News on The Potato Supply Chain from Asia

Raising China potato production is of utmost importance. In the coming years a great effort is to be made to meet the increasing demand of potatoes for fresh consumption and for industry.

Provincial Minister for Agriculture, Dr. Farrukh Javed has said that Pakistan is capable of exporting up to one million tons of potato because of its bumper crop this year.

Potato farmers in Deesa, Gujarat are concerned because there is not enough potato storage space for the large harvest.

A bumper crop, coupled with weak demand from other States, has led to a free-fall in potatoes prices in West Bengal.

The Indian government has decided to remove the minimum export price of potato as its availability has increased and prices have eased in domestic markets.

In the Indian State of Karnataka, the Department of Horticulture has decided to provide certified seed potatoes to 1,000 farmers for pre-monsoon cultivation on a pilot basis.

The potato is only a side-dish in China, where rice and noodles made from wheat dominate the dinner table. But now the Chinese government wants to turn the potato into the fourth staple food in the country in order to better utilize scarce farmland.

Over the last two years, Armenia’s potato exports have risen considerably and now exceed the countries potato import.

The ongoing campaign of protests and transport blockades by Bangladesh's second biggest political party, BNP, is taking its toll on public life and business activity, including potato farmers.

To strengthen potato research, Punjab will set up a Centre of Excellence for Potato in Jalandhar (potato belt) in collaboration with The Netherlands, Shimla-based Central Potato Research Institute and Punjab Agricultural University

China, tras muchos años de deliberaciones, ha designado oficialmente a la patata (o papa) como su cuarto alimento básico principal, junto al arroz, el maíz y el trigo, una decisión que podría ser trascendental para la producción agrícola, el comercio exterior y la dieta del país más poblado del mundo.

In a meeting on January 6th, the Ministry of Agriculture of China announced plans to double the total area of land devoted to potato cultivation from just over 5 million hectares to 10 million hectares.

On the opening day of the India International Potato Expo on Thursday, Dr BP Singh, director, Central Potato Research Institute, Shimla, said potato played an important role in the nutritional security of the country.

Domestic potato production in India in the present Rabi season is likely to be 25-30 per cent higher over last year on account of good weather conditions.

McDonald's Japan is to only sell small portions of fries starting December 17, in response to the french fry shortage in the country.

After earning high profits last year, potato growers in India are selling the crop at a small margin this year.

Restaurants in Japan are rushing to secure supplies of french fries after shipment delays from the US, with one chain readying to airlift 200 tons of fries.

Farmers in Bangladesh's Thakurgaon region harvesting early variety potatoes are making good profit this season.