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NUA 45, a dry bean cultivar, builds a subtle brand in Zimbabwe against all odds

Article in Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · February 2024

DOI: 10.3389/fsufs.2024.1260167

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 TYPE Original Research
PUBLISHED 12 February 2024
DOI 10.3389/fsufs.2024.1260167

NUA 45, a dry bean cultivar, builds

OPEN ACCESS a subtle brand in Zimbabwe
against all odds
EDITED BY
Andrea Marchini,
University of Perugia, Italy

REVIEWED BY
Surasak Khankhum, Enock Kuziwa Maereka 1*, Bruce Mutari 2, Fungai Kunaka 3,
Mahasarakham University, Thailand Eileen Nchanji 4, Shylet Tsekenedza 2,
Esther Njuguna-Mungai,
Consultant-ASGIG Ltd., Kenya Rachel Muthoni-Andriatsitohaina 5 and Denford Chimboza 6
*CORRESPONDENCE 1
International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), Chitedze Research Station, Lilongwe, Malawi,
Enock Kuziwa Maereka 2
Department of Agricultural Research and Innovation Development (DARID), Crop Breeding Institute
[email protected] (CBI), Harare, Zimbabwe, 3 Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Advisory Services
RECEIVED 23 August 2023 (DARDAS), Harare, Zimbabwe, 4 CIAT, Nairobi, Kenya, 5 CIAT, Kawanda Research Station, Kampala,
ACCEPTED 19 January 2024 Uganda, 6 CIAT, Harare, Zimbabwe
PUBLISHED 12 February 2024

CITATION
Global business today is driven by brands, each with a unique story, but rarely
Maereka EK, Mutari B, Kunaka F,
Nchanji E, Tsekenedza S, of a product that is a public good. Building a brand requires careful planning,
Muthoni-Andriatsitohaina R and creativity, and an understanding of the target market. Borrowing from various
Chimboza D (2024) NUA 45, a dry bean
brand concepts and frameworks, this paper explores how a government-bred
cultivar, builds a subtle brand in Zimbabwe
against all odds. common bean cultivar., NUA 45, defied the odds to create a new identity and
Front. Sustain. Food Syst. 8:1260167. association in Zimbabwe. Firstly, the cultivar overcame the general lack of
doi: 10.3389/fsufs.2024.1260167
promotion investment in government-bred (public) common bean cultivars.
COPYRIGHT Secondly, being a red mottle-colored cultivar in a red-speckled (sugar type)
© 2024 Maereka, Mutari, Kunaka, Nchanji,
Tsekenedza, Muthoni-Andriatsitohaina and
bean-predominated country, NUA 45 had to break the preference typecasts.
Chimboza. This is an open-access article Thirdly, NUA 45 was among the first generation of biofortified bean cultivars
distributed under the terms of the Creative enriched with iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn), some of the most sought-after
Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The
use, distribution or reproduction in other
micronutrients in a world ridden with hidden hunger. Overcoming these market
forums is permitted, provided the original barriers required a systematic approach to awareness creation, collaboration,
author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are and commercialization, avoiding the tragedy of the commons, and instead,
credited and that the original publication in
this journal is cited, in accordance with
achieving a win-win situation for all stakeholders. This entailed understanding
accepted academic practice. No use, the needs and preferences of different value chain actors, developing messages,
distribution or reproduction is permitted and engaging local farmers, retailers, aggregators, and private and public
which does not comply with these terms.
sector partners to promote NUA 45. Lastly, developing compelling stories
and leveraging digital channels to reach new customers that sought personal
experiences, moved the cultivar name from a mere label to a spontaneously
endorsed lifestyle and a brand that ‘spread like wildfire’ across the country and
the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) region. The NUA 45
brand broke new ground for other biofortified bean cultivars and non-sugar
bean cultivars. Following its release in seven other countries, NUA 45 pioneered
listing on the SADC regional variety catalog.

KEYWORDS

NUA 45, brand, biofortification, multi-stakeholder, innovation platform, awareness

1 Introduction
The business world today is on brand power; brands influence market share, sales as well
as revenue. In the contemporary business world of pervasive information, consumers or
end-users may be well-informed of choices before entering the marketplace; thus, brands
influence behavior and simplify choices through the reinforcement of loyalty. Brands fall into

