Damascus-Sana
The national project to produce potato seeds locally consists of four stages of seedling production, seed potato cultivation, planting and distributing seeds to achieve self-sufficiency.
Dr. Bassam Al-Sulaiman, Director General of the General Organization for Seed Multiplication, stated in a statement to the SANA Economic Bulletin that 490 tons of seed potatoes of all varieties free from viral diseases and insect infections were produced as part of the national project for the production of potato seeds, which is a stage of the production chain that the establishment implements with the aim of achieving Self-sufficiency of this material within the networked houses distributed in the governorates of Aleppo 150 houses, in Hama 101 houses, and in Sweida 113 houses.
Al-Sulaiman pointed out the importance of this project in providing job opportunities for farmers and securing good quality potato seeds for farmers at reduced prices, which would contribute to stabilizing the price of potatoes in the local market, in addition to dispensing with importing seeds and providing foreign exchange.
He explained that the foundation’s plan includes distributing seeds to farmers in the spring cycle next year, provided that the import of potato seeds will be dispensed with in the year 2023 in the event that the necessary net for greenhouses is provided, which saves money in foreign currency and secures the farmers’s need for seeds appropriate to our climatic conditions, pointing out that the institution It was able to preserve the most important breeding strains and secure the country's need of all types of seeds, in sufficient quantities within the quality specifications and at encouraging prices, with the efforts of its cadres.
The national project for the production of potato seeds was launched 3 years ago in light of many difficulties that were overcome and through multiple stages.
Nadim Mualla
SANA Economic Bulletin