The Potato Chip Dilemma 1

The Potato Chip Dilemma Cailin Bader Environmental Issues The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey

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Abstract Potato chips are consumed by millions of people around the world and are a huge economic industry. This does not come without a large environmental toll that many fail to realize is taking place. The production of potatoes constitutes a high amount of water usage as well taking a large toll on soil nutrition and setting it up to be easily erodible. Fertilizers, fungicides and pesticides that are used in potato production contribute to eutrophication and the pollution of water, plant-life and wild-life with drastic effects on populations and people. The spread of disease and loss of crops from disease is a huge economic factor that drives further production of potatoes and its subsequent environmental effects. Transportation and exportation releases millions of pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and contributes to global climate change. Processing the potatoes into chips also creates a heavy toll by using electricity to power almost every process throughout manufacturing which means burning more fossil fuels and more carbon dioxide release. Waste created by potato chip manufacturing amounts to vegetable oils which can leak and contaminate waters as well as the use of plastic packaging that ends up photo degrading into the ground or water and poisoning the soil and aquatic life within. It goes without saying that potato chip processing contributes a great deal of pollution to the earths atmosphere, soil and water and should be analyzed more thoroughly for future generations.

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I. The Worlds Favorite Snack: An Introduction.............................................................................4 II. Not So Humble Beginnings: The Environmental Impacts of Potatoes...4 IIA. Soil Erosion......4 IIB. Water Use and Pollution..5 IIC. Disease Spread and Its Implications.7 III. Transportation to Factories8 IIIA. From Americas Farms to The Chipping Plants.8 IIIB. Exportation of Chipping Potatoes...9 IV. Potato Chip Processing: The Impact of Using Electrical Energy10 V. Use and Disposal: From Your Home T o The Garbage Can. ...11 VA. The Cost Of Going To The Super Market.11 VB. Vegetable Oil: A Murky Mess...................................12 VC. Plastic Wrappings and Their Damage to the Environment13 VI. Conclusion..13 References.15 Appendices20 Appendix 1.1: Gallons of Water Used In Potato Production.20 Appendix 1.2: Carbon Dioxide Output for a Diesel Truck20 Appendix 1.3: Carbon Dioxide Output of a Cargo Ship Going From the U.S. to Japan and Comparisons..........................................................................................................20 Appendix 1.4: Conversion From MJ/kg to MJ/lbs21 Appendix 1.5: Appendix 1.5: Amount of Joules Used In Yearly U.S. Intake of Potato Chips.21 Appendix 1.6: Appendix 1.6: Carbon Released Getting to Acme21

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I.

The Worlds Favorite Snack: An Introduction Nothing screams snack food like the humble potato chip, a food that is consumed on

the go, at home, and at work; everywhere you look there is bound to be at least one person munching away on the popular snack. In fact almost 1.2 billion pounds of potato chips are eaten each year by Americans alone (Troyer Farms). That averages out to about six pounds of potato chips for every person with nearly nine out of ten households consume at least some variation of the salty snack (Anesi 2012). America isnt the only one who has an undying love for the chip, France has a whopping 86% consumption rate for its entire population with Great Britain following close behind at 84% and Egypt at 72% (Kantar Media 2012). Furthermore many South East Asian countries have begun showing a great deal of interest in making their own potato chips as many European countries and the U.S. do. (U.S. Potatoes). Needless to say the love for potato chips is on a global scale and with such a massive demand one must stop and think of the demand potato chip production has on the environment. For a potato chip to be created a lot of things must be done including the growing and harvesting of potatoes, their costly transport and export, the large amount of electricity needed to power the food plants they get transferred to and of course the hazardous consequences from disposing their packaging and frying oil. Indeed it seems that such a simple snack can create some big problems if not analyzed carefully. II. Not So Humble Beginnings: The Environmental Impacts of Potatoes IIA. Soil Erosion To grow a potato you have to have very good soil with light to medium texture and careful precision during each stage of its life cycle to make sure it isnt affected by the numerous sensitivities it has such as chloride or boron deficiency. One wrong move and the plant will

