page_title: Potato production in Algeria
section_title: El Oued region
hierarchical_section_title: Potato production in Algeria / Production / El Oued region
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: L'ORSQUE L'HOMME DEFIT LA NATURE , UN PECTACLE JUSTE EPHEMERE
context_page_description: The cultivation of potatoes is a major part of the agricultural industry of Algeria. The country was the 17th-largest producer of potatoes in the world in 2018. Production is centred on two regions: the Mediterranean coast and the desert around El Oued. Growing conditions in the coast are broadly conventional in earth furrows while at El Oued centre pivot irrigation predominates, with the potatoes grown in sand. Only an insignificant minority of the crop is factory-processed.
context_section_description: El Oued is an oasis town in the Sahara desert, close to the Tunisian border. The Algerian government provides desert land here free of charge to those that can afford to level the sand dunes and turn the land to agriculture. Because of the desert conditions artificial irrigation is essential and a wind break must be constructed to protect the crops from being buried by blown sand. The wind breaks are typically 2 metres (6.6 ft) high sand dunes reinforced with a fence of braided palm leaves on top.
  The area was traditionally used for growing date palm but potato production began in 1986 and by 2017 more than 30,000 hectares (74,000 acres) were under cultivation by 47,000 farmers. The region now accounts for 40% of all potatoes grown in Algeria, though tomato, melon, tobacco and grain are also grown at El Oued. The main variety grown is Spunta and most farmers plant to the Arrière season, though in recent years some have switched to the Premiere season.
  The farms are typically set up as centre pivot irrigation fields of around 0.9 hectares (2.2 acres) in size. Farms have up to 70 pivots but the majority of farmers maintain 5-10. The pivot irrigation systems are locally made from aluminium and iron. They complete a full rotation in around 2.5–3 hours and supply water to the crops as a high pressure mist. A single well can supply 2-3 pivots and irrigation is applied for 6–8 hours a day for Premiere season crops and 18 hours a day for Arrière season potatoes. Most irrigation is carried out during the night; some farmers irrigate for 24 hours a day but this is rare due to the higher cost of electricity in the day. The abstraction of water is gradually depleting the aquifers at El Oued.
  Most agricultural work in El Oued is carried out by hand as the ground is loose sand and labour (almost entirely male) is cheap. Before planting manure is typically spread on the pivot and throughout the season NPK fertilizer is usually applied three times. The potatoes are planted in furrows by hand with 15-20 men taking around 4 hours to plant each pivot. Harvesting is also done by hand as no machine on the market is capable of harvesting from sand, potatoes usually being grown in earth. Sometimes the potatoes are left in the sand for 1–3 months due to a lack of storage facilities.
  Around 80% of farmers leave the pivot bare for the following season instead of applying crop rotation, but where rotation is practised garlic or onion is typically grown. Every 2–3 years the sand in the pivot is dug out and replaced to remove diseases and pests (such as nematodes). Yields achieved at El Oued are typically 40 tonnes (39 long tons) per pivot in the Premiere season and 30 tonnes (30 long tons) in the Arrière season, though the price is higher.
caption: A rectangular, drip-irrigated potato field at El Oued
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