Contribution of the Dolichos Lablab value chain to farmer's household livelihood assets in Tanzania.

Lablab is a legume with multiple uses as food, feed, and organic fertilizer. However, it is underutilized, and its empirical contribution to farmers' livelihoods is limited. This study examined the Lablab value chain (LVC) relative to smallholder farmers' livelihood assets in Tanzania. Data on Lablab farming, its value chain, and its contribution to the farmers' livelihood assets were collected from four districts of Tanzania known for Lablab production. The results showed that the LVC mapping comprised systems, actors, and interdependent activities, the key systems being input supply, tillage, intercropping, and marketing. Seed supply was through the recycling of the last harvest (48.8%), while intercropping (56.5%) and hand-hoeing (51.6%) were the primary cultivation systems, with farm gates and/or local markets serving as the marketing locations. The grown seeds were mainly black (62.3%) due to external marketability but were rarely eaten. Although farmers were the major chain actors, traders were highly active in the marketing segment, leaving farmers out of the bargain art protocol. Generally, Lablab production generated almost 90% of the farmers' revenue by multiple linear regression. Based on farmers' five asset categories, natural and human assets contributed 70% and 50% respectively, while there was less contribution from social, financial, and physical assets. The study recommends networking exposure to reliable marketplaces with good prices, improved seed availability, and financial services for Lablab farmers in Tanzania. To sustain the smallholder farmers' five livelihood assets from Lablab, researchers and policymakers must pay attention to the three linkages of the LVC.

Dolichos Lablab-an underutilized crop with future potentials for food and nutrition security: a review.

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) particularly goal number two in developing countries by 2030 is challenging. The State of Food Security and Nutrition (2019) in the World show prevalence of undernourishment which has practically remained unchanged for the last three years. This calls for sustainable synergies between food and nutrition in addressing the challenge. Exploring the potential of underutilized legumes such as Dolichos Lablab (Lablab purpureus) in improving food and nutrition security is of importance. Lablab is known among nutritious underutilized diversified legumes, which is drought tolerant relative to other legumes. However, it is less popular as human food. This review focuses on providing details on the nutritional potential of underutilized Lablab varieties for food availability, accessibility and satisfactorily utilization for improved livelihood. So far research attention has been focusing on good agronomic performance with less information on their nutritional quality and its contribution to the wellbeing of people. Both wild and cultivated Lablab accessions do differ morphologically and across diverse habitat environments. This may make them less known, untapped and underutilized despite its promising potential as a food resource in developing countries where malnutrition still exists. Efforts are needed to popularize high-quality nutritional accessions, enhancing their consumption and commercialization for feeding the ever-increasing population in the future.