National Potato Day
August 19, 2025-August 19, 2025 -
USA, USA
Potatoes were first cultivated by man in Southern Peru and the Northwest regions of Bolivia sometime between 5000 and 8000 BC.
From that point forward it has spread all over the globe to become one of the primary staple crops of many cultures.
Potatoes are a favorite part of American cuisine, with millions of different forms of preparation to be found. Potatoes are even used to make bread, rolls, and pancakes, and as such can be found in every meal of the day.
For a time, Ireland was so reliant on the potato as a food crop that a potato plague managed to starve the entire country.
Make no mistake, there was plenty of food being grown in Ireland at the time, 5 ships full a day were being sailed out of the country, but the people of Ireland were being drained dry by the English who ruled them that potatoes and cabbage were all they had to live on.
The Russians, on the other hand, discovered quite a different use for the potato. Are you a fan of vodka? Good news! Good Russian Vodka is actually a distillation of potato, and the name vodka means “Little Water”, a clear indicator of its importance in Russia.
Today, the humble potato is the fifth most crop worldwide, coming in after wheat, corn, rice, and sugar cane, as measured by total calories cultivated.
Interestingly, the potato was something of a curiosity in Europe at the start of the 18th century. Merchants had only just begun bringing it from South America and experimenting with it as a type of food. Most people, including those living in Ireland, had never seen anything like it before.
19 Aug 25
00:00 - 23:59
National Potato Day
