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Potatoes & Public Health

Nutrition Facts

Potatoes provide important essential nutrients, including 45 percent of the Daily Value of vitamin C, as well as potassium and dietary fiber, two nutrients that are often lacking in the American diet.

Potatoes are nutrient-rich vegetables providing significant amounts of key shortfall nutrients. The white potato is an important source of essential nutrients, including potassium, vitamin C, vitamin B6, dietary fiber and magnesium, as well as important phytonutrients.

  • Potatoes contain nutrients of public health concern including fiber and potassium. Read Potatoes and Childhood Nutrition and Healthy Dietary Patterns for more information.
  • Potatoes provide about 20 percent of the potassium in the American diet. Based on research supported by APRE, the bioavailability of potassium is as high from potatoes as from potassium gluconate supplements (1).
  • A collection of studies published in an Advances in Nutrition supplement, supported by APRE, identified a substantial body of evidence that demonstrates how the inclusion of white vegetables, such as potatoes, can increase intake of shortfall nutrients as well as help increase overall vegetable consumption (2). The open-access supplement can be viewed here.
  • Potatoes are one of the best nutritional values in the produce department, providing valuable nutrients such as vitamin C and significantly better nutritional value per dollar than many other raw vegetables. A 2013 analysis examined the nutrient density per unit cost of the 46 most frequently consumed vegetables as part of the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), and found that potatoes and beans were the least expensive sources of not only potassium but also fiber. Specifically, potassium-rich white potatoes were almost half the cost of most other vegetables, making it more affordable to meet key dietary guidelines for good health (3).
  • Potatoes contain surprisingly high-quality protein with a biological value between 90-100, which is considered very good, especially for a non-animal source (2).

For more information on the nutritional contributions and benefits of potatoes, read:

For more information about how the potassium and fiber in potatoes compare to other commonly consumed sources, read:

References

  1. Macdonald-Clark CJ, et al. Bioavailability of potassium from potatoes and potassium gluconate: a randomized dose response trial.
  2. White vegetables: a forgotten source of nutrients. Adv Nutr. 2013; 4: 318S-326S, 2013.
  3. Drewnowski A, Rehm CD. Vegetable cost metrics show that potatoes and beans provide most nutrients per penny. PLoS One. 2013 May 15;8(5):e63277.
Looking to contribute to potato science?
APRE's research program was created to extend the understanding of the nutritional value of potatoes, while adhering to guidelines that support sound and credible research through industry funding. To receive email announcements on our annual grant and fellowship programs, sign up below.
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