Federal Administration admin.ch
Federal Department of Foreign Affairs
SDC - Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
SDC – on location worldwide

Visit Swiss Cooperation Office websites.

Switzerland
Switzerland 
Search under:


Food security
Freedom from hunger thanks to potatoes
Potato farming provides more calories than any other crop in terms of area farmed. For the rural populations that grow them, potatoes contain essential nutrients and represent a source of income. As a result, potatoes can play a decisive role in the fight against hunger and poverty. The SDC’s programmes in this area have produced spectacular results in Bhutan, Nepal and North Korea.

Potatoes are the fourth most important food staple in the world after rice, wheat and corn. They can be grown in various climates and in very different ecosystems, such as on the high Andean plateaus at 4,000m above sea level and on the subtropical plains of India. Potatoes are well known for being nutritious. They are rich in carbohydrates, protein and vitamin C, making them a good source of energy. Therefore, potatoes can be an important factor in improving the health of rural populations in developing countries.

Bhutan: moving beyond self-subsistence

Bhutan is mountainous, isolated and small. These similarities with Switzerland helped underpin the close cooperation between the two countries more than 40 years ago. In this Himalayan kingdom the focus has been on agriculture and rural development. The most visible outcomes of this programme have been potato-farming, cheese-making and livestock-raising. Potatoes were introduced to Bhutan in the 18th century. Output has doubled since 1970 thanks in part to Swiss help in introducing new varieties, in marketing, and in producing potato seed. These advances have changed the lives of many people in Bhutan.

For many, especially small farmers in the high mountains, potatoes were the only source of income. Increasing potato production and consumption and building roads have had a substantial impact on the population. People’s diet and health have improved and their income has risen. Today, the people of Bhutan are among the highest potato consumers in Asia. Thanks to these spectacular changes, they have also been able to convert from self-subsistence to selling potatoes and potato seed to neighbouring countries.

A better diet for one million Nepalese

Between 1986 and 2004, potato yields in Nepal increased from 6 to 12 tonnes per hectare, which underpinned the six-fold growth in output since 1970. Today potatoes are the second most important staple food in Nepal after rice. Consumption has nearly doubled since 1990, reaching 51 kilos per capita per year. For more than one million people, mostly small-scale farmers, this means a better diet and higher income.

The key to this success lies in the collaboration of the Nepalese government with the International Potato Center, which has its headquarters in Lima, Peru. The CIP, backed by the SDC, helped set up a national potato programme, organise the selection of potato varieties, implement seed potato production and improve guidelines for potato farming.

North Korea: responding to the food crises

In North Korea, potatoes are an integral part of the population’s food security. This closed-off country suffered from starvation in the 1990s and has since made famine-prevention one of its priorities. In just ten years, the farmed area expanded from 50,000 to 200,000 hectares, and potato consumption rose from 16 to 60 kg per capita. The SDC and North Korea worked together to improve potato seed quality and farming methods such as fighting pests and making appropriate use of fertilizers. New storage methods have been introduced, and local personnel have been trained in potato seed production.



Demand for potatoes is rising in developing countries

World potato output has been on the rise for the last ten years. Potato output has even surpassed that of other staple food crops in developing countries, particularly in Asia, with China becoming the world's largest potato producer. Demand for potatoes has soared in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Although harvests in Africa and Latin America are far smaller than those of Asia and Europe, they set a new record in 2006. Consumption in these areas is also lower, but on the rise. In fact, potato consumption in developing countries jumped from 10 to nearly 22 kilos per capita between the early 1960s and 2003.




Additional Information and Documents