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two main categories: branded businesses and the trademark and released into the bean cultivar pool of Zimbabwe in 2010 as the first
associated values. Brands now form more than 85 percent of the generation of biofortified dry bean cultivars in southern Africa.
capitalization value of large global (S&P 500) companies, unlike in the Following its release by the then “Department of Research and
1980s when 80 percent of a company’s value would be in physical Specialist Services (DR&SS)1,” NUA 45 was integrated into the
assets (Salamudin et al., 2010; Sinclair and Lane Keller, 2014). The government of Zimbabwe’s multi-sectoral approach to
concept of brand valuation was contentious throughout the 1980s and address malnutrition.
1990s (Sinclair and Lane Keller, 2014; Skalický et al., 2021), but the At the time of the release of NUA 45, there was growing consumer
continued shrinking of the proportion of tangible assets on the consciousness, especially with anti-transgenic crop sentiments
balance sheets and the growing proportion of goodwill and other (Chagwena et al., 2019) that needed to be demystified given that the
intangible assets (Egginton, 1990), affirms the notion that indeed, word ‘biofortified variety’ was unfamiliar and assumed to
brands drive businesses. There is a need, therefore, to create and be synonymous with ‘genetically modified organism (GMO).’ In
sustain brands in every economic activity. There is growth in literature addition, when NUA 45 was released, the common bean grain market
on brands, especially concepts, models, and frameworks, but very in Zimbabwe was dominated by red-speckled common bean cultivars,
limited documented cases of brand evolution. While it is now possible commonly referred to as sugar beans (Birachi and Mutua, 2020;
to brand almost anything from manufactured products to places (Pike Mukankusi et al., 2020) from both the public and private sectors.
and Bianchi, 2016; de Moraes Ocke and Platt, 2022; Kamlot and Vieira Unlike the red-speckled cultivars, NUA 45 was red-mottled, a new and
de Jesus, 2022), building a brand with a government-bred cultivar of unfamiliar grain type that reminded both farmers and consumers of
an inconspicuous crop such as the common bean is not as obvious. unpalatable bean types introduced into communities through
The common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is among the most erstwhile relief food programs (Mutari et al., 2021). The fact that the
important food legumes in Zimbabwe. It occupies various contextual primary attribute of the cultivar., high grain Fe and Zn is an invisible
niches among food crops, cash crops, and industrial crops, but its trait, further deterred value chain actors due to perceived poor
overall national status is not well defined. At the national level, the demand. At the time of its release into the market, only one seed
common bean is considered a better food legume than other legume company, a parastatal, was prepared to market NUA 45. Various
crops such as cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp] and bambara studies recognized food consumption as a social event that is
groundnut [Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdc], yet it trails groundnut influenced by familiarity (Harper and Sanders, 1975; Salvy et al.,
(Arachis hypogaea L.) in terms of production and consumption. 2008), hence NUA 45 was likely to face resistance due to unfamiliarity.
Among commercial crops, it is dwarfed by the golden leaf, tobacco Meanwhile, food systems are undergoing transformation in recent
(Nicotiana tabacum L.); among industrial crops, it is incomparable to times especially with growing urbanization in developing countries.
cotton (Gossypium herbaceum L.), and among commercial legumes, it Food purchases are no longer exclusively from farmers’ markets;
is overshadowed by soybean (Glycine max L.). For instance, recent consumers now purchase convenient foods in local grocery stores,
participatory rural appraisal studies in one major bean-producing area where there is stiff competition among alternatives. Similarly, when it
of Zimbabwe (the Lowveld), identified maize (Zea mays L.) as the comes to brands, physical attributes of the product, salespersons and
most extensively cultivated and prioritized food crop while the other distinguishable features have become very important in
common bean was the most-important cash crop (Mutari et al., 2021). influencing customers’ purchase behavior (Deska et al., 2022). Against
The unclear status of the common bean has caused under-investment this background, NUA 45 and its derived food products had to
in the value chain over the years. be strategically positioned to enhance purchase and consumption.
In the past, the national demand for bean grain was inconsistent, From the foregoing, it is clear that NUA 45 was an ‘underdog’
thereby discouraging farmers from fully adopting improved bean brand (Schmidt and Steenkamp, 2021) facing numerous obstacles that
varieties and management technologies; hence grain yields were could only be overcome through new approaches. This paper presents
consistently low. Farmers used the farm-saved seed of genetically barrier-breaking and pioneering work on the promotion of biofortified
unknown varieties, leaving the common bean cultivars developed by common bean cultivars and the introduction of ‘unfamiliar’ foods to
the national agricultural research system and its breeding partners communities. Importantly, it also presents the spontaneous evolution
largely irrelevant and unknown. The continued sensitization on of a brand around the NUA 45 cultivar through the sequential stages
undernutrition, especially micronutrient deficiency in developing of a conceptual model (Figure 1).
countries, and the advent of the biofortification strategy (Graham
et al., 1999, 2001) ushered in a new era in common bean research. The
point of reckoning came after observations that certain common bean 2 Materials and methods
genotypes accumulated more iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) in the grain than
others (Blair et al., 2009). Among these bean genotypes was the family 2.1 Study area
of common bean lines developed by the International Center for
Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), called the nutritionally enhanced This study was carried out in bean production, and consumption
‘Nutrient Andean’ beans shortened as NUA (Blair, 2013). This group hubs located in the various agro-ecological zones of Zimbabwe as
of lines, which included NUA 45 was the first known to have been depicted in Figure 2. Bean production hubs are areas of intense
developed specifically for micronutrient content, and some lines about
in the group registered between 18 and 23 mgkg−1 or parts per million
(ppm) higher Fe and between 8 and 7 ppm higher Zn (Blair et al.,
2010) compared to ordinary varieties which had a baseline of about 1 Now Department of Agricultural Research and Innovation Development
55 ppm Fe and 35 ppm Zn (Beebe et al., 2000). NUA 45 was officially (DARID) since 2022.

