Purple Antioxidant Potatoes: Purple-fleshed sweet potato (high in antioxidants)

Sustain Your Health with Purple Potato

The technology of Purple-fleshed sweet potatoes (PFSP) is a sweet potato variety with purple-colored flesh. These PFSP varieties are characterized by their high levels of anthocyanins, a type of flavonoid that imparts the purple color and contributes to their antioxidant properties. This technology provides a nutrient-rich crop with enhanced antioxidant activity, thereby addressing dietary imbalances and vitamin deficiencies in underserved communities. It is a valuable addition to agricultural systems, promoting overall health and well-being.

This technology is TAAT1 validated.

8•8

Scaling readiness: idea maturity 8/9; level of use 8/9

Adults 18 and over: Positive high

The poor: Positive high

Under 18: Positive high

Women: Positive high

Climate adaptability: Highly adaptable

Farmer climate change readiness: Significant improvement

Biodiversity: Positive impact on biodiversity

Carbon footprint: Same amount of carbon released

Environmental health: Does not improve environmental health

Soil quality: Does not affect soil health and fertility

Water use: Same amount of water used

Problem

The problems mentioned regarding "Purple-fleshed sweet potato (high in antioxidants)" include:

Vitamin Deficiencies: Vitamin deficiencies are widespread in subsistence farming and poor communities due to low intake of vegetables and fruits.
Health Risks: People in these communities face health risks related to heart disease and cancer due to insufficient intake of antioxidants.
Dietary Imbalance: There is a need to address dietary imbalances in these communities.
Low Intake of Vegetables and Fruits: Llow consumption of vegetables and fruits among these communities.

Solution

High Antioxidant Activity: PFSP varieties have two to three times more antioxidant activity compared to white or yellow sweet potatoes.
Health Benefits: The high levels of antioxidants in PFSP contribute to the body's growth, immune system, and brain activity.
Dietary Improvement: Eating PFSP helps improve dietary balance and addresses vitamin deficiencies common in subsistence farming and poor communities with low vegetable and fruit intake.
Health Promotion: PFSP offers health advantages for individuals of all ages, supporting early childhood development and maintaining the health and activity of adolescents and the elderly.
Anthocyanins: The purple color in PFSP is due to high levels of anthocyanins, a type of flavonoid with a strong antioxidant effect.
Protection from Diseases: Sufficient intake of these natural protective agents can reduce the risks of heart disease and cancer, promoting a healthy and active life.
Versatile Cooking: PFSP can be cooked and fried in various ways, made into puree or flour for storage or sale to bakeries and food manufacturers.
Long-Term Preservation: Cooked PFSP tubers can be preserved for several months in airtight containers, ensuring a year-round supply of healthy food in both rural and urban communities.
Low Glycemic Index: PFSP varieties have a low glycemic index, making them suitable for people with diabetes and hypertension as they don't significantly affect blood pressure and sugar levels.
Resource Utilization: Residues from PFSP, such as vines, peels, and deformed tubers, can be repurposed into silage, providing nutritious fodder for ruminants and pigs.
Nutrient Content: PFSP varieties are rich in potassium, fiber, vitamin C, and vitamin B6, offering nutritional benefits in addition to antioxidants.

Key points to design your project

The Purple-fleshed sweet potato (PFSP) technology offers a sustainable solution with significant impacts on various aspects such as nutrition, food security, and economic development. To integrate this technology into your project, you need:

Awareness-raising with farmers and food processors about the nutritional benefits of purple-fleshed sweet potato over non-fortified types,
Acquisition of improved PFSP varieties,
Training on propagation of healthy planting material and management of crops

Estimate the quantity of bags of vines needed for your project based on the technology cost and seed requirements per hectare knowing that In Kenya, a bag with 10 kilograms of sweet potato vines are usually sold for less than USD20, including transport costs. For planting a field measuring one acre (0.3 hectare) you need 20 bags of vines, making a total cost of USD400. Additionally, allocate resources for training and post-training support provided by a team of trainers during project installation.

Develop communication materials such as flyers, videos, and radio broadcasts to promote awareness and adoption of PFSP technology among farmers and stakeholders. Collaborate with agricultural development institutes and seed multiplication companies to implement the technology effectively at scale.

As the technology is available in Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, include the delivery cost to the project site and account for import clearance and duties if relevant.

For better optimization of the PFSP, it is recommended to associate this technology with Community-based cutting production, Tent-style greenhouse production of vines and cuttings, Raised bed production and weed management, Specialty blended fertilizers, Relay intercropping of legumes with sweet potato, Silage production from sweet potato vines.

To implement the technology in your country, you could collaborate with agricultural development institutes and seed multiplication companies.

Cost: $$$ 20 USD

A bag of 10 Kg of sweet potato vines

ROI: $$$ 30 %

Increase in better health

IP

Open source / open access

Scaling Readiness describes how complete a technology’s development is and its ability to be scaled. It produces a score that measures a technology’s readiness along two axes: the level of maturity of the idea itself, and the level to which the technology has been used so far.

Each axis goes from 0 to 9 where 9 is the “ready-to-scale” status. For each technology profile in the e-catalogs we have documented the scaling readiness status from evidence given by the technology providers. The e-catalogs only showcase technologies for which the scaling readiness score is at least 8 for maturity of the idea and 7 for the level of use.

The graph below represents visually the scaling readiness status for this technology, you can see the label of each level by hovering your mouse cursor on the number.

Scaling readiness score of this technology

Maturity of the idea 8 out of 9

Uncontrolled environment: tested

Level of use 8 out of 9

Used by some intended users, in the real world

Maturity of the idea										Level of use
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9

Countries with a green colour: Tested & adopted
Countries with a bright green colour: Adopted
Countries with a yellow colour: Tested
Countries with a blue colour: Testing ongoing

Countries where the technology is being tested or has been tested and adopted
Country	Testing ongoing	Tested	Adopted
Kenya	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Nigeria	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Uganda	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted

This technology can be used in the colored agro-ecological zones. Any zones shown in white are not suitable for this technology.

Agro-ecological zones where this technology can be used
AEZ	Subtropic - warm	Subtropic - cool	Tropic - warm	Tropic - cool
Arid
Semiarid
Subhumid
Humid

Source: HarvestChoice/IFPRI 2009

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that are applicable to this technology.

Goal 2: zero hunger

Goal 3: good health and well-being

Here's the procedure for implementing the technology of "Purple-fleshed sweet potato (high in antioxidants)":

Multiplication: Multiplication involves increasing the number of PFSP planting materials. This can be done through seeds, tubers, or vines.
Planting Materials: The planting materials for PFSP include seeds, tubers, or vines, which are used to propagate new plants.
Cuttings from Vines: Cuttings from PFSP vines are commonly used for planting. These cuttings are relatively easy to obtain and prepare.
Nursing Slips: Slips, which are young shoots or plantlets, can be obtained from tubers or cuttings from vines. These slips are nurtured to grow into healthy young plants.
Planting Beds: The slips or cuttings can be planted in beds to facilitate their growth. This step involves preparing beds for planting.
Water Propagation: Some slips or cuttings are placed with the bottom of the stem in water. This water propagation method helps the slips develop roots and become suitable for planting.
Planting Angle: When planting the healthy slips or cuttings, they should be inserted into the soil at an angle.
Spacing: Proper spacing is essential for PFSP planting. The text recommends a spacing of 50cm between rows and 30cm from plant to plant.