Sweet Potato: A Potential Industrial and

Staple Food Crop of Nigeria

s. c. O. Nwinyi
National Root Crops Research Institute, Umudike, PMB 7006, Umuahia, Nigeria

This article reviews the impact of sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas (L) Lam) on the world economy, its uses,
and efforts in Nigeria to popularize its cultivation and acceptability_The potential and average yields of 87
and 20-30 t/ha respectively (over a three-six month growing period) under improved management
practices, its ecological flexibility, its low input requirements, the wide range of recipes based on its flour,
and easy propagation by vine cuttings distinguish the sweet potato as a potentially important industrial
and staple food crop_ Problems relating to sweetness, dominant flavour, and the colour of the cooked
product are identified as ones requiring solution if its acceptability is to be enhanced.

The sweet potato (lmpomoea batatas (L)
Lam) is a member of the Convolvu-
laceae which has been grown in the
subsistence agricultural system of Niger-
ia since the 17th century (1]. It is a
perennial, but is cultivated as an annual
with a growing period of three to six
months, depending on growth condi-
tions and cultivars [2]. With the estab-
lishment of the Root and Tuber Im-
provement Programme of the Interna-
tional Institute for Tropical Agriculture,
Ibadan (UTA) in 1971 and the creation
of the National Root Crops Research
Institute (NRCRI) in 1974, a significant
effort was initiated to improve quality
and cultivation in Nigeria. Currently, it
is annually grown on 200 000 - 300 000
ha, about 0.3 per cent of total area of
Nigeria [3], with a precious yield of 3-8
t/ha in farmers' fields but currently 25-30
t/ha. Under improved management
practices the potential yield is 87 t/ha [4].
This yield in 3-5 months compares with
those of yam, cocoyam, and cassava,
which mature in 8-18 months. In Niger,
Kwara, Kaduna, Kano, and other states
of Northern Nigeria, it is a major source
of carbohydrate [5].
Nigeria is the fifth cassava producer in
the world, the first in yam and cocoyam
(Taro), but relatively unknown in sweet
potato and Irish potato production
(Table 1). Nigeria neither imports nor
exports any of these crops, as it has wide
production deficit of about 1.6 and 12
million tonnes for yam and cassava re-
spectively [6, 7], the most extensively
grown and preferred carbohydrate
sources. This indicates that current
levels of sweet potato production fall
short of Nigeria's requirement.
This paper aims at demonstrating the
enormous potential of the sweet potato
towards making Nigeria not only self
sufficient in root and tuber crops produc-
tion, but also an exporting country.
Sweet potato in the
world economy
Sweet potato is the sixth most important
food crop in the world, with annual
production of about 12.4 x 107t from 1.5
x 1Q7ha: a mean yield of 8.3 t/ha [8].
Although it is grown widely as a staple
food crop in many parts of the tropics
and sub-tropics, it is more extensive-
ly produced in the temperate zone
(Table 1), with China accounting for
about 81 per cent of world output [9,10,
11]. Sweet potato has a tremendous
capacity for producing dry matter per
unit of land and time [12] and requires
less production inputs compared with
yam, cassava, or other food crops; addi-

TABLE 1 RANKING OF WORLD'S LEADING ROOT CROP PRODUCERS (% of TOTAL)

Sweet
Cassava Potatoes Yams Taro Potatoes

Brazil (19.0) China (86.3) Nigeria (74.2) Nigeria (40.0) USSR (3Q.6)
Thailand (16.3) Indonesia (1.5) Ivory Coast (8.4) Ghana (31.1) Poland (12.5)
Zaire (10.2) Viet Nam (1.2) Ghana (4.0) Japan (11.1) USA (6.2)
Indonesia (9.9) India (1.1) Togo (3.7) PNG (4.9) China (5.9)
Nigeria (8.9) Japan (0.9) Benin (3.0) Ivory Coast (4.4) India (3.9)
India (4.3) Philippines (0.7) Ethiopia (1.3) Madagascar (2.0) Germany DR (3.8)
Tanzania (3.8) Burundi (0.6) Sudan (1.3) Philippines (1.9) Germany FR (3.1)
China (2.6) Rwanda (0.6) PNG (0.8) Egypt (1.2) France (2.6)
Mozambique (2.2) Korea Rep. (0.6) Japan (0.7) Togo (0.9) UK (2.6)
Viet Nam (2.1) Brazil (0.5) Jamaica (0.7) China (0.5) Netherlands (2.4)

Total: 79.3 94.0 98.1 98.0 73.6

Note: all data are for 1982 except for yams and taro which are for 1975.
Source: Chandra [9, 10)

Outlookon Agriculture,Volume16,No.4, 1987.