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FIGURE 1
Brand development conceptual framework.

common bean production in the country (Birachi et al., 2023). Agricultural Research and Innovation Development (DARID).
Consumption hubs are areas where the beans are consumed in various Information was also collected from impact studies across bean and
product forms such as flour, canned grain, and cooked grain. non-bean-producing zones in Zimbabwe from 2015 to 2022.
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in southern Africa,
bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Mozambique to the east,
South Africa to the south, and Botswana to the west. Its geographical 2.3 Fitting NUA 45 into the policy
coordinates are 20.0° S latitude and 30.0° E longitude. It has a tropical environment
climate, with distinct dry and wet seasons. The rainy season runs from
November to March, with most rainfall occurring in December and Released as a cultivar biofortified with Fe and Zn, NUA 45
January. During this period, temperatures range from 20°C to 28°C fitted into the government of Zimbabwe’s mandatory food
(68°F to 82°F) in most parts of the country. The dry season, from April fortification policy, which was introduced in 2015. The policy
to October, is characterized by cooler temperatures, with average directed food processors to fortify specific food products such as
temperatures ranging from 13°C to 24°C (55°F to 75°F). sugar, cooking oil, and mealie meal (maize flour) with vitamins
The eastern highlands of Zimbabwe receive the highest amount of and micro-nutrients such as Fe and Zn. It also recognized
rainfall, with an annual average of over 1,000 millimeters (39 inches). healthcare-based interventions such as vitamin A fortification,
The western part of the country, including the Karoo Basin and the micronutrient supplementation for young children, and Fe
Zambezi Valley, is generally drier, with an annual average rainfall of supplementation for pregnant and lactating women. Under this
less than 500 millimeters (20 inches). Zimbabwe’s climate is generally broad-based policy framework, NUA 45 came in as an agro-based
favorable for agriculture, with suitable conditions for the production intervention through lobbying with two key Government of
of crops such as maize, cotton, tobacco, and common bean. However, Zimbabwe (GoZ) ministries. First, the Ministry of Lands,
the country has experienced recurrent droughts in recent years, which Agriculture, Fisheries, Water, Climate and Rural Development
have had a significant impact on agricultural production and (MoLAFWC&RD) was engaged to include NUA 45 in the special
food security. agricultural input support programs that predominantly targeted
For better coordination and collaboration, stakeholders organized cereal production. Second, the DR&SS in collaboration with the
themselves into innovation platforms. Innovation platforms are Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoH&CC) engaged the
networking groupings and members do not pay subscriptions, but Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education (MoP&SE) to
indirectly pay in-kind through time and travel to attend include NUA 45 grain as a relish in the mandatory school feeding
networking meetings. programs. The government provided maize grain rations to school
feeding programs, but the schools needed to provide relish, a role
that NUA 45 grain fitted into. The MoLAFWC&RD (DARID and
2.2 Data collection and analysis then the Agricultural Technical and Extension Service –
AGRITEX2) introduced NUA 45 seed through schools’ garden
Data used in this compilation were collected from the various demonstration plots that served two purposes: a source of start-up
stakeholders including traders, farmers, and processors during diverse seed and a source of grain used as relish the meals. Some
annual stakeholder meetings, and visits in the country. Data were also
collected through farm demonstrations and field visits. We also
consulted annual reports provided by Pan Africa Bean Research
Alliance (PABRA) to donors from 2015 to 2022. Seed production data 2 Now Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Advisory Services
were collected from the Seed Services unit of the Department of (DARDAS) since 2022.

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FIGURE 2
Map of Zimbabwe showing the Bean Corridors, survey data collection sites and the agro-ecological zones.

development programs like the Pan Africa Bean Research Alliance consumers, based on the bean market class, among them was the
(PABRA) and the Technologies for African Agricultural distinctive segment of NUA 45 as a biofortified bean variety.
Transformation (TAAT) also donated seed to schools. NUA 45 promotion in Zimbabwe was spearheaded by the
International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), DARID, and
Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Advisory Services
2.4 Awareness creation campaigns and (DARDAS) working with various public and private partners
capacity development including GoZ through MoH&CC and MoP&SE. NUA 45 was
promoted through various media channels, including radio, television,
Market research on the needs and preferences of consumers was and print. The messages focused on the benefits of the cultivar.,
carried out. A market segment for NUA 45 and other cultivars was including its high yield potential, nutritional value, and adaptability
identified (Nchanji et al., 2022). The market segment profiling revealed to various growing conditions. In addition, the partners conducted
the differentiated needs of rural and urban bean farmers and field trials to demonstrate the cultivar’s high yield potential and its

