CassQual: Cassava Seed Quality Management system

Enhancing cassava productivity through healthy planting material

Private actors benefit from a structured seed quality system with clear certification stages—from breeder seed to certified and quality-declared seed. It includes inspection protocols, labeling systems, and digital platforms like Seed Tracker to record certification status. Community seed entrepreneurs can adopt Quality Declared Seed (QDS) models to self-certify and sell high-quality seed. Digital diagnosis tools such as PlantVillage Nuru help maintain product integrity and reduce losses.

This technology is pre-validated.

9•9

Scaling readiness: idea maturity 9/9; level of use 9/9

251,400 USD

To set up the system

916 %

ROI calculated for a scenario involving 300 seed producers

60,000 USD

Annual monitoring cost

25,000 USD

Annual certification costs

135 %

Yield increased

IP

Open source / open access

Problem

Low market confidence in cassava seed: Farmers hesitate to buy seed without clear quality assurance, limiting market growth.
Inconsistent seed quality in the supply chain: Disease-infected and recycled seed undermines the value of improved varieties.
Limited business models for seed production: The absence of structured certification hinders private investment and scalability.
Difficulty accessing formal markets: Without certification, private seed producers struggle to enter institutional or export markets.
Lack of differentiation in seed products: Without labeling or traceability, quality seed cannot be marketed at a premium.

Solution

Access to certification systems: Enables businesses to meet formal quality standards and gain market credibility.
Digital quality assurance tools: Facilitate diagnosis, traceability, and record-keeping, helping to build customer trust.
QDS systems for small-scale entrepreneurs: Offers a cost-effective entry point for local seed producers to engage in formal markets.
Premium pricing opportunities: Certified seed can command up to 3x higher prices compared to uncertified seed.
Branding through labelling and certification: Helps producers market their seed and differentiate it from low-quality alternatives.
Protocol for self-certification by QDS or community level seed producers

Key points to design your business plan

The Cassava Seed Quality Management System presents a high-impact opportunity for agribusinesses to engage in a structured, scalable, and profitable seed value chain. By promoting certified and disease-free cassava planting material, the system improves farmer productivity, builds market trust, and contributes to sustainability goals (SDGs 1 and 2), while aligning with national development priorities.

To successfully integrate this model into your business,

Familiarize yourself with the certification process, seed classes, and market standards to ensure compliance and differentiation.
Evaluate the national regulatory landscape for cassava seed and identify entry points for certified or Quality Declared Seed (QDS) production.
Leverage existing guidelines and models, adapting successful frameworks (e.g., Nigeria, Tanzania) to local operations.
Engage with local partners and producers to co-develop region-specific certification pathways and build inclusive supply chains.
Invest in training for field agents and seed multipliers to meet certification criteria and maintain seed quality.
Establish branded demonstration plots to showcase product performance and drive demand.
Adopt digital solutions like Seed Tracker™ for traceability and certification management, and PlantVillage Nuru for in-field diagnostics.
Implement performance tracking systems to monitor adoption, customer feedback, and ROI.

The poor: Positive high

The technology is strongly beneficial for the poor, for whom cassava is a key source of food and income

Women: No impact

The technology is gender neutral

Climate adaptability: Highly adaptable

Cassava is known to be one of the most climate resilient crops

Farmer climate change readiness: Significant improvement

Boosting cassava productivity is an excellent way to adapt to potential climate change impacts and cassava is less likely to be negatively impacted than other crops

Carbon footprint: A bit less carbon released

Greater land productivity can enhance land use efficiency which prevents increases in carbon emissions

Biodiversity: Not verified

Not verified

Environmental health: Not verified

Not verified

Soil quality: Not yet estimated

Not yet estimated

Countries with a green colour: Tested & adopted
Countries with a bright green colour: Adopted
Countries with a yellow colour: Tested
Countries with a blue colour: Testing ongoing

Countries where the technology is being tested or has been tested and adopted
Country	Testing ongoing	Tested	Adopted
Nigeria	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Tanzania	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted

This technology can be used in the colored agro-ecological zones. Any zones shown in white are not suitable for this technology.

Agro-ecological zones where this technology can be used
AEZ	Subtropic - warm	Subtropic - cool	Tropic - warm	Tropic - cool
Arid	–	–	–	–
Semiarid	–	–	–	–
Subhumid		–
Humid		–

Source: HarvestChoice/IFPRI 2009

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that are applicable to this technology.

Goal 1: no poverty

Its contributes to poverty reduction

Goal 2: zero hunger

Its contributes to reducing hunger

1. Baseline Assessment: Evaluate the current cassava seed system to determine:

- Availability of registered, market-preferred, and disease-resistant varieties.
- Capacity of the regulatory agency.
- Existence of cassava certification guidelines.
- Prevalence and impact of CMD and CBSD.
- Adaptability of existing e-certification systems for cassava.

2. Design/Modification of Certification Guidelines: Develop or adapt certification guidelines using successful models:

- In West Africa (where CBSD is absent), Nigeria's guidelines serve as a suitable model.
- In East, Central, and Southern Africa (where CBSD is present), Tanzania's guidelines are effective.

3. Update National Seed Policy: If cassava certification is new, collaborate with stakeholders to validate guidelines and incorporate them into national seed regulations.

4. Train Seed Inspection Officers: Provide training on cassava field certification procedures, including disease recognition (CMD and CBSD), and develop strategies to train community-level or QDS producers in self-certification.

5. Certification Labelling: Design electronic labels for each cassava seed category and distribute them to seed producers post successful certification inspections.

6. Digital Monitoring: Implement or adapt digital systems (e.g., Seed Tracker™) for managing cassava seed field registration and certification.

7. Roll Out: Launch the certification system, starting with higher seed classes. Gather user feedback and invest in the system through strategic support, similar to other major staples like maize.