This report is an update of information on gender-differentiated producer and consumer preferred characteristics of sweet potato conducted at the Lake Zone of Tanzania.

A guide to conduct an environmental diagnosis in horticultural processing MSMEs, developed by Horti-Green project (ENV/2017/391-383)

The long awaited Crops (Irish Potato) Regulations, 2019 were finally officially launched by the cabinet secretary, ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Irrigation, Hon. Mwangi Kiunjuri, during the Annual National Potato Conference in KARLO, Loresho organized by National Potato Council of Kenya. The Regulations will address the prevailing challenges in the Potato Sector which include: Use of extended bags – henceforth, the maximum weight per unit package shall be 50kgs, Quality assurance and marketing and Licensing of actors in the Potato value chain. Check below or download a copy of the regulation here.

Ethiopia is one of the major potato producing countries of the Sub-Saharan Africa region where potato is the fastest expanding food crop. The natural environment in Ethiopia is very suitable for year round production of potato using rain-fed and irrigated systems. However, the actual potato yield in the country ranges between 8-10 t/ha, which is slightly below the average for Africa. Shortage of good quality seed has been recognized as the single most important factor limiting potato production in the developing countries including Ethiopia. 

The research was based on the field experiments conducted in 2014–2016 in the Variety Assessment Experimental Station, Central Center for Cultivar Assessment in Uhnin on the fawn soil, with a slightly acidic reaction, on rye good complex. The experiments were set up as random blocks in a dependent arrangement in three replications. The strategy of potato protection against late blight was the factor of a first line (from three to nine fungicide applications and a control object – without protection). Potato cultivars (5) with different level of resistance on Phytophthora infestans were the second experimental factor.