Cassava’s Potential in Asia in the 21st Centery

Cassava’s Potential in Asia in the 21st Centery:
Present Situation and Future Research and Development Needs

Source: http://isa.ciat.cgiar.org/catalogo/producto.jsp?codigo=P0198
Institution/Author: HOWELER, R.H; TAN, S.L.
Publisher: CIAT
Year: 2001
Language: English
Price: free
Price Colombia (in pesos): free
Scientific Contact: Reinhardt Howeler

The book collects 44 papers presented at the 6th Regional Cassava Workshop, held in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on 21-25 February 2000. Participants included cassava researchers from China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, and Colombia. The book's papers are grouped under the following topics: (1) present situation and future potential of the crop in various cassava-producing countries of Asia; (2) breeding; (3) agronomy; (4) farmer participatory research; (5) new products from cassava; and (6) CIAT collaboration. These papers are followed by a list of participants, including their e-mail addresses, and an appendix with the results of analyses of soil samples collected in various Asian countries from 1995 to 2000. Being held at the start of a new millennium, the Workshop aimed to take stock of cassava's current situation in Asia. It summarizesd and reviewsed cassava research in various Asian countries over the past 20-30 years, including the first phase of the NF Project on Enhancing the Sustainability of Cassava-Based Cropping Systems. The Workshop also described those cassava products that could open up new markets and increase demand for the crop. Such stock taking was to provide background information for developing new strategies to increase the crop's competitiveness, and thus its share in domestic and international markets. Increasing the diversity of end uses and decreasing the cost of the raw material and processing will ultimately benefit cassava farmers, processors, and traders. Because the book covers much of the research conducted on cassava production and processing, it has become an essential reference book for people interested in the crop.

Keywords: Manihot esculenta; Cassava; Production; Trends; Plant breeding; Agronomy; Participatory research; Farming systems; Erosion control; Technology transfer; Sustainability; Research networks; Asia