Three science and technology research consortiums are hosting clustered two-day Farms and Industry Encounters through the Science Technology Agenda (FIESTA) featuring sweet potato.
“From a lowly crop, sweet potato is now a superfood. We have to change the perception of the crop,” said Dr. Reynaldo Ebora, Acting Director of the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic Resources Research and Development, in his keynote message on Tuesday at the Bureau of Soil and Water facility in Quezon City.
“PCAARRD had funded researches that included developing sweet potato varieties, and as suitable crop in disaster prone areas,” Ebora said.
“The researches we had done elevated sweet potato from a poor man’s commodity to a high-value crop,” he added.
“Nutritious sweet potato can even be an alternative to rice,” the doctor noted.
PCAARRD Applied Communication Division Director Marita Carlos said creamy sweet potato is rich in calcium; yellow to orange sweet potato, rich in beta carotene; and purple sweet potato, rich in anthocyanin.
Researches in sweet potato in the Philippines started in 1975. Many of these researches were conducted in the Philippine Rootcrops Research and Training Center based in Visayas State University.
VSU president Dr. Edgardo Tulin said researches have also been made with regards to the medicinal value of the sweet potato.
The consortiums that hosted the clustered sweet potato FIESTA are Central Luzon Agriculture, Aquatic Resources Research and Development Consortium, Visayas for Agriculture Aquatic Resources Program, and Bicol Consortium for Agriculture, Aquatic Resources Research and Development.
The top sweet potato producing areas in the country are Regions 3 (Central Luzon), 5 (Bicol), and 8 (Eastern Visayas).
Thirty-eight recommended varieties of sweet potato are displayed in the event exhibit area at BSW.
The two-day FIESTA includes exhibits, technology forums, business pitching, and sweet potato product demonstration. Participants are mostly farmers and researchers.