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become stunted, misshapen or generally unfit for human consumption. Potatoes are well known for being very sensitive to any slight change in many of the nutrients it needs such as phosphorus, nitrates, potassium and sulfur. (Haifa). So it comes as no surprise that potatoes are also one of the biggest crops that depletes the nutrients in soil because of the heavy demands it needs to remain healthy. Furthermore to harvest the potatoes takes heavy machinery as well as a large amount of tillage and frequent traffic to grow the potatoes properly (Department of Agriculture, Aquaculture and Fisheries). Tillage erosion is one of the leading types of erosion found when growing tubers which is when potatoes are planted in sloping hills and the soil upslope erodes and slides down-slope. Thanks to gravity this situation is worsened by the constant pulling of soil from up the hill as well as wind and water becoming contributing factors. Worse yet is that tillage erosion is a slow moving process that many times catches a farmer off guard when larges patches of land become barren and useless because of soil erosion. The reason this occurs is because the moving of soil from up-slope to down-slope alters the soil structure, decreases the amount of organic matter in the soil, and can even expose bedrock and subsoil. The nutrient rich top soil becomes lost and the potatoes have no way of growing properly because of their high nutrient demands. This can result in yield losses of up to 50% which forces the farmer to try and make up for this loss and exacerbate the problem further (New Brunswick Canada). IIB. Water Use and Pollution The potato is a very thirsty plant and can be greatly affected by the amount of water it receives. It is especially sensitive to droughts and the reduction of water in crops can cause tremendous losses in yields. Additionally the roots of potatoes are poor at absorbing water and require even more water because of this (Haverkort 1982). According to the USGS Water Science School to make one pound of potatoes it takes 100 gallons of water; an incredible

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amount for such a small pay off. Due to potatoes being 80% water there is also a large net loss when it comes to converting those potatoes to potato chips (Husmans 2014). It takes 10,000 potatoes to create 2,500 potato chips which is essentially utilizing on 25% of the potatoes (Anesi 2012). Couple this fact with the amount of potato chips consumed by an average person in the U.S. and we are averaging about 7.58E11 gallons of water are being used each year (see appendix 1.1). If we use this same math towards other countries we get about 1.57E11 gallons of water for France, 1.53E11 gallons for the U.K. and about 2.03E11 gallons for Egypt (appendix 1.1). Potatoes require a lot of nutrients to keep them healthy, for example every acre of crop will require .66 pounds of nitrogen, 0.2 pounds of phosphorus and 1 pound of potassium (Carlson 2005). Nutrients like these will constantly need to be replaced and will often leach into ground water and pollute streams and rivers. Irrigation run-off from non-point sources such as potato crops is one of the hardest forms of water pollution to regulate and control. The addition of nutrients in aquatic systems will inevitably lead to a process called eutrophication in which the nutrients cause an overabundance of algae and phytoplankton that use up all the oxygen in the water and kill off many aquatic plant and animal species. Studies done in Winnipeg Canada have shown that rapid ecosystem change and damage has been done in downstream lakes that had phosphate and nitrate leeching from various potato, wheat and canola crops (Bunting, Leavitt, et.al n.d.). Other studies have shown that both bread and potatoes contribute about 3.3% of total eutrophication impacts in the environment (Manchester Business School 2006). The use of fungicides, herbicides and pesticides are nothing new when growing particular crops. Unfortunately, these chemicals also get swept away during irrigation processes and end up poisoning various aquatic systems. Some of these chemicals such as o-Phenyl phenol and

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thiabendazole are known carcinogens and have been known to cause birth defects, both of which are not only contaminating the surrounding water but have been found on the potato itself (Whats On My Food?). Chemicals of this nature are known for not only killing their target pest but also killing off many non-target species as well that come in conflict with the crops. The pollution of waterways also brings organisms in contact with poisons and these can work their way up the food chain and reach their way back to us in the fish we eat. Pesticides in particular can harm helpful animals such as worms and predatory animals that took care of some of the pests the chemicals were trying to get rid of. Some chemicals may also last a very long time in the environment instead of breaking down quickly making it harder for aquatic systems to recover such as DDT which could last up to twelve years in the environment (American Forest Foundation). Prince Edward Island in Canada is now facing these very issues after increasing pesticide use on their potato crops by over 571% in 14 years. These pesticides ended up polluting nine of their rivers and resulted in multiple fish kills, and killing off thousands of amphibians, snakes and worms and with no proper legislation it is likely the drinking water of the surrounding population is contaminated as well (Labchuk 2012). IIC. Disease Spread and Its Implications One of the biggest contributing factors to loss in potato crops is that amount of diseases they can catch; with over 60 different types from fungal to bacterial it can be very difficult to prevent a huge loss. Most of these diseases are also uncontrollable once they have established and farmers have to spend a lot of resources trying to prevent establishment before it is too late. For instance the Potato Y Virus that causes necrosis is transmitted by aphids and Potato Mop Top virus which causes scabs on the potato skin is transmitted through a fungus (Secor n.d.).

