FAO’s guide to International Potato Day helps you prepare for the first World Potato Day on May 30

The FAO has published a guide to the new World Day, which we celebrate on May 30 under the motto “Harvest diversity – Give hope”. In it, we can read about the role of the plant in eradicating hunger and poverty, as well as in the management of environmental threats to agro-food systems.

The international day emphasizes the role of small, family farmers (among whom we find a large number of women) in preserving the variety of the plant and the cultural and culinary importance of the potato.

The plant from the Andes was originally called the “flower of the ancient Inca civilization”, where the potato was a staple food. It arrived in Europe in the 16th century, from where it then spread to the rest of the world. In the less than half a century that has passed since then, it has become a key raw material for farmers and consumers worldwide.