SWEET POTATO TRIVIA & FACTS

See Also: Article on Sweet PotatoesCooking Tips;
RecipesWhat happened to Syrupy Sweet Potatoes?

U.S. per capita Sweet Potato usage:

1970

1980

1990

2000

2011

5.4 lbs

4.4 lbs

4.4 lbs

4.2 lbs

7.1 lbs

Source: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service


2.4 billion pounds of sweet potatoes were produced by major sweet potato producing states in 2014. (USDA)

1.8 billion pounds of sweet potatoes were produced by major sweet potato producing states in 2007. North Carolina (667 million pounds) produced more sweet potatoes than any other state. It was followed by California (426 million pounds). Mississippi and Louisiana also produced large amounts: at least 300 million pounds each.               (US Census Bureau, October 2008)

Per Capita U.S. Sweet Potato Consumption
• In 2007 per capita consumption was 4.6 pounds.
• In 2004 per capita consumption was 4.2 pounds
• In 2004, 98,300 acres of sweet potatoes were planted in the U.S.
• In 1943 per capita consumption was 21.7 pounds.

(Louisiana Sweet Potato Commission www.sweetpotato.org )

The sweet potato is the 6th principal world food crop, and approximately 90 percent of the worlds' crop is grown in Asia.

SWEET POTATOES     Yellow, dry fleshed  &  Orange, moist fleshed

Despite a physical similarity and a frequent confusion with their names, yams and sweet potatoes are not even distantly related. They are in two different botanical families. Yams are actually related to grasses and lilies

Sweet Potato Historical Facts

Sweet potatoes are a Native American plant that was the main source of nourishment for early homesteaders and for soldiers during the Revolutionary War.
     These tuberous roots are among the most nutritious foods in the vegetable kingdom. They are packed with calcium, potassium, and vitamins A and C. This is why one colonial physician called them the "vegetable indispensable."
     Sweet potatoes are often confused with yams, but yams are large, starchy roots grown in Africa and Asia. Yams can grow up to 100 pounds and are rarely available in American supermarkets.
     Nutritionally, sweet potatoes greatly outweigh yams. Because of the common use of the term "yam," it is acceptable to use this term when referring to sweet potatoes.
     Sweet potatoes contain an enzyme that converts most of its starches into sugars as the potato matures. This sweetness continues to increase during storage and when they are cooked.
     Although sweet potatoes are harvested in August through October, they are available in supermarkets all year. Many stores feature them at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
     There are two varieties of sweet potatoes; the pale yellow with a dry flesh and the dark orange with a moist flesh (see picture above ). The dark orange variety is plumper in shape and somewhat sweeter than the yellow variety.

In 2003 Louisiana designated the Sweet Potato as the official State Vegetable of Louisiana.

The Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas) was designated as the Official Vegetable of North Carolina in 1995.

Vardaman, Mississippi claims to be the Sweet Potato Capital of the World.

The Tater Day Festival, one of the few festivals devoted to sweet potatoes, is held in Benton, Kentucky annually.
     The three-day Tater Day Festival had its beginnings in 1843. Farmers from the countryside would bring their products to the town square to sell or trade on county court days. One of the things they would bring is sweet potatoes, which grow well in the Southern climate. 'Tater' is a nickname for potato.
     In Benton, this eventually turned into an annual festival honoring the sweet potato, complete with a parade, carnival, and baking and canning competitions, beginning on the first Monday in April.

 

 

FoodReference.com Logo

You are here > Home > FOOD TRIVIA & FACTS

Next

Also see: Food Articles and Cooking Tips

FREE Magazines
and other Publications

An extensive selection of free magazines and other publications

 

FOOD TRIVIA and FOOD FACTS

Please feel free to link to any pages of FoodReference.com from your website.
For permission to use any of this content please E-mail: james@foodreference.com
All contents are copyright © 1990 - 2024 James T. Ehler and www.FoodReference.com unless otherwise noted.
All rights reserved.  You may copy and use portions of this website for non-commercial, personal use only.
Any other use of these materials without prior written authorization is not very nice and violates the copyright.
Please take the time to request permission.


 

 

Popular Pages

Food History Articles

Pleasures of the Table

World Cuisine

Recipe Index

CULINARY SCHOOLS
& COOKING CLASSES

From Amateur & Basic Cooking Classes to Professional Chef Training & Degrees

 

 

Home   |   Articles   |   FOOD TRIVIA   |   Today in Food History   |   Food Timeline   |   Recipes   |   Cooking_Tips   |   Food_Videos   |   Food Quotes   |   Who’s Who   |   Culinary Schools & Tours   |   Food_Trivia_Quizzes   |   Food Poems   |   Free_Magazines   |   Food Festivals & Events

FoodReference.com (since 1999)

 

FOOD TRIVIA and FOOD FACTS SECTION