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This is also why the application of toxic fungicides and pesticides are so heavily relied on for fear of losing entire crops to disease which in turn add to water pollution. The Zebra Chip disease in particular is one of the more well-known diseases that affect the chipping process of potatoes. As a potato it displays symptoms of discoloration of leaves, body and stem, scorching and even death. When the potato is being processed as a chip it creates a striped discoloration on the chip (hence the name Zebra Chip) and that batch must be discarded. This creates huge economic losses that push the farmers to create even more potatoes and end up stressing the land and water resources they have. Thus disease has the nasty effect of contributing to both soil erosion and water issues simultaneously (Secor n.d.). The other issues surrounding potato disease are the fact that exporting the crop can introduce these diseases to other crops within the country or out of the country. The seeds are especially known for carrying many of the diseases and would be hard to catch until the disease began manifesting itself. The introductions of invasive pests or insects that carry some of these diseases are also possible and could result in economic losses to farmers who rely solely on potato farming for income. In Kenya there was a huge outcry over the government allowing the importation of potatoes for these very reasons. To make things worse is their poor importing procedure which would likely be unable to remove diseased potatoes and tubers in time. For a country that relies heavily on potato growing any one of these diseases could be a death knell for the country (RNW Africa Desk 2012). III. Transportation to Factories IIIA. From Americas Farms to The Chipping Plants

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Potatoes are transported within countries by the use of large diesel fueled trucks that can transport a huge amount of potatoes at a given time (Better Made 2014). Diesel is derived from petroleum based products and burns about 22.23 pounds of carbon dioxide for every gallon used (City of Tallahassee Utilities Customer). On average the standard delivery truck can get about 8.7 miles to the gallon which is an incredibly small amount for a vehicle that may have to travel hundreds of miles to reach its destination (Vehicle Technologies). If one is to estimate a simple calculation of driving 50 miles (or a little above or below an hour depending on speed) a carrying truck would release about 127.76 pounds of carbon into the atmosphere (appendix 1.2) and that is just one simple trip on one truck. Likely there are thousands of trucks making hundreds of trips which would make the carbon output skyrocket into the hundreds of thousands! IIIB. Exportation of Chipping Potatoes The real killer in transportation is the exportation of potatoes to other countries, while many countries such as Ireland and the U.K. are known for growing potatoes and have the right soil conditions others are not so fortunate and rely on potato exports for chipping industry. The U.S. has been focused on many South East Asian countries like Thailand and Malaysia as well as the country of Japan (U.S. Potatoes). Potatoes that are transported overseas are placed in large cargo ships and can take several weeks to arrive at their destination. This means that they require cooling and ventilation units that require the use of electricity that will keep the temperatures around 39.2 F (UK P&I Club 2002). The greatest resource use though lies in the amount of fuel cargo ships can burn. The fuel they use is a heavier form of diesel fuel and releases about the same amount of carbon per gallon (22.23 pounds). However the real problem is that cargo ships can burn about 80-150 gallons of fuel for every mile they travel, a considerable increase from diesel trucks (Bruno 2014). Then we have to take into consideration the thousands of miles it

