What an insult to potatoes everywhere. The US Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee is expected in 2025 to declare that potatoes aren't actually vegetables and instead will lump them in with grains and rice.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service, the primary vegetables consumed by Americans are potatoes and tomatoes. In 2019, the average American consumed nearly 50 pounds of potatoes and approximately 31 pounds of tomatoes throughout the year. French fries and pizza sauce FTW!
"The suggestion to reclassify potatoes as a non-vegetable is not grounded in any scientific metric," Kam Quarles, CEO of the National Potato Council, testified at a Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee meeting. "This unsupported notion, if acted upon, will confuse consumers, could result in nutrient gaps and also decreased vegetable consumption. We ask the Committee to avoid this chaotic outcome and continue to acknowledge the fact that potatoes are a vegetable."
Food & Wine reports that the Grain Chain industry coalition is also opposed to the new classification, "telling the committee that putting potatoes in their category 'could further exacerbate nutrient shortfalls.'"
(Thanks, Chanté McCormick!)
