Potatoes are a mainstay product that everyone eats. As a side dish, they outsell rice and pasta combined, says Joan Ioannou, director of marketing for Purely Supreme Foods, Burley, Idaho.
Annual consumption of processed potatoes is now at more than 140 pounds per person in the U.S. More than 50% of the potatoes grown in this country are processed, according to the Washington State Potato Commission, Moses Lake, Wash.