Potato is one of the most important crops in Peru,
both economically and socially. Each year, around a
million families cultivate potatoes on nearly 300,000
hectares of land, harvesting nearly 4 million tons of
potatoes (Horton & Samanamud, 2013: Annex Table
2). Potato is the main crop for most highland farmers,
especially small producers for whom it is a strategic
source of food and cash income. Potato cultivation
employs more people and generates more economic
value per hectare than any other food crop. The
diversity of native potatoes and their uses also plays
an important role in ancestral customs in highland
areas.
Despite the importance of potatoes in Peru’s
highlands, in the 1970s and 1980s, potato
consumption declined, partly because of the
potato’s image as a “starchy staple” and “poor
man’s food.” Consumption of native potatoes fell
disproportionately, due in part to rural-urban
migration and insecurity in the highlands.