Farmers of Chon-Alai region mastered techniques for growing of super-elite potato varieties

On August 22, 2024, a field day for the “Value Chain Agro Finance” project took place in the village of Zhar-Bashy, Chon-Alai district. The event gathered representatives from KfW, partner organizations, local administration, rural management, as well as members of the Zhar-Bashy Agricultural Cooperative and other interested parties. The main aim was to showcase the project’s achievements, highlight the benefits of producing high-quality seed potatoes, and discuss the implementation of a private certification control system for seed potatoes.

 

The event was structured into three main stations. At the first station, participants were introduced to new techniques for growing seed potatoes and the voluntary private certification system, including a demonstration of the seed potato calibration process. The second station focused on a comparative analysis of the economic efficiency between Super Elite seed multiplication and R3 European seed potato production. The third station addressed the effective interaction between the seed potato value chain and the private certification control system in the Chon-Alai district.

 

After the field day, a meeting was held with three agricultural cooperatives: Zhar-Bashy Agricultural Cooperative (seed potato producer), Aravan AgroService, and Zoloto Doliny Agricultural Cooperative (buyers). The key discussion points included delivery timelines, seed potato calibration, seed quality, label improvements, and payment terms. It was agreed that seed potatoes would be delivered by the end of October, with an agreed calibration fraction and the possibility of additional manual calibration if needed. The price was set between 29-30 soms/kg, including transportation costs to Aravan and Kara-Sui districts, with the exact price to be confirmed at the time of seed delivery. Terms and deadlines for payment were also agreed upon.