Orange-fleshed sweetpotato puree for baked 
and fried products in Kenya, Malawi and Uganda
Orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) puree can 
be used as a substitute for 30-60% of the flour 
in a range of baked or fried products, reducing 
production costs and increasing their nutritional 
content. International Potato Center (CIP) scientists 
developed a vacuum-packed storage technology 
that allows OFSP puree to be stored without 
refrigeration for months, creating the potential for 
widespread use by bakeries and food vendors. This 
project aims to take the OFSP puree for bakery 
application to scale in Kenya, Malawi and Uganda.
Background Due to the perishability of OFSP roots, CIP researchers 
Orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) puree provides a cost- developed a shelf stable OFSP puree to increase demand 
effective and nutritious alternative to wheat flour, since it for the crop by facilitating its use in baked and fried 
can replace up to 30-60% of the flour in a range of baked products. However, there are few puree processors. 
or fried products. It can also reduce the amount of sugar Processed products in the form of bread and buns are 
used in dough by as much as 70%, and the amount of oil found in the supermarkets, which are mostly accessed by 
by 30%, lowering the overall cost of production of wheat- the middle class, but there is limited use of puree in the 
based products by 12-20%. The end products are more informal markets (street vendors) where most consumers 
nutritious than traditional wheat bread and they have high prefer fried products. Though the puree technology is 
consumer acceptance. Given the increase in demand for relatively simple, (procuring roots from local farmers, then 
healthy diets and OFSP enriched foods, the CGIAR Research cleaning, steaming, and pureeing them using standard 
Program on Roots, Tubers and Bananas (RTB) provided CIP small-industrial equipment) investment has been low thus 
with a scaling grant to accelerate the use of OFSP puree in 
the formal and informal food sectors in Kenya, Malawi and far. Puree producers need a high quality and quantity of 
Uganda. “Orange-fleshed sweetpotato puree for baked roots supplied by farmers. Since the crop is rain-fed, its 
and fried products” is a two-year (2019-2021) project seasonality affects puree production. Facilitating a year-
promoting the use of OFSP puree as an ingredient that round supply of roots by farmers and continuous supply 
not only reduces production costs but also improves the of puree by processors to meet rising demand remains 
nutrient content of baked and fried products. a challenge. Such challenges impede the scaling up of 
OFSP puree use. The scaling fund project is identifying 
bottlenecks such as these along the value chain and 
committing funds to address each of them to maximize the 
impact of this innovation.
Objectives of the work
The objectives of the project are to;
I.  Ensure a reliable and consistent supply of good quality 
fresh OFSP roots for puree processing.
II.  Increase production and use of OFSP puree in Kenya, 
Malawi and Uganda.
OFSP Roots 
Project profile
III. Increase awareness of the nutritional benefits of OFSP This project will build on existing networks of OFSP 
among farmers and consumers. production and processing. The partners of the project 
IV. Increase awareness of the economic benefits of OFSP include: CIP-SASHA (Kenya and Uganda), CIP-RTC (Malawi), 
among producers and processors. CIP-EU-Bioversity International (Malawi), CIP Kulima 
(Malawi), CIP-TAAT (Kenya, Malawi and Uganda), CIP-
Approach BioInnovate (Kenya and Uganda), CIP SUSTAIN (Kenya, 
Uganda), United Purpose - EU-Bioversity International 
To scale up OFSP puree processing to reach small, medium (Malawi), Farm Concern International (Kenya, Uganda and 
and large-scale investors and increase its utilization, the Malawi) and HarvestPlus (Uganda). The project will also 
project will work on the weakest bottlenecks identified work closely with other partners (organizations, firms, 
through a diagnostic survey to ensure: individuals) involved in the OFSP value chain.
I. Availability and continuous supply of quality OFSP roots;
II. Good supply chain management from farm to Expected outcomes
processing plant; Increased production of OFSP puree and its utilization 
III. Information sharing with producers and processors to resulting from expanded markets will drive economic 
align expectations and roles; development, leading to increased investment in the OFSP 
IV. Technical backstopping to factory staff and extension value chain by the private and public sectors in Kenya, 
service providers; Malawi, and Uganda. This will create employment and 
V. Training of farmers in quality standards and post-harvest income opportunities for women and youth in the project 
handling; and countries. Overall, the increased consumption of OFSP 
VI. Consumer awareness and demand creation among enriched products will lead to the improved nutritional 
farmers, producers, and consumers. status of women and children at the household level by 
the end of the project.  
OFSP Puree Processing OFSP Fried Products
Duration Contact
Jan 2019 - Jan 2021 Tawanda Muzhingi 
Budget (CIP-SSA) 
USD 890 000.00 t.muzhingi@cgiar.org
CIP thanks all donors and organizations which globally support its work through their contributions to the CGIAR Trust Fund. https://www.cgiar.org/funders/
© May 2019. International Potato Center. All rights reserved.
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