01/02/08 International Year of the Potato

International Year of the Potato. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture. 2008 has been named International Year of the Potato. Randy Hardy, Chairman of the U.S. Potato Board says it's a great opportunity. HARDY: Well it kind of fell right in our lap. The United Nations announced it was the International Year of the Potato and we get a lot of coverage when our public relations people invite the media in and talk about the attributes of potatoes and this has been a real draw because when you hear United Nations tied to a food product it gets everybody's attention. Hardy says they are going to utilize the International Year of the Potato in all their marketing this coming year to help bring more attention to the healthy benefits of potatoes. Hardy is also pleased with the export market. HARDY: The export market is incredible. Unfortunately the weak dollar has been a boon to the potato industry and agriculture in general but we're seeing exports particularly in frozen just going through the roof. We, this past year, can account for over a billion dollars in sales in exports of potatoes which translates to about 15% of the total U.S. crop is now exported. Potatoes are a staple worldwide according to Hardy. HARDY: Mexico has been a big new market and I think that's going to continue to expand particularly if we can get beyond that 26 kilometer boundary that we've been limited to. Still a lot of demand in all the Asian countries. The Potato Board has just hired representatives in Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia because there's so much interest in the Southeast nations. The Potato Board has been pressing hard their message that potatoes are good for you after several fad diet claims about starches from potatoes were a no-no in your diet and will continue to press forward into other markets as well. HARDY: We're even looking at areas such as going back into Central America. Believe it or not theirs interest in exporting potatoes to Russia even though they grow more acres than we do. They don't produce them as efficiently as the United States and they're interested. So it is becoming a major factor in the U.S. potato industry  exports. Potatoes contain many of the recommended essential nutrients. Potatoes eaten with the skin provide nearly half of the Daily Value for vitamin C and are one of the best sources of potassium and fiber. One medium-sized potato has 100 calories and provides complex carbohydrates needed to fuel our brains and bodies. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.