News on Potato Cultivation from Africa

The county Nyandarua in Kenya has received a Sh116 million (€1 million; USD 1.16 million) grant from the European Union to boost potato farming.

Pepsico's joint venture in Egypt, Chipsy For Food Industries SAE, announced a major agricultural programme to produce all seed potatoes locally.

To deal with climate pressures, potato growers in Kenya are turning to contract farming to earn more money and get better seed.

The International Potato Center (CIP) and BlackPace Africa Group (BPA) executed a Technical and Scientific agreement to advance potato production in Africa, with focus on Rwanda.

Experts in potato breeding and research have identified Eastern Province of Rwanda as a potential alternative for clean potato seed production.

Zambia and South Africa may be perfectly at peace, but farmers on either side of the Limpopo River - the border between the two countries - seem engaged in a trade war. And it is mostly about potatoes...

The potato value chain project in Plateau state (Nigeria) - to be funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB) - will be formally launched in the state by June.

Potato farming in Nigeria has the potential to generate billions of Naira (millions of USD) annually. Nigeria produces about 1.5 million tons of potato per year and has a per capita consumption of about 7kg per year. However, many farmers struggle to sell to formal commercial buyers, mainly due to poor product quality and lack of organization.

Some 23,000 farmers in 13 potato-producing counties in Kenya have signed contracts with various potato processing companies in the country to buy the produce to supply enough food to consumers.

In a bid to increase yields of Irish potatoes production in Tanzania, Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor of Tanzanians (SAGCOT) has introduced a new system where its growers are encouraged to use modern tilling tractors in its pilot study areas.

Michael Agbogo, co-founder of Vicampro, disclosed that Nigerians consume about 120 tonnes of French fries daily, even as the whole of West Africa region lacks real food processors. According to him, 'Nigeria imports about $200 million worth of French fries annually'...

Farmers of Irish potatoes in Rwanda are decrying not only the shortage of quality seeds but also the mounting prices.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) potato value chain project that will boost potato farming will commence in the State Plateau (Nigeria) soon.

Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Fishing Sid Ahmed Ferroukhi stressed Thursday in Algiers that potato exports will continue during the three upcoming years to reach 70,000 tons.

The fast expansion of cities and towns and the popularity of fast foods have created a rapidly increasing demand for potatoes in Kenya.

You can now join the East Africa Potato Value Chain Knowledge Sharing Portal, which aims to address the scientific and technological divide in the field of agricultural value-chain innovations by enabling East African research organizations to create, update and use scientific knowledge and technological innovations.

An unidentified agricultural company from the Netherlands will support farmers in large scale potato production in the irrigated area of ​​Matala, in Angola’s Huila province.

Drought and hot conditions since September 2015 have a negative impact on yields in almost all the potato production regions in South Africa. Currently market prices are at the highest levels ever, while potato stock levels are at record low levels.