Potato farmers in Uganda wait on new ‘Victoria’

Researchers from the National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO) in Uganda, working closely with the International Potato Center (CIP), are about to complete multi-location field trials and laboratory analyses of an improved, transgenic Victoria potato. These trials are part of a comprehensive risk assessment of improved potato, to get it approved by Uganda’s National Biosafety Committee.

The Victoria is a popular local potato variety in Uganda. Farmers love it because of its high yields. However, Victoria is also extremely susceptible to potato Late Blight (LB) disease. With each growing season, these farmers face a threat of 60 to 100 percent yield losses due to LB. Climate related risks have worsened the situation leading to increasingly food insecure households.

Field trials of the improved Victoria variety have shown complete resistance to LB disease, without use of fungicides. These trials are being conducted at the Kachwekano Zonal Agriculture Research Institute (KAZARDI), one of NARO’s field sites in Uganda. In 2016, farmers joined other stakeholders for a visit to the site to assess performance of the new potato against the local Victoria. Many were excited at the prospect of a LB resistant Victoria.

Cgiar.org explains that, with trials on this potato almost complete, how soon farmers can access them depends on approval from government biosafety regulatory authorities in Uganda. This research has been supported by the United States Agency of International Development (USAID) and the 2Blades Foundation.