International Potato Center

About: International Potato Center is a facility organization based out in Lima, Peru. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Phytophthora infestans. The organization has 1036 authors who have published 1460 publications receiving 47183 citations.

Future scenarios for potato demand, supply and trade in South America to 2030.

Abstract: This paper presents estimates for potato demand, supply and trade in South America to the year 2030 according to three scenarios: baseline, high demand and limited supply. The results highlight the importance of Brazil with its massive population and low per capita consumption of potato as a key driver of regional outcomes. According to the baseline and high demand scenarios, improved productivity in Andean countries such as Ecuador and Colombia will influence output and consumption increases in those locations as well. The potential adverse effects of the advent of climate change on the potato sector in more vulnerable growing areas in the region will result in much more modest increases in output in those locations according to the low supply scenario. While domestic potato marketing will continue to expand, foreign trade in potatoes remains small in absolute terms and as a percentage of national and sub-regional output. The findings call attention to opportunities for agribusiness initiatives in input markets as well as for both fresh and processed potato products for human consumption in the decades ahead.

Effect of Farmers’ Multidimensional Beliefs on Adoption of Biofortified Crops Evidence from Sweetpotato Farmers in Tanzania

Abstract: We examined the effect of multidimensional farmers’ beliefs on the likelihood of cultivating planting materials of biofortified orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) varieties. Using a panel dataset and combining difference-in-differences regression with propensity score matching, results showed positive effects of beliefs related to health benefits, yielding ability, sweetness, disease-resistance, storability, early maturity, colour, and that children enjoy eating OFSP roots, on cultivation of OFSP varieties. The proportion of OFSP roots out of total sweetpotato production for a household increased among farmers’ who held these beliefs. Efforts to promote biofortified crops can, therefore, benefit from taking farmers’ multidimensional beliefs into consideration.

Development of an Open-Source Thermal Image Processing Software for Improving Irrigation Management in Potato Crops (Solanum tuberosum L.).

Abstract: Accurate determination of plant water status is mandatory to optimize irrigation scheduling and thus maximize yield. Infrared thermography (IRT) can be used as a proxy for detecting stomatal closure as a measure of plant water stress. In this study, an open-source software (Thermal Image Processor (TIPCIP)) that includes image processing techniques such as thermal-visible image segmentation and morphological operations was developed to estimate the crop water stress index (CWSI) in potato crops. Results were compared to the CWSI derived from thermocouples where a high correlation was found ( r P e a r s o n = 0.84). To evaluate the effectiveness of the software, two experiments were implemented. TIPCIP-based canopy temperature was used to estimate CWSI throughout the growing season, in a humid environment. Two treatments with different irrigation timings were established based on CWSI thresholds: 0.4 (T2) and 0.7 (T3), and compared against a control (T1, irrigated when soil moisture achieved 70% of field capacity). As a result, T2 showed no significant reduction in fresh tuber yield (34.5 ± 3.72 and 44.3 ± 2.66 t ha - 1 ), allowing a total water saving of 341.6 ± 63.65 and 515.7 ± 37.73 m 3 ha - 1 in the first and second experiment, respectively. The findings have encouraged the initiation of experiments to automate the use of the CWSI for precision irrigation using either UAVs in large settings or by adapting TIPCIP to process data from smartphone-based IRT sensors for applications in smallholder settings.