b'NO SMALL COMFORTWhere Diets Offer Empty Promises, Potatoes Give People Their Deserved Fill by By Ben Harris, Research Associate Manager & John Toaspern, Chief Marketing Officer, Potatoes USABackwhenthepotatowasstill inbothamedicalandenviron- aresilientandresource-efficientseen as a novelty by most of the mental sense. We in the industry, crop, well-adapted for a future inworld,Andeanpeoplewereway ofcourse,knowthiscouldntbe which volatile weather seems like-aheadofthecurveintheirinti- further from the truth. But it will ly to worsen while arable land andmate knowledge of the crops wild take a concerted effort to reposi- fresh water sources grow scarcer. relatives. In fact, their affinity for tion the potato in the public eye Forthepurposesofthisarticle,the potato was so strong they were as the nutritional powerhouse and letsusetheMediterraneandiet,willing to go to extreme measures sustainabilitypioneerthatitis, arguablythegoldstandardforto consume itcoating tubers in a onedeservingofaspotonthe good eating, as a case study.Whatgravyofclayandwatermost mostcutting-edgeofmenus.Let makestheMediterraneanuniquelikelyasameanstoneutralize the tater haters beno amount of among diets is that it isnt reallytoxiccompoundslikesolanine gravy will ever make the potato one:ratherthanbeingmanufac-and tomatine.palatabletothem.Ourfocus turedbyexpertoutsiders,theneeds to be on putting the pota- culinary patterns that comprise itToday,thetoxicitysurrounding tosvirtuesfrontandcenterfor aroseorganicallyacrossawidepotatoesisntsomuchcoming theswingaudiences:thosewho region over the course of decades,from within as from without. Just maybeonthefenceabout essentiallymakingitthelargestas the potato has learned to cope Americasfavoritevegetable,yet (in scope and sample size) longitu-withagrowingconsortiumof are ready and willing to listen.dinal,naturallyoccurringnutri-pests and pathogens, its also had tion study the world has seen. Theto develop a thicker skin to deflect What will it take to cut through arcoftheMediterraneandietthe vitriol that some direct at it. thenoisetoreachthem?Ina extendsallthewaybacktotheTheresnopointinname-drop- word: data. Fortunately, the facts MiddleAges,withscholarspingitsnosecretthatsomeof andfigurestellamuchdifferent attributingitsoriginstoRomanthe potatos most outspoken crit- storyaboutthepotatothanthe tastes for olive oil, seafood, wine,ics, whether they choose to wield naysayers would have it. Food bal- and other hearty, hunger-banish-mainstream media or shaky scien- ancesheetsserveasindisputable ing fare among which the potatotificclaimsastheirweaponof confirmation of the potatos place isrightathome.Onlylaterchoice, continue to expend a lot inclassic,timelessdietsthatare much laterdid it receive a label,ofenergyintryingtobatterthe regardedwithoutexceptionas when,in1993,thenonprofitpotato as a useless carb, a relic of healthy. The literature also offers Oldways,alongwiththeWorldthe past weighing down the world up ample evidence for the tuber as HealthOrganizationandThe24 POTATO GROWER MAY/JUNE 2020'