Potato diversity from the Andes supports climate resilience efforts in East Africa

Modern potatoes are bred from a relatively narrow genetic pool, while the diseases and environmental pressures affecting potato production continue to evolve. In East Africa’s highland potato-growing regions, breeders and farmers are increasingly seeing potato varieties struggle under pressure from disease, heat and aggressive pests.

Winnifred Ackeck, potato breeder at the International Potato Center (CIP):

"The disease pressure in East Africa, especially in Uganda, is too high. We get varieties that have been bred and released as resistant, but when they come to Uganda, they break down."

This “breakdown” remains a constant threat.

Many potatoes currently grown in Africa were never bred for the extreme heat or aggressive pests now affecting East African highland farms. A large share of potato breeding research has historically taken place in regions with cooler climates and higher rainfall, particularly in the Netherlands, Germany and the United States. 

Over the past 30 years, potatoes have become increasingly important in East Africa as both a staple food and a major source of income. When varieties fail, harvest losses quickly affect local food supplies and food security. As a result, breeders are searching for new potato varieties adapted to these changing conditions while also looking for greater crop diversity to support future breeding efforts.
 

Potato diversity from the Andes

Scientists at CIP are exploring the potato diversity found in the Andes Mountains of South America, the crop’s centre of origin, to broaden the genetic base of modern potatoes. The Andes preserve thousands of native potato varieties and wild relatives that contain traits developed through centuries of cultivation and adaptation to different climates, soils and pest pressures.

While supermarkets often offer only a limited number of potato varieties, Andean farmers continue cultivating highly diverse potatoes adapted to a wide range of environmental conditions. Wild potato species found in dry landscapes and hot slopes contain genetic traits linked to heat resilience, drought tolerance and natural pest resistance. According to researchers, this crop diversity could become increasingly important as climate pressures intensify.

Thiago Mendes, potato breeder at CIP:

"Potato diversity is like a toolbox. Each variety carries genes that help us solve a different challenge. Even if a plant is not commercially useful today, it may carry a trait we'll need tomorrow."

Thiago Mendes, Potato Breeder at the International Potato Center (CIP) in Nairobi, Kenya: 'Science alone can’t decide what’s best. The farmers' preferences shapes the future of potato in the highlands'. (Courtesy: Crop Trust)

The CIP genebank in Peru currently protects around 4,900 potato varieties, including 140 crop wild relatives, many with genetic traits that can help breeders develop potatoes that withstand heat, drought and disease. Through the Crop Trust’s BOLD project, this diversity is being tapped for crop improvement programs in Africa.
 

Breeding For the Future

In the pre-breeding step of the process, hardy wild relatives are crossed with cultivated potatoes to create new breeding lines. The offspring are then repeatedly crossed with domesticated potatoes until only the useful traits of the wild plant remain, such as disease resistance or heat tolerance. In partnership with CIP, the Crop Trust has launched specialized trials in Kenya to develop varieties adapted to the pressures of the tropical highlands.
 

Winnifred Ackeck:

"Science is catching up with the problem, but it needs continuous resource allocation – time, money and the exchange of crop diversity."

Resilience takes time. Breeding new varieties takes time. Each season, breeders like Thiago and Winnifred invite farmers to walk the trial plots, examine new crosses and help select the most promising lines. By drawing on the genetic traits in the crop diversity from the Andes, these efforts are giving hope to East African farms, one potato breeding cycle at a time.

 

Local farmers from Njoro, Kenya, join in CIP’s breeding trials to ensure new potato varieties reflect their preferred traits and growing conditions. (Courtesy: Crop Trust)