Potato farming: great for two reasons

We have harvested a good crop of sweet potatoes that we grew locally as one of the ways we are creating a degree of sustainable income locally in Uganda. 14 large sacks of potatoes were harvested and sold, with profit of around 40%.

There was a second reason to grow the potatoes – to provide a demonstration of farming for the parents involved in our income-generating activities, hopefully that some of them will start their own subsistence agriculture ventures. Around 20 parents were paid to help with the planting, weeding and harvesting of the potatoes. They were also given the opportunity to purchase some of the potatoes at a wholesale rate. 

Last year we grew maize on that piece of land, which was harvested around September/October time and sold to bring in some income, but the sweet potatoes have proved more profitable than the maize. 

However the process wasn’t without its challenges… some of the crop was stolen from the ground – and scarcity of rain over the last couple of months didn’t help either.

But overall this was a great new venture that will be repeated and hopefully expanded – and we’re constantly on the lookout for ways in which we can earn local income to help with our school running costs.