Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is one of the widely cultivated horticultural commodities in Bhutan. Over the years yields of potato at national level have stagnated due to degeneration of seeds and lack of appropriate varieties in the country. To address the yield stagnation issue, two potato varieties (Yusi Maap and Nasphel Kewa Kaap (NKK)) were introduced in recent years. To understand crop productivity and farmer’s preferences of the new varieties this study was conducted in Bumthang, Chukha, Gasa, Haa, and Wangduephodrang districts from 2017 to 2018 using the field demonstration trials and participatory varietal selection method. Desiree, the popular variety was used as a control. On an average across years and dzongkhags, mean yields of the NKK and Yusi Maap were 10.4 and 10.5 tons/acre, respectively. Hence, yields of Yusi Maap and NKK were approximately 30% higher in comparison to Desire, which was 7.30 tons/acre on an average across the years and dzongkhags. Being one of the oldest varieties, Desiree consistently showed lower productivity compared to other two varieties due to seed degeneration and quality deterioration. Although the productivity difference between NKK and Yusi Maap is minimal (0.10 tons/acre) the preference votes of Yusi Maap was 1.3 times that of NKK indicating the higher level of preferences for Yusi Maap. There was positive significant relationship (P=0.02) between the potato productivity and the farmer’s preference suggesting that higher productivity attracted more votes and lower productivity attracted lesser votes. Further higher productivity is also seen as a means to earn cash income for the household to achieve food security in terms of household’s consumptions through the sale of potatoes. The findings provide a sound scientific basis to guide program implementers and policy-makers in terms of potato research and development at the national level.

Potato (Solanum tuberosum) is an indispensable commodity, mainly cultivated by high-altitude mountain households, that sustains and supports the livelihood of an overwhelming 51% of the Bhutanese population. The popularity of potato cultivation among Bhutanese farmers can be attributed to the crop’s adaptability to a wide range of agroclimatic conditions such as a rainfed crop, high productivity, an assured market, and a reliable source of income for the farming families. We hypothesize that the changing climate would make the livelihood associated with potato cultivation in Bhutan more vulnerable. We tested this hypothesis to identify the sources of vulnerability of smallholder farming households using the Livelihood Vulnerability Index (LVI) and LVI-IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) approaches in six potato growing districts of Bhutan: Bumthang, Chukha, Gasa, Mongar, Tashigang, and Wangdue. Primary data were generated through a semi structured sample survey of 240 households on the seven major livelihood components of sociodemographic profiles, livelihood strategies, social networks, health, food, water, natural disasters, and climate variability. The results showed that the LVI (range 0.302 to 0.375) and LVI-IPCC (range −0.005 to 0.030) differed significantly (p < 0.001) across the districts. The districts of Tashigang and Mongar were less vulnerable than the other four districts by the LVI approach, whereas Bumthang was also revealed to be less vulnerable using the LVI-IPCC approach. The degree of vulnerability in a district differed according to their level of exposure and adaptive capacity to the climate change impacts of the potato farming household. The results are expected to serve as empirical evidence for designing a future course of actions to mitigate the negative impacts.

Potato is a primary food and cash crop in Bhutan. The adoption of new varieties has faced some challenges. To address this situation, farmers’ needs and priorities were investigated through varietal demonstration and a field survey in seven of the main potato-growing districts of Bhutan. The role of gender in farm decisions and operations in relation to potato farming was also assessed. Nine quality determinants significantly ( χ 2 = 376.54, P < 0.001) influenced farmers’ selection of potato varieties. These determinants, in order of their relative preference, were as follows: high productivity (15.5% by weight of mean rank), high market value (13.4%), red-skinned (12.7%), marketability (11.6%), large tubers (11.3%), late-blight resistant (11.3%), micronutrient content (8.8%), short-duration (8.3%) and good taste (7.2%). Potato productivity (yield) and preference vote data were significantly correlated ( R = 0.395, P < 0.01) for female farmers but not for male farmers. Similarly, the involvement of female farmers in farm decision-making processes was significantly ( P < 0.001) higher than when compared with their male counterparts. However, both genders were equally involved in physical farm operations. Bhutanese potato cropping is highly driven by commercially driven (market) preferences such as yield, colour and size as opposed to subsistence preferences such as micronutrient content. Understanding farmers’ priorities during the development of new potato variety is critical for varietal selection for adoption. Furthermore, understanding the role of women in farm decision-making processes is crucial for adoption of new varietal technology in potato production. These findings may serve as an evidence-based insight to guide research and policy interventions in Bhutan and in similar agroecologies.