When life gave a German farm 5 million pounds of potatoes, it shared the spuds for free. Named the Kartoffel-Flut (potato flood), after the highest yield in 25 years,This German farm’s potato harvest surplus prompted a massive giveaway last month. Truckloads of spuds were donated to soup kitchens, schools, zoos, churches, Ukrainian aid efforts, and distribution sites for Berlin residents.
Dubbed “the great potato rescue,” the bonanza aimed to prevent food waste after Germany’s largest potato crop in 25 years overwhelmed markets and sent costs down. So the farm, Osterland Agrar, teamed up with a Berlin newspaper and the nonprofit search engine Ecosia to set up 174 sites around the city, where people could stock up on tubers.
“At first I thought it was some AI-generated fake news when I saw it on social media,” Astrid Marz, a teacher, told The Guardian. “There were pictures of huge mountains of ‘earth apples’ with the instruction to come and get them for free!” Another local described one of the sites as having “a really party-like atmosphere,” with people helping one another haul their freebies while swapping cooking tips.
If reading this is making you hungry, check out this thorough list of potato recipes, including how to boil ’em, mash ’em, and stick ’em in a stew.
‘what I say is that, if a fellow really likes potatoes,
he must be a pretty decent sort of fellow.’
– A. A. Milne
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source credits: the guardian, nicenews, photo credit: john woitas
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That’s a lot of taters!! Cool post!
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tons!
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😅😅
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Wow!
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yes!
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👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
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Thank you, Beth, for the wonderful story, and I am decent as I adore potatoes!
Joanna
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good news and potatoes are always welcome
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I couldn’t agree more, Beth!
Joanna
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I’m so glad to read that they gave most of it away to good causes.
Best wishes, Pete.
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yes, that made me especially happy
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I’m glad they were able to give the potatoes away.
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yes, and to find people who would really benefit from them
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Wow that is wonderful to be able to give away so much to people who really need it!
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right! and thanks to your German neighbors
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A great story. We ate a lot of kartoffels growing up. I can honestly say I have never met a potato I didn’t like!.
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you cannot go wrong with them
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There are some truly wonderful people out there!
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there sure are –
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Wow! Love me a nice baked potato for sure. Good to hear so many people could benefit from the potato glut.
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What a lovely thing to do
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I love how they researched to find out who could best benefit from them
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So thoughtful
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gee, I happen to find myself bereft of spuds at the moment…
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A great story to read, Beth
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I love good news
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💛🌞
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Old buddy of mine wrote a song with this line: “I live in Spud City, all my friends are eyes.”
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hilarious!
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Heartwarming ststory!
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Love it. Spread the joy and the potatoes.
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glad they shared
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Think of the tater tot casserole you could bake with all those!
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lots ‘o tots!
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Suddenly, I fancy fries.
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a lot of them!
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Yep. 😋
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Oh wow! How cool is that! I love all potatos!
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oh, me too!
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Fantastic! French fries forever!
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yes!
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It did make me hungry – and all those recipes look amazing!!
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What a feel good, wonderful story. We could use some potatoes. We are out. They are on the grocery list. Love the generosity of that potato farmer.
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it worked out very well for everyone
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Much better than letting the food go to waste.
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exactly !
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what a wonderful gift and a message to all manufacturers , in times of plenty, give —
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right
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When it rains blessings, it pours out in abundance. Not enough room to receive. I was touched that they chose to give it away to those who needed it most. A beautiful share, Beth.
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<3
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Holy smokes! I love this story. Thanks, Beth!
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The potatoes and their generosity both made me happy
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Wonderful, and I love the Milne quote.
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Me too!
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great story, plus I think A.A. Milne would like me!
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Me too!
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potatoes are in my DNA and I like them – and this story was inspiring
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potatoes and sharing, yes to both
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💚🍃🙂
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One would definitely think this is AI generated, Beth. How absolutely cool and I’m glad they mobilized to make the most of the situation. All the potato chips you can make with that!
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Right, and I love that they researched who could most benefit from the bonanza and shared it with them
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A great story… and, of course, I love spuds!!
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what’s not to love? in any form )
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Exactly!!!
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Very cool. And “boil ’em, mash ’em, and stick ’em in a stew.” Haha! :)
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I really love them in any form
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If only Samwise knew about French fries!
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