OVERVIEW

• Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea) is an important legume crop in the smallholder agriculture in Malawi , providing approximately 25% of the agricultural income.Groundnut is an important component of the national food supply.
• Groundnut is an important component of the national food supply. It does not only have nutritional and dietary value, groundnut also provides cash to farmers; enrich the soil with nitrogen through biological nitrogen fixation; and its haulms can be used as fodder and fuel. Groundnut also forms an important component of both rural and urban diet through its provision of valuable protein, edible oil, fats, energy, minerals, and vitamins.
• This crop is consumed as such or roasted (more than 32% of supply) or processed into oil (about 52% of supply). In livestock-farming communities, groundnut can be used as a source of livestock feed and increases livestock productivity as the groundnut haulm and seed cake are rich in digestible crude protein content
• Groundnut in Malawi is grown for export, oil extraction and local use such as roasting and as an additive to vegetable dishes. They are important for smallholder agriculture and for the national diet in Malawi; they contribute significantly to dietary requirements in most parts of the country and provide more than 25% of all smallholder income

GROUNDNUTS VARIETIES

• CG7, ICGV-SM 90704 (Nsinjiro),
• JL 24 (Kakoma),
• IGC 12991 (Baka).
• Chalimbana,
• Chitembana,
• Mawanga,
• Manipintar
• RG 1

GROUNDNUTS PRODUCTION AREAS

Although produced in the entire country, the central and southern Agricultural Development Divisions (ADDs) of Kasungu, Lilongwe, Kasungu, Machinga, and Blantyre are the major production areas.

Groundnuts grow best in well-drained, red-coloured, yellow-red and red, fertile, sandy to sandy loam soils. Saline soils are not suitable because groundnuts have a very low salt tolerance.

PRODUCTION LEVEL

PRODUCTIVITY AND PRODUCTION CAPACITY

DOMESTIC CONSUMPTION OF GROUNDNUTS

Table 1. Domestic Consumption of Groundnuts in Malawi

• Domestic consumption of Groundnuts for Malawi stands at 91%. This shows there is high local demand of the product. This means that 0.7% of total production of groundnuts is consumed in Malawi
• Exports of groundnuts account for about 9% of the total production.
• Major export destinations for Malawi are Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

MAJOR CHALLENGS AND CONSTRAINTS

Constraints

• Poor storage techniques lead to large losses before crops can be brought to market.
• Smallholder farmers use inefficient production techniques meaning that they experience low yields comparable to what is possible.
• New seed varieties, developed by ICRISAT, offer large yield improvements but experience low take up due to their upfront expense.
• Inability to control Aflatoxin levels (a carcinogenic fungus which grows on groundnuts), preventing them from exporting to the EU.

       Potential

• Widely grown and adaptable to numerous environments, Groundnuts are an easily scalable crop.
• There is potential for value addition for groundnuts by converting them into oil.
• Global demand for groundnuts is growing, both for the nuts themselves and for the oil that they can be used to produce•

KEY PRODUCERS