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tolerance to drought, pests, and diseases. Awareness creation Through these multi-stakeholder and multi-sectoral approaches,
campaigns on the health benefits of consuming NUA 45 were also research and extension staff kept platform members abreast of
conducted targeting primary schools, irrigation schemes, youth scientific evidence in bean research and development as well as
groups, women groups, and mixed farmer groups. They were commercialization models. The GoZ also supported the promotion of
conducted during field days, agricultural shows (ward, district, the cultivar through various initiatives such as subsidies for seed
provincial and national), and trade fairs. These aimed at educating purchases. Seed companies were engaged to produce and distribute
participants on good agricultural practices (GAP) for NUA 45 and NUA 45 seed to farmers.
training on the diverse preparation options for enhancing bean
consumption using participatory learning approaches (PLA) and the
training of trainers (ToT) model. Events also included cooking 2.6 Compelling stories and unique
demonstrations and organoleptic testing. consumer experiences
Information posters were displayed at the exhibition sites while
various information education and communication (IEC) materials During the period 2015 to 2021, many success stories on income
were developed by stakeholders. Schools and farmer groups also used generation, health, and educational performance as a result of NUA
theatre arts to create awareness of Fe and Zn deficiencies and the 45 were documented periodically. The stories were captured on-site
benefits of consuming biofortified crops. Corporate wear such as hats through interviews and physical observation of the evidence.
and t-shirts carrying the NUA 45 brand were distributed.
The ‘food basket approach’ was used to integrate NUA 45 into
existing/new homemade dishes through training and cooking 3 Results
demonstrations at field days and exhibition fairs. The school feeding
approach included training pupils on the nutritive value of NUA 45 3.1 The importance of the visible and
and the various ways of preparing NUA 45-based products. invisible attributes of NUA 45

The name NUA 45 presented the first distinctive feature for the
2.5 Building partnerships to develop and cultivar., defying the public cultivar nomenclature in Zimbabwe which
commercialize bean-based products stipulates that bean cultivars be named after flowers. During the
participatory variety selection, stakeholders maintained the
Value chain actors in Zimbabwe were engaged to innovate and combination of ‘vague’ letters and numbers in the name NUA 45,
deliver NUA 45 in various product forms, to counter the unfamiliarity unlike the usual flower names such as ‘Iris’ and “Sweet Violet’ given to
of the red-mottled bean market class. Processors ranging from preceding varieties. The color difference was the second feature to set
artisanal processors to established canning factories were engaged to NUA 45 apart from the predominant red-speckled/sugar bean
evaluate jointly with the DARID, the products that targeted the cultivars in the market (Figure 4). It is the reverse of the red-speckled
processors’ market. The team engaged leading grain traders that cultivars, being red in the background (primary color) with white and
supported aggregation through networks of farmer groups. Large- cream speckles (secondary color). Third, behind the color lay the
scale grain traders developed contractual agreements with invisible trait of high Fe and Zn, which was also unfamiliar to
supermarkets while smaller grain traders facilitated onward repacking stakeholders. Research and extension teams used visual identity to
by networks of smaller entrepreneurs. Through the various innovation connect the farmers to the cultivar. IEC materials that were distributed
platforms described in the next section, stakeholders worked with highlighted NUA 45’s physical peculiarity and its main selling point,
researchers to evaluate and recommend specific value chain products. which was the high concentration of Fe and Zn in the grain and the
Following the identification of stakeholders above, synergistic benefit it would bring to consumers. This value proposition resonated
collaborations among similarly themed projects were established to very well with a population that had embraced the government’s
promote the demand, utilization, consumption, and marketing of fortification policy.
NUA 45 and a responsive production system amongst smallholder Following training on the food basket approach and the
farmers. The collaborating private and public sector projects focused preparation of various bean dishes and recipes, different categories of
on food security, nutrition, and business development for smallholder NUA 45 products were developed. Considering that value chain actors
farmers. They took a user-led approach to identifying challenges and in Zimbabwe were not used to the red-mottled bean market class, an
proffering, and testing solutions in an iterative manner, an innovation effort was made for consumers to access the biofortified bean cultivar
platform approach (Figure 3). Innovation platforms were initially “NUA 45” in different product forms. Through various partnerships,
limited to irrigation schemes, but later became virtual spaces as awareness campaigns were conducted across the country and the
stakeholders communicated with each other throughout the country. response was positive (Supplementary Figure 1).
In the bean innovation platforms, stakeholders sequentially discussed
challenges such as undernutrition, and inadequate access to seed,
market information, bean processing information, and agricultural 3.2 Building partnerships for markets and
financing agencies. Some platform members or non-members consumption
identified the business opportunities presented by the challenges and
presented a business proposition, which was evaluated and adopted 3.2.1 Commercialization of NUA 45
by platform members. In these platforms, members had opportunities Supplementary Table 1 presents some of the categories of products
to co-learn and co-develop new products to solve pertinent challenges. based on the NUA 45 bean cultivar. Large-scale grain traders set up

