~ The potato can be traced back 4,000 years to the Peruvians in South America.
~ The potato was the first food ever to be grown in outer space.
~ There are only about 100 calories in an 8- ounce baked or boiled potato.
~ After dairy products, potatoes are the second most consumed food in all of the United States.
~ The potato is about 80 percent water.
~ The world’s largest potato weighed over 18 pounds.
~ The average American consumes almost 17 pounds of potato chips, over 50 pounds of fresh potatoes, two pounds of canned potatoes, 13 pounds of dehydrated potatoes, and about 55 pounds of frozen potatoes every single year.
~ Potatoes were first introduced to Britain and Ireland in the late 1500s.
~ Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette were both known to wear potato blossoms as accessories.
~ The “French fry” was allegedly served in the U.S. for the first time by Thomas Jefferson at a presidential dinner.
~ The potato belongs to the Solanaceae — or “nightshade” — family of flowering plants, and shares the genus Solanum with at least 1,000 other species, including tomato and eggplant.
