Kenyan, Ugandan seed companies outperform multinationals on smallholders’ access to seeds

Regional seed companies do better than multinationals in increasing smallholder farmers’ access to seeds, according to the Access to Seeds Index which was launched this week. The index ranks leading seed companies in terms of their efforts to contribute to improving smallholder farmer productivity. 

The Ugandan seed company Victoria Seeds and Kenyan East African Seed are top performers in a ranking of 17 leading seed companies in the Eastern African region. They are closely followed by Kenya Seed Company and NASECO, based in Kenya and Uganda respectively. The East-West Seed, originating from Thailand, leads the ranking for seed companies active in Eastern Africa. Although much smaller in size than multinationals like DuPont Pioneer and Monsanto, the top 5 outperforms their global peers with a business model that is dedicated to smallholder farmers.