Value chain and swot analysis of the manitoba potato sector

Abstract

One of the mainstay of Manitoba’s economy is her agricultural industry. The Potato sector within this industry provide over a thousand full-time jobs in the economy; thus it is a major avenue for economic growth. Its continued positive impact on the economy can be optimized by appraising the strengths and challenges of the sector. The Value chain analysis identified production, harvesting, processing and storage, transportation, and marketing, as the main subjects in value addition. Identifying the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT analysis) of the sector is a way of appraising and enhancing productivity in the sector. Large domestic and export market, abundant land for cultivation, and presence of multinational companies were the strengths identified in the study. Limited rainfall coupled with lack of access to irrigation facility were identified as the inherent weaknesses of potato sector in Manitoba. Processing of potato, increased market in South America were major opportunities for potato sector in the province. At the same time, overproduction leading to poor prices, non-availability of quality seed and shortage of field labour were the potential threats to sustain potato cultivation in the study area.

Keywords: Value-Addition, Potato, Processing, Strengths, Challenges, Opportunities