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takes to cross from the North America to South East Asia and other continents. Google Maps states that the average distance between the U.S. and Japan is roughly 6300 miles, if we take into account the amount of fuel used (about 100 gallons per mile) and carbon dioxide burned we get about 14,004,900 pounds of carbon dioxide released in one trip. With that many pounds being given off it would take about 109,618 trips for our diesel truck driving 50 miles to reach that about of carbon dioxide output. Conversely if the truck traveled 6300 miles it would only burn about 16,097 pounds which is only .11% of the amount the cargo ship burned (appendix 1.3). Studies have even shown that one large cargo ship releases enough carbon dioxide into the air as 50 million cars every year. All of this carbon dioxide leads to increased greenhouse effects and also contributes to respiratory problems and even cancer in civilians (Evans 2009). About 80,000 deaths can be attributed to pollution given off by cargo ships alone because of the carbon particulates given off. Therefore it is a more pressing problem of potato exportation as opposed to travel within a single country (Bruno 2014). IV. Potato Chip Processing: The Impact of Using Electrical Energy A lot of things have to happen at a chipping plant to make those potatoes into the familiar potato chips we all know and love. When they arrive at the processing plant the chips are unloaded from the trucks where they are inspected for disease, blemishes and any imperfections. They are then sent along a conveyor belt where they are destoned by a helix shaped screw, peeled by a peeling machine and then washed. They are then moved along to a blade presser that slices the potatoes into very thin pieces. They then might colored to increase aesthetic value or sent immediately to be fried in large vats of vegetable oil. This oil can range from sunflower to cottonseed or other vegetable oils depending on the company and locality. Temperatures can range from about 350-400 F and must be maintained at that temperature to cook the potato chips

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correctly. The chips are then allowed to cool and dry and then packaged in polyethylene plastic bags for consumption (Mcnulty n.d.). Most of these processes require the use of electricity and lots of it. Though most chipping plants wont give out an estimate of their electricity use , PepsiCo which is one of the biggest potato chip processing companies stated that about 34% of its carbon foot print came from the manufacturing process (Harper 2009). Studies done in the U.K found that to produce one pound of potatoes it took 1.2 mega-joules (or 1,200,000 joules) of electricity (see appendix 1.4 for metric conversions) (Manchester Business School 2006). For Americas 1.2 billion pounds of potato chips that are produced each year 1.44E15 joules of electricity are used up (appendix 1.5). Most of the electricity we use today is generated from fossil fuels, which only adds more carbon to the earths atmospher e as well as other greenhouse gases (EPA 2013). Every year the production of energy by burning fossil fuels creates about 27 billion pounds of carbon dioxide alone (Cravens n.d.). Radioactive particles may also be released from coal and nuclear powered electrical stations such as uranium, radium and thorium. The production of electricity is also responsible for the waste disposal for radioactive materials and solid waste that end up leaching into groundwater and contaminating soil which leads to rises in cancer and birth defects (World Nuclear Association 2013). So it seems that even the process of making a potato chip is not without its environmental costs. V. Use and Disposal: From Your Home To The Garbage Can VA. The Cost Of Going To The Super Market The only use potato chips have are to be eaten by the consumer, a process that thankfully does not impact the environment. However, getting those potato chips is another issue that requires the use of fossil fuels. Potato chips do not magically appear at a pers ons doorstep so

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people have to drive to their nearest super market to acquire them. The nearest Acme is about 10.1 miles from my house and my Pontiac gets about 18 miles to the gallon. The average amount of carbon dioxide released from a gasoline fueled car is about 423 grams which may not seem like a lot but when you multiply this by the millions of people driving their cars to get food it really adds up (Environmental Protection Agency 2011). For me to get the Acme it I would emit 237.5 grams of carbon dioxide and another 237.5 on the way back for a total of 474.7 grams (appendix 1.6). VB. Vegetable Oil: A Murky Mess While any leftover potatoes that arent used in the chipping plant get recycled as compost and livestock feed only about 3% of frying oil used will remain on the chips for consumption (Manchester Business School 2006). The rest will either be recycled back into the system or be disposed of in landfills, which creates the problem of ground and marine water leaching. Any type of oil has a nasty habit of sitting on top of any body of water and ends up coating the wildlife that live those waters (International Tank Owners Pollution Federation Limited). This can cause hypothermia, dehydration, and even starvation thereby killing over thousands of animals in one sitting. Aquatic animals may suffocate because the coating of oil can clog up gills and deplete the dissolved oxygen content of the water. This too leads to a decrease in biodiversity as species can be wiped out and create a domino effect on other species that have survived (EPA 2013). These oils do not disperse into the water nor do they evaporate, they have to be removed manually or they may sink to floor of the water body and endanger the aquatic life that inhabit there. Some vegetable oils have been known to cause liver impairment in fish and as they wash up on shore they create a pungent odor that requires clean-up and more spent resources (International Tank Owners Pollution Federation Limited). Petroleum spills tend to get

