BRI Stories | China, Peru join forces in potato breeding, production

BEIJING, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- Peru is a native place of potatoes, and China is a leading potato producing country in the world. The decades-long bilateral cooperation in potato research and breeding have yielded fruitful results.

A farmer harvests potatoes in Changning Village of Datong Hui and Tu Autonomous County, northwest China's Qinghai Province.

This photo shows potato fields near Huancayo, Peru.

A farmer shows a newly-harvested potato near Huancayo, Peru.

This photo shows harvested potatoes in Hualong Hui Autonomous County of Haidong City, northwest China's Qinghai Province.

Wang Jian, deputy director of the Qinghai Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, established his links with Peru when he visited the International Potato Center in 2004. Headquartered in the Peruvian capital Lima, the research institute boasts a large pool of potato seeds and genetic resources.

The center's agriculturist Victor Otazu was invited by Wang to visit China's Qinghai Province in the following year for collaborate in potato breeding and disease prevention.

Wang Jian (L) instructs a student at a potato seedling breeding lab of Qinghai University in Xining, northwest China's Qinghai Province.

Victor Otazu poses for a photo in Huancayo, Peru.

Wang Jian checks the growth of Qingshu-9 potatoes in southwest China's Yunnan Province.

Victor Otazu gives a lecture at a potato planting training session in Huancayo, Peru.

Otazu found that the highlands there showed certain similarities with places where his experimental stations are located in Peru. The local climate and geological conditions were favorable for potato seed production, which means Qinghai could be an important potato producer.

The cooperation has allowed the province to make strides in potato breeding. The Qingshu-9 type of potato, which was bred in Qinghai, is now widely grown in China.

Qinghai also gives a helping hand to Peru, which has been challenged by climate change and pest harm in recent years. Many China-developed technologies regarding seed production and disease prevention have been applied in Peru, benefiting local farmers and improving their livelihood.

Farmers attend a lecture given by Victor Otazu at a potato planting training session in Huancayo, Peru.

Ana Panta, a potato specialist displays potato seedlings to be mailed to China at the International Potato Center in Lima, Peru.

Peruvian farmers visit a biological technology institute of Qinghai University in Xining, northwest China's Qinghai Province.

Farmers plant potato seeds at a field near Huancayo, Peru.

Thanks to his contribution to potato research and production in Qinghai, Otazu was honored with the Friendship Award by the Chinese government. The award is given to foreigners who have made important contributions to China's social and economic development, and in his case, to China's agricultural development.

Although Otazu has retired, his collaboration with China continues. He is proud of the decades-long agricultural collaboration with China, hoping that more benefits could be delivered through cooperation in increasing fields to people of the two countries.

This photo shows potato chips taken at a potato planting training session in Huancayo, Peru.

Wang Jian (5th L) and Victor Otazu (6th L) attend an academic exchange event in Qinghai University in Xining, northwest China's Qinghai Province.

Journalists: Wang Zhongyi, Zhang Duo, Xi Yue, Li Muzi, Zhang Long, Zhang Hongxiang