BRAC Seed and Agro A BRAC Social Enterprise

BRAC has been working in the agriculture sector since 1972. The objective is to enhance food and nutritional security by ensuring the consistent supply of quality agricultural inputs including resilient varieties, promoting sustainable production technologies and appropriate mechanisation to reduce post-harvest losses. Photo credit: BRAC Quality seeds are one of the necessary factors for high yields. To ensure quality seed supply, BRAC Worker examining specimen in BRAC Seed and Agro lab has been marketing hybrid maize seeds since 1994, and hybrid rice seeds since 1998. It also started producing hybrid maize seeds BRAC Seed and Agro With 22 production centres and in 1996-97, vegetable seeds in Enterprise today about 7,000 contract farmers around 1996, and hybrid rice seeds in the country BRAC is the country’s 2001. BRAC has established the BRAC Seed and Agro Enterprise largest producer of hybrid maize value chain system of production has three agricultural research and seed and second largest producer and distribution for seeds and development centres in Gazipur, of potato seed. It has the largest other agricultural inputs, allowing (Sherpur) and (Birol). market share for rice seed (hybrid the enterprise to offer fair prices The centres are conducting applied and high-yielding varieties), maize to the farmers. BRAC Seed research on plant tissue culture, seed, potato seed and vegetable and Agro Enterprise focuses vegetables, rice and maize. It has seed. The seed and agro enterprise on supplying quality agricultural a soil-testing laboratory with the has established five seed processing inputs, appropriate production capacity of testing around 3,000 soil centres with a processing capacity and post-harvest technologies to samples per year. Our researchers of 12,000 metric tons per year, along enhance production and reduce focus on discovering new varieties with 11 modern storage systems with post-harvest losses to optimise the that meet the needs of both regional the capacity of 4,400 metric tons. profit of poor and marginal farmers. farmers and consumers. BRAC has To ensure high quality seeds, the Additionally, it is important to BRAC developed five hybrid rice varieties, enterprise uses automatic polymer to use sustainable methods, so that four hybrid maize varieties, 10 seed coating treatment (fungicide) agricultural development does not hybrid vegetable varieties and three and an automatic packaging occur at the cost of environment open-pollinated vegetable varieties. system. Furthermore, it promotes harmony. It has registered 12 hybrid rice environment-friendly farming by exotic varieties through government marketing micronutrients like zinc authorities. and boron in order to tackle the rising micronutrient deficiency in soil.

www.brac.net BRAC’s seed and agro enterprise Besides the core seed business, the At a glance has built the value chain system of seed and agro enterprise is currently 3 agriculture research and production and distribution through working with two projects, ‘agri- development centres a wide network of 450 dealers business for trade Competitiveness and more than 4,500 sub-dealers Project (ATC-P) ’, which 22 production centres around the country. BRAC Seed and ensures the availability of quality 5 modern equipped seed processing Agro Enterprise is now marketing vegetable seeds at hard-to-reach centres with the capacity of 12,000 26 hybrid varieties and 27 open areas and ‘SUSTAIN’, which aims metric tons per year pollinated varieties of vegetable to ensure nutrition-enriched orange seed, 13 hybrid varieties and 19 flesh sweet potato production and 11 modern storage system with the high-yield varieties of rice seed, promotion on chars and areas with capacity of 4,400 metric tons 14 hybrid varieties of maize seed salty soil and water. Previously, 5 own developed hybrid rice varieties and 5 varieties potato seed. During BRAC Seed and Agro Enterprise 4 own developed hybrid maize the production season 2014-15, worked on the USAID Horticulture varieties the enterprise has marketed 1,600 Project to improve incomes, metric tons hybrid rice seed, 1,300 nutrition and health in Bangladesh 10 own developed hybrid vegetable metric tons high-yielding varieties through the cultivation of potato, varieties of rice seed, 590 metric tons sweet-potato and vegetables. 450 dealers and over 4,500 sub- hybrid maize seed, 125 metric tons The enterprise also collaborated dealers in supply chain vegetable seeds and 9,600 metric with CIP, under FoodSTART, for a tons potato seeds. In the seed project funded by IFAD to ensure Marketing 53 varieties of vegetable business, BRAC Seed and Agro food security through roots and seed, 13 hybrid varieties, 19 high- Enterprise has 19% market share tuber crops. Another project was yield varieties of rice seed, 14 in hybrid rice, 23% in hybrid maize, conducted in collaboration with hybrid varieties of maize seed and 5 36% in potatoes (of organised seed Katalyst, under Swisscontact, varieties of potato seed supplied) and 8% in vegetables. In which involved the promotion of Marketing 1,600 metric tons hybrid tandem, BRAC is also importing maize cultivation through increasing rice seed, 1,300 metric tons inbreed quality seeds regularly to increase awareness, access to information rice seed, 590 metric tons hybrid the national production of high- and quality inputs in the southern maize seed, 9600 metric tons potato yielding varieties invented across the region of the country in order to seed and 125 metric tons vegetable globe. allow farmers to generate income. seed annually

The Bangladesh map indicates BRAC seed production centres (rice, maize, potato, vegetable) and seed processing centres in various icons

Pirganj, Thakurgaon Jaldhaka, Nilphamari Thakurgaon sader

Birol Seed Farm, Dinajpur Mithapukur, Pirganj- Rangpur Basherhat Birganj,Birol- Dinajpur Rangpur sader Birol, Birganj, Kaharul, Bochaganj- Dinajpur Birol, Ambari- Dinajpur Nandina, Sherpur, Bogra Sherpur, Bogra Tarakanda, Sherpur, Bogra Salonga, Sreepur, Gazipur Meherpur sader , Gazipur

Dashuria and Athguria, Pabna

Hybrid Rice Seed Production Centre

HYV Rice Seed Production Centre

Maize Seed Production Centre

Potato Seed Production Centre Vegetable Production Centre Source: Seed and Agro Enterprise, BRAC Seed Processing Centre

Although every effort has been made to include and verify the accuracy of relevant information in this fact sheet, users are urged to check independently on matters of specific interest. Report any discrepancies/suggestions to [email protected]. This document was last updated on 30 June 2015, is revised half yearly and made available on www.brac.net/visitors.