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more coverage than something as seemingly harmless as vegetable oil but their effects should not go on being ignored. VC. Plastic Wrappings and Their Damage to the Environment The plastic wrapping of potato chips is generally comprised of polyethylene plastic and some metals such as aluminum. This plastic casing is used to preserve the food and keep it fresh and away from oxygen, light, and water (American Plastics Council 1996). Unfortunately this plastic is not only created from fossil fuel burning but it is also not biodegradable when it gets thrown away into a landfill. The bigger problem can be seen if you take a drive along a stretch of highway; there you will also see that many plastic bags are not thrown away into landfills but onto the sides of roads where if left out long enough the plastic will photo degrade into smaller contaminants that leach into the soil. Potato chip bags tend to be very light and so they may also be blown around by the wind into lakes, rivers, and the ocean where aquatic animals can eat them and choke to death on the indigestible material (ENV110). Many animals such as female sea turtles rely on food to be able to nourish the eggs growing inside them and with energy being wasted on plastic bags their glucose levels can drop and reproduction rates will fall, other times the bags become stuck in the gut tract of the animal and it ends up starving to death. Being left to float on top of water also allows the bags the opportunity to photo-degrade here as well and the by-products are released into the water and can cause even more problems that cannot be so readily cleaned up like with oil spills (Terry 2013). VI. Conclusion The fact of the matter is that the production of potato chips has a huge environmental toll, especially in regards to exportation of raw materials and water use in growing the potatoes. The

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plastic packaging they are encased in is also a severe problem due to their inability to decompose and peoples laziness in throwing the m away properly. They may be loved by millions of people but it is our love that is putting a dent on the earths resources and should be addressed and scrutinized further.

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VII.

References

American Forest Foundation n.d. Potatoes, Pesticides and Biodiversity. Plt.org Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 https://www.plt.org/stuff/contentmgr/files/1/348c43e2d3a9d5dd0b937a53a5777435/files/biodiv ersity_act3.pdf American Plastics Council (1996) Understanding Plastic Film: Its Uses, Benefits, and Waste Management Options. Americanchmistry.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://plastics.americanchemistry.com/Understanding-Plastic-Film Anesi Jen (March 14, 2012) Fun Facts for National Potato Chip Day. TrentonGrosseile.patch.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 from http://trentongrosseile.patch.com/groups/business-news/p/fun-facts-for-national-potato-chip-day-f6ebd624 Better Made (2014) Better Made Plant Tour bmchips.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.bmchips.com/factory-tour Bosse Alena, and Boland Michael (2012) Potato Profile. Agmrc.org Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 from http://www.agmrc.org/commodities__products/vegetables/potato-profile/ Bruno Paul (2014) Why is ship efficiency important? Maritime.about.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://maritime.about.com/od/Pollution/a/Why-Is-Ship-Efficiency-Important.htm Bunting L, Leavitt P.R., et. al n.d. Sudden Ecosystem Change in Lake Winniepeg Canda, Caused by Eutrophication Arising From Crop and Livestock Production During the 20 th Century. Gov.mb.ca Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 https://www.gov.mb.ca/waterstewardship/water_quality/lake_winnipeg/pdf/report_lake_wpg_pal eolimnology_2011.pdf Carlson Linzy (2005) Potatoes: An Alternative to Consider. waterquality.montana.edu Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://waterquality.montana.edu/docs/irrigation/potatoes.shtml Chips and Chipping Potatoes n.d. Export Market. Uspotatoes.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.uspotatoes.com/downloads/Chips%20and%20Chipping%20PotatoesExport_NEW.pdf City of Tallahassee Utilities Customer n.d. Carbon Footprint Calculator Leoncountyfl.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.leoncountyfl.gov/sustainability/calc/CalculatorCOTxAbout.html Clean Energy (EPA) (Sept. 15 2013) How Does Electricity Affect the Environment? Epa.gov Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-and-you/affect/

