The Country That Eats The Most Potatoes Isn't The One You'd Expect

Irish people can take offence at some of the stereotypes painted about them in other parts of the world, but there is one cliché that holds true: They really do love potatoes. However, despite what you might think, they don't consume the most spuds in the world. That title belongs to China.

According to data collected by Helgi Library in 2021, China accounted for over 25% of the world's potato consumption. In total, the population ate around 66,437 kilotons of potatoes that year. To put that in perspective, there are 1000 tons in a kiloton – we're talking about a heck of a lot of potatoes. The World Population Review has even higher figures for the following year: 69,109 kilotons, or 47.4 kilograms per person.

China also grows the most potatoes in the world, according to the World Population Review, harvesting an estimated 95.6 million tonnes in 2022. That's nearly double the amount produced by the next country on the list, which was India with 56.2 million tonnes. The U.S. was the third-highest consumer of potatoes that year, wolfing down a total of 16,462 kilotons, thanks in huge part to the potato-producing state of Idaho. The Irish only managed a measly 416 kilotons — and there's no data to prove whether or not those were washed down with Guinness. Having said that, Ireland does top China when it comes to potatoes eaten per capita, eating 82.7 kilograms per person per year, compared to China's 47.4 kilograms. Incidentally, the top country per capita was Belarus, whose countrymen eat a whopping 160 kilograms per person per year, which is over 2 big potatoes each per day.

Potatoes probably aren't one of the foods you associate with Chinese cuisine, and they weren't always eaten in a lot of households. But the landscape in China is perfect for growing them, and as the population continues to boom there, the government has been pushing to promote them as a new staple.

China's Ministry of Agriculture launched an official promotional campaign for white potatoes in 2015 to try to convince people to start integrating them into their everyday diets. As part of the plans, the government promised to double the land used for growing potatoes and expand the crop into new areas. There was also money dedicated to research and development, and scientists have since been working on climate-proofing the seeds in response to global warming.

Potatoes are still largely viewed by Chinese people as a side dish, rather than a replacement for noodles or rice, but there are some dishes where the spud is the star. There's sautéed shredded potatoes with vinegar and green peppers, yangyu mom (or potato dough balls), tieguo zhu yangyu (potatoes boiled in an iron wok), and tudou si (stir-fried shredded potatoes). Potatoes also often feature in Chinese stews, soups, and curries – even some chop suey dishes in various regions. If you want to try some dishes out, you can experiment with Chinese-style potato salad or wasabi mashed potatoes. Who knows, maybe we'll bump up our own consumption in the process.