- Share of India: 0.03% (effectively retreated)
- Production 2023-24: 17.76 thousand tonnes (DA&FW)
- Area 2023-24: 590 ha
- Productivity 2023-24: 30.00 t/ha (+22% vs national)
- 5-year area change: −78.7% (2.77 → 0.59 K ha)
- 5-year production change: −64.4% (49.86 → 17.76 K t)
- District-level data: Not enumerated in DA&FW Table 7.4.3
Andhra Pradesh produced 17.76 thousand tonnes of potatoes in 2023-24 from 590 hectares at a productivity of 30.00 t/ha — 0.03% of India's national output (DA&FW Horticultural Statistics at a Glance 2024, Table 7.3.31). Andhra Pradesh is the clearest example in the DA&FW state-level series of a state effectively withdrawing from potato cultivation: across the 5-year window 2019-20 to 2023-24, the state has lost 78.7% of its potato area and 64.4% of its production. This page exists to document a real, measurable retreat — not to manufacture a production narrative that the primary data does not support. Primary sources document the scale of the decline but do not establish its cause.
How much potato does Andhra Pradesh produce?
Andhra Pradesh produced 17.76 thousand tonnes of potatoes in 2023-24 from 590 hectares at a productivity of 30.00 t/ha — 0.03% of India's national output (DA&FW Horticultural Statistics at a Glance 2024, Table 7.3.31). Productivity is 22% above the national average on a very small footprint.
| Year | Area ('000 ha) | Production ('000 t) | Productivity (t/ha) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-20 | 2.77 | 49.86 | 18.00 |
| 2020-21 | 2.29 | 41.27 | 18.00 |
| 2021-22 | 0.44 | 17.52 | 40.00 |
| 2022-23 | 0.44 | 13.14 | 30.00 |
| 2023-24 | 0.59 | 17.76 | 30.00 |
Source: DA&FW Horticulture Statistics Unit, Horticultural Statistics at a Glance 2024, Table 7.3.31.
DA&FW Table 7.4.3 (major producing districts) does NOT enumerate Andhra Pradesh districts. The state's footprint is below the threshold for individual district enumeration in the national table. District-level data is therefore not asserted on this page.
How significant is the decline?
The Andhra Pradesh decline is unique among Indian states in several respects.
1. Scale of contraction. −78.7% area and −64.4% production over 5 years exceeds any other state in the DA&FW series. Maharashtra is the next-largest contractor at −37% area; the rest of Indian potato states show either growth or near-stability.
2. Step-change pattern. The contraction is not gradual — it is concentrated in the 2020-21 → 2021-22 transition. Most of the area loss happened in a single year (2.29 → 0.44 thousand ha, −81%). Subsequent years show stabilisation at the new lower base, not continued decline. This pattern is consistent with a single decisive policy or market signal rather than gradual marginal exit.
3. Productivity-positive outcome. The surviving footprint is more productive (30+ t/ha) than the pre-break baseline (18 t/ha). The cultivation that remains is on better-managed acreage — whatever survived the area cull was the higher-productivity sub-segment.
The primary DA&FW data does not document the cause of the 2020-21 / 2021-22 transition. Primary sources document the scale of the decline but do not establish its cause. This page does not assert a cause — it documents the measurable pattern.
What is the agro-climatic context for potato in Andhra Pradesh?
Andhra Pradesh's potato cultivation has historically concentrated in the Rayalaseema districts (the arid south-central interior) and parts of the coastal Andhra region. The region falls within the "southern plateau and hills" agro-climatic zone — generally less favourable for potato than the central plateau (Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra) or the alluvial plains (Uttar Pradesh, Punjab).
Winter day temperatures are warmer than the optimal 15-22°C tuber-bulking range across much of the state. The rabi cropping window is narrower than for more northern states. Cultivation is irrigation-dependent, and the principal traditional potato districts (in the Rayalaseema region) are also areas of acute groundwater stress.
The remaining cultivation appears to occupy the agronomically favourable micro-environments where these constraints are least binding. The post-2021 productivity uplift (to 30+ t/ha) is consistent with the residual sector occupying these favourable niches. This is a viable productivity floor but the small absolute footprint limits state-level contribution.
Source: ICAR agro-climatic zone classifications; general agronomic literature on the southern peninsular potato cultivation zone.
How does Andhra Pradesh compare to other Indian states today?
Andhra Pradesh is no longer a meaningful potato-producing state at the national level. By 2023-24 production (17.76 thousand t), the state ranks among the bottom of the DA&FW table — production is below that of Tripura (146.05 K t), Nagaland (55.12 K t), and Meghalaya (196.25 K t).