0030-7Z70/87 SO.OO + .50.
© 1987.Pergamon Journals Ltd.Printed InGreat Britain.

178
Figure 1 Sweet potato in the field. Figure 2 Sweet potato tubers.

tionally, it is less vulnerable to drought
and heavy storms. The crop is grown
between latitudes 400N and 400S and
between sea level and 2300 m altitude
[13]. It does well even on soils of low pH
and fertility. Its productivity can be
raised by intensification (increase in
yield/ha) or expansion (increase in area
under cultivation) of its culture because
it matures in 3-6 months and is well
adapted to a wide ecological range. With
its tolerance of low-moisture conditions
[14], it can be cropped three times a year
in Nigeria, depending on availability of
water. Its future is limited only by the
desire and ability to exploit the available
variability.
Uses of sweet potato
Both sweet potato tubers and shoots are
edible [15] (figures 1, 2) and the crop is
highly nutritious. Its food energy; pro-
tein value; total carbohydrate and fibre
content; minerals (Ca, P, Fe, and K);
thiamine, riboflavin, and niacin content
are comparable with those of cassava,
yam and cocoyam. It is a superior source
of carotene (Table 2). In USA, the fresh
tubers are canned, frozen, and dehy-
drated for consumption as pie fillings
and purees [11]. The tubers can be
cooked or roasted and eaten directly
after harvest. In very large producing
countries - China, Taiwan, and South
Korea - sweet potatoes are fed to lives- to solve problems of root and tuber crop
tock or converted into low-grade starch production generally in Nigeria. Sweet
for industry [11]. More ethanol has been potato is one of the root crops. The
produced from sweet potato than from factors responsible for farmers' poor
any starch or sugar crop, and it can be yields, and militating against large-scale
used for beer making. The by-product of production and general acceptance of
sweet potato distillation is used as anim- sweet potato became the concern of
al food supplement. Sweet potato leaves NRCRI. These factors include:(a) dif-
contain about 34.5 per cent crude pro- ficulty of storing fresh tubers at farm
tein on dry weight basis. In parts of Asia level; (b) low acceptability among Nige-
and Africa, the shoots are used as veget- rian consumers; (c) poor and irregular
able and as food for Tilapia in fish ponds yields; (d) susceptibility of the local
[2]. Depending on cultivar, the tubers clones to weevil and virus attack; (e)
yield about 23-29 per cent flour, which is strong consumer preference for tradi-
incorporated in confectionery, baby tional staples such as yam, cassava,
foods, and blended with other flours to cocoyarn, maize, rice, etc; and (f)
make various food preparations [16]. necessity to maintain live materials
even during dry season for next season's
Sweet potato production cropping.
problems in Nigeria Although the NRCRI came into exist-
ence in 1974, preliminary work on sweet
Although sweet potato is the staple food potato started only in 1976, as part of
crop of many countries (Table 3), its 'Other Root Crops Research Program-
cultivation in Nigeria was not empha- me'. In April 1983, a separate Sweet
sized, being a minor crop. Its enor- Potato Research Programme was estab-
mous raw material came to be appre- lished to investigate problems of sweet
ciated with the recent failure of the potato production. The programme in-
crude petroleum oil sector to sustain the herited a germplasm collection of about
Nigerian economy. With a potential and 202 types for characterization, hybri-
average yield of 87 and 20--30 t/ha re- disation, and selection. Lack of func-
spectively, the farmers' achieved yields tional criteria for characterization and
of only 3-8 tlha calls for urgent and classification of the germplasm hindered
concerted efforts for improvement. One further collections which might have led
of these efforts was the creation of the to unnecessary duplication. However,
National Root Crops Research Institute collection of data on vegetative and

TABLE 2 NUTRITIVE VALUES OFTROPICAL ROOTCROPS (PER 100 9 EDIBLE PORTION)

Crops Food Moisture Protein Total CHO Calcium Phosphorus Iron Potassium Carotene Thiaminec Riboflavin Niacin
energy and fibre equivalent
(kj) ('Yo) (gl (g) (mg) (mg) (mg) (mg) (ug) (mg) (mg) (mg)

