The variety was identified through a rigorous, multi-stage selection process Nigeria has approved the release of SAMNUT 30 (ICGV 206228), a high-performing groundnut variety developed by ICRISAT, marking an important…

The variety was identified through a rigorous, multi-stage selection process

Nigeria has approved the release of SAMNUT 30 (ICGV 206228), a high-performing groundnut variety developed by ICRISAT, marking an important step toward enhancing productivity and resilience and food and nutrition security among smallholder farmers.

The new variety stands out for its high grain yield, strong stability across environments, and combined tolerance to major diseases, including rosette disease, early leaf spot, and late leaf spot.

In addition to grain yield, it also offers strong haulm yield (the total weight of above-ground vegetative biomass, including stems and leaves), making it a dual-purpose variety for both food and fodder.

The variety was identified through a rigorous, multi-stage selection process.

Initially, ten medium-duration groundnut lines, along with the benchmark variety SAMNUT 29, were shortlisted from on-station trials conducted in 2022.

These lines were subsequently evaluated in replicated, multi-location trials across six sites in the Northern Guinea and Sudano-Sahelian savanna zones during the 2024 and 2025 growing seasons.

Three top-performing lines were then tested in on-farm trials in 2025 with 11 farmers across five locations in Kano, Jigawa, and Bauchi states.

These farmer-participatory trials confirmed the superior performance of ICGV 206228, which consistently delivered the highest yields and demonstrated strong adaptability across diverse agro-ecologies.

Welcoming the release, Director General of ICRISAT, Dr Himanshu Pathak, commended the strong collaboration among partners, including the Nigerian National Variety Release Committee, NARS, Bayero University Kano (BUK) and the Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR), as well as the financial support of the Dryland Crops Program (DCP), formerly the Accelerated Varietal Improvement and Seed Systems in Africa (AVISA) project.

“This milestone underscores our strong and growing partnership with Nigeria’s agricultural research system to deliver impact where it matters.

“Building on ICRISAT’s experience in strengthening value chains across countries such as Malawi, India, and Bangladesh, we are confident SAMNUT 30 will strengthen food and nutrition security while creating new market opportunities for smallholder farmers in Nigeria” said Dr Pathak.