Sustainable Potato Production - Guidelines for - FAO.org

32SUSTAINABLEPOTATOPRODUCTIONA potato park in the AndesThe 12 000 hectare Potato Parklocated in the Andes near Cuscois one of the few conservationinitiatives in which localcommunities are managing andprotecting their potato geneticresources and traditionalknowledge of cultivation, plantprotection and breeding. CIP hasrepatriated to the park hundredsof virus-free varieties of nativepotatoes which are now in fullproduction and yielding 30percent more than potatoes thathave not been cleaned ofviruses. The Potato Park helpspreserve indigenous knowledgeand ancient technologies, whileensuring that the production ofnative varieties remains underlocal control. The approach couldserve as a model for otherindigenous communitiesPAPA HALLAY, PERU(PHOTO: O.S. BUTRON RIOS)because biological diversity isbest rooted in its naturalenvironment and managed byindigenous peoples who know itbest.