Britain's The Real Potato Co. has launched an election campaign to crown the potato King of Vegetables.
"Members of the public can show their love for the potato and support the 'King of Veg' campaign by visiting www.realpotato.co.uk and registering their vote," the company says.
The campaign is being conducted just in time for the International Year of the Potato in 2008. The potato is a staple of the British diet, with people eating their way through 1.6 million tonnes of fresh potatoes last year.
The company has won the support of the British Potato Council that agrees other vegetables pale in significance to the versatility of the potato.
Council marketing director Kathryn Race says it's well known that the British people love potatoes.
"We urge everyone to show their support to get potatoes crowned the 'King of Veg,'' she says.
The Real Potato Co. sales and marketing director Jo Parish says the company believes potatoes are one of the most versatile and delicious vegetables that have amazing nutritional value.
"It was a real surprise to us to discover some of the weird and wonderful things potatoes are said to be useful for," Parish says
It seems potatoes can shine silverware and remove rust from pots.
According to the company website, rust is removed from pots by dipping a potato in salt and using it to give the pot a good scrub. Silverware can be shined by using the excess water from your boiled potatoes to soak tarnished silverware for an hour of soaking.
Other uses indicated on the website include cutting a potato in half and using it to give shoes a good polish and rubbing hands with a potato to remove stains that won't come off with soap and water.