With the rising prices of wheat and rice, the once overlooked potato is now being recognized as a valuable and nutritious crop that could provide affordable food for a world facing increasing hunger. Potatoes, originally from Peru, can thrive in various climates and elevations, from the cold slopes of the Andes to the warm plains of Asia, requiring minimal water and maturing quickly. They have the potential to yield more food per hectare compared to wheat or rice. Pamela Anderson, director of the International Potato Center in Lima, emphasizes the importance of potatoes in addressing the challenges of food scarcity. The potato is being recognized for its potential to alleviate hunger due to factors such as rising food prices, population growth, increased costs for fertilizer and diesel, and more land being used for biofuel production. The United Nations designated 2008 as the International Year of the Potato to draw attention to its importance, calling it a "hidden treasure". Governments, including Peru, are promoting the use of potato flour in response to skyrocketing wheat prices, with programs distributing potato bread to various groups in hopes of popularizing the trend. Supporters claim that potato bread tastes equally as good as wheat bread, but there is a shortage of mills producing potato flour. Ismael Benavides, the agriculture minister of Peru, believes that people's eating habits need to change as they became accustomed to consuming wheat when it was affordable. Despite the potato originating in Peru 8,000 years ago, Peruvians eat fewer potatoes compared to Europeans. Belarus is the top consumer of potatoes worldwide, with each person consuming an average of 376 pounds per year. India has expressed its desire to increase potato production in the next five to ten years. China, a country known for its history of devastating famines and high rice consumption, has now emerged as the largest potato producer worldwide. In Sub-Saharan Africa, the potato industry is experiencing significant growth compared to other crops. In Latvia, rising bread prices have led to a decrease in sales, with consumers opting to buy more potatoes instead. The developing world is seeing a surge in potato cultivation, providing an opportunity for impoverished farmers to increase their income. Anderson stated that countries are considering the potato as a viable option for enhancing food security and generating income. Despite being the world's third most essential food crop, potatoes are often associated with the plain Idaho variety in the United States. In reality, there are approximately 5,000 different types of potatoes available. Peru is contributing to a gene bank for food crops by sending thousands of seeds to the Doomsday Vault near the Arctic Circle. Potatoes come in a variety of colors, shapes, textures, and sizes, offering chefs the opportunity to create visually appealing dishes. Juan Carlos Mescco, a 17-year-old potato farmer in Peru, enjoys eating potatoes in different ways throughout the day. Potatoes are a good source of complex carbohydrates, releasing energy slowly, and have a low fat content compared to wheat. Boiled potatoes have more protein and calcium than corn, and are also rich in vitamin C, iron, potassium, and zinc. Speculators are not interested in potatoes because they are not a global commodity like wheat. Wheat production is much higher than potato production, and a small percentage of potatoes are traded internationally. Local tastes drive potato prices, and the heavy and perishable nature of raw potatoes has limited global trade in them. They can also be easily infected by pathogens, which hinders their export to prevent the spread of plant diseases. However, the drawback is that the prices in certain countries are not high enough to incentivize farmers to cultivate them. Vendors in Peruvian markets believe that the government should intervene to increase demand. Juana Villavicencio, who has been planting potatoes for 15 years and now sells them for very low prices in a market in Cusco, Peru, expressed, "Prices are low. It's not profitable to work with potatoes." Science is progressing rapidly, with German company BASF working on genetically modified potatoes that can resist "late blight," a disease which caused famine in Ireland in the 19th century and still results in around 20 percent of potato harvest losses globally. Researchers suggest that using clean, virus-free seeds can increase yields by 30 percent and allow for export clearance. This could lead to higher incomes for farmers and promote increased production, as companies could sell unique potato varieties internationally instead of just as frozen french fries or potato chips.