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Cravens Gwyneth n.d. Nuclear vs. Fossil Fuels. Cravenspowertosavetheworld.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.cravenspowertosavetheworld.com/nuclear-energy-faq-mainmenu30/10-what-about-the-environmental-impact-of-electricity-generation Department of Agriculture, Aquaculture and Fisheries (Canada) n.d. Soil Management. Gnb.ca Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.gnb.ca/0029/00290054-e.asp Deumling Diana, Wackernagel Mathis, and Monfreda Chad (2003) Eating Up the Earth How Sustainable Food Systems Shrink Our Ecological Footprint. Iastate.edu Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://agron-www.agron.iastate.edu/Courses/agron515/eatearth.pdf Evans Paul (April 23, 2009) Big Polluters: One Massive Container Ship Equals 50 million Cars. Gizmag.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.gizmag.com/shipping-pollution/11526/ Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (2011) Greenhouse Gas Emissions form a Typical Passenger Vehicle. Epa.gov Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.epa.gov/otaq/climate/documents/420f11041.pdf Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (Oct. 18 2013) Vegetable Oils and Animal Fats. Epa.gov Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www2.epa.gov/emergency-response/vegetable-oilsand-animal-fats ENV110 (2014) The Original Plastic Chip Bags. Env110plastichcipbagsrsp.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://env110plasticchipbagsrsp.wikispaces.com/1.+Original+Plastic+Chip+Bags Guttormsen Kristian, and Carlson A. Dale (1969) Current Practice in Potato Processing Waste Treatment. Nepis.epa.gov Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 from http://nepis.epa.gov/Exe/ZyNET.exe/9101HO7R.PDF?ZyActionP=PDF&Client=EPA&Index=P rior%20to%201976&File=D%3A\ZYFILES\INDEX%20DATA\70THRU75\TXT\00000022\91 01HO7R.txt&Query=&SearchMethod=1&FuzzyDegree=0&User=ANONYMOUS&Password=a nonymous&QField=&UseQField=&IntQFieldOp=0&ExtQFieldOp=0&Docs= International Tank Owners Pollution Federation Limited (2013) About Vegetable Oil Spills itopf.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.itopf.com/marine-spills/about-veg/ Haifa n.d. Nutritional Recommendations for Potato. Haifa-group.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.haifa-group.com/files/Guides/Potato.pdf Harper Sarah (Oct. 9 2009) Curbing Climate Change, One Potato Chip at a Time: PepsiCos Carbon Foot printing Techniques. Triplepundit.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.triplepundit.com/2009/10/pepsico-carbon-footprinting-techniques/ Haverkort J Anton (1982) Water Management in Potato Production. Cipotato.org Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 from http://www.cipotato.org/library/pdfdocs/TIBen21138.pdf

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Husmans (2014) Facts and FAQ husmans.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.husmans.com/facts_and_FAQs.php Labchuck Sharon (Oct. 15 2012) Potato Paradise Lost: Harmful Pesticides in PEI watershedsentinel.ca Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.watershedsentinel.ca/content/potatoparadise-lost-harmful-pesticides-pei Linus Franke, Steyn Martin, Ranger Sean and Haverkort Anton (2012) Sustainability Issues of Potato Production in the Sandveld. Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.potatoes.co.za/SiteResources/documents/Sustainability%20issues%20of%20potato% 20porduction%20in%20the%20%20Sandveld%202012.pdf Kantar Media (2012) Global Variations in the Potato Crisps and Potato Chips Market. Globaltgi.kantarmedia.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 from http://globaltgi.kantarmedia.com/images/uploads/files/Factoid_4_Potato_Crisps_and_Chips.pdf Manchester Business School (2006) Environmental Impacts of Food Production and Consumption ifr.ac.uk Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.ifr.ac.uk/waste/Reports/DEFRAEnvironmental%20Impacts%20of%20Food%20Production%20%20Consumption.pdf McNulty Mary n.d. Potato Chip. Madehow.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.madehow.com/Volume-3/Potato-Chip.html New Brunswick Canada n.d. Reducing Tillage Erosion in Potato Production Gnb.ca Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 https://www.gnb.ca/0173/30/Erosion-e.pdf Northern Plains Potatoes n.d. Potato Fun Facts. NPPGA.org Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 from http://www.nppga.org/consumers/funfacts.php RNW Africa Desk (2012) Kenyas Potato Controversy. Rnw.nl Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.rnw.nl/africa/article/kenya%E2%80%99s-potato-controversy Said Sammy (June 1, 2013) Tope 10 Best Selling Potato Chips. Therichest.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 from http://www.therichest.com/expensive-lifestyle/food/the-top-10-bestselling-potatochips/ Secor Gary n.d. Emerging Potato Disease in the World. Potatocongress.org Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.potatocongress.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Dr_Gary_Secor.pdf Terry Beth (Feb. 4 2013) The Plastic Bag Problem. Motherearthnews.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.motherearthnews.com/nature-and-environment/plastic-bag-problemze0z1302zwar.aspx?PageId=2 Troyer Farms n.d. Kidzone Fun Facts. Troyerfarms.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 from http://www.troyerfarms.com/kidzone/fun-facts/

