The WPC President Applauds China for Improving Potato Production

Invited to speak at the Chinese Potato Expo in Shandong Province and to attend the 7th Global Leaders in Agricultural Science and Technology (GLAST) in Sanya in October 2023, World Potato Congress Inc. (WPC) president Peter VanderZaag praised the Chinese for their efforts to alleviate poverty, particularly by improving potato production in Western China's mountainous regions.

“Our organizations have adopted the same global objective: ‘poverty alleviation through potato science and technology’ by implementing the Declaration of Dublin, introduced at the 11th World Potato Congress in Dublin in 2022,” VanderZaag added.

President VanderZaag shared with delegates at the Expo details about the upcoming World Potato Congress set to be held in Adelaide, Australia in June 2024. He also presented the mission and mandate behind the Congress.

“The WPC has, as its primary mission, to hold global Congresses every second year. These Congresses bring together all the players in the potato value chain to network and share findings to pressing problems faced globally,” VanderZaag also declared.

The GLAST forum was well-attended by almost 600 participants from 49 countries.

“While an invaluable opportunity time to reconnect with colleagues, it was challenging to hear about the status of the global food supply situation as we work together in addressing the UN’s sustainable development goals (SDGs). Potatoes will need to be a key player in helping meet the United Nations SDGs,” the WPC President mentioned.

The Global Hybrid (Diploid) Potato Alliance (GHPA) was officially launched at GLAST in Sanya, China. This strategy of working at the Diploid level will revolutionize how potatoes will be grown and will hopefully see the incremental yield potential as was seen with corn over the past 70 years.

“WPC looks forward to their upcoming Congress in Adelaide, Australia as an opportunity to network with the global potato community and strive to explore opportunities where potatoes can be used to assist in bringing food security to vulnerable regions of the world,” according to a recent WPC press release.