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FIGURE 3
Schematic presentation of the innovation platform learning cycle.

bean grain aggregation centers for enhanced bean grain availability in 3.2.2 The innovation platform approach
supermarkets and other conventional markets through smaller The innovation platform approach was used to improve the
entrepreneurs that packaged the grain for household consumption. adoption, production, consumption and marketing of NUA 45. In this
Following the abundance of grain directly from farmers, supermarkets, forum, various actors including farmers, policymakers, traders,
and local markets, two small companies took up further processing of service providers, seed companies, processors, and entrepreneurs
the grain into bean flour, composite flour, and samp (a mixture of along the bean value chain worked together to tackle challenges that
cereals and beans). Before widespread commercialization of NUA 45 were hindering the production, consumption, and marketing of NUA
bean-based products, the most conspicuous bean products on the 45 in Zimbabwe. Five innovation platforms were established in the
market were packaged grain and canned beans, both from cultivars main bean-producing areas of Manicaland, Masvingo, and
other than NUA 45. In addition to grain, the canned beans, flour, and Midlands provinces.
samp all from NUA 45 were also the first of these kinds of products The use of innovation platforms enabled local grassroots
on the market. NUA 45-based flour was particularly overshadowed by coordination for a nationwide strategic vision, such that stakeholders
customarily used soybean and wheat flour. Overall, the NUA 45-based would call others along to a new venture in a new location. For
food products showed great potential and offered diversification of instance, seed companies requested training of farmers on nutrition
dishes, hence their uptake improved. One bean processor with a in new locations, and grain buyers persuaded seed companies to
canning facility started canning NUA 45 in brine. Some NUA 45 make seed available in specific locations. The initial target
farmers in the country adopted household-level processing of NUA beneficiaries were farmers in irrigation schemes; who could grow the
45, making plain and composite bean-cereal flours for domestic use cultivar up to three times within a calendar year. In addition,
and local community sales. Furthermore, bean flour is now sold in stakeholders also found a way of processing NUA 45 grain into
urban farmers’ markets such as Mbare (Harare), Sakubva (Mutare) various food products. Working together with researchers, this joint
and Chitima (Masvingo). learning fostered ownership of the brand as groups and individuals
Some farmers recorded yields of more than 1,000 kg/ha and others were keen to showcase their innovations through recipes and
vertically integrated processing into their farming business to diversify processed products. NUA 45 was the dominant product traded
income avenues. In terms of capacity building, farmers and across the major bean corridors making the grain available in almost
entrepreneurs received training in local bean processing into various all the biggest informal urban markets in Zimbabwe. These markets
bean-based products. Furthermore, school teachers in the zones of include Mbare (Harare), Sakubva (Mutare), Chitima (Masvingo),
influence reported better school attendance and academic grades of Kudzanai (Gweru) and Mandava (Zvishavane). Furthermore, the
primary school pupils. These impact stories have been reported innovation platform approach enabled farmers to increase
(Muthoni-Andriatsitohaina et al., 2022). production and aggregation of NUA 45 thus attracting buyers.

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resulted in increases in the number of households that were

consuming biofortified bean varieties.

3.2.3 Policy briefs and enabling policy

environment
The strategy to engage various stakeholders enabled collaboration
rather than competition. The first major collaborator was the
government, which created an enabling policy through the
biofortification strategy. Stakeholders, therefore, rallied behind the call
to reduce micronutrient malnutrition in the country. Furthermore, this
was happening at a time when government efforts were also geared
toward women’s empowerment and the small-to-medium-scale
processing industry. The mandatory food fortification policy coupled
with increased emphasis on nutrition-sensitive agricultural value
chains resulted in increased demand for bio-fortified commodities:
seed, grain, and processed products from biofortified crops such as
orange maize and orange-fleshed sweet potato. In addition, most
programs by the government and development partners used NUA 45
as a vehicle to combat malnutrition in Zimbabwe.

