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Stemming Aflatoxin pre- and post-harvest waste in the groundnut value chain (GnVC) in Malawi and Zambia to improve food and nutrition security in the smallholder farming families http://www.fanrpan.org/projects/postharvest/groundnut/ Funded by the Platform for African-European Partnership in Agriculture and Rural Development (PAEPARD) through the competitive research fund. The project was launched in October 2014 and spans to December 2017. Project Summary Groundnuts form the basis for food and nutrition security for the majority of the smallholder farmers and are a vital component in the livelihoods of rural families. The challenge is that the groundnuts of these smallholder farmers are prone to Aflatoxin contamination. The contamination can occur any time from pre-harvest to post-harvest and has enormous health and economic consequence. Investing in pre- and post-harvest loss research, technical advice and policy advocacy to reduce food losses could significantly increase the food and nutrition security. The project therefore aims to reduce pre and post-harvest waste in the groundnut value chain (GnVC) and thereby increase food and nutrition security of smallholder farmers in the focal countries. The project intervenes at three levels: Based on the applied research and analysis of major constrains related GnVC, promising pre- and post-harvest practices and technologies are assessed, validated and further developed through participative evaluation in selected rural households The successfully tested practices are documented, appropriate dissemination tools and methodologies are elaborated, and farmer capacities are built; and Based on the evidence gained from the validation of pre- and post-harvest practices and technologies, advocacy and policy dialogues are conducted through multi-stakeholder platforms at the local, national and regional levels with the aim of strengthening these aspects in policies and regulatory frameworks. The project will target smallholder and poor farm families with specific focus on women in Malawi and Zambia. Project Objectives The goal of this project is to reduce pre- and post-harvest losses by focusing on reducing Aflatoxin in the GnVC for improved food and nutrition security of smallholder farmers by addressing main constraining factors of technology dissemination and adoption, knowledge and information sharing, and policies. Specific Project Objectives: To conduct research and identify, further validate and disseminate successful Aflatoxin contamination reduction practices and technologies adapted to specific socio-economic and socio-cultural contexts within the GnVC that is benefitting smallholder farmers in the focal countries. To reach scale and sustainability in the adoption of good Aflatoxin contamination reduction practices and technologies through innovative approaches in farmer-led Rural Advisory Services (RAS), capacity-building and effective knowledge management. To address policy constraints related to Aflatoxin contamination reduction issues through increased awareness of policy makers and through fostering of effective mechanisms for learning and sharing of experiences of Aflatoxin contamination reduction. Project Implementation partners National Smallholder Farmers' Association of Malawi (NASFAM) - Country-Malawi Eastern Province Farmers' Cooperatives (EPFC) Limited Country- Zambia Food Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN)- Country-South Africa Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich Country- UK Department of Agricultural Research Services (DARS) - Country- Malawi Agricultural Research Institute (ZARI) - Country-Zambia