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DISCUSSION No. 133 • FSN Forum digest No. 1268
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Pulses: innovations from the field to the cooking pot
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until 4 November 2016
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CONTRIBUTIONS RECEIVED
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Pierrette
Mubadi, Congo
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Pierrette points to the fact that rural populations tend to abandon their traditional diets, and believes that inter
alia a lack of information on the benefits of legumes causes this trend. Legumes should however play an important role in fighting malnutrition among children. More broadly, the government should support sustainable initiatives in the agricultural sector in
the fight against poverty.
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Vicki
Morrone, Michigan State University, USA
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Vicki elaborates on the situation in Malawi, where current seed systems and seed policies constrain smallholder production
and make it difficult for farmers to legally engage in seed production. Research and extension efforts should focus on the selection of appropriate pulse varieties, and farmers should be empowered to produce seed for local community use.
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Aqleem
Abbas, The University of Agriculture, Peshawar, Pakistan
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Aqleem lists several advantages of producing and consuming pulses as compared to meat and cereals. He argues that people
can be made aware of the potential of pulses by organizing seminars and workshops. In addition, modern pulse varieties should be supplied and research laboratories for the development of resistant cultivars should be established.
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Aliya
Bakry, Consultant, Morocco
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Aliya suggests that integrating pulse-based recipes in mainstream culinary-oriented media has been a successful approach
to stimulate pulse consumption. In particular, the objective should be to introduce and promote the use of pulses in the diets of children, as food habits are adopted at an early age.
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Cynthia
Donovan, Legume Innovation Lab, Michigan State University, USA
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Cynthia echoes Vicki’s comments regarding the need to
promote local seed production. Furthermore, she argues that efforts are needed to change the perception of legumes, which are often regarded as ‘proteins for poor people’. She mentions examples of initiatives that have already been undertaken
in different countries; in Guatemala for instance, the MASFRIJOL programme aims to enhance bean productivity and to increase appreciation of the nutritional importance of beans. However, the effectiveness of these initiatives should be evaluated.
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Lawal
Musibau Olajire, Green agriconsult and services, Nigeria
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Lawal stresses that in Nigeria, people are only familiar with a few varieties of pulses. Efforts should be reinforced
to raise awareness about other types of pulses, and attention needs to be paid to value addition. Furthermore, Lawal argues that middlemen have to be checkmated in order to bring prices down for consumers. In Nigeria, the price of cowpea has doubled between
June and September this year.
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Mahesh
Maske, M S Swaminathan Research Foundation, India
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In the Wardha district in India, the Leveraging Agriculture for Nutrition in South Asia programme aims to promote pulses
and to bring about a change in the consumption patterns of smallholder farm families. Mahesh points out that in this region, smallholders have only limited access to quality seeds. Research and extension efforts should focus on farmer selection of appropriate
varieties. The introduction of low-cost pulse processing machines and including pulses in social protection programmes will help stimulate their consumption for better nutrition.
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