In North Korea, the cultivation of potatoes is an important aspect to the livelihood of the country's population. The crop was introduced into the country in the early 1800s. [1] Since the famine of the 1990s, a potato revolution has taken place. Over ten years, the area of potato cultivation in North Korea quadrupled to 200,000 hectares and per capita consumption increased from 16 to 60 kilograms (35 to 132 lb) per year. [2]
The cultivation of potatoes in North Korea is an early 19th-century development (probably introduced from China) [1] which until the 1990s was affected by crop diseases, severe weather conditions, poor storage facilities, and lack of modernization resulting in lower yields. [3] Insistence on agricultural Juche (self-reliance) for three decades is also cited as a reason for lower yields. During the occupation of Korea by Japan, from 1910 to 1945, potatoes were the staple crop in the country. During World War II in particular, the potato was the chief sustenance crop as rice was exported to Japan. [1] In a potato poisoning incident between 1952 and 1953, at least 322 North Koreans were affected by the consumption of rotten potatoes. [4] Of these, 52 people were hospitalized and 22 died. [4] During his rule, Kim Il Sung ordered that farmers should focus on other crops, such as rice and maize. [5]
A 1997 decree of the Supreme People's Assembly sought to increase the output of all crops, including potato. [5] By then, however, much of the technical knowledge about potato farming had been lost and few people could make potato dishes. [6] The "potato revolution" was initiated in 1999 by Kim Jong Il; potatoes were now viewed as a crop of high importance. North Korea was provided aid for potato production by a few humanitarian organisations. [7]
Foreign aid organisations have helped with growing seed potatoes since the late 1990s, when the Swedish Pentecostal organisation Pingstmissionens Utvecklingssamarbete (PMU) began its program. The North Korean ambassador to Sweden had asked PMU for help in 1996. [8] To inquiries about why he turned to a Christian organisation, he replied, "Christians usually help". [9] The first hydroponics seed potato farm was established in Pyongyang in 2000, followed by three additional farms in other locations. Along with North Korea's Academy of Agricultural Sciences, World Vision, and the Asia Pacific Peace Committee, which was replaced by the Korea National Economic Cooperation Agency (KNECA), a fifth hydroponic seed potato farm was established in Taehongdan County in 2007, with expectations of boosting potato production quality by 50 percent. [10] In the same year, researchers, Choe Kwi-nam, Han Won-Sik, and Min Gyong-nam visited Finland to study potato farming. [11]
Potato production drew the attention of the government and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in 2008 with a four-year program plan. In includes infusion of $3.5 million to introduce modern methods developed by national and international research institutions. The program, based on climatic conditions of the potato growing regions, was a significant undertaking. Introduction of tested early-maturing varieties of Favorita and Zhongshu No 3 were planned to be introduced in the southern region and Zihuabai for the southern and northern highland regions which could increase production levels by about 50 per cent, and with this the expected total yield was 165,000 tonnes. [3]
In addition, more land was to be brought under improved crop varieties. Some of the other innovations adopted are introducing seed certification standards, providing farmers with access to International Potato Center's gene bank, introduction of True Potato Seed (TPS) from botanical seed to reduce "carryover" crop diseases in seed tubers, and education of farmers in field schools. [3] Apart from FAO, the Swiss Foundation for Development Assistance (Swissaid), has also supported activities related to improvement of potato seed quality, farming techniques to fight pests, proper use of fertilizers, better warehousing, and training farmers in potato seed production. [2]
| Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |
|---|---|
| Energy | 321 kJ (77 kcal) |
17.47 g | |
| Starch | 15.44 g |
| Dietary fiber | 2.2 g |
0.1 g | |
2 g | |
| Vitamins | Quantity %DV† |
| Thiamine (B1) | 7% 0.08 mg |
| Riboflavin (B2) | 3% 0.03 mg |
| Niacin (B3) | 7% 1.05 mg |
| Pantothenic acid (B5) | 6% 0.296 mg |
| Vitamin B6 | 23% 0.295 mg |
| Folate (B9) | 4% 16 μg |
| Vitamin C | 24% 19.7 mg |
| Vitamin E | 0% 0.01 mg |
| Vitamin K | 2% 1.9 μg |
| Minerals | Quantity %DV† |
| Calcium | 1% 12 mg |
| Iron | 6% 0.78 mg |
| Magnesium | 6% 23 mg |
| Manganese | 7% 0.153 mg |
| Phosphorus | 8% 57 mg |
| Potassium | 14% 421 mg |
| Sodium | 0% 6 mg |
| Zinc | 3% 0.29 mg |
| Other constituents | Quantity |
| Water | 75 g |
| †Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults. [12] | |
Land brought under potato cultivation was 188,388 hectares (465,520 acres) in 2006, and the total production was 470,451 tonnes (463,021 long tons; 518,583 short tons)[ further explanation needed ] with average yield level of 9.3 tons/ha for the spring variety and 10.7 tons/ha for the summer crop. The introduction of Jangjin-6, Yolmaejo-saeng and its sub varieties showed a rise in yield in the range of 100 to 160 percent. [13]
