OCOP: Sweet Yam

Sweet yam, (locally known as Úfilei, is one of the most culturally and economically significant root crops in Tonga, a sparsely populated Polynesian archipelagic nation in the South Pacific, contributing to both household food security and incomes. Deeply woven into church obligations, traditional ceremonies and social networks, it is considered more than food, symbolizing honour and tradition. Sweet yam grows well in Tonga’s soils and climates and shows resilience under mixed cropping systems. The crop is cultivated by less than 300 farmers spread across different islands, on about 30-40 ha.