March 19, 2025
On 19th March 2025, Dr. Timothy Thomas, Ph.D. of IFPRI presented to Grow PNG Managing Director David Stewart and team at Grow PNG’s main office in Lae. The presentation focused on the use of the DSSAT crop model to examine the impact of temperature and precipitation on taro yields in PNG. Grow PNG has been helping taro farmers in Lae to commercialize and export their taro to yield higher revenue. The team found the presentations inline and relevant to what their farmers are experiencing on-ground. A field visit with taro farmers in the Mutzin community with Grow PNG team was also carried out after the presentation to get the views of farmers’ experience on whether changing temperature or rainfall affected their taro yields over the past few years.
