News Potatoes
FAO: Potato area must double in 10 years
The worldwide acreage of potatoes has the potential to double in the next ten years. Qu Dongyu said so during the World Potato Congress in Dublin, Ireland. Qu is director-general of the Food & Agriculture organization (FAO) of the United Nations.
Between May 30 and June 2, Dublin again became the World Potato Congress organized after it was previously delayed by the corona pandemic. The director general emphasized the nutritional value of potatoes that can prevent hunger worldwide. The potato is the fourth most important food in the world and does so with a lower environmental impact than other large crops.
Potato yield to 750 million tons
In 2020, the potato acreage worldwide was about 20 million hectares – spread over 150 countries. Good for 359 million tons. “By increasing yields and making more use of traditional growing areas, production can be increased to 500 million tons in 2025 and 750 million tons in 2030,” said Qu Dongyu.
This extra production is required to fight hunger in the world, if it is up to the United Nations. According to its figures, in 2021, 193 million people will suffer from hunger in 53 countries and territories. An increase of 40 million compared to 2020. Due to the Ukraine war, this number is expected to rise sharply again this year.
Protectionism inhibits food security
Qu Dongyu also cited the war in the country. Such conflicts and especially their consequences are crippling for potato cultivation and agriculture. Think of cost increases of fertilizer and other products. "Trade wars and protectionist behavior prevent the world from feeding itself. Increasingly, such restrictive measures hamper food security and make the market uncertain."
Potato growers in Europe are likely to raise an eyebrow at the director-general's decision to double the acreage. The cultivation in Europe is stabilizing or even declining, for various reasons. Growth in cultivation is particularly noticeable in Asia. There is also still a lot of potential in Africa and Latin America. The peak of the worldwide potato area in the last sixty years was 31 million hectares. If it is up to Qu Dongyu, that figure will be achieved again quickly. "With a relatively small yield increase of 2,5 tons per hectare (10%), production has already doubled. At the moment in many countries only one fifth of the yield potential is being used, while that is four fifths for rice."
Action plan
The FAO itself has drawn up a list of action points in its strategic plans for the period 2022-2031. These mainly include research, training, promotion and more. Qu Dongyu – himself from China – is a scientific researcher who has specialized in the potato.
Niels van der Boom
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