Are potatoes the answer to the food crisis?

April 21, 2008, 02:58 AM

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The Takeaway
The Takeaway

Even before the current worldwide food emergency, the United Nations had already planned to declare 2008 the "International Year of the Potato." It's a hearty crop that's not as vulnerable to the whims of the commodities market, it can be grown at almost any elevation or climate, and it requires very little water.

Takeaway Facts:

  • The potato can yield between two and four times more food per hectare than wheat or rice.
  • The potato emerged in Peru 8,000 years ago, but Peruvians eat fewer potatoes than people in Europe.

Guest: Dr. Pamela Anderson, Director General of the International Potato Center, Lima, Peru

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