On average, Sri Lankans do not consume the daily recommended amount of fruit and vegetables. One means to address this, to increase the supply of safe and affordable vegetables and increase farmer incomes, by developing new improved varieties that are resistant to the major pests and diseases, and are more climate resilient. But to do so requires the strengthening of plant breeding capacities, in order for Sri Lanka to better address agricultural challenges, improve food security, and promote sustainable and more resilient farming into the future.

Globally, and also in Sri Lanka, the vast majority of vegetable seed sown by farmers is sourced from private seed companies. Therefore, strengthening partnerships between the private and public sectors is critical for the long term sustained vegetable production in the country. In response, a week-long knowledge sharing, bridge building and capacity strengthening event, focused on plant breeding in Sri Lanka. This was held in December 2023, and organized by WorldVeg in partnership with Onesh Agri (Pvt) Ltd. and the Postgraduate Institute of Agriculture (PGIA) at the University of Peradeniya, with support from the Sri Lanka Department of Agriculture, had

Participants included seven researchers from different Ministry of Agriculture institutions and subregional stations, 23 participants from the private seed sector, and Roland Schafleitner, Derek Barchenger and Manoj Kumar Nalla from WorldVeg. The capacity sharing included a wide range of topics including molecular breeding techniques and the utilization of male sterility systems in hybrid breeding, variety maintenance, seed production, quality and health, and parental selection in breeding. The event was very well received by participants, and felt they had become better equipped to initiate their own breeding programs to deliver improved varieties to smallholder Sri Lankan farmers in the future.

This work results from activities under the Fruit and Vegetables for Sustainable Healthy Diets (FRESH) Initiative, part of the CGIAR’s Research Portfolio. The FRESH initiative is working with partners to address the challenge of poor nutrition, starting from consumers and working back through the food system to increase fruit and vegetable intake for multiple impacts — improving diet quality, nutrition, and health while also improving livelihoods, empowering women and youth, and mitigating negative environmental impacts.

Derek Barchenger, Scientist-Pepper Breeding, WorldVeg