3.2.4 Awareness creation

Multiple field days and awareness campaigns were conducted and
attended by over 9,500 participants annually including farmers,
parents, school pupils, and partners operating locally in the
communities. Companies exhibited their NUA 45 products during the
field days. These were biofortified bean value-added products such as
biscuits, porridge, and yogurt developed for exhibition and tasting by
participants. Promotional materials such as iron-biofortified bean
recipe books, crop cultivar pamphlets, and GAP manuals were
distributed in training sessions. The campaigns were a collaborative
effort between various organizations to promote the cultivation and
consumption of iron-biofortified and improve agricultural practices
in Zimbabwe.
The DARID in collaboration with CIAT-Harvest Plus ran live
FIGURE 4 radio discussions on the role of biofortified crops (including NUA 45)
Contrasting appearance of bean varieties: (A) red mottled NUA 45 in addressing malnutrition. The radio programs reached approximately
(top) and (B) a typical cream red-speckled, also known as sugar-
bean (bottom). 2 million listeners around the country. The number of households
accessing NUA 45 grain and food products per year increased from
8,000 in 2015 to 193,000 in 2021, having peaked at 386000 in 2019.
Cumulatively, more than 1,100,000 households accessed NUA 45
Stakeholders deployed both push-and-pull strategies that enabled between 2015 and 2021. In addition, approximately 102,000 primary
the availability of seed and grain and different locations in the country, school pupils consumed NUA 45 grain through school feeding
starting with irrigation schemes and innovation platforms. programs over 6 years. On average, in each year, 85 schools
Consequently, additional seed companies registered with the Crop participated in the school feeding program and consumed a combined
Breeding Institute (CBI) of DARID to market NUA 45 certified seed. 61 t of NUA 45 grain. Adoption of NUA 45 and the associated GAP
When NUA45 was released in 2010, only one public seed enterprise for the common bean in general, enhanced bean productivity and
was multiplying and marketing the cultivar. However, by the year grain supply in the country. Some farmers recorded NUA 45 grain
2021, 14 seed companies were marketing NUA 45 (Figure 5), making yields above 1,000 kg/ha and others vertically integrated processing
it the most sought-after cultivar. into their farming business to diversify income avenues. In terms of
The amount of NUA 45 certified seed produced in Zimbabwe capacity building, farmers and entrepreneurs received training in local
significantly increased (p < 0.01) from 24 tonnes in 2015 to 816 tonnes bean processing into various bean-based products. Furthermore,
in 2021. Similarly, the cultivar’s market share of certified seed grew school teachers in the zones of influence reported better school
from about 4% in 2015 to 38% in 2021. The time series analysis of the attendance and academic grades among primary school pupils. These
seed production trend showed significant yearly increments for seed have been reported by Muthoni-Andriatsitohaina et al. (2022). A
production volume and biennial increments for the number of seed similar trend in the dissemination of NUA 45 could be experienced in
companies promoting NUA 45. Following the availability of seed, the SADC region following the release of NUA 45 in seven other
NUA 45 spread across the country, including the non-traditional bean southern African countries (Kondwakwenda et al., 2022), and its
growing areas (Figures 6A–C). The widespread production of NUA 45 registration on the SADC regional variety catalog in 2020.

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FIGURE 5
Gains in NUA 45 certified bean seed market share: 2015–2021.

4 Discussion canners dedicated resources to a cultivar not designed for canning.

This was a clear indication of the popularity of the cultivar and
NUA 45’s unique cultivar name and unfamiliar grain color amid stakeholders’ loyalty to giving consumers a lasting experience at
familiar sugar bean varieties presented an acceptability challenge at convenience. It was also clear the ‘belongingness hypothesis’
first, but consumers’ perceptions changed later and the cultivar (Baumeister and Leary, 1995) was at work as stakeholders sought to
became a brand in the country. Borrowing from brand development include NUA 45 products in their product lines. NUA 45 created a
concepts, we discuss some of the prime movers for the bean cultivar’s successful business image and brand personality for all stakeholders
brand below. along the value chain; from seed production to bean-based products.
NUA 45 was released to contribute to the eradication of rampant Key to the NUA 45 brand evolution was the bottom-up approach,
micronutrient deficiency, particularly of Fe and Zn. The brand’s which aimed at meeting the needs of consumers. This concurs with
purpose was thus noble and represented the common good in the notion that consumers are prime movers in transforming food
addressing public health problems. One identified sustainable strategy systems and the business activities around the promotion of healthy
is the mineral biofortification of staple crops, supported by the GoZ’s diets as elaborated by GPAFSN (2020). The transformation however,
food fortification policy, which enabled multi-sectoral stakeholders to requires collaboration and information.
highlight the noble cause. Similar exciting brand themes that resonate Consistent promotion and awareness among the coalition of
with consumers are observed with the LUSH brand’s hand-made partners, built their confidence in the brand and its adoption. The use
unpackaged cosmetics which created a differentiation advantage and of theatre arts was effective in disseminating new knowledge on
fostered loyalty among green-conscious clients (Saraiva, 2022). In biofortification. NUA 45 producers and consumers were widely
agriculture, green branding was proven to enhance consumer loyalty dispersed around the country, and to resolve the demand and supply
(Danko and Nifatova, 2022), but smallholder farmers would prefer glitches in the early days, stakeholders strengthened the networks to
more tangible benefits. The success of any brand depends on the bring convenience, confidence and loyalty in the brand (Coelho et al.,
benefits consumers perceive from it (Aziz and Yasin, 2010), which can 2018) observed that social media brand building needed to
instill stewardship. In addition to the invisible trait of biofortification, be supported by convenience in the availability of products.
farmers perceived NUA 45 as a vigorous, excitable, high-yielding and Furthermore, consumers demonstrated price disdain as the priority
early maturing cultivar that fitted well into their dryland, irrigated and was getting access to the cultivar. Unlike in the clothing sector where
residual moisture bean farming systems. The cultivar’s excitable field demand was reported to fall with premium pricing (Anderson and
performance was accompanied by its versatility in processing various Simester, 2008), NUA 45 consumers were ready to pay a slightly
food products ranging from various simple homemade dry bean soup higher price for the NUA 45 bean grain, a scenario which motivated
recipes to complicated processing such as canning. Despite the producers financially (Muthoni-Andriatsitohaina et al., 2022).
cultivar’s obvious lack of desirable canning qualities, processors Engagement with farmers and other stakeholders kept consistent
explored delivering NUA 45 canned in brine. It was the first time that and audience-specific messaging on benefits from nutritional,

