National Potato Council of Kenya (NPCK) is partnering with the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) and Egerton University to train over 150,000 small-holder potato farmers in the country on climate-smart innovations and technologies to help them increase potato production for both domestic consumption and export.
NPCK Board Chairman Prof. John Ndiritu said the partnership was implementing a three-year project dubbed ‘the Kenya Sustainable Potato Initiative (KSPI),’ that seeks to promote sustainable potato production through adoption of climate-smart potato farming practices.
Prof. Ndiritu indicated that the Sh195 million (US$1.5 million) project’s main objective was to directly increase the productivity and earnings of the targeted 150,000 potato farmers while creating employment opportunities for more than 4,000 youth.
He added that the project would also benefit another 300,000 farmers indirectly through value-chain addition.
The chairman also said that of the 150,000 farmers targeted, 40 percent were expected to be women and another 10 percent would represent the youth, adding that KSPI targets the four largest potato producing counties in the country including Nyandarua, Meru, Laikipia and Nandi, where it intends to strengthen 400 potato farmer groups’ spread across the counties by providing them with structured marketing systems.
“The initiative will help digitize the groups, provide them with farm inputs, give them access to markets and enable them to get fair prices for their produce.” he added.
At the same time, Prof. Ndiritu said they were equipping agricultural extension officers and other agricultural experts, who would in turn train potato growers on modern farming practices that would mitigate against risks like drought, floods, climate-induced pests and diseases.
While regretting that lack of certified seeds and poor marketing strategies had continued to hamper the lucrative potato trade in the country, Prof. Ndiritu said that the main objective of the initiative was to increase seed production from the current 900 metric tons to up to three times the amount over the next three years.
He explained that scarcity of certified potato seeds in the country had stagnated production of the crop that currently stands at seven tons per hectare against a potential of 40 tons per hectare.
While observing that Kenya’s potato seed demand was at 30,000 tons annually, Prof. Ndiritu lamented that Nakuru which is the second largest producer of the crop in Kenya after Nyandarua, was now producing a mere 6,700 tons, with most farmers recycling crops from the previous season to use as seed, a move he blamed for the shortage that the country faces.
The chairman explained that through the project, village-based advisers would be trained on climate-smart potato production technologies, innovation and management practices, and ways to reduce post-harvest losses by 50 percent.
He added that farmers would be retooled in mechanized potato farming and sustainable agricultural practices such as using green energy.
Prof. Ndiritu indicated that NPCK intends to help build a strong and efficient potato seed production system that enhances farmers’ access to high-quality seed of appropriate varieties.
“We are also promoting inclusivity by ensuring equal opportunities to markets, trade opportunities and access to financial services for smallholder potato farmers,” he stated.
He said that with aggressive farmer training on the importance of certified seeds, and the demand for clean planting materials would drastically increase.
Prof. Antony Kibe who leads Egerton University’s role in the KSPI project noted that potato is the second-most consumed food in the country after maize, making it a key factor in the country’s diet and economy.
He elaborated that the crop was both a staple food and cash crop, grown by more than 800,000 farmers across the country and employing more than two million people in the process adding that it contributes more than Sh50 billion (about US$385 million) to the country’s economy.
“Kenya is currently producing only nine tons of potatoes a year in comparison with countries like Egypt, which produces up to 40 tons. This is nowhere close to meeting the potato demand in the country,” he stated.
According to Prof. Kibe, Kenya has the potential to produce up to 30 tons of potato per year, but is limited by factors including poor seed quality as only 5 percent of farmers in Kenya have access to certified potato seeds.
He noted that most farmers relied on the historical seeds which have been recycled many times and have lost their potential.
He observed that other factors afflicting the sub sector included lack of access to farm inputs such as fertilizer, poor management of pests and diseases, climate change and lower prioritization of the crop as compared to maize
He said they were using various forums, including farmers’ field days, to disseminate information to farmers to address climate change challenges with an ultimate goal of translating the information, knowledge and new technologies into increased incomes for smallholder farmers and alleviate poverty.
Prof. Kibe said they were collaborating with research institutions in coming up with solutions that support potato smallholder farmers to be able to tackle the risks that they faced like pests, a decline of soil fertility, and diseases which are rampant in the lucrative sector.
“We are promoting adoption of practices and technologies that will be able to support farmers to conduct potato farming in a climate-smart way by focusing on environmental conservation,” the Don added.
He stated that initiatives by the project to improve potato farming were addressing the entire chain from soil testing, soil management, quality seeds, best husbandry, to marketing in addition to improved value addition including starch and animal feed production.
Prof. Kibe said the drive to bolster the potato sub sector includes making farming attractive to the youth through embracing modern farming technologies, as well as addressing post-harvest losses.
“Potato is finally getting the recognition it deserves, emerging as a strategic crop with the potential to help meet some of the set goals in Vision 2030. The project’s goals are also aligned with the government’s bottom-up economic strategy whereby it strives to raise the income level of small-scale farmers and create jobs for thousands of youths,” Prof. Kibe said.
“KSPI will also provide our students with attachment and internship opportunities where they can get first-hand experience in potato production and management,” he added.
The KSPI project which will end in June 2027, will integrate at least 190 students and youths into the value-chain process in which they will gain experiential learning.
Despite being the most consumed staple food after maize in Kenya, potato farming is laden with a myriad of challenges such as lack of certified seed, lack of training in good agricultural practices for optimal potato production, access to modern technology, access to markets, and poor uptake solutions geared towards reducing the potential impact the sector has towards climate change.
Potatoes are also Kenya’s second most produced crop after maize. On average, 1.35 million tonnes of potatoes are produced in Kenya annually.
Potato is grown by about 800,000 farmers spread across several counties which including, Bomet, Bungoma, Elgeyo Marakwet, Kericho, Kiambu, Kirinyaga, Meru, Muranga, Nakuru, Narok, Nyandarua, Nyeri, Trans Nzoia, Uasin Gishu and West Pokot.
A report by the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI) reveals that over the years, potato yields have been declining. In the last 10 years, the yield has hit a low of 12.4 tonnes per hectare, which is far below the global average of 21 tonnes per hectare.
“This has been attributed to several problems with the most important being the high incidence of pests and diseases, some of which are seed- and soil-borne,” states the report.
The Food and Agriculture Organization ranks Kenya at number 33 in potato production out of 155 potato-growing countries, but the country has recorded a steady decline over the years. For example, in 2022, Kenya produced 1,745,000 tonnes of potatoes against a worldwide production of 374,777,763.
Despite the global potato production rising by 0.3 per cent in 2022, Kenya’s output dropped from 2.1 million metric tonnes in 2021 to 1.7 million in 2022. China leads global production (25 per cent), while in Africa, Algeria topped the list with a production of 4,299,817 tonnes. Belgium followed at 3,577,730 tonnes, while South Africa was third at 2,528,946.
By Esther Mwangi