For scale comparison: the state's 2023-24 production is approximately 0.5% of Madhya Pradesh's production (3,949 thousand t) and 0.09% of Uttar Pradesh's (19,173 thousand t). The structural retreat documented in this page is the headline fact for Andhra Pradesh's potato sector at the present time.
What data is NOT available for Andhra Pradesh?
This page is built on the DA&FW state-level series only. The following information surfaces are NOT available from primary sources surveyed for this document:
- District-level area, production, or productivity data for Andhra Pradesh (the state is not in DA&FW Table 7.4.3)
- Variety-specific acreage data for Andhra Pradesh
- Direct primary-source attribution of the 2020-21 / 2021-22 area collapse to specific climate, market, or policy drivers
- State-specific processing capacity, contract farming, or cold storage data
Where these data become available from approved primary sources (state horticulture commissioner reports, ICAR-CRIDA studies, peer-reviewed agronomic literature), this page is structured to absorb them as additional sections without requiring a rewrite.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much potato does Andhra Pradesh produce?+
Andhra Pradesh produced 17.76 thousand tonnes of potatoes in 2023-24 from 590 hectares at a productivity of 30.00 t/ha, contributing 0.03% of India's national output (DA&FW Horticultural Statistics at a Glance 2024, Table 7.3.31). Productivity is 22% above the national average of 24.57 t/ha — a productivity-positive position on a very small footprint.
Is Andhra Pradesh a major potato producer in India?+
No — Andhra Pradesh is no longer a meaningful potato-producing state at the national level. Its 2023-24 production (17.76 thousand t) is approximately 0.5% of Madhya Pradesh's output (3,949 thousand t) and 0.09% of Uttar Pradesh's (19,173 thousand t). Production is below that of even smaller northeastern states such as Tripura, Nagaland, and Meghalaya.
Why has Andhra Pradesh's potato production declined?+
Across the 5-year DA&FW series, Andhra Pradesh has lost 78.7% of its potato area and 64.4% of its production — the most severe contraction documented in DA&FW state-level data. The decline is concentrated in a single year (2020-21 → 2021-22) when area collapsed from 2.29 to 0.44 thousand hectares (−81%) and production fell from 41.27 to 17.52 thousand tonnes (−58%). Primary sources document the scale of the decline but do not establish its cause. State-level variety acreage and crop-shift data that would identify drivers are not part of the published DA&FW horticulture statistics surface.
What happened to Andhra Pradesh potato production in 2021-22?+
The 2020-21 → 2021-22 transition was a step change rather than gradual contraction: area collapsed from 2.29 to 0.44 thousand hectares (−81%) in a single year, production fell 58% (41.27 → 17.52 thousand tonnes), and productivity simultaneously more than doubled (18.00 → 40.00 t/ha) — consistent with abandonment of marginal acreage rather than uniform contraction. Subsequent years (2022-23, 2023-24) show stabilisation at the lower base. The primary DA&FW data does not document the specific driver.
Where is potato grown in Andhra Pradesh today?+
The state's potato cultivation has historically concentrated in the Rayalaseema districts (the arid south-central interior) and parts of the coastal Andhra region. The residual sector (590 hectares in 2023-24) appears to occupy agronomically favourable micro-environments where water-table constraints, heat-stress risk, and competition from horticultural alternatives are least binding. State-level published data does not enumerate which specific districts remain in cultivation.
Is Andhra Pradesh's potato decline likely to reverse?+
The primary DA&FW data does not support a reversal projection. The 2021-22 step change followed by 3 years of stabilisation at the lower base (0.44 → 0.44 → 0.59 thousand ha) suggests the residual sector has reached a new equilibrium on its remaining productivity-favourable acreage. Reversal would require investments in irrigation, variety adoption, or contract farming that the published statistics do not currently indicate.
Other top potato states in India
Continue Reading
Further reading
Explore Potatopedia's deeper references on Indian and global potato production, varieties, processing, storage, and trade.
- Seed potato certification →
- Certified seed potatoes →
- Best fertilizer for potatoes →
- When to plant potatoes →
- Planting potatoes in October →
- Cold storage temperature →
- How long can potatoes be stored? →
- How to build potato cold storage →
- Seed potato yield calculator →
- Potato market price today →
- Potato water footprint →
- Potato and climate change →
- True potato seeds (TPS) →
- How to save seed potatoes →