Type: Chapter

Improving the breeding, cultivation and use of sweetpotato in Africa

Authors

Putri Ernawati Abidin

CIP

Edward Carey

CIP

Publication date:

08 August 2018

ID: 9781786763730

E-Chapter format

£25.00
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Description

Sweetpotato is a low-input crop with significant potential for improving public health and nutrition and developing food security in sub-Saharan Africa. This chapter examines the nutritional contribution made by OFSP (orange-fleshed sweetpotato) in poor rural communities in Malawi, Ghana, Nigeria and Burkina Faso; sustainable breeding and seed systems; and effective commercialisation and marketing to benefit the communities concerned. The chapter includes detailed case studies from Ghana and Malawi and offers suggestions for future trends for research in this area.

Table of contents

1 Introduction
2 Programmes for improving sweetpotato as a crop
3 Developments in breeding and seed dissemination
4 Improvements in cultivation and post-harvest handling
5 Nutritional quality and its improvement
6 Crop diversification for new uses
7 Case studies: Malawi
8 Case studies: Ghana
9 Conclusion and future trends
10 Where to look for further information
11 Acknowledgements
12 References