In 1996 the US hit peak potato. Individuals had been consuming 64 kilos of the greens annually—greater than at any level since trendy data started in 1970. A record-breaking harvest had flooded the nation with so many spuds that the federal government needed to pay farmers to present them away. Within the White Home, the Clintons had been foisting potatoes—fried, marinated, boiled, garlicked—onto princesses and presidents at official dinners.
“It was a loopy time,” says Chris Voigt, whose lengthy profession as a potato-pusher began within the potato frenzy of the late Nineteen Nineties. “Actually you could possibly purchase buckets of french fries.” However as Voigt made his means up within the potato trade, all the way in which to government director of the Washington State Potato Fee, the American potato was present process a dramatic shift in fortunes.
The typical American is now consuming 30 % fewer potatoes than in the course of the vegetable’s heyday, right down to an all-time low of 45 kilos per 12 months. The drop in consumption of recent potatoes—for boiling, roasting, mashing, and steaming—has been even quicker. In 2019, frozen potato consumption overtook recent potatoes for the primary time, opening up a gulf that has continued to widen for the reason that pandemic. Most of these frozen potatoes are eaten as french fries.
This has seen potato fields grow to be battlegrounds for the way forward for meals in America. In December 2023, studies emerged that US dietary tips may change to declassify potatoes as a vegetable, mirroring the strategy taken in Britain. There was such an uproar that US Division of Agriculture secretary Thomas Vilsack was compelled to jot down a letter reassuring senators that his company had no such plans.
That reclassification might have failed, however the potato has had a spectacular fall from grace. As soon as this miraculous nutrient-dense vegetable was the gas of human civilization. Now the spud within the US has grow to be synonymous with a rubbish, industrialized meals system that pours earnings right into a handful of corporations on the expense of individuals’s well being.
America’s favourite vegetable is going through a Sophie’s Selection second. Ought to we settle for that recent spuds have misplaced the struggle towards the tide of fries, hash browns, and waffles, or is there hope for a potato renaissance? Can the standard spud obtain the rehabilitation it deserves?
The white potato is a criminally underrated meals. In contrast with different carb-loaded staples like pasta, white bread, or rice, potatoes are wealthy in vitamin C, potassium, and fiber. They’re additionally surprisingly excessive in protein. In case you hit your each day calorie purpose by consuming solely potatoes, you then’d additionally exceed your each day purpose for protein, which is 56 grams for a person aged 31–50.
Chris Voigt is aware of this as a result of for 60 days in 2010 he ate nothing however potatoes. And a bit of oil. And one time some pickle juice. However the level is, for 2 months Voigt didn’t simply survive on potatoes, he thrived. By the top of his eating regimen Voigt had misplaced 21 kilos, his ldl cholesterol was down 41 %, and he’d stopped loud night breathing. “I believe I’ve personally confirmed that the potato is very nutritious, regardless of the way you eat—whether or not you boil it or fry it, cook dinner it within the oven, or steam it,” Voigt says.