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UK P&I Club (2002) Carriage of Potatoes. UKpandi.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.ukpandi.com/fileadmin/uploads/ukpi/LP%20Documents/Carefully_to_Carry/Potatoes.pdf U.S. Department of Health Education and Welfare (1960) Industrial Waste of the Potato Chip Industry. ia7003088.us.archive.org Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 from https://ia700308.us.archive.org/0/items/potatochipindust022245mbp/potatochipindust022245mb p.pdf USGS Water Science School (2014) What is the Water Content of Things? Usgs.gov Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://water.usgs.gov/edu/sc1.html US Potatoes n.d. Chips and Chipping Potatoes. Uspotatoes.com Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.uspotatoes.com/downloads/Chips_and_Chipping_Potatoes-Export.pdf Vehicle Technologies (2012) Heavy Trucks. Cta.ornl.gov Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://cta.ornl.gov/vtmarketreport/pdf/chapter3_heavy_trucks.pdf Whats On My Food? (2010) Potatoes: 37 Toxic Pesticide Residues Found by the USDA Pesticide Data Program. Whatsonmyfood.org Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.whatsonmyfood.org/food.jsp?food=PO (World Nuclear Association (Nov. 2013) Environment and Health in Electricity Generation. World-nuclear.org Retrieved on Feb 20 2014 http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Energy-andEnvironment/Environment-and-Health-in-Electricity-Generation/

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Appendices Appendix 1: Gallons of Water Used In Potato Production United States of America 6 (lbs. of potatoes per person) x 4 x 100 (gallons of water per pound) x 316,128839 (population) =7.58E11 gallons of water a year France 6 (lbs. of potatoes per person) x 4 x 100 (gallons of water per pound) x 65,300,000 (population) = 1.56E11 gallons of water a year Egypt 6 (lbs. of potatoes per person) x 4 x 100 (gallons of water per pound) x 84,500,000 (population) = 2.03E11 gallons of water a year United Kingdom 6 (lbs. of potatoes per person) x 4 x 100 (gallons of water per pound) x 63,700,000 (population) = 1.53E11 gallons of water a year Appendix 1.2: Carbon Dioxide Output for a Diesel Truck 50 (miles traveled) / 8.7 (mpg truck) x 22.23 (pounds of carbon dioxide released per gallon) = 127.7 lbs. (of carbon dioxide released per trip) Appendix 1.3: Carbon Dioxide Output of a Cargo Ship Going From the U.S. to Japan and Comparisons

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For One Trip 100 (gallons used per mile) x 22.23 (lbs of carbon dioxide released per gallon) x 6300 (miles) = 14,004,900 (lbs. of carbon dioxide released) Amount of Trips a Truck Could Make 14,004,900 (lbs. of carbon dioxide released) / 127.7 lbs. (of carbon dioxide released per trip) = 109,618 (trips) How Much Carbon Output a Truck Could Make In 6300 Miles 6300 (miles) / 8.7 (mpg) x 22.23 (lbs of carbon dioxide released per gallon) = 16,097 (lbs. of carbon dioxide released) Percent Released 16,097 (lbs. of carbon dioxide released) / 14,004,900 (lbs. of carbon dioxide released) x 100 = .11% Appendix 1.4: Conversion From MJ/kg to MJ/lbs 1 kg = 2.2 lbs 2.7MJ (mega joules used to make one lb. of potato chips) / 2.2 (lbs.) = 1.2 MJ/lbs Appendix 1.5: Amount of Joules Used In Yearly U.S. Intake of Potato Chips 1.2 (mega joules) x 1,000,000 (joules) x 1,200,000,000 (lbs of potato chips consumed) = 1.44E15 (joules per year) Appendix 1.6: Carbon Released Getting to Acme

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10.1 (miles away) x 18 (miles per gallon) x 423 (grams of carbon dioxide released per gallon of gasoline) = 237.5 grams of carbon dioxide released one way 237.5 x 2 = 475 grams released coming and going home