LOS BAÑOS, Philippines — A new SEARCA policy brief urges agricultural agencies, local governments, and research institutions to adopt more farmer-centered approaches to selecting and promoting maize varieties, emphasizing that yield alone should not determine which crops reach farms and markets.
Titled “Moving Beyond Yield: Institutionalizing Participatory Varietal Selection for Farmer-Preferred Maize in Laguna, Philippines,” the policy brief highlights the value of participatory varietal selection (PVS) in ensuring that crop promotion programs reflect farmers’ real needs, preferences, production conditions, and market opportunities.
The brief is based on research conducted in Victoria, Laguna, where rice and vegetable farmers exploring maize for off-season diversification assessed six maize lines not only for yield but also for taste, texture, cultural familiarity, climate resilience, culinary use, milling recovery, storability, and potential market value.
One of the study’s key findings was that farmers ranked LB Lagkitan, a lower-yielding glutinous maize variety, as their top choice for its taste, texture, familiarity, and usefulness as a substitute for more expensive glutinous rice in local delicacies. Farmers also placed high value on a waterlogging-tolerant composite maize variety, reflecting the importance of climate resilience amid intense rainfall and prolonged waterlogging. APN 408, a deep-orange-pigmented maize line, was also recognized for its perceived nutritional benefits and potential for value-added niche products.
These findings support the policy brief’s central message: varietal selection must account for the qualities that influence farmers’ willingness and ability to adopt, use, and market a crop variety. A variety that performs well in technical trials may still have limited impact if it does not fit household needs, food preferences, local growing conditions, or market demand.
To strengthen farmer-centered crop development, the brief recommends three policy actions. First, municipal agricultural offices and regional research centers should institutionalize PVS before recommending or distributing new crop varieties. Second, local government units, state universities, and agricultural agencies should conduct localized benchmarking of soil suitability, climate risks, farmer capacity, and market demand before rollout. Third, public investment should support capacity building and municipal demonstration farms to provide hands-on learning, strengthen farmer confidence, and generate further evidence on adoption, socioeconomic effects, and nutrition outcomes.
The policy brief also stresses that farmer training is essential to successful crop diversification. Although participating farmers were more familiar with rice production than maize management, technical lectures, field monitoring, and hands-on learning improved their ability to assess maize varieties and make informed production decisions.
For rice-reliant communities facing erratic rainfall and waterlogging, the brief presents participatory varietal selection as a practical pathway to align crop diversification with climate realities, farmers’ priorities, and local market opportunities.
The policy brief was authored by Mr. Mark Anthony Parducho, Ms. Ayn Kristina Beltran, and Ms. Lorna Matanguihan of the Institute of Plant Breeding, College of Agriculture and Food Science, University of the Philippines Los Baños. Parducho’s study was supported by the SEARCA Seed Fund for Research and Training (SFRT), which provides catalytic start-up support for promising research and training initiatives in Southeast Asia.
In the policy brief, SEARCA underscores the importance of translating field-based research into actionable recommendations to guide agricultural extension, public investment, and local crop development programs. Its message is clear: better varietal decisions begin not only with what performs well in the field, but also with what farmers value, need, and can bring to market.