In the following year, the area planted in potatoes was 8,732,961 ha (as against 36,000 ha in 1960) [ further explanation needed ] and the production was 1,900,000 tonnes (1,900,000 long tons; 2,100,000 short tons) with an average yield level of 10 tons/ha. North Korea was in the 10th position in Asia in potato production in 2007. As part of the "Potato farming revolution", a low-input potato-rice cropping system (inter-cropping) was also introduced on account of its advantage with a short growing season; this resulted in a yield of 32 tonnes of potatoes and rice per hectare. [1] Potato grows better than rice in North Korea, particularly in the mountainous regions. [14]
Grown in more than 125 countries including North Korea, potato is a root and tuber crop which has high nutritional value. It has protein, calcium and vitamin C. One potato of medium size contains 50 percent of the daily vitamin C needs of an adult. When boiled, its protein content is reported to be more than that of maize, with double the calcium content. [2]
Rice is North Korea's primary farm product. [11] The potato was considered a second grade food item, but has become the main staple in rural areas, replacing rice. In its proliferation, Kim Jong Il is considered the champion crusader. [15]
Kamja-guk , a potato soup, is a popular dish, made with potatoes and chicken broth or beef pieces. Other vegetables added to it are carrots, mushrooms, and onions spiced with pepper. [16] Noodles made of potatoes (goksu) are also popular, along with other types made out of cereal grains. The noodles are eaten hot or cold, with broth. [17] Potato cake made out of potato flour mixed with green onions, chives, and chilli pepper is also a popular dish. This mixture is fried and eaten, and is known as kamja puch’im. Another dish, kamja sujebi , is a potato flour dumpling that is used in soups. [18]
Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, fisheries, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to live in cities. While humans started gathering grains at least 105,000 years ago, nascent farmers only began planting them around 11,500 years ago. Sheep, goats, pigs, and cattle were domesticated around 10,000 years ago. Plants were independently cultivated in at least 11 regions of the world. In the 20th century, industrial agriculture based on large-scale monocultures came to dominate agricultural output.
Agriculture in Thailand is highly competitive, diversified and specialized and its exports are very successful internationally. Rice is the country's most important crop, with some 60 percent of Thailand's 13 million farmers growing it on almost half of Thailand's cultivated land. Thailand is a major exporter in the world rice market. Rice exports in 2014 amounted to 1.3 percent of GDP. Agricultural production as a whole accounts for an estimated 9–10.5 percent of Thai GDP. Forty percent of the population work in agriculture-related jobs. The farmland they work was valued at US$2,945/rai in 2013. Most Thai farmers own fewer than eight ha (50 rai) of land.
Agriculture in Cuba has played an important part in the economy for several hundred years. Today, it contributes less than 10% to the gross domestic product (GDP), but it employs about 20% of the working population. About 30% of the country's land is used for crop cultivation.
The history of agriculture in India dates back to the Neolithic period. India ranks second worldwide in farm outputs. As per the Indian economic survey 2020 -21, agriculture employed more than 50% of the Indian workforce and contributed 20.2% to the country's GDP.
Agriculture is one of the bases of Argentina's economy.
Agriculture in South Korea is a sector of the economy of South Korea. Korean agriculture is the basic industry of the Korean economy, consisting of farming, animal husbandry, forestry and fishing. At the time of its founding, Korea was a typical agricultural country, with more than 80% of the population engaged in agricultural production. After land reform under the Lee Seung-man administration, economic revitalization under the Park Chung-hee military government and the wave of world trade liberalization that began in the 1980s, Korean agriculture has undergone dramatic changes. Through the Green Revolution, Korea became self-sufficient in rice, the staple food, in 1978, and in 1996, Korea became the first Asian country after Japan to mechanize its agriculture with fine-grained cultivation. The development of Korean agriculture has also led to the development of agriculture-related industries such as fertilizer, agricultural machinery and seed.
Farming in North Korea is concentrated in the flatlands of the four west coast provinces, where a longer growing season, level land, adequate rainfall, and good irrigated soil permit the most intensive cultivation of crops. A narrow strip of similarly fertile land runs through the eastern seaboard Hamgyŏng provinces and Kangwŏn Province.
