A Tremendous Tuber
April 9, 2008
A giant cassava root, weighing in at over 65 lbs, was recently discovered on a farm in the Hainan province of China.
The so-called “king of cassava” has attracted curious onlookers to the farm of Fu Chunmei, who told China Daily that she planted the cassava in her sugar cane field about a year ago.
The massive cassava root was reportedly 20 inches long and close to a foot wide. To put that in perspective, the average cassava root grows to about 6 to 12 inches in length and from 2 to 3 inches in diameter.
For the uninitiated, here some facts about our beloved cassava:
* Also known as yuca or manioc, cassava is dietary staple consumed by more than 500 million people around the world.
* A cousin to the potato, the tuberous roots of the cassava plant have tough brown skins which protect the crisp, white, starchy interior.
* Cassava is known as a prolific and resilient crop, producing more food energy per unit of land than any other staple crop and thriving even in dry soil.
* Cassava cultivation originated in South America thousands of years ago and was brought to Africa in the 16th century by Portuguese traders from the Americas.
* In addition to being baked, boiled and fried by many different cultures around the world, cassava is also dried and ground to make flour and fermented to make beer.
* Cassava starch is extracted to produce tapioca flour and pearl tapioca.
* Cassava is the third largest source of carbohydrates for human food in the world.
* Arico launched its line of all-natural Cassava Chips in 2007, featuring the flavors Original, Sea Salt Mist, Barbecue Bliss, and Ginger on Fire.
* Arico Cassava Chips have twice the fiber and 30-40% less fat than leading brand potato chips.
* The cassava in Arico's chips is purchased from farmers on the Indonesian island of Java.