DOCUMENTATION OF INDIGENOUS KNOWLEDGE ON PRODUCTION AND POST-HARVEST MANAGEMENT OF SWEET POTATO IN THE BICOL REGION, PHILIPPINES

Abstract

Sweet potato (locally known as kamote) is a major staple food of people in the Bicol Region who live in the upland areas. They have been growing this crop for so many years, providing some form of food security and income to their households. They have also developed sustainable farming system using indigenous knowledge which they have learned from their ancestors. With increasing attention being given to the sustainable farming system, there is a need to look into the indigenous knowledge and practices of the sweet potato farmers in the Bicol Region, Philippines had adopted through the years in the cultivation, production, and post-harvest management of sweet potato. Hence, his paper aimed to document the various indigenous production and post-harvest practices of the sweet potato farmers; evaluate the cultural, social, economic and environmental aspects/dimensions of these indigenous knowledge; discover the gender division of labor in the sweet potato cultivation, production and post-harvest management; and discover the science behind the indigenous knowledge. The study made used of varied social research methods such as sample survey, key-informants interview, focus group discussions and field observations. This study has proven that indigenous knowledge and practices to the sweet potato farmers cannot be underestimated in terms of enhancing the household and community food production and food security particularly in the upland rural areas of the Bicol Region. The indigenous knowledge of the people is very effective in meeting their food requirements, and effective in areas of land preparation, soil fertility enrichment, planting, pests management and weeding, harvesting and post-harvest management.