Agriculture is the largest employment sector in Bangladesh, making up 14.2 percent of Bangladesh's GDP in 2017 and employing about 42.7 percent of the workforce. The performance of this sector has an overwhelming impact on major macroeconomic objectives like employment generation, poverty alleviation, human resources development, food security, and other economic and social forces. A plurality of Bangladeshis earn their living from agriculture. Due to a number of factors, Bangladesh's labour-intensive agriculture has achieved steady increases in food grain production despite the often unfavorable weather conditions. These include better flood control and irrigation, a generally more efficient use of fertilisers, as well as the establishment of better distribution and rural credit networks.
Agriculture accounts for 22 percent of Cambodia’s GDP, and employs about 3 million people.
Agriculture in the Philippines is a major sector of the economy, ranking third among the sectors in 2022 behind only Services and Industry. Its outputs include staples like rice and corn, but also export crops such as coffee, cavendish banana, pineapple and pineapple products, coconut, sugar, and mango. The sector continues to face challenges, however, due to the pressures of a growing population. As of 2022, the sector employs 24% of the Filipino workforce and it accounted for 8.9% of the total GDP.
Angola is a potentially rich agricultural country, with fertile soils, a favourable climate, and about 57.4 million ha of agricultural land, including more than 5.0 million ha of arable land. Before independence from Portugal in 1975, Angola had a flourishing tradition of family-based farming and was self-sufficient in all major food crops except wheat. The country exported coffee and maize, as well as crops such as sisal, bananas, tobacco and cassava. By the 1990s Angola produced less than 1% the volume of coffee it had produced in the early 1970s, while production of cotton, tobacco and sugar cane had ceased almost entirely. Poor global market prices and lack of investment have severely limited the sector since independence.
Agriculture in Bhutan has a dominant role in the Bhutan's economy. In 2000, agriculture accounted for 35.9% of GDP of the nation. The share of the agricultural sector in GDP declined from approximately 55% in 1985 to 33% in 2003. Despite this, agriculture remains the primary source of livelihood for the majority of the population. Pastoralism and farming are naturally complementary modes of subsistence in Bhutan.
Agriculture employs the majority of Madagascar's population. Mainly involving smallholders, agriculture has seen different levels of state organisation, shifting from state control to a liberalized sector.
Agriculture in Kenya dominates Kenya's economy. 15–17 percent of Kenya's total land area has sufficient fertility and rainfall to be farmed, and 7–8 percent can be classified as first-class land. In 2006, almost 75 percent of working Kenyans made their living by farming, compared with 80 percent in 1980. About one-half of Kenya's total agricultural output is non-marketed subsistence production.
Agriculture in Sudan plays an important role in that country's economy. Agriculture and livestock raising are the main sources of livelihood for most of the Sudanese population. It was estimated that, as of 2011, 80 percent of the labor force were employed in that sector, including 84 percent of the women and 64 percent of the men.
Rice production in Vietnam in the Mekong and Red River deltas is important to the food supply in the country and national economy. Vietnam is one of the world's richest agricultural regions and is the second-largest exporter worldwide and the world's seventh-largest consumer of rice. The Mekong Delta is the heart of the rice-producing region of the country where water, boats, houses and markets coexist to produce a generous harvest of rice. Vietnam's land area of 33 million ha, has three ecosystems that dictate rice culture. These are the southern delta, the northern delta and the highlands of the north. The most prominent irrigated rice system is the Mekong Delta. Rice is a staple of the national diet and is seen as a "gift from God".
Agriculture in South Africa contributes around 5% of formal employment, relatively low compared to other parts of Africa and the number is still decreasing, as well as providing work for casual laborers and contributing around 2.6 percent of GDP for the nation. Due to the aridity of the land, only 13.5 percent can be used for crop production, and only 3 percent is considered high potential land.
Mozambique has a variety of regional cropping patterns; agro-climatic zones range from arid and semi-arid to the sub-humid zones to the humid highlands. The most fertile areas are in the northern and central provinces, which have high agro-ecological potential and generally produce agricultural surpluses. Southern provinces have poorer soils and scarce rainfall, and are subject to recurrent droughts and floods.
Agriculture is the main part of Tanzania's economy. As of 2016, Tanzania had over 44 million hectares of arable land with only 33 percent of this amount in cultivation. Almost 70 percent of the rich population live in rural areas, and almost all of them are involved in the farming sector. Land is a vital asset in ensuring food security, and among the nine main food crops in Tanzania are maize, sorghum, millet, rice, wheat, beans, cassava, potatoes, and bananas. The agricultural industry makes a large contribution to the country's foreign exchange earnings, with more than US$1 billion in earnings from cash crop exports.
Zimbabwe has a well-established history of potato cultivation, although production levels have been declining since the 20th century due to a lack of knowledge of cultivation methods and the rising costs of farming.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link){{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
