Identification of Farmer Priorities in Potato Production Through Participatory Variety Selection

A substantial number of farmers in northwest Ethiopia grow potato in the dry season (“Belmehr”, March to August) when rainfall is not dependable for the growth of the crop, resulting in lower yield. Ethiopian Agricultural Research Institutes have tried to change the situation by releasing new late blight tolerant varieties that potentially could allow for production of the crop in the rainy season (“Meher”, May to October). Despite these efforts, the majority of the farmers still grow potato in the Belmehr season using older, local varieties. Cognizant of this fact, this study aimed to characterize the major potato production problems in the two seasons, to identify the traits that farmers consider most important when selecting potato varieties, and to assess the performance of widely grown local as well as newly developed varieties. The study was conducted at sites representing two major agroecological zones in northwest Ethiopia and during both production seasons using 12 varieties (9 local and 3 new) with a ‘participatory variety selection’ approach. During the Belmehr season, erratic rainfall resulted in low yield and lower average tuber weight. By contrast, in the Meher season, late blight, desiccating wind and severe precipitation, including hail, limited production. These factors were important in both agroecological zones, with varying degrees of importance. Twenty-three traits were found to influence the varieties that farmers selected, with the degree of importance of each trait differing between agroecological zones and gender groups. Some local varieties yielded as well as new varieties in both seasons. Overall, we found participatory variety selection to be an effective approach for identifying factors important for the adoption of potato varieties, including factors that may not be addressed in conventional potato breeding programs.