In this issue:
On PotatoPro:
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We have written here about the nutritional aspects of potatoes
before. The topic comes up on a regular basis as the reputation
of potatoes and potato products is not fully lined up with the
reality. Which forces industry and industry associations such
as the
USPB (United States) and the
Potato Council (United Kingdom)
to highlight the nutritional benefits of the potato.
But how do you convey this message to the consumer?
An interesting starting point might be that the "classification"
of the potato in nutritional systems is not the same in all
countries. Although in many countries the potato is classified
in a group together with bread, rice and pasta (grains/carbohydrate rich foods), in the United States
the potato is classified as a (starchy) vegetable.
 
 Alternatively, you can create a long list of beneficial minerals,
vitamins and phytochemicals in the potato, but it is somewhat
boring. OK, it is a bit better as a picture, but still
(click picture to enlarge).
We saw an
opportunity ourselves when
Nuval, an independent nutritional scoring system was
launched last year. This scoring system
assigns each food a number between 1 and 100 (very
nutritious) based on the ratio of healthy vs unhealthy
components in a food. Cooked potato ranked very well:
|
Food |
Nuval Score |
|
Food |
Nuval Score |
|
Food |
Nuval Score |
|
Potatoes |
93 |
|
Broccoli |
100 |
|
Salmon |
87 |
|
Brown Rice |
82 |
|
Pineapple |
99 |
|
Hamburger |
25 |
|
White rice |
57 |
|
Apple |
96 |
|
Dark Chocolate |
10 |
|
Pasta |
50 |
|
Skim milk |
91 |
|
Apple pie |
2 |
Unfortunately, no more references to cooked potato are
left on the Nuval site. I can't shake the
impression this was done since the potato score did not
match the public perception and hence might raise questions
on Nuval's underlying ONQI algorithm.
Now a number of farmers of the Potato Council in the United kingdom have come up with an answer
on how to pitch the nutritional goodness of the potato:
Potato = 'Supercarb'
They even go as far as to submit an official petition to
the government to get the potato recognized in a separate
category in the countries nutritional system as a 'SuperCarb':
"We the undersigned
petition the Prime Minister to create a 'supercarb' food
group for potatoes to reflect the fact that they are both an
energy-rich starchy carbohydrate AND a vegetable which is
packed-full of essential vitamins and minerals."
If you live
in the UK, you can even sign this petition!
Matt Spanton, one of the farmers leading the campaign,
said: "The potato's rich carbohydrate content often overshadows
its vegetable status. [...] We believe that the term 'supercarb'
more accurately describes what we know is the nation's favourite
vegetable and highlights just how much goodness potatoes contain"
Since 'Supercarb' is both a simple and a correct
characterisation of the potato, I like it very much. I hope
the term 'Supercarb'
will catch on outside the United Kingdom as well.
Oh, its time for dinner. Going to have some SuperCarbs.....
Enjoy reading,
Paul van Eijck
Meeting Fruit and Vegetable Targets
Encouraging consumers to increase their intake of fruit and
vegetables is a worldwide issue. The benefits of meeting
fruit and vegetable targets, which typically vary on a
national basis, are becoming more apparent to nutrition
conscious shoppers who are adjusting their eating habits
accordingly. This report identifies the implications for
both produce and packaged goods' players
More Market Research Reports
Improving the health promoting properties of fruit and
vegetables
Consumers are advised to increase fruit and vegetable
consumption, but the health effects of increased intake are
not fully understood. This important collection brings
together information on the health-promoting properties of
fruit and vegetables.
Read more...
More Books
USDA
french fry color card
 One
of the most basic tools for the quality control of potatoes
for processing is this USDA frying colour card. This colour
card is the world wide standard for the evaluation of frying
colour of french fries. You can buy this card in the "Tools
for Quality Control" section of our webshop.
Read more...
More products
French Fries and Potato Specialties
Chips and Snacks
Dehydrated Potato Products
Potato Starch
Ingredients for Potato Processing
Processing Equipment
Packaging Equipment
Potato Supply Chain
QSR Restaurants
Health and Nutrition
Energy and Environment
Food Trends
Industry Associations
Bombay Sweets & Co., Ltd.
Bombay Sweets & Co., Ltd. (BSCL) is a name
associated with consumers for snack food for more
than 5 decades in Bangladesh and abroad. |
Bangladesh |
ORION, OSI
Orion is a manufacturer of snacks and confectionery
in South Korea |
Korea, Republic Of |
Pace Packaging Machines Pvt. Ltd.
PACE is packaging equipment supplier from India. PACE
develops & manufacture high speed servo driven vertical
form fill seal machines. PACE machines are extensively
used in snack packaging, especially for potato chips. |
India |
Unichips SpA (San Carlo Gruppo Alimentare SpA)
Italian company active in the chips & snacks market
with the following brands : San Carlo, Wacko's, Junior, Autentica Trattoria, PAI. Also producing bakery and
cakes.
|
Italy |
Aperitivos Flaper SA
Aperitivos Flaper SA is a spanish manufacturer of potato
chips, snacks, nuts and pork rinds |
Spain |
VMF Continental Snacks
VMF (Van Marcke Foods) Continental Snacks is a dutch
family owned business specialized in the production
of snack pellets. The company also sells vacuum fried
vegetable/potato snacks, sold under private label brands.
|
Netherlands |
Nederlandse Akkerbouw Vakbond
The Nederlandse Akkerbouw Vakbond is an organization
representing the interest of Dutch farmers. |
Netherlands |
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