Evaluation of improved ‘Mena’ Teff variety under frontline demonstration in dry-land areas, Northeast Ethiopia

Teff is an important staple cereal growing in diverse agro ecologies in Ethiopia. Its productivity in dry-land areas however remains below the national and regional averages due to drought stress, limited input use, and reliance on local cultivars. This study therefore evaluated the improved teff variety under the farmers’ field conditions in Wag-lasta area, Northeast Ethiopia, to assess its agronomic performance, economic profitability, and farmer acceptance. The demonstration was conducted in the 2022/23 production season with 12 host and 28 follower farmers, organized into FREGs. Each host farmer planted the improved Mena variety and the local cultivar side by side under uniform management conditions. Agronomic data (grain yield, straw yield, and days to maturity), economic data (input and output costs), and farmer preference scores were collected and analyzed using paired t-test, partial-budget approach, and preference ranking matrices. Results showed that Mena produced 1803.6 kg ha –1 grain yield that exceeds the local variety by 12.7%, and matured 8.5 days earlier. The technology gap relative to potential yield was 516.4 kg ha –1 , with a technology index of 22.2%. The economic analysis revealed a net benefit of 69,568.3ETB ha –1 for Mena, exceeding the local variety by 9354.9ETB ha –1 , with MRR of 2079%. Farmers consistently preferred Mena for earliness, adaptability, and grain yield. These findings demonstrated that Mena offers significant productivity and profitability advantages, supporting its scaling in dry-land teff production systems. The adoption of Mena teff variety with its production package thus can enhance food security, resilience, and income in moisture-deficit environments.