Daily Monitor
Saturday February 06 2021
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After a long eight hour drive to western part of Uganda where scientists at Kachwekano Zonal Agricultural Research and development Institute (KaZARDI) have been carrying out research on improved transgenic Irish potato, one is welcomed by the beautiful scene of healthy looking plants at the field trial.
The scientists and farmers who are busy harvesting the potato at a trial farm in a bid to collect data about its efficacy performance are equally happy to receive a team of scientists from the Ministry of Agriculture who are responsible for variety release.
As the principal investigator of the trial at KaZARDI, Dr Abel Arinaitwe is optimistic they will soon start distributing the new drought and disease resistant potato varieties to farmers in order to increase yields.
Daily Monitor
Saturday December 19 2020
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The average global production of potatoes is 17.4 tonnes per hectare, with USA considered as the most productive country, with an average of 44.2 tonnes per hectare. But experts are concerned with the production gap between countries even for the same varieties.
The yield gap in developing and developed economies represents a loss of opportunity of more than 400 million tonnes.
This revelation is made by experts in the Chilean Journal of Agricultural Research about potato growing as they make a case for aeroponic technologies. The experts say application of new technologies will increase potato yields thereby contributing to food supply and farmer incomes in developing countries.