Nutrition, health and food security – International Potato Center

Deficiencies of vitamin A, iron and zinc—essential for healthy growth and development—are among the most debilitating forms of undernutrition, and disproportionately affect vulnerable populations, including women of childbearing age. Potatoes and sweetpotatoes can be important sources of these essential nutrients, and CIP and partners have dedicated the past 15 years to increasing the nutritional value of potato and sweetpotato through biofortification, while educating vulnerable populations about nutrition and the importance of diet diversification.

KEY OUTCOMES

• Evidence of the efficacy and effectiveness of biofortification in reducing micronutrient deficiencies and associate health problems galvanized a broad coalition of delivery partners, including government services, NGOs and UN agencies, to disseminate pro-vitamin-A biofortified sweetpotato through agricultural and nutrition programs, reaching more than 6.8 million households in over 20 countries. In Africa, these partners received technical training and knowledge support through the multi-institutional Sweetpotato for Profit and Health Initiative from 2009-2019.
• The impact of biofortified sweetpotato consumption on child and maternal nutrition status in at-risk populations convinced governments and regional communities to include the crop, and biofortification more generally, into their nutrition strategies and investment plans. Biofortified sweetpotato has been prioritized in national nutrition strategies in Bangladesh, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda, and by the African Union Commission.