Farmers cooperate as a large group to grow high quality potatoes in Zhao Yang County, China
Problem
Extreme poverty amongst the mountain people is the status. Why? Small land holdings makes it difficult to get proper and adequate inputs of crop inputs including healthy seed potatoes, No access to credit and markets.
Outcomes
Organizing many farmers into a large cooperative group allowed all of the 472 farm families to work together to grow high quality and high value seed potatoes with the support of our partner, Tudobang, in China. Most of the families were lifted out of poverty in just one year!!
High on a Himalayan mountain plateau above 2,900 masl resource poor farmers survive on a single summer crop of potatoes, barley, pasture and mustard. Winters are extremely cold. These conditions are ideal for basic seed potato production using virus free greenhouse grown minitubers as the starting planting material. Tudobang, our partner, was requested to assist a group of 472 farm families in growing high quality seed potatoes. After several meetings and the signing of an agreement, Tudobang sourced and provided the crop inputs at wholesale prices plus transport costs. They gave weekly technical support. Fudian Bank provided the full financing for all the crop inputs as well as cash for paying the labor costs for all the cooperative members who participated in the field operations. Tudobang guaranteed the Fudian bank loan.
Poverty alleviation is in the overall mandate from the Central Government and this goes to the regional governments like that of Zhaotong City and down to the county and township levels. This cooperative group comprised of 472 families of which 464 were defined as living in poverty. Within 2 years these families must no longer be poor. This is the mandate that all levels of Government must accomplish. Potato yields remain very low at about 15 tonnes/hectare because of poor seed quality, heavy late blight pressure during the rainy season, lack of rotation crops and relatively low solar radiation. Quality seed potato production is one of the easiest way to help farmers of commercial crops to access higher quality seed potatoes. Local governments will purchase the high quality seed and distribute it to the needy farmers throughout the Zhaotong City area. The selected area, located on a Plateau above 2,900 masl, is ideally suited to grow high quality seed for further multiplication at lower elevations.
Tudobang purchased and provided high quality greenhouse minitubers of the popular variety Cooperation 88 (C88), which is a high quality fresh and processing potato with durable resistance to Late Blight and excellent overall virus resistance.
Tudobang provided weekly technical support for the 2 team leaders who engaged the cooperative members who wished to work and earn some money as daily laborers in their own cooperative fields. Exactly 63 hectares were planted in April with the G0 seed potatoes of C88. All land preparation was by tractor and rotovator. All fertilizer placement and seed treatment and planting was done manually. Inorganic fertilizer enhanced humid acid was formulated and sold to the cooperative by Tudobang. The NPK content was 8-8-14. During the growing season the crop was sprayed 6 times with a combination of contact and systemic fungicides. There was a serious hail storm that did negatively impact some of the cropped area. The recovery was remarkable but it did delay maturity and reduced yield. A strong frost occurred on September 20 killing most of the foliage. Weed control and hilling up was well done and the crop had excellent growth and beautiful appearance.
The crop was harvested in November 2019 when the rainfall was less and the soil was dry enough to dig. The average yield was almost 40 tonnes/hectare, which was considered phenomenal by all involved in this cooperative. All the inputs plus labour payments for all field operations came to US$8000/hectare. Revenue paid to the Cooperative was US$357/ tonne of seed potatoes at harvest. The average area of land for a family was 0.133 Hectares. So the net earnings for an averaged sized land holder would be US$800. This plus the wages earned would bring most of these 464 poverty level families out of poverty in one cropping season.
Tudobang purchased all of the harvest, that they would sell, and sold it after storage to buyers from numerous locations in China.
Quotes by cooperative farmers:
- “I am very happy with the harvest and so are all the cooperative members. The yield was very high, like we have never seen before and the tuber quality is so good!”
“The support of Tudobang is tremendous in helping us grow potatoes properly with the right techniques. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to do this work, formerly I worked in a factory but I chose to come home and raise my 3 children and do this exciting work to help our family and community”.
Greenhouse grown minitubers ready for planting
Planting the minitubers by size at prescribed spacing, planting depth and assurance of the proper placement of fertility additives
Farmers worked as teams in doing all field operations including fungicide spraying
