Interesting and fun facts about potatoes

The potato originated in the region of southern Peru where it was first domesticated between 3000 BC and 2000 BC.

Potato was first introduced in Europe by Spain in 1536, and the Spanish claim that that Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada was the first to introduce the potato to Europe. Potatoes were not accepted at once in Europe because clerics said they were not mentioned in the bible, while others believed potatoes can cause some diseases.

Potato still remains an essential crop in Europe, where per capita production is still the highest in the world.

The world's largest potato producing country is China.

Potatoes are among most environmentally friendly vegetables. They’re easy to grow, and don’t require massive amounts of fertilizer and chemical additives to thrive like many other vegetables do.

The world’s largest potato weighed in at 18 pounds, 4 ounces. This is enough for more than 70 portions of medium fries at McDonalds. This gigantic potato was found in England in 1795.

The potato is considered as the fourth most important crop behind the corn, wheat, and rice.

Scientists say there are around five-thousand potato varieties worldwide with hree thousand of them having origin in the Andes.

The average American eats 140 pounds of potatoes per year. Germans are among biggest potato lovers as they eat more than 200 pounds of potato per year.

The world production of potatoes in 2008 was 314 million tonnes.

Potatoes have some positive effects on human health: they are good against colon cancer, improve glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity, lower plasma cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations, increase satiety. Potato is also rich with vitamin C.

Potatoes are also used to brew alcoholic beverages such as vodka, potcheen, or akvavit.