Collective action for market-chain innovation in the Andes

The genetic diversity of native potatoes grown in remote mountainous areas of Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru, as well as the social capital and local knowledge of the smallholders that have cultivated them for centuries, are assets that are often undervalued. This book chapter presents the Participatory Market Chain Approach (PMCA) which was developed by the International Potato Centre (CIP) to identify market opportunities for these native varieties and to foster the commercial, technological, and institutional innovation needed to exploit them.