Potato as a basic staple
Photo: Shafiq Islam / Driknews
My heart goes out to the potato growers and the glut of their unsold produce. Potatoes are in some countries the staple part of most meals! They can be cooked in many delicious ways and are much more nutritious than rice! Bangladeshi potatoes are not only available and cheap, they are among the best I have ever tasted! As a child, during World War II and afterwards, I learnt to eat what was available and affordable. How can ideas about food be set in concrete? Why not replace the tyranny of personal preference by a more flexible response to present day realities - and the needs of others? Does Bangladesh lack what used to be called in the UK a Potato Marketing Board? It is now the Potato Council and run by the growers themselves. Many countries have them (see websites) which promote potatoes, through advertising, including publicising recipes. Ask a famous Bangladeshi chef to produce a recipe for school dinners. Keep creamy mashed potatoes in the fridge for hungry teenagers who add their own extras! It would make a big difference to the well-being of many Bangladeshi farmers, if each household agreed to have one main meal a week with potatoes instead of rice! How about The Daily Star and other newspapers publishing recipes?
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