Peru is the cradle of more than three thousand varieties of potatoes. However, it's also a country with very low yields and a business scheme that is practically in crisis, as demonstrated by the protests that producers made some months ago after prices collapsed.
In this context, Cusco will be the venue for the tenth edition of the World Potato Congress, which will be held between May 27 and 31, this year. It will be the first time that this event, which brings together specialists, scientists and farmers linked to the development of this crop, will be held in Latin America.
"This congress will have a special connotation because it's the first time it will be held in Latin America and because it will be held in Peru, where this tuber originated and the home for nearly 3,500 potato varieties that are conserved thanks to the farmers. This represents a great opportunity for the country because we are making the potential of our agricultural biodiversity, regarding potatoes, known to the scientific and business world," said Jesus Caldas Cueva, the general director of Agrarian Innovation at INIA.
But how will this event help improve the country's potato producer's reality?
Caldas, who is also the technical secretary of the organization of the Potato World Congress, said producers would benefit from the keynote presentations and the presentation of the results of various scientific research for genetic improvement and cultivation in general. Thus, he said, Peru could find formulas to improve its current yields, which amount to 15 tons per hectare, a very low rate compared to the 30 tons per hectare achieved by moderately developed countries.
"There are several factors that influence the potatoes' low yields. I think the most important factor is the seed; our farmers generally do not use improved seeds and that means that the crops are not so uniform, that the production per potato crop is not the best. There are also fertilization issues, irrigation issues, that producers are only planting in rainfed fields, and control of pests and diseases issues," he said.
Producers need to improve productivity, but they also need to learn to place the Peruvian production with its special characteristics in the markets, especially in the case of native potatoes, he added. That is, adding value to the product and aspiring to better prices.
Regarding State institutions, he said that the INIA had been working for almost 40 years in the search to improve the conditions of this fundamental tuber for the food sustainability of the country. In fact, thanks to this research effort, between 1978 and 1980, more than 60 potato varieties were liberated, many of which reached the market and helped to improve the producers' quality of life. "For example, the canchán potato, among other varieties, was created thanks to the work of INIA scientists."
When asked what to do to avoid crises (like the one experienced a few months ago with the dramatic fall of prices), Jesus Caldas said that the only possible solution was to continue researching and appealing to technology to work on the genome of the different varieties of this tuber to find combinations that offer better performance and higher quality.
In addition, producers had to rationality determine which crops to work with: "When it comes to sowing, sometimes producers are too enthusiastic and plant large quantities. To avoid and oversupply, we must work in coordination with producer organizations, our neighbors, and the market. In addition, producers must diversify, find other alternatives to potato because, unfortunately, there are close to 400 thousand hectares producing this product, which often leads to overproduction and a fall in prices," he said.
Source: agraria.pe