Colombia aims to lift potato yields from 30 to 50 tonnes per hectare, but the real starting point is closer to 23

The government and growers have agreed a roadmap to cut costs and raise productivity. The headline target is ambitious, but industry statistics suggest it would more than double the current national average rather than add two-thirds.

Colombia’s Ministry of Agriculture and representatives of the potato sector have agreed a roadmap to make the crop more competitive. Its centrepiece is a productivity goal: raising yields from a reference figure of 30 tonnes per hectare (t/ha) to around 50 t/ha, an increase of roughly 67%. The ministry describes this as a target, not a result already achieved.

A roadmap agreed in Villapinzón

The agreement came out of a day of talks on 25 October in Villapinzón, in the department of Cundinamarca, one of the country’s main potato-growing areas. Agriculture Minister Indalecio Dangond toured the local Potato Agro-industrial Centre and met growers from several regions. The governments of Cundinamarca and Boyacá, the national growers’ federation Fedepapa, the Villapinzón municipality and producers all took part.

According to the ministry, the route to higher yields runs through better agronomic practice, new technology and efficient irrigation. Reports also name certified seed, knowledge transfer and mechanisation, including simple machinery suited to small farms. Press reports say the main steps are planned for 2027.

The target against the real baseline

The 30 t/ha figure needs careful handling. Argenpapa, the source of the original report, describes it only as a reference mentioned during the meeting, while some Colombian media call it the national average. Fedepapa’s own analysis points to a lower figure: it projected an average yield of about 23.3 t/ha for 2025, on roughly 111,000 hectares and a harvest of around 2.6 million tonnes. A university study from EAFIT cites a projected national yield of about 22.8 t/ha.

Measured against 22–23 t/ha, a yield of 50 t/ha would be an increase of well over 100%, not 67%. For context, Fedepapa reports that Germany averaged about 45 t/ha in 2024, on a harvest of 12.7 million tonnes.

Why costs matter as much as yields

The ministry says growing one hectare of potatoes currently costs about 35 million Colombian pesos (COP). Labour and land rent together account for almost half of that. Because costs are largely fixed per hectare, yield determines the cost of each tonne produced. Our own calculation, using the ministry’s cost figure, shows how sensitive the economics are: at the estimated national average of 23 t/ha, the cost is about COP 1.5 million per tonne; at the 30 t/ha reference figure, about COP 1.17 million; at the government’s 50 t/ha target, about COP 0.7 million. This is an editorial calculation (COP 35 million divided by yield), not an official figure.

Small farms make the task harder

Colombian potato production is highly fragmented. Data from the rural planning agency UPRA indicate that 95% of growers plant less than three hectares and 80% less than one. For farms of that size, irrigation, machinery and certified seed depend as much on access to credit and on cooperation between growers as on technology itself. Fedepapa’s head said in 2021 that certified seed can lift yields from about 20 to 45 t/ha, but that its price remains the main obstacle.

An earlier 20-year plan for the sector, prepared by the ministry and UPRA, was more modest, envisaging a rise from 28 to 38 t/ha.

What else is in the roadmap

Colombian business media report that the document has 16 points, only some of which have been published. Those reported include a review of potato imports and trade-defence measures; price stabilisation; action against smuggling and a movement document for potato consignments; crop insurance and a pilot of parametric insurance, which pays out when a pre-agreed trigger such as rainfall is reached, rather than after a loss assessment; prevention and control of purple top (punta morada), a disease affecting potato plants; input financing, financial relief for indebted growers and treatment of overdue loans; and better targeting of state support, alongside lower-impact, more sustainable production.

The agenda also looks to add value through washing, grading, packing and standardisation, to make it easier to supply supermarkets, restaurants and processors.

Kontext

The sector has been under pressure. In 2025 Colombian growers staged protests and road blockades and demanded tighter controls on imports, including frozen potato products, which they blamed for depressing the market. The state-owned Banco Agrario has since written down part of the debts of growers in arrears.

Whether the new roadmap changes that picture will depend on funding and delivery in 2027, and on whether a doubling of yields is realistic for a sector dominated by very small farms.

Sources

Argenpapa, 5 Nov 2026 (citing the Ministry of Agriculture): https://www.argenpapa.com.ar/noticia/18065-colombia-gobierno-y-productores-buscan-elevar-los-rendimientos-de-papa-de-30-a-50-toneladas-por-hectarea
Forbes Colombia, 26 Oct 2026: https://forbes.co/2026/10/26/economia-y-finanzas/producir-una-hectarea-de-papa-cuesta-35-millones-minagricultura-busca-elevar-la-productividad/
Portafolio: https://www.portafolio.co/economia/agro/costo-de-producir-una-hectarea-de-papa-llega-a-35-millones-gobierno-busca-reducir-la-carga-505119
Agronegocios: https://www.agronegocios.co/agricultura/fijan-hoja-de-ruta-para-mejorar-productividad-y-bajar-costos-de-papicultura-4510715
Blu Radio: https://www.bluradio.com/nacion/gobierno-y-fedepapa-preparan-plan-para-reducir-costos-de-produccion-en-colombia-rg10
Fedepapa, 2025 projections: https://repositorio.fedepapa.com/server/api/core/bitstreams/bc4fa717-7f53-4c41-8109-92d372574a7f/content
EAFIT, yield and profitability study: https://repository.eafit.edu.co/bitstreams/773bedb9-c33b-4ebf-b9eb-30fd197757b8/download
Portafolio, UPRA 20-year projection: https://www.portafolio.co/economia/gobierno/proyeccion-de-gobierno-aumentar-la-produccion-de-papa-73-5-en-20-anos-588101
Universidad Javeriana Cali, farm structure (UPRA, 2024): https://www.javerianacali.edu.co/sites/default/files/2025-08/Papa%2C%20abundancia%20productiva.pdf
La República, certified seed (Fedepapa, 2021): https://www.larepublica.co/economia/siembra-de-papa-puede-llegar-a-bajar-hasta-en-10000-hectareas-por-falta-de-recursos-3111701