[permaculture] In pictures: The Potato, a slideshow from the BBC
Lawrence F. London, Jr.
lflj at intrex.net
Mon Jun 16 22:23:25 EDT 2008
In Pictures: The Potato
A Slideshow from the BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/in_pictures_the_potato_/html/1.stm
The humble potato in all its thousands of varieties is gaining more and more importance as a food source for developing
nations, and the UN has declared 2008 the international year of the potato.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/in_pictures_the_potato_/html/2.stm
The tubers were first cultivated on the Altiplano of modern-day Peru and Bolivia, and after being introduced to Europe
around in the 16th Century, potatoes are now the world's third biggest staple food.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/in_pictures_the_potato_/html/3.stm
More potatoes are grown in developing countries than in the developed countries, providing poor nations with valuable
food and some income.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/in_pictures_the_potato_/html/4.stm
One of their big attractions is that potatoes provide higher yields in less time than other staple foods.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/in_pictures_the_potato_/html/5.stm
Amid the growing food crisis, potato prices have also remained relatively stable as they are not traded much across borders.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/in_pictures_the_potato_/html/6.stm
When boiled, a single medium-sized potato contains about 3g of protein, half the daily adult requirement of vitamin C,
and substantial amounts of vitamin B, as well as iron, potassium and zinc.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/in_pictures_the_potato_/html/7.stm
Pre-Incan cultures and the Incas used the freezing night temperatures and the hot sunshine of the daylight hours to
dehydrate and freeze-dry potatoes, a process that is still used today.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/in_pictures_the_potato_/html/8.stm
About 130 countries are potato producers, growing a total of 315 million tonnes.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/in_pictures_the_potato_/html/9.stm
China now is the world's largest potato producer, growing 70 million metric tonnes in 2006, but potatoes are
increasingly popular across Asia.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/in_pictures_the_potato_/html/10.stm
Still, experts say it has yet to realise its full potential as a global food source.
More information about the permaculture
mailing list