Peru's native potato campaign puts spotlight on extreme poverty

Doris Mejía explains in the Guardian how her NGO turned mass attention on the plight of Andean communities through a Facebook campaign, starring the native potato:

It's not often you identify potatoes with campaigning, but in South America that is what we have managed to do.

By pushing the drive for consuming native potato through a Facebook campaign, the Practical Action team in Lima, Peru, have been able to engage with a wider audience and make them aware of the plight of those who grow and depend on them – the Andean communities living in extreme poverty 4000 metres above sea level.

Native potatoes have seen a resurgence in popularity in Peru after the famous chef, Gaston Acurio started to promote them and the brand Lays began selling chips and crisps made from them.

Practical Action has worked with communities growing native potatoes for more than 20 years, and we felt this was the perfect time to tell people about the lives of the people involved in the conservation of these potatoes.