Accelerating bean breeding to respond to market demands in East Africa: ACIAR’s Rapid Cooking Bean Project for health, nutrition and fuel efficiency

In East Africa, where beans are a dietary staple, a transformative initiative by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) is reshaping the future of nutrition and cooking efficiency through the ‘Rapid Cooking Bean Project’ (RCBP) with reduced cooking time and enhanced nutritional quality in common beans (CROP/2018/132).

The project usesadvanced breeding technologies, including pedigree selection, genomic selection and optimal contribution selection (OCS) to accelerate the development of common bean varieties that cook at least 30% faster and contain 15% more iron and 10% more zinc than traditional varieties. RCBP is a collaborative effort between The University of Western Australia (UWA) and members of the Pan-Africa Bean Research Alliance (PABRA) through the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, and six National Agricultural Research and Extension Organisations (NARES) in Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. The project not only focuses on scientific innovation but also on empowering a new generation of African plant breeders with new skills including gender-inclusive training.