Kufri jamunia/Purple skinned and fleshy Potato

 Kufri jamunia/Purple skinned and fleshy Potato:

Question: What is Kufri Jamunia ?

Ans:

Kufri jamunia is  a potato

Question: What is the speciality of Kufri Jamunia ?

Ans: It is a purple skinned and fleshy potato under Biofortification programme of Indian Council of Agricultural Research-Central Potato Research Institute (ICAR-CPRI), Modipuram, Meerat District, UP. [ICAR-Central Potato Research Institute Regional Station, Modipuram Campus is the biggest Research Station of the Central Potato Research Institute, Shimla. It has three units, i.e. Modipuram, Machhri and Pabli. ]

Question: How many coloured potato varieties ICAR-CPRI developed?

Ans:ICAR-CPRI (Indian Council of Agricultural Research- Central Potato Research Institute) developed nutrient-rich coloured potato varieties, including Kufri neelkanth, Kufri manik, and Kufri jamunia. 

Question: What is the speciality of Kufri jamunia potatoes ?

Ans:

These varieties contain important antioxidants and micronutrients, such as anthocyanins, iron, and zinc. Among them, Kufri jamunia represents a major advancement due to its higher levels of Vitamin C, anthocyanins, and carotenoids. Its improved nutritional profile, attractive purple flesh, and strong consumer appeal make it an important variety for addressing hidden hunger and improving nutritional security. 

Question: How many coloured potato varieties are there ?

Ans: 

1)Kufri Neelkanth was the first purple-skinned specialty potato variety 

2)Kufri manik was released in 2021. It produces attractive, deep red tubers with a round shape, medium eyes, and yellow flesh. The variety is rich in nutrients and contains high levels of anthocyanin, zinc, and iron.

3)Kufri jamunia was officially released in 2024. The variety contains higher levels of ascorbic acid, anthocyanin, and carotenoids than Kufri manik and Kufri neelkanth. Its purple flesh indicates high antioxidant content and better nutritional quality. Kufri jamunia also contains enhanced levels of zinc and iron. 

Question: What is the speciality of Kufri Jamunia ?

Ans: 

Kufri jamunia offers nutritional advantages, but they are substantial in some aspects more than others.

The variety reportedly has a mealy texture.

Kufri jamunia can be used in curries, parathas, soups, baked goods, and dehydrated flours 

Question: What are the nutrient values of Kufri Jamunia ?

Ans:

Kufri jamunia contains 42.05 mg/100 g of anthocyanins in flesh and 80.66 mg/100 g in skin.

It also contains around 42.75 mg/100 g of Vitamin C in the flesh.

The carotenoid content is around 161 µg/100 g fresh weight in flesh.

In addition, the variety contains about 22.77 ppm zinc and 32.23 ppm iron in the flesh. 

Question: How Kufri Jamunia is developed?

Ans: 

The CPRI team developed the kufri jamunia variety by crossing two potato lines, MS/8-1148 and CP4242, in 2015. MS/8-1148 is high in vitamin C whereas CP4242 had purple skin and flesh. The result, formally called MSP/16-307, could naturally accumulate higher concentrations of specific nutrients as it grew. 

Question: How does purple colour come to the skin of Kufri Jamunia potato ?

Ans: 

The purple colour comes from anthocyanins — organic compounds . Such anthocyanins are also found in jamun and blueberries. 

Question: What are the benefits of  Anthocyanins?

Ans:

Anthocyanins are known to have antioxidant properties, although whether the same benefits will accrue when delivered by kufri jamunia potatoes is not known. 

Question: Potato crop is affected by which  diseases? 

Ans: Late blight is a devastator of potato crops and the CPRI team has already recommended that farmers apply fungicide. 

Question: ‘Late blight’ disease is caused by mould? 

Kufri jamunia could moderately resist ‘late blight’, a disease caused by the water mould Phytophthera infestans. 

Question : What is Mould?

Ans:

Mould is a  specific category of multicellular fungi that grows in fuzzy or powdery multi-cellular thread-like structures called hyphae.