Is a potato a vegetable? Federal committee reconsiders spuds' status
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Sure, you can boil 'em, mash 'em or stick 'em in a stew, but a federal committee is reconsidering whether po-tay-toes are really that good for you, and for your kids to eat at school.
The U.S. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee is creating its 2025 guidelines, and potatoes may no longer qualify as a vegetable.
Spuds could be moved into the same group as rice and other carbohydrates. The menus are divided into five groups - vegetables, grains, fruit, dairy and protein.
The guidelines help shape nutritional advice and school cafeteria menus.
Potatoes are the most commonly consumed vegetable in the U.S. according to the USDA's Economic Research Service - amounting to almost 49 pounds per person in 2019. A chart on the USDA's site shows that amount includes french fries and about five pounds of potato chips per person.
Tomato was the second-most consumed vegetable in 2019, amounting to roughly 31 pounds per person that year - and a good portion of that was in the form of tomato sauce or tomato paste.
Onions were the third most-consumed vegetable, at 9.4 pounds per person.
The National Potato Council, which represents growers, maintains that potatoes are a "starchy vegetable," and says reclassifying spuds would create a "chaotic outcome."
"Potatoes are a versatile, affordable, and popular nutrient-dense choice across socioeconomic groups and cultures. Prepared in any form, potatoes provide essential, under-consumed nutrients such as potassium and fiber," NPC CEO Kam Quarles told the committee.
Researchers working in Food Pattern Modeling for the federal committee wrote that diets that prioritize whole grains and nutrient-dense foods over fried potatoes have better health outcomes.