigenous foods appropriately and that their potential benefits are underestimated. ...
Designers hope that their innovations will be adopted by the people they are designed for. How well their designs align with consumers’ cultural contexts is a key determinant of whether they are accepted or rejected. This is especially important for food solutions, as eating habits are deeply rooted in local cultures. However, academic disciplines from the humanities and social sciences that study food culture not always provide the knowledge, methods and tools that food designers need. Whereas these disciplines mainly investigate the past and present, designers look to the future to create new possibilities. In addition, designers often look for concrete, physical touchpoints they can use, whereas the other disciplines may look for sources of underlying meaning and, thereby, may generate conclusions that remain rather generic or abstract. In this article we discuss how culture and cultural context can be understood and utilized by designers. We describe models and tools designers can use to gain sociocultural insights, and we describe different strategies designers can employ to build on such knowledge in their design process. We conclude with suggestions to close the gaps between designers, design researchers and the other disciplines that study food culture.
... Agricultural products in Africa reach the market through various formal and informal means, embedded in the relationships that smallholder farmers cultivate with other market actors, forming vertical market linkages. African Indigenous Vegetables (AIVs) are regarded as crop vegetables that originated naturally in Africa, whose roots, fruits, or leaves are used and largely accepted by local and rural communities and, increasingly, in urban and peri-urban communities through habit, custom, and tradition (Muhanji et al., 2011). In Kenya, over 200 different species of AIVs (Bokelmann et al., 2022) are grown on 45,099 ha, with a total production volume of 224,751 MT worth $56,215,149 annually (Alulu et al., 2020). ...
... According to Muhanji et al. (2011), AIVs are largely sold in informal markets that are either undesignated areas near farming communities or in peri-urban areas where door-to-door and roadside markets do exist. They are wet spots where formal partnership between suppliers and buyers exists with very few or no transaction documents. ...
... They also noted that most of the farmers set their prices based on the prevailing market prices with a few agreeing to the prices dictated by the buyers. The prices of AIVs in Kenya vary across different locations but range between Ksh 10 and Ksh 15 per bunch (Muhanji et al., 2011). In addition to not knowing the price of value added AIVs, the exact percentage of AIV farmers who add value to their produce is still lacking. ...
... AIVs such as African nightshade (Solanum scabrum), amaranth (Amaranthus spp.), cowpea leaves (Vigna unguiculata), and spider plant (Cleome gynandra) are culturally accepted through custom, habit, or tradition (7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12) and nutritionally dense (13,14). In addition, these plants are adapted to the local environmental conditions and often exhibit tolerance to extreme temperatures and precipitation allowing them to be sustainably produced with little to no inputs (8,15,16). The combination of these attributes positions AIVs as a rich micro-and macronutrient, climate-resilient food source with unmet economic potential (11). ...
Introduction
Nutrition security continues to worsen in sub-Saharan Africa. Current research is limited on how seasonality may influence the impact of nutrition, culinary, and production interventions on food security, diet quality, and consumption of African Indigenous Vegetables (AIV); a culturally accepted source of micro-and-macronutrients that are easily produced due to their adaptation to the local environment. The objective of this study was to evaluate the programmatic impact of AIV interventions on nutrition security among smallholder farmers.
Methods
In a randomized control trial, five target counties in Western Kenya were randomly assigned to one of four treatments: (1) control; (2) production intervention (PI); (3) nutrition and culinary intervention (NCI); and (4) NCI and PI (NCI/PI). After the counties were randomly assigned to a treatment, 503 smallholder farmers (18–65 years) were selected from participatory farmer groups. The PI consisted of five agricultural production modules delivered between 2016 and 2019. The NCI was delivered twice: (1) household nutrition education (2017) and (2) community culinary training (2019). The NCI/PI included communities receiving both interventions at these time periods. Baseline and endline surveys were administered to all participants once in October 2016 (harvest season) and to all available participants (n = 250) once in June to July 2019 (dry season), respectively. The impact evaluation was analyzed by Household Hunger Scale (HHS), Women’s Dietary Diversity Score (WDDS), AIV consumption frequency, and AIV market availability. Statistical tests included descriptive statistics (means and frequencies), paired t-test, McNemar’s test, Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test, ANOVA test with Tukey post hoc, and χ² test. Open-ended questions were aggregated, and responses were selected based on relevancy and thoroughness of the response to provide context to the quantitative data. A value of p < 0.05 was used to denote statistical significance.
Results
There was an overall decrease in WDDS, HHS, and consumption frequency between baseline and endline attributed to seasonal differences. Despite this, post-intervention, households that received NCI/PI had a higher WDDS relative to the control: WDDS 5.1 ± 1.8 vs. 4.2 ± 1.5, p = 0.035. In addition, between baseline and endline, there was an overall increase in the percentage of respondents that reported an adequate supply of key AIVs, particularly for households that received PI. Furthermore, seasonal effects caused a reported shift in the primary location for purchasing AIVs from the village to the town market. There was no reported difference in HHS. While “diet awareness” significantly influenced diet quality among the NCI treatment group, “production” was reported to have the greatest influence on diet quality among all intervention groups.
