HZPC Holland Markets 'Low-Carb' Potatoes

[lovechild]

- Trying to cash in on the low-carb craze, a Dutch company is marketing a variety of its potatoes in the United States as containing fewer carbohydrates than the regular spud.

Although all potatoes are made up mostly of water and carbohydrates, the low-carb potato - dubbed the "Spud-U-Lite" in the industry press - contains around one-third fewer calories by weight than most other potatoes, so it also contains proportionately less carbohydrate.

The company, HZPC Holland BV, created the potato by crossbreeding existing strains.

Spokesman Gerard Basten said Friday the potato was originally developed before the low-carb diet developed by Robert Atkins became hugely popular.

When tests were completed in January revealing the potato's low-carb content, the company realized it could be an important marketing tool. Demand for potatoes has fallen since the Atkins diet exploded in popularity last year.

"We had fast food companies and snack food companies like Frito Lay calling, saying 'What's this, could this be an opportunity for us?" Basten said.

The yellow-fleshed potatoes aren't being used by Frito Lay or food companies yet, however. So far, the potato has only been planted in small amounts in North Carolina, Arizona, Florida, Washington state and in Ontario, Canada, to compete with the more common white-fleshed Russell Burbank variety.

Production, especially in Florida, is expected to increase this year, and the first real crop is expected to be sold to the retail market in Jan. 2005 in Florida and other parts of the South.