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Potatoes not a priority

You plant the seed, you grow them, and you harvest them. You have a bountiful crop. Then you are told to dump them and plow them back into the ground. Does this make sense in a world where millions upon millions lack basic foodstuffs?

Does it make sense in Canada? In the United States?

Economists say so. Food relief agencies say so. The latter claim that they weigh too much to transport. Anyway, they rot quickly when stored in hot climates. And there the thinking stops.

It has happened before. It will happen again. Unless-unless we can figure out a way to overcome the problem.

Science has achieved marvels. All know the advances achieved in many areas, medicine, space, genetics, technology, communications.

But the simple spud seemingly defies it. True, remedies have been found to treat blight and other forms disease. But transforming it into a product that can help feed the world's hungry at an acceptable cost, acceptable in economic terms, seemingly eludes a solution.

Perhaps the humble potato is too lowly to command the attention of more exotic forms of research. Perhaps it has fallen in esteem among the quarterly, almost monthly, diet fads of our times. Perhaps we are overlooking the obvious.

The nutritional value of the potato is well known. Some is lost depending on the methods used in processing. In the U.S. most of crop goes into potato chips and instant mashed potatoes. They are freeze dried, which saves much of the transportation costs.

As a source of food it is among the cheapest to produce. Processing it in a manner that will help alleviate hunger throughout the world could produce immense benefits. There is need for fresh thinking, focused research, and a new priority given to potatoes, their farming, processing, and distribution.

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