11-11 FB Potato Diet

 How much of a good thing is too much of a good thing? I’m David Sparks and we’ll talk potatoes next. The great State of Idaho is affectionately known as the Potato State as well it should be. We grow a lot of spuds here and there are a lot of intersections between producers, packers, processors, truckers, consumers, advertisers and the banks. Frank Muir is Executive Director of the Idaho Potato Commission and he and I have covered stories on these delicious tubers for the last two years…from Fiesta Bowl advertising to the state of the state on the potato economy. Frank is a potato zealot…fiercely loyal to his product. But I don’t think even Frank Muir has matched what Chris Voigt, Executive Director of the Washington Potato Commission is trying to accomplish. Mr. Voigt in an almost holy crusade to prove that potatoes are not junk food, has vowed to complete a 60-day all-potato diet. He’s about halfway done and has eaten potatoes prepared in almost every conceivable way; he's had them boiled, baked, steamed, grilled, fried, marinated and mashed. For variety Voigt soaked one potato in pickle juice. And his wife made him potato ice cream. Now that’s commitment.