S Soundararadjane, CEO of HyFarm, the agri-business unit of HyFun Foods, has raised concern over the shortage of skilled breeders, agronomists, and agricultural engineers in India, noting that the talent gap is limiting sector growth.
Speaking in Pune, he said that trained manpower is required in every vertical to support development. "Major growth is expected from the fries and crisps segments, but a lack of talent can make progress slow," he said. India is the world's second-largest potato producer, with an annual output of 60 million tons, following China at 96 million tons. Frozen French fries from India have grown steadily in international markets, with the segment posting double-digit growth over the last seven years.
Soundararadjane emphasised the need for breeders to develop climate-resilient potato varieties. "CPRI [Central Potato Research Institute] has done excellent work, but we need to understand that they, too, have limitations in terms of manpower," he said. The Shimla-based CPRI remains the main research body for the crop.
Indian potato production is divided into table varieties (92 per cent), crisps (for chips), and fries (for French fries). Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, and Gujarat are the leading production states. Gujarat specialises in potatoes used for fries, while Madhya Pradesh produces mainly crisping potatoes. "Potato cultivation requires special attention, given the vast opportunities it can unearth for the country. Unfortunately, potatoes are taught as a single crop at state agricultural universities," Soundararadjane said.
He added that potato breeding requires focused investment, but most private companies have avoided this area, leaving CPRI as the only body releasing new varieties. "But the major chunk of its work has been for the table variety which is used in curries, sabzis, samosas, etc," he said. Potato is one of the three crops prioritised under the Centre's 'TOP' (Tomato, Onion, Potato) scheme, which has supported cold storage infrastructure. However, Soundararadjane said the industry requires more work across the value chain.
"Work in terms of farmer outreach is also necessary to introduce high-end agricultural practices for potato cultivation in the country. But a lack of manpower who can carry out farm extension services is a problem," he added.
Source: IndianExpress
