Raise potato output to beat hunger, lobby tells State

Traders display their potatoes at Daraja Mbili Market in Kisii County on 21/1/2019.The traders source for the produce from Njoro in Nakuru County where there is surplus a 90 kilogram sack retailing at sh 3800 at the local market.[Photo: Sammy Omingo/Standard]

Kenya has the capacity to produce between 8 million and 10 million tonnes of potatoes annually, in what experts say could see the crop replace maize as the country’s staple food.

According to the Fresh Produce Exporters Association of Kenya (FPEAK), optimising the crop’s output would help in attaining the State’s food security pillar under the Big Four agenda.

“Kenya has the capacity to become the largest market leader in the region in potato production, whilst ensuring enough production for its own population.

“This goal can be attained through increased innovation, mechanisation and large-scale production,” said FPEAK Chief Executive Officer Hosea Machuki.

He spoke in Nairobi yesterday at a potato stakeholders’ workshop to deliberate on key issues facing the crop and also develop an action plan.

Kenya’s average annual potato production stands at between 2 million and 3 million tonnes.

In 2017, for instance, the country produced 1.15 million tonnes of sweet potatoes, with 1.036 million tonnes consumed while the rest went to waste.  Director of Crop Systems at the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Organisation Lusike Wasilwa said the potato sector and agriculture, in general, remained grossly underfunded, which could undermine the Government’s efforts at making the country food secure by 2022. “The Government has also put little emphasis on research yet it has the potential to contribute two per cent to our GDP,” he said.