Consumption of potatoes and potato products are growing rapidly in Southeast Asia and this increase presents significant opportunities for improved potato production and use of technologies in this part of the world to address poverty, food security, and environmental degradation.

The market for fresh consumption of potatoes is expanding in most of Asia in response to income growth and urbanization. However, potatoes are a high input, high risk crop  for farmers due to risk of disease or climatic stressors like drought and typhoons. In Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam, small farms predominate and production is very labor intensive. Potato production in these countries is commercially oriented with more than 80 percent of the harvested crop being sold.

The greatest barrier between farmers and increased production is the high price of seed, the low quality of available seed, and the lack of a strong system to provide seed in a timely manner. Potato seed sector development is thus a major concern of governments, researchers, development agencies, and civil society organizations.

Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam import certified seeds, but the Philippines severely restrict the importation of potato tubers because of phytosanitary concerns. Efforts to implement formal seed systems in low-income countries have been largely unsuccessful; consequently, most resource-poor potato farmers source their seed through informal systems.

The objective of this webinar is to provide a forum for discussion on the potato seed production technologies in Southeast Asia with special focus on Philippines and Vietnam. Among the topics to be covered, we will discuss… 

1. The changing demand for potato seeds in the region;
2. The current potato seed production technologies in practice;
3. The role of women and youth in the potato seed supply chain; and
4. Ways to upgrade the seed supply chain and make it affordable to farmers.