Spud market looking chipper

New Zealand fries are the envy of the world - not just because they taste great but because they are healthier to eat.
And that's thanks to The Chip Group, an initiative led by Potatoes New Zealand that sees government departments and food service industry organisations work together to lower the fat content of chips.
"Potato growers in other countries can't believe what New Zealand has achieved in improving the nutritional status of hot chips and lowering their fat and salt content," said Glenda Gourley, Potatoes New Zealand's food, marketing and education consultant of Tauranga who attended the International Potato Levy Group congress in South Africa late last year with delegates from the UK, US, Canada, South Africa and Australia.
"The British delegates in particular were surprised with Potatoes New Zealand's relationship with the Heart Foundation and how the food service industry, media and the public had responded to the initiative to make chips healthier," she said.
While they would like to introduce a similar programme, British delegates felt it would be an uphill battle to get all the players, including the media, on side.
It was fears about New Zealanders' growing waistlines and the spotlight going on high-fat foods such as deep-fried chips which prompted Potatoes New Zealand to drive The Chip Group, Glenda said.
"Seven million servings of hot chips are eaten every week in New Zealand, so French fries are a significant local market for our growers."
To preserve that market, Potatoes New Zealand led the formation of The Chip Group with the aim of cutting the fat content of hot chips by 20 per cent and reducing the added salt.
The Chip Group is a partnership of 18 organisations from the food service industry (potato growers - represented by Potatoes New Zealand, chip manufacturers, equipment suppliers and oil makers) and health and government organisations (The Heart Foundation, the Ministry of Health and the New Zealand Food Safety Authority).
Among the steps to achieving those goals is the training provided to chip shop workers to help them learn how to fry healthier (for example, having the fat at the right temperature - 175C - means the chips absorb less fat), she said.
Research had shown the public liked chips which weren't so greasy so there was no public backlash to the initiative.
"Ultimately, The Chip Group is focused on creating better chips.
"After all, if chips are healthier and tastier, New Zealanders will eat even more of them."
New Zealand's potato industry:

200 growers producing around
500 tonnes of potatoes from
10,000 hectares of arable farmland