News on Potato Varieties and Seed from Asia

Opening ceremonies of KOPIA Pakistan Centre and Aeroponic Potato Seed Production System was held at NARC Islamabad.

Red Candy, a new potato variety launched by Technico Agri Sciences Ltd, combines early bulking with better storability. This addresses the key concerns of potato growers in e.g. in Bihar and Northern parts of West Bengal.

India based seed potato company Utkal Tubers is focused on the development of high yielding disease resistant varieties.

Technico Agricultural Sciences Limited (TASL), India has been carrying out extensive varietal evaluation trials under its Varietal Advancement program across the potato producing states in the country.

Recently Mahindra HZPC brought 30 more potato varieties from HZPC to India. They include HZPC's Perupas, an assortment of colourful varieties, rich in antioxidants for healthy lifestyle. The recently introduced varieties are expected to give rise to new and differentiated supply chains, especially in the modern retail space.

Chinese scientists have 'fixed' hybrid potatoes using genome editing technologies, simplifying the breeding process and allowing multiplication using True Potato Seed (TPS).

Union Additional Secretary Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare, Vivek Agarwal said Jammu and Kashmir has the potential to produce high quality virus-free potato seeds and become its largest producer.

Technico Agri Sciences Limited (a 100% subsidiary of ITC Ltd.) is an Agri-Biotech Company involved in the business of producing and selling 'Early Generation' high vigor seed potatoes, with its award winning TECHNITUBER® Seed Technology.

Un equipo de investigación del Instituto de Genómica Agrícola de Shenzhen, dependiente de la Academia China de Ciencias Agrícolas, avanza en un plan de diseño del genoma para papas híbridas.

The potato harvest in Iraq has started. Staff of the Beirut Erbil Potato Processing Company (B.E.P.P. Co) - known in Iraq for their potato chips brands Mito and Mr, Krisper, but active throughout the entire potato supply chain - are working hard in various regions of Iraq from Karbala to Diyala to Al-Rabiah, Dohuk, Erbil, and beyond.

A new variety of potatoes named ‘Murovdag’ has begun to be grown in Azerbaijan, according to Elmar Allahverdiyev, director of the Research Institute of Vegetable Growing under the Ministry of Agriculture.

Dignitaries, researchers, and private sector representatives gathered this week in southwestern Georgia to celebrate the opening of a potato seed model farm.

New foreign varieties of potatoes are grown in Azerbaijan. Samir Verdiyev, a local farmer said he grows potatoes in six districts of the country, delivering only seeds of varieties to Azerbaijan.

Agrico's Phytophthora-resistant Next Generation varieties Carolus and Alouette are cultivated in Bangladesh. These varieties provide a solid foundation for a sustainable and healthy crop. Because of their natural resistance to Phytophthora, they have increased yield security with the least possible input. This results in an optimum return.

Pakistan is poised to become self-sufficient in potato seed by mid-2022. The country is going to start producing high-quality, virus-free, third-generation potato seed.

Potato cultivators in West Bengal were afraid they will face severe losses as the price of good quality seeds have skyrocketed even as the minimum support price (MSP) fixed has remained relatively low.

Central Potato Research Institute, (CPRI) Ooty in Tamil Nadu has developed two disease resistant potatoes - Kufri Sahyadri and Kufri Karan - hybrid varieties which at present showing promising results in improving yield by 25 per cent to 30 per cent at laboratory level.

Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) has provided over 50,000 potato tubers to Agriculture Department of Gilgit Baltistan (Northern Areas) in order to promote disease free potato production.