8 Countries that Produce the Most Potatoes in the World

Potatoes are an essential dietary staple in many regions around the world. In fact, they are the world’s fourth-most consumed food. This vegetable originates in the Andes Mountains, in the countries of Peru and Bolivia, where it was a key part of the traditional Incan People's diet. The Inca shared potatoes with Spanish explorers in the Sixteenth Century, and the tuber soon spread rapidly across Europe. European explorers then shared it with peoples they encountered while traveling through Asia. Today, it is one of the world’s most widely-grown crops, and is used for many things, including producing alcohol, animal feed, dehydrated food products (instant mashed potatoes), frozen food products (frozen French fries and ready-to-eat frozen hash browns), commercial starch, and, of course, fresh potatoes for boiling, baking, and frying. Here is the list by Insidermonkey experts about the countries that produce the most potatoes in the world.

he world potato sector is undergoing major changes. Until the early 1990s, most potatoes were grown and consumed in Europe, North America and countries of the former Soviet Union. Since then, there has been a dramatic increase in potato production and demand in Asia, Africa and Latin America, where output rose from less than 30 million tonnes in the early 1960s to more than 165 million tonnes in 2007. FAO data show that in 2005, for the first time, the developing world's potato production exceeded that of the developed world. China is now the biggest potato producer, and almost a third of all potatoes is harvested in China and India. If you want to know more about other healthy food and its production be sure not to skip our article on 8 countries that produce the most olives in the world.