Next Steps and Research Needs in Perennial Grain Development

Perennial grain options offer transformative solutions to sustainable food production in Africa, but we need to know about the potential risks as well as benefits such as reductions in labor, soil conservation and climate resilience. Systems analysis has been initiated to conduct a ‘proof of concept’ assessment of farmer interest, potential profitability and environmental benefits associated with perennial grains. We are mapping the areal scope across Africa of the fundamental and realized niche to support growth of prototype perennial grain systems. Expert knowledge is being canvassed, including interviews with researchers and smallholder farming communities to document what we know, what we don’t know and what we need to know about these novel crop types.