Important points that were raised during the discussion are the following:
Transportation and bagging of potatoes
The Meru district has switched to flat bags instead of extended bags, as in other parts of the country. Lorries are hired by a group of traders who transport the potatoes directly to Nairobi where they are sold to the wholesalers. At the farms, the porters do the loading. Due to the weight of potatoes the porters would prefer to have small potato bags, but the traders prefer bigger bags which carry for them more potatoes
After leaving Meru, the potatoes are then re-bagged at an extra cost. During the re-bagging process one has a chance of sorting the potatoes.
Differences in transport costs between locations
The prices are generally not fixed. Transport prices depend on the amount and nature of traded goods and on the distance and the opportunity to get cargo on the way back. This applies especially for the Nairobi - Mombasa road. However, the particular reason for transport cost differences have not yet been clarified.
Acceptance of potato varieties among farmers and consumers
Perishability of white-skin potato is a major reason for consumer preference of the red varieties. Farmers know about the problem of high use of chemicals with the red varieties, new varieties that are equally accepted by the consumer but are more resistant toward pests and diseases have to be provided to the farmers.
Current and potential yield of potato
According to the Meru farmers, they would like to change to another variety of potato which they believe would have better yields compared to the ones they are having now.
KARI Tigoni tested varieties which have better yields even with less pesticide use. Yield trials on farmers fields resulted in 30-40 tons per hectare of red potato.
Post-harvest losses
Estimates of losses depend on the definition of physical and economic losses. According to the study findings, there are actually no economic losses to be incurred because the crops are well graded for different purposes. However, physical losses depend on the season. Possibilities of sweet potato storage in the ground in times of oversupply of the market are limited by potential losses.
Demand for sweet potato
Reasons for the limited demand and opportunities for changing consumption patterns were discussed. Sweet potato is ranked very low, it is mostly consumed in the rural areas where the majority of the people have little income. New ways should be introduced to deal with the processing of sweet potatoes. The suggestion is therefore that a recipe book be published to encourage wider consumption of sweet potatoes both in the urban and rural areas. Women groups should be strengthened and encouraged to participate in doing the marketing. However, there is limited demand for process-d sweet potatoes in rural areas as they can only be sold to school children and parents or be sold during market days after they have been processed as snacks.
Relevance of findings in case study areas for the whole country
In view of the nature of the study, only case study districts could be investigated. Based on the suggestions of participants the final report will include data from the national level. It was agreed to aim at the incorporation of an analysis of national data on production and consumption of all major food crops in the study.
Conclusions
Future development activities in the post-harvest subsector should follow a systems approach. The example of the interdisciplinary working group approach which was presented by FAO and GTZ should be adopted when improving post-harvest systems development. The participants were encouraged to form a working group comprising expertise from different subject matter specialists. The draft version of the report which has been distributed will be discussed. A working group may elaborate proposals on development opportunities based on the study findings.