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Maereka et al. 10.3389/fsufs.2024.1260167

FIGURE 6
Spatial spread of NUA 45 production in Zimbabwe: (A) location of individual farmers in 2021 (top), and distribution of production area (ha) at sub-
district level (B) in 2021 (bottom left) and (C) in 2022 (bottom right).

agricultural, and business perspectives. Stakeholders were consistently toward NUA 45, allowing the cultivar to gain considerable
updated on bean biofortification efficacy studies (Lung'aho et al., market share.
2015), new bean-based products, and progress from counterparts in This positive predictability encouraged emerging and
other countries. Sharing results from the proof-of-concept studies on established businesses to further invest in the cultivar and its
the efficacy of high-iron bean beans in preventing iron deficiency products, ushering in drastic changes to the grain market scenario.
anemia (Haas et al., 2016; Luna et al., 2020), helped build the Hitherto, grain aggregation had been supply-based, but the advent
confidence of researchers, private seed companies’ staff and of NUA 45 marked the beginning of demand-led aggregation based
agricultural and health extension staff, the internal brand health. This on varietal preferences. Similarly, dry bean grain packs in
internal brand health was buttressed by stakeholders’ experiential supermarkets did not carry the cultivar names, but, for the first
engagements with the brand as they sought to develop, test, and time, bean grain began selling under specific cultivar names in
entrench their specific products. Awareness of NUA 45 was made supermarkets and farmers’ markets and NUA 45 grain attracted a
through various electronic and print media, and word of mouth premium. However, the downside was fake NUA 45 bean sold to
(WOM) as stakeholders shared the brand values while at the same unsuspecting customers and misspelling of the brand to ‘Nower
time capitalizing on the opportunities that were opening. The strength beans’ or ‘Noah beans,’ both of which represent information gaps
of peer opinions and recommendations (Laroche et al., 2013; Bowen between the breeding, seed production, production, and marketing
and Bowen, 2015) on building trust was evident for NUA 45. Farmers, phases of the value chain.
consumers, and extension staff became brand ambassadors. Seed Efforts are required to close this gap for brand consistency.
production and processing activities in the bean subsector gravitated Inconsistency in the labeling resulted in the low uptake of NUA 45

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Maereka et al. 10.3389/fsufs.2024.1260167

