Potato-eaters
Who eats the most potatoes per person?
Who eats the most potatoes per person?
| # | Country | Potatoes available for consumption per person, FAO food balance (kg/yr per capita) | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇧🇾 Belarus | 166.9 | 2023 |
| 2 | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | 147 | 2023 |
| 3 | 🇵🇱 Poland | 92.9 | 2023 |
| 4 | 🇮🇪 Ireland | 85.3 | 2023 |
| 5 | 🇺🇸 United States | 55.4 | 2023 |
| 6 | 🇮🇳 India | 27.9 | 2023 |
Belarus leads this card at 166.9, with India at 27.9. The gap is 139. Belarus is 5.98 times India.
Belarus eats 166.9 kg of potatoes per person a year, ahead of Ukraine (147.0 kg). Ireland, the country people name first, is only #10 at 85.3 kg, and India is #90. Potatoes are a staple crop and a staple food in Belarus. The figure is FAO food available for consumption, not what is eaten at the table.
Source: UN FAO Food Balances via Our World in Data See the source.
Richer on Paper
Name a country starting with I with a higher GDP per person than the United Kingdom.
| # | Country | GDP per capita (current US$ per person) | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇮🇪 Ireland | 112,895 | |
| 2 | 🇮🇲 Isle of Man | 90,015 | |
| 3 | 🇮🇸 Iceland | 85,863 | |
| 4 | 🇮🇱 Israel | 54,217 |
Ireland, the Isle of Man, Iceland and Israel are above the United Kingdom. Italy starts with I and is under it, at about $40,430. The Isle of Man figure is 2023 and the others are 2024. The number is current US dollars per person, not what a paycheck buys. Ireland is high because GDP counts profits foreign companies book there; Ireland's statistics office publishes a modified GNI because of that.
Source: World Bank, GDP per capita, current US$ (NY.GDP.PCAP.CD). Mostly 2024. See the source.
Wooden Names
Name a country starting with B that is named after a tree.
| # | Country | Country name comes from a tree | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇧🇧 Barbados | 1 | |
| 2 | 🇧🇷 Brazil | 1 |
Brazil is named for brazilwood, the tree. Barbados is named for the bearded fig, from Portuguese os barbados, 'the bearded ones.' The claim that Brazil is the only country named after a tree drops Barbados. Cyprus is the disputed case, linked either to the cypress or to copper, and it does not start with B.
Source: Etymology of Brazil (brazilwood) and Barbados (bearded fig) See the source.
Another Plate
Meat consumption per person 🇫🇷🇹🇭
| # | Country | Meat consumption (kg/yr per person) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇫🇷 France | 83.1 |
| 2 | 🇮🇹 Italy | 81 |
| 3 | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 79.9 |
| 4 | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | 75.8 |
| 5 | 🇲🇽 Mexico | 64.9 |
| 6 | 🇹🇭 Thailand | 27.4 |
France is 83.1 kg per person and Thailand is 27.4. Italy and the United Kingdom sit with France, and Mexico is well under them. The figure is FAO meat supply, used as a proxy for consumption. It is not a count of meals.
Source: Wikipedia compilation of FAO meat supply per person, 2020. Food supply is used here as a proxy for consumption, not what reaches the plate. See the source.