A recently published paper indicated potato production was more environmentally sustainable than pasta and rice.

The paper, conducted by researchers from Cranfield University in Bedfordshire, England and published in the Journal of Cleaner Production, considered both greenhouse gas emissions and water consumption when growing the three food types, with potatoes proving to have the least negative impact on the environment.

“The researchers analysed a large amount of data from many sources to produce an accurate estimate on the environmental impact of growing potatoes, pasta and rice, based on their greenhouse gas emissions and water consumption,”  AUSVEG spokesperson Shaun Lindhe said

“Potatoes were shown to have the lowest levels of greenhouse gas emissions when compared to both pasta and rice. Potatoes were also shown to have significantly lower levels of overall water usage than rice.

“Although overall water consumption between potatoes and pasta was similar, the blue water scarcity footprint, which measures the relative environmental impact of water usage, was better for potatoes in terms of water use sustainability compared to pasta by a factor of three.

“These findings are significant as they show dietary trends towards lower potato consumption in favour of other foods such as pasta and rice in the United Kingdom, have led to a more significant environmental impact, particularly on water use.”

AUSVEG is the leading horticultural body representing more than 9000 Australian vegetable and potato growers.

Despite the encouraging findings, researchers believed there was still scope for growers to improve the environmental sustainability of their potato growing operations through new technologies that increase efficiency and productivity. 

“Growers can still work to improve the environmental sustainability of their growing operations through good fertiliser management and efficient use of machinery,” Mr Lindhe said.