New Delhi: The ubiquitous potato’s fate hangs in balance as US senators rally against its reclassification as a grain instead of a vegetable.
Democrat Michael Bennet of Colorado and Republican Susan Collins of Maine are leading efforts to persuade government officials to abandon plans to classify the root vegetable as a grain. This action, they believe, would have a negative impact on farming.
Fourteen US senators have written a letter to the heads of the United States Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Health and Human Services (HHS), expressing their strong opposition to the possibility of potatoes being reclassified as grains in the upcoming 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs).
The forthcoming 2025–2030 DGA will take this matter into account and a joint advisory committee is considering the “interchangeability of starchy vegetables and grains”, AFP reported. This committee is tasked with providing recommendations to the USDA and HHS secretaries for the development of the DGAs.
In a letter sent to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and Secretary of Health and Human services Xavier Becerra, the potato’s vegetable status has been vehemently defended.
Using the “documented nutritional benefits of potatoes” as an example, the senators stated there was “not strong scientific justification behind the assertion that potatoes are not vegetables”.
“The scientific basis for claiming potatoes are not vegetables is as thin as a potato chip. Potatoes offer real nutritional value, and we vehemently oppose their reclassification as a grain under the DGAs,” the letter read.
Potatoes have consistently been categorised as vegetables by the USDA throughout history. The senators stressed this idea by outlining the nutritional and horticultural benefits of potatoes over cereals.
The letter asserted that potatoes were an excellent source of potassium, calcium, vitamin C, vitamin B6, and fibre, and went on to say, “A medium baked potato contains 15 percent of the daily recommended value of dietary fibre, 27 percent of the daily recommended value for vitamin B6, and 28 percent of the daily recommended value of vitamin C.”
The letter said even bananas, which are known for its high potassium content, weren’t as potassium rich as potatoes.
Potatoes are the most eaten vegetable in the US, according to the USDA. A 2019 study found that the average American eats 49.4 pounds of potatoes a year, compared to 31.4 pounds of tomatoes, the second most eaten vegetable, and 9.4 pounds of onions, which came in third.
A change in their classification would mean that vegetable consumption across the country would go down.
Legislators are also worried that reclassifying potatoes as grains would have far-reaching effects, including confusing consumers, causing problems for retailers and restaurants, and affecting farmers and the supply chain as a whole.
The US potato market had a strong quarter (April–June 2023), with retail dollar sales up 14.5 percent year on year, culminating in a 16.8 percent year on year growth from July 2022 to June 2023. Revenue hit a five-year high of $16.9 billion during the 52-week period.
The letter asserted that DGAs are crucial to federal nutrition programmes and that this move could have a negative impact on them. Since potatoes are typically the most cost-effective vegetable alternative, they would disproportionately affect schools, which are already struggling to satisfy vegetable intake standards in an affordable manner.
Classifying potatoes as a grain would affect school lunch programs, which require a cheap way to offer meals that meet vegetable intake guidelines.
“Schools already struggle to meet vegetable consumption recommendations at a reasonable cost, and potatoes are often the most affordable vegetable,” the letter said.
In addition, the letter cited a 2013 National Library of Medicines (NLM) study called ‘White Potatoes, Human Health, and Dietary Guidance’ that supports classifying potatoes as vegetables because of the essential nutrients they provide.
The senators may also be worried, reports said, according to an article in the Idaho Statesman, about the economic impact a reclassification would have on their home states. Idaho produces a third of the potatoes grown in the US, according to the state agriculture department.
Potato farms in the state brought in $1.3 billion in 2023, according to a University of Idaho study. Jamey Higham, the president and CEO of the Idaho Potato Commission, was quoted as saying that reclassifying the food would affect how much funding the potato industry receives.
“Reclassifying potatoes as a grain is completely illogical,” the senators wrote.
(Edited by Tikli Basu)
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