Cassava 565 65,5 1.0 32.4 26 32 0.9 394 0 0.05 0,04 0.6
sweet potato
White 452 12.8 1.0 25.1 21 50 0.9 210 35 0.14 0,05 0.7
Yellow 481 70.7 1.2 27.1 36 56 0.9 304 1680 0.12 0.05 0.6
Yams 452 71.8 2.0 25.1 22 39 1.0 294 0 0.10 0.04 0.07
Taro and tannia 393 75.4 2.2 21.0 34 62 1.2 448 tr. 0.12 0.04 1.0
Giant taro 255 84.0 0.6 14.8 30 50 1.0 0 0.05
Giant swamp taro 548 0.9 31.0 334 56 1.2 0 0.05 0.07 0.88
Elephant yam 339 78.5 2.0 18,4 38 38 2.4 416 0 0.06 0.02 1.70
Taro leaves 255 81.4 4.0 11.9 162 69 1.0 963 5535 0,13 0.34 1.5

source: Chandra [10).

179
 TABLE 3 WORLD CONSUMPTION OF ROOT CROPS (kg per capita)

Sweet
Cassava Potatoes Yams Taro Potatoes

Brazil (191) China (110) Nigeria (238) Nigeria (29) USSR (289)
Thailand (427) Indonesia (14) Ivory Coast (348) Ghana (142) Poland (882)
Zaire (440) Viet Nam (30) Ghan (81) Japan (4) USA (68)
Indonesia (84) India (2) Togo (334) PNG (81) China (15)
Nigeria (138) Japan (12) Benin (198) Ivory Coast (41) India (14)
India (8) Philippines (20) Ethiopia (10) Madagascar (11 ) Germany DR (586)
Tanzania (256) Burundi (212) Sudan (14) Philippines (2) Germany FR (129)
China (3) Rwanda (172) PNG (62) Egypt (1) France (124)
Mozambique (258) Korea Rep. (21) Japan (1) Togo (18) UK (116)
Viet Nam (47) Brazil (6) Jamaica (66) China (-) Netherlands (435)
World (28) (31) (5) (1) (56)

Note: All data for 1982. except for yams and taro which are for 1975.
(-) Indicates negligible.
Source: Chandra [10].

tuber characteristics - for example
above-ground vegetative spread pat-
tern; length of vines; colour of vines,
petiole, vein, and tuber skin; tuber
shape, pollen compatibility and incom-
patibility groups - is in progress.
High-yielding cultivars
from IITA
To meet the urgent demand by farmers
for improved cultivars, many high-
yielding cultivars from lITA were evalu-
ated, selected, and multiplied. Five cul-
tivars: TIS 2498, TIS 8/727, TIS 2534,
TIS 146/3092, and a very good local
'Anorna' have been mutliplied and over
156,000 4-node slips distributed to
Ministries of Agriculture of Rivers,
Cross River, Kwara, Plateau, Gongola
States, and River Basin Development
Authorities and private growers for
further evaluation and selection of pre-
ferred cultivars. The continued demands
for these cultivars indicates the success
of this initial campaign to change the
quality of cultivars at farmers' level.
Time for planting and
vine management
The best time to plant sweet potato is
when the rains become steady (late June
to August each year in the southern
states and August to late September for
the northern states). With irrigation,
planting is possible. preferably on
ridges. Optimum plant density is 33 000
standslha. Hand weedings at 3-4, 8-9,
and 12-13 weeks after planting controls
weeds. Sweet potato cultivars respond
differently to varying management prac-
tices: for example. at 50 per cent pruning
cultivar TIS 2498 significantly (P =
0.001) out-yielded no pruning, while in
cultivar TIS 8/727 the yield was signi-
ficantly (P = 0.01) depressed by pruning.
It would appear that certain cultivars
require reduction in their vegetative
cover to give high yields. This is being
investigated.
Fertilization
Sweet potato responds well to fertiliza-
tion. Apart from application of 45kg
PzOs/ha and/or farmyard manure re-
commended for northern states, there is
no fertilizer recommendation for the
crop in Nigeria. Application of a
10:10:20 N.P.K. mixed fertilizer at the
rate of 700kglha has consistently and
significantly improved yields over a mix-
ture of 45kg Nlha, 15kg P/ha, and 70kg
K/ha which showed promise in some
locations. Fertilizer requirement studies
have been planned for various sites in
Nigeria. Generally, broadcast place-
ment is superior to ring, sideband, and
furrow application.

