Published 1 February, 2021
Basseterre
Buckie Got It, St. Kitts and Nevis News Source
Daphne Ewing-Chow Senior Contributor
Originally domesticated in Latin America more than 5,000 years ago, sweet potatoes currently grow in more developing countries than any other root crop, with up to a million tonnes produced in the Caribbean per year (FAOSTAT, 2016). Identified as the fifth most important food crop in the developing world, and one of the main crops identified for Caribbean food security, sweet potatoes produce more biomass and nutrients per hectare than any other food crop. This superfood has immense potential to fuel Caribbean development, not only in the alleviation of food insecurity and as a nutrition crop but also from the perspective of climate adaptation and mitigation, and as a driver of economic development.
