Cassava_Value Chain Analysis: Overview

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OVERVIEW

Worldwide demand for Cassava by-producer is on and increasing but only Thailand, the leading world producer of cassava starch, is truly undergoing transformation towards industrial uses. In market analysis on cassava by-products, rarely is a distinction made between cassava flour and starch, they come from cassava root starch but go through different phases of production. 

The flour is obtained from drying that have been cut into pieces, roots are washed peeled 1 cut into chips, dried and milled in Brazil, 70 to 80% of cassava production is used exclusively for making flour, while cassava starch is a substance extracted from the tubers which must be process within 48 hours of being harvested. By washing, peeling and grating, the grains of starch are liberated and then processed by soaking, successive sieving, centrifugation, pressing, drying and silting before packaging.

The starch is used in many sectors, including the food industry, pharmaceutical chemistry, foundry, textiles, paper and adhesives. According to the FAO, overall an average to 60 M.T of starch is extracted per year from various cereals, roots and tuber, but only 10% of this starch comes from cassava. Global production of bio-ethanol should in general, reach 155 billion liters in 2020, i.e. 50% more than in 2012. Only about 10% of global cassava production is traded for the last ten years, flour into Asia has greatly accelerated and today Asia represented 90% of world imports.  

Cassava is a sunlight industry and believed to be an emerging catalyst for National and Local Development because of its contribution as food, feeds, ingredients for poultry, feeds tock for the production of bio-ethanol and other industrial uses. The demands for cassava continuous to increase while own local production still lags behind. We need to enhance our local production by adopting a value chain approach and technological advances in order for us to be competitive with other countries.

In the Province of Zamboanga del Sur, the area utilized for Cassava production is increasing by 22% with an estimated production of 12,098.70 MT covering an area of 2,733 hectares (BAS–2012 where 10-15% of cassava production is utilized for food consumption. Most Filipino are eating cassava during breakfast and snacks. (BAS-2009).

Product Level

Cassava is a starchy root crop that develops underground, the tuber grows 2-4 kilograms due to its resistance to drought and diseases can remain in the ground for 2 years.  Cassava is cultivated on small farm size associated with mixed cropping  systems by utilizing/cultivating 1000sq.m per month through progressive farming methods. Thus, in ten months the farmers can develop a one hectare cassava farmland. Cassava production in Zamboanga del Sur is substantially increasing attributed to an increase in area of land cultivated and farmer cooperators.

Cassava provides a reliable source of carbohydrates for home consumption where 10% – 20% for human and animal consumption and 70% to 80% as dried chips for marketing to ZDS Crop Farmers Marketing Cooperatives (ZDSC FAMACO).

Cassava production in Zamboanga del Sur started its operation in 2003 with 5,791 farmer- cooperators which grew to 18,916 in 2011 with an estimated production volume of 3.493 mt (dried cassava chips).

Production System

Production practices may be completely manual, partially mechanized or animal driven especially for land preparation. The majority of the cassava farm in the province ranges from 0.2 to almost a hectare only (Figure 3) per farmer. The prevailing price of cassava is P8.75 per kilogram for cassava dried chips. In areas where farm are relatively large, cassava is intercropped with tree crops or corn and vegetables. Farms may be individually tilled by adopting pit system with organic fertilizer application to increase farm productivity and maintain soil fertility.

Farmers acquire planting materials from the Provincial Government or from their own Cassava plants from the previous cropping. Small holders also rely on the Provincial Government for access to seedlings of high yielding varieties. Good quality planting materials should be at least 8 months old. Freshly harvested stalk when planted exhibit superior quality compared to stored planting materials. The genetic potential of a planting materials result high crop yield and the application of organic fertilizer is economically feasible and climate resilient practice.

Cassava roots can be harvested within 10 months after planting. Harvest cassava preferable during dry season to minimized occurrence of molds/ rotting of tubers. Farmers are practicing manual chipping with knife and sundried or through coconut kiln drier and after being dried, it has a longer shelf life allowing longer distance marketing. 

Global Outlook

The volume of export according to the United Nation Food and Agriculture Organization, the Philippines ranks number 23^rd in cassava production of 2,223,144 M.T. compared to Nigeria rank as number 1  with 54,000.000MT, followed by Indonesia, Brazel, Thailand with an estimated production of 23,922.075 M.T., 23,414.267 M.T., 22,500.700 M.T. respectively and other leading cassava producers in the world.

The Philippine production quantity of 2,223,144 M.T. has a world share of 0.9% compared to Nigeria production quantity of 54,000,000 M.T. has a world share of 20.4%. World Cassava output in 2012 is expected to reach 281,718 M.T., an increase of 7 percent from the level of 2011. The expansion has been prominent in recent years, is being driven by increasing Industrial application and continuing demand for pellets for animal feed in traditional market, whole in Asia, in 2012 Cassava production is set to increase by 11 percent to 93 million tones (FAO-2012 Food Outlook Global Market Analysis ) .

The industrial utilization of Cassava in the form of alcohol and ethanol has been the main driver of the 80 percent expansion in the crops cultivation throughout the region in the past ten years.

National Level

The country with 222,284 hectares planted to cassava, produces 2,222,837.40 M.T. of cassava or a harvest rate of 10mt/ha.  In Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) has the highest area planted to cassava with 101,896 or 46% national share, followed by Northern Mindanao with 471,511 hectares or 24% share, Central Visayas with 5% share: Bicol Region with 5% share; Eastern Visayas with 4% share, Western Visayas with 3% share and Zamboanga Peninsula with 1% share while at the regional level, the province of Zamboanga del Sur has the highest production volume of 12,098.70 M.T. and Followed by Zamboanga City of 9294.1 M.T., Zamboanga del Norte – 5,877.73 M.T. and Zamboanga Sibugay - 2,782.75 M.T. The total production volume for the region is 30,053.28 M.T. in 2012.