Ecological adaptation of
cultivars

Preliminary ecological adaptation trials

in different agro-ecological zones was
hindered because yields of selected culti-
vars dropped markedly with continued
vegetative propagation. For example,
cultivars J.K. 70. TIB 1, and TIB 4,
which were the highest yielders at Umu-
dike in the 1970s, are now among the
poorest yielders. Cultivar TIS 2352 did
not flower at Umudike, Igbariam, and
Otobi while the flowering potentials of
TIS 2498. TIS 8/727. and Anoma in
those locations varied with location and
even within the same farm. These
observations appear to indicate that
adapted cultivars may have to be reg-
ularly replaced with newer cultivars to
ensure consistent high yields. Figure 3 Acraeacerata larva eating sweet potato leaf.

180
Sweet potato pests
A major pest of sweet potato (Cylas
punticolis) has effectively been control-
led by monthly application of insecti-
cides: Chlorpyrifos, Monocrotophos,
and Carbofuran at 1.00, 0.45, and 2.70kg
a.i.zha respectively. Cultivars like TIS
1176, TIS 2534, TIS 2498, TIS 8/727, TIS
2421, TIS 2444, Dokobo, Dukukpuku,
and Anoma are tolerant to Cylas spp.
attack. Another pest, Acraea acerata,
Figure4 Full grown adult Acraea
acerata. often called sweet potato
butterfly.
was noticed in 1985 (figure 3,4) but its
bionomics and control measures are still
being investigated.
Harvesting time and
storage
Growth physiology is under study to
identify maturity indices of all cultivars
in the germplasm, because farmers lose
much of their yield due to late harvest-
ing. Late harvesting leads to physiologic-
al cracks in the tubers (maturity cracks)
which combined with weevil attack to
reduce the market value of the tubers.
However, maturity/harvesting time is
indicated by shoot senescence and the
production of white exudate when tu-
bers are pricked. Fresh tubers of culti-
vars TIS 146/3092, TIS 2321, TIS 2352,
and TIS 2534 have stored well in moist
sawdust for four months without loss of
food quality. Storage sprouting is a prob-
lem, and sprouts should be manually
removed.
Processing and utilization
Sweet potato tubers are generally eaten
raw, roasted, fried, boiled, or pounded
and swallowed with a sauce, and such
limited methods of preparation must
have contributed to the low acceptability
of the crop as food. The tubers are now
peeled, sliced, dried, and milled into
flour. Bleached (white) flour is generally
preferred to the unbleached dark type.
The flour is used for various food prepa-
rations; for example, in blends with
cassava flour or starch to give very good
fufu. With maize and soya bean flours,
good infant foods have been produced.
A product SSP-Form II (with 16 per cent
protein content) was developed and
found to store perfectly well at 6.5 per
cent moisture content. This product is
used as moi-moi, or porridge, for adults
and also a food for infants. Sweet potato
flour blends well with wheat flour for
making bread and confectioneries. The
flour of cultivar 'Dokobo' is particularly
good for biscuit making. Work on the
quality and type of flour obtainable from
various cultivars continues.
Future prospects
Sweet potato cultivation can provide
both employment and food for Nigeria.
Fresh tuber yields of 25-40 t/ha can
provide gross annual returns of over 1.25
billion Naira. Sale of processed tubers
will bring even more revenue. The major
problems are its sweetness (from its
content of maltose (17] and sucrose);
strong taste and aroma; and the colour of
the cooked tubers. All these qualities
limit acceptability. Deep orange and
violet (or purple) flesh colours are dis-
liked, white or yellow fleshed cultivars
being generally preferred. Staple crops
like rice, cassava, potato, yam, and
cocoyam have little taste and require
flavourings to increase palatability.
However, many Nigerians consume
sweet potato, although irregularly,
essentially because of the sweetness and
and flavour.
Future studies
High yields in 3-4 months, wide ecolo-
gical adaptation, low input require-
ments, and easy propagation, make
sweet potato a potential staple food crop
for Nigeria. Its distinct flavour limits
acceptability but the development of less
sweet types and new modes of utilisation
should increase both cultivation and
consumption.
Acknowledgment
The author wishes to express indebted-
ness to the Director, National Root
Crops Research Institute, Umudike,
P.M.B. 7006, Urnuahia, and the Inter-
national Institute for Tropical Agricul-
ture, Ibadan, for their encouragement
and cooperation at various stages of
development of the NRCRI Sweet Pota-
to Research Programme. Thanks are
also due to the entire staff of Sweet
Potato Research Programme for their
continued interest and devotion to duty.
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181