canned in brine. The processor might have left consumers confused (USAID).3 Multi-country release of NUA 45 and its registration on the
and unaware of the ‘brand inside’ the can by labeling the product as SADC regional variety catalog in 2020, therefore, created a pathway
‘biofortified sugar bean in brine’ instead of ‘NUA 45 biofortified beans for large-scale private sector investments (Kondwakwenda et al., 2022)
in brine.’ Contrary to the flour, the samp variations of NUA 45 were which can further strengthen the brand at the southern African
more acceptable on the market due to consumer familiarity with regional level.
similar traditional dishes, but their uptake was limited by the high The NUA 45 brand brought multiple benefits to various
cooking energy requirements. The need to explore pre-cooked grain stakeholders including school children, farmers, and traders
and samp becomes a worthy cause. (Muthoni-Andriatsitohaina et al., 2022). The brand also facilitated the
Throughout the promotion of NUA 45, the researchers emergence of other business brands in food processing. Similar to
maintained consistent engagement with the various stakeholders to brand endorsement, NUA 45 now features on the Southern African
understand their evolving needs through innovation platforms. Plant Breeders Association (SAPBA) website wall of fame in
Furthermore, the innovation platforms brought ‘previously silent recognition of its distinctive, broader consumer and agribusiness
voices’ to the fore. We saw an increased number of women in experience.4 Following the success of NUA 45, farmers recommended
leadership positions and women entrepreneurs in NUA 45 (PABRA, improvements to the cultivar., particularly increasing the grain test
2022). In addition, the stakeholders demonstrated their interest in weight, given that grain off-takers preferred buying grain on weight
developing and validating new products through field and cooking (weighing scales) rather than volumetric (20-liter buckets) basis.
or processing demonstrations. For instance, farmer groups in the
north-eastern bean corridor were quick to adopt biofortified bean
value-addition and needed help with market linkages and training 5 Conclusion
in product branding. Importantly, there was a clear collaboration
among stakeholders. The consistent engagement enabled the The dissemination of NUA 45 in Zimbabwe demonstrated the
principals to generate clear anticipation of needs and aimed at possibility of spontaneous brand evolution. In the absence of a
delivering beyond expectation through networks of collaboration deliberate initial effort toward branding, the market drive can result
and information sharing. In similar collaborative efforts according in the organic development of a brand. It is therefore important to
to the customer brand engagement theories and frameworks, have meaningful distinctness and brand purpose to achieve wide
co-creation enhances the consumers’ experiences, satisfaction, and variety dissemination. Secondly, co-development of products ensured
loyalty and may lead to the consumers taking up the marketing ‘personalized’ experiences with NUA 45 that facilitated a quick gain
function (Fernandes and Moreira, 2019). Consistent referral by in customer brand loyalty as each stakeholder referred other
satisfied customers built brand reliability among the common bean stakeholders, akin to the adage, ‘customers that bring customers.’
farmers and loyalty, which according to Jacoby and Kyner (1973), Third, variety dissemination needs to be driven by a viable business
is the careful selection of repurchases based on preference, and not case, which in this case, was demonstrated by the various stakeholders
any other reason. Bean farmers and processors had other varieties from farmers to processors. Furthermore, collaborative multi-
at their disposal but repeatedly chose to grow and process NUA 45, disciplinary and multi-sectoral approaches involving crop research,
respectively. nutrition, agronomy, education and markets elaborated through
The multi-stakeholder approach significantly contributed to the effective communication are key in driving the demand and supply of
increase in the adoption rate of NUA 45 from 2% in 2015 to 29% in crop varieties. In our study, we appreciated that consumers know their
2018 (Katungi et al., 2020) and further to 47% in 2021. These gains are needs better than any other stakeholder, and therefore allowed
attributed to the government’s push for food fortification combined inclusive innovations to address challenges faster than a
with the intensive awareness campaigns, which both raised the top-down approach.
demand for NUA45 in Zimbabwe. This demand-led approach to Leveraging government efforts also helped the brand initially
service and product delivery ensured successful collaboration along known as ‘that red bean’ to take off and become a ‘red diamond,’ rare
the value chain. NUA 45 provided good marketability for income and precious in the breeding pipeline. Typical of successful brands,
generation, but farmers needed to balance the selling of its harvest NUA 45 laid the foundation for other biofortified varieties in the
with its consumption for nutrition security. country through key lessons and a new set of institutional memory
Overall, one major selling point for the NUA 45 brand was the and brand recognition. Going forward it would be prudent to conduct
absence of brand polarity, which often divides opinion. For instance, studies on sustaining brand engagement and how consumer behavior
debates around transgenic crops stalled the dissemination of will influence the uptake of other biofortified varieties that will
nutritionally enhanced transgenic crops under the African biofortified be released in the country after NUA 45. An examination of
sorghum project (Kamanga et al., 2014; Wambugu et al., 2015) and generational nuances across consumers and how these affect NUA 45
golden rice (Glover et al., 2020) banners. Instead, PABRA’s germplasm purchase decisions is key for ascertaining its sustainability.
sharing scheme facilitated the release of NUA 45 in multiple countries Furthermore, it would be interesting to understand if the spontaneous
in southern Africa, where the cultivar has gone on to command brand would have emerged in the absence of government support.
popularity also, providing a regional trade opportunity for both seed
and grain to address deficits. This further strengthened the demand
for NUA 45 seed in Zimbabwe and regionally. Some Zimbabwean seed
companies responded to the NUA 45 regional seed demand by 3 https://www.usaid.gov/southern-africa-regional/news/
exporting certified seed of the cultivar to neighboring countries with regional-seed-trade-empowers-farmers-and-bolsters-food-security
the support of the United States Agency for International Development 4 https://sapba.co.za/

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Maereka et al. 10.3389/fsufs.2024.1260167

Data availability statement common bean research program of Zimbabwe to implement various
projects that culminated in this study. The publication of this article
The original contributions presented in the study are included in was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation grant number
the article/Supplementary material, further inquiries can be directed INV-009649/OPP1198373.
to the corresponding author.

Conflict of interest
Author contributions
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the
EM: Conceptualization, Data curation, Investigation, absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could
Methodology, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing. be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
BM: Data curation, Investigation, Methodology, Visualization,
Writing – review & editing, Writing – original draft. FK: Data
curation, Investigation, Methodology, Visualization, Writing – review Publisher’s note
& editing, Validation, Writing – original draft. EN: Data curation,
Investigation, Methodology, Writing – review & editing, Validation. All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors
ST: Data curation, Investigation, Methodology, Writing – review & and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated
editing, Validation. RM-A: Data curation, Investigation, Methodology, organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the
Writing – review & editing, Validation. DC: Data curation, reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim
Investigation, Methodology, Writing – review & editing, Validation. that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed
by the publisher.

Funding
Supplementary material
The author(s) declare financial support was received for the
research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. The Pan Africa The Supplementary material for this article can be found online
Bean Research Alliance (PABRA) of the International Center for at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2024.1260167/
Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) financially supported the national full#supplementary-material

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