FOOD NEWS
The Uncomplicated Reason Potatoes Are Nicknamed Spuds
BY GRETA PANO
Potatoes have been such a pivotal vegetable throughout history that they have developed multiple nicknames including tubers, taters, and of course, spuds.
One plausible reason that people use the nickname 'spuds' for potatoes is that 'spud' is also the name of the tool that is used to harvest this root crop.
However, there’s another possible explanation: In Britain during the 1800s, activist group The Society for the Prevention of an Unwholesome Diet protested the potato.
The group claimed that potatoes caused a number of diseases. According to some, the acronym representing this group's name, S.P.U.D., is what led to potatoes being called spuds.
This explanation is debatable, however, with many believing the term to be more likely derived from the name of the tool used to harvest the crop.