Discussion
The findings revealed that coupled nutrition, culinary, and production interventions could create a protective effect against seasonal fluctuations in the availability and affordability of AIV as evidenced by a higher WDDs.
Conclusion and Recommendations
These findings suggest that future programming and policy should focus on promoting the availability, accessibility, acceptability, and affordability of improved agronomic practices and germplasm for both smallholder farmers with particular emphasis on AIV varieties that contain high levels of micro-and macronutrients, improved agronomic characteristics (e.g., delayed flowering, multiple harvests, higher yields, and disease resistance), and are aligned with the communities’ cultural preferences. In addition, agricultural training and extension services should incorporate nutrition and culinary interventions that emphasize the importance of farmers prioritizing harvests for their household consumption.
... There is often no precise spacing of seeds during cultivation, and wood ash is used to control pests (Chelang et al., 2013). Indigenous species generally require less inputs for cultivation than the exotic species (Muhanji et al., 2011). As naturally, indigenous vegetables rely exclusively on rainfall; however a few species such as okra may require watering in the initial two months (Shrestha, 2013). ...
... It is worth noting that consumption of indigenous vegetables is associated with higher dietary diversity and better micronutrients (Boedecker et al 2014) and have been found to address the need of household food insecurity, as they are perceived to be nutritious and available at a lower cost. Furthermore, they are relatively easier to prepare and can be available during periods of drought and low rainfall (Muhanji et al., 2011). Hence, indigenous vegetables contribute to the annual food supplies of many poor households in rural or informal communities. ...
... Ref. [26] did an intervention study in which pre-pubertal, non-zinc deficient (8-9 years old) children were divided into two groups: experimental (31) and control (31). Of these 62 children examined, 32 were boys and 30 were girls. ...
... These included cabbages, spinach and kale which are exotic among the indigenous ones cowpea, amaranth, jute mallow, nightshade and spider plant. Although the exotic ones were more preferred the study was inclined to AILVs [31]. This was not unique since AILV have been reported to be underutilized amidst the challenges of their availability [19]. ...
... However, in recent times, most people no longer consume or cultivate indigenous food crops or indigenous leafy vegetables, leading to continuous food insecurity in Africa, despite the rich supply of indigenous food available in sub-Saharan Africa. Until recent times, African indigenous vegetables were part of the food systems in sub-Saharan Africa for generations as the region is home to more than 45,000 species of indigenous foods, of which more than 1,000 can be eaten as green leafy vegetables (Muhanji, Roothaert, Webo, & Stanley, 2011). ...
... Maize is cultivated worldwide, with the United States being the primary producer (Dragomir et al., 2022;Ranum et al., 2014). As such, most commercialized exotic crops are internationally recognized on all continents (Muhanji et al., 2011). The awareness and spreading of domesticated crops or their products lead to their acceptability, which created a high demand for these crops or agricultural produce. ...
... Unlike the high level of broadcasting that exotic foods have enjoyed and their constant support through awareness campaigns in world-class media, few indigenous foods have been marketed in the media (Abukutsa-Onyango, 2010). Aside from being more locally based, awareness campaigns for indigenous foods have not regularly taken place through broadcast media (Muhanji et al., 2011). Meanwhile, the introduction of foods into the Western education curriculum significantly helped in the spread, adoption, and sustainability of exotic foods. ...
All foods have local origins, but their commercialization and global acceptance remain challenging. Agricultural commercialization involves producing agricultural products for financial gain and market purposes beyond family consumption. Indigenous foods have vast societal benefits, including cultural, employment, medicinal, food security-related, nutritional, and financial. However, indigenous food consumption and demand are constantly declining because exotic foods are replacing them, despite recent campaigns for their increased commercialization. The study investigates the challenges associated with indigenous food commercialization, possible pathways to commercialization, and the role of the government in commercializing indigenous food. It offers a hypothesized structure and essential blueprint for sustainable indigenous food (crop) commercialization. The methodology involved a review of the literature using various search engines, scholarly sites, and print books, combining quantitative and qualitative research. Scaling indigenous food for sustainable commercialization beyond dependency on the wild product takes specific steps, including domestication, certification, and effective government-private collaboration. Policies to improve the sustainability of indigenous food are urgently required to save them from extinction and meet future demand. Many indigenous foods are hindered by low-status perception, poor value addition, inadequate knowledge of their potential, lack of market penetration, and global acceptability challenges. Indigenous food commercialization lacks a holistic and systematic approach involving careful planning, procedural steps, and an aggressive market-spreading mechanism for global adoption. An excellent strategic relationship between government and stakeholders is a prerequisite for indigenous food commercialization, but the onus is on the government to commit to indigenous food commercialization programs.
