Potatoes spark political food fight in U.S.

The USDA has taken the potato off its list of approved foods for the Women, Infants and Children Program, a decision that has outraged the potato industry and politicians from potato-growing states. Nutritionists are also concerned.

WIC, which stands for Women, Infants, and Children, is a supplemental food program intended to help meet the nutritional needs of families with young children. The list of foods which may be purchased through the program is being revised to include more fresh fruits and vegetables, and whole grains. Not included is the “white” potato, meaning any potato that is not a sweet potato or yam. Potatoes have been a staple food for many cultures for centuries. And even though in this era of fad diets potatoes tend to fall in and out of favor, their nutritional value is unassailable. Potatoes are a significant source of potassium as well as calcium and iron; vitamins C, A, and B; and starch. So why exclude it from the list of WIC-qualified foods? The US Dept. Agriculture, which oversees the WIC program doesn’t address the issue on any of its websites, nor has it made any public comment other than a response from agency spokeswoman Jean Daniel to the Portland Press Herald. Daniel explained that the USDA was following recommendations from the National Academies of Sciences Institute of Medicine. Their reasoning is that people are already eating enough potatoes. “People are not eating enough green leafy vegetables,” Daniel said. “But they were eating sufficient white potatoes.” Adding somewhat to the confusion, the USDA lists recommended WIC menus and recipes that include potato salad, potato soup, stuffed potatoes, and scalloped potatoes. During the comment period for these revisions, the USDA received more than 200 letters addressing the exclusion of the potato, not only from those with interests in the potato industry, but from nutritionist and dieticians as well, overwhelmingly in favor of including the potato. “When I see they are not going to let poor women who have limited access to something that is filling, provides a lot of nutritional benefits and their kids will really eat bothers me,” said Mary Camire, potato researcher at the Univesity of Maine, Orono.