Jacket potatoes used to be way bigger?

[midnights92]

DH and I both convinced the baking potatoes you can buy these days are far smaller than years ago.

Has shrinkflation spread to agriculture or are we both greedy bastards?

YABU - potatoes aren't getting smaller, that's insane.
YANBU - the conspiracy is real.

I'm quite happy with smaller jackets and having to have 2. It means a better crispy skin : potato ratio.

The variety the supermarkets buy are the thin skinned ones as this is what consumers want apparently.
Not this consumer. I love a good crispy skin!

And yes, supermarkets do seem to be selling us potatoes that are on average smaller. I buy loose ones, and even then its a task finding ginormous ones.

What say you to microwaved jacket spuds? 🥔
I rarely use my oven these days, since I got a smart meter ⚡💰💸

I’ve noticed if you buy the 4 pack they are really small. I always go for the loose single ones now. Much bigger

Possibly it costs more to leave potatoes in the ground to get big and farmers want them harvested and the field for next crop.

Very true. We often just have 2 each of the bigger ones from the normal bag of potatoes rather than buying extra ones labelled "baking potatoes".

Don’t buy the ones in plastic bags- Aldi has loose ones which are huge. I can only manage half a one.

Yeah I pretty much bake them for the skin.

There used to be a correlation between the weather and size of potatoes but I do agree that 'baking' potatoes in the supermarkets have got smaller. However my local farm shop is selling loose potatoes right now that are enormous - far too big unless you are mashing them for a family of 6 and then only need to peel 3!

YANBU. When jacket potatoes first started to be everywhere in the 1980s,even in dedicated jacket potato fast-food vans (in the wake of the "Carbs are the Superfood" fad), the average spud was the size of a rugby ball. And the skins were deliciously firm and chewy.

Don't forget that this year was incredibly dry which had a major effect on the potato crop (and other foodstuffs).

It’ll be because thats what fits the supermarkets packaging/shelf sizes etc.
There are mountains of carrots/spuds/root veg rejected as they're the wrong size. It’s the farmer that loses out as they have to suck it up if their produce doesn’t meet their contract specifications. And the size will be mostly determined by the weather and growing conditions which they have little control over. It’s a harsh business.
The varieties of fruit/veg available in the supermarkets is determined by its storage/travelling robustness, not its flavour sadly, and everything must be a ‘perfect’ shape!

It’s possibly to do with farming practices… plants are ending up with less vitamins and nutrients in them because the soil levels have been so depleted by mass farming and monoculture techniques. May have led to smaller spuds… I’m just theorising I have no evidence

We use Oddbox for this issue! Haven’t had any large spuds though

You just need to buy different ones probably, I think the ones you get in packs of 4 are small sometimes, but loose ones are bigger.

I had this exact thought a few weeks ago. Baking potatoes used to be huge.

They’re McCain’s jackets, like you can buy from the supermarket - 4 in a box. They’re alright.

Yes I've noticed this,with the ones you buy to make yourself and with ones in cafes. I had a jacket potato with tuna from Subway a couple of months ago,won't be bothering again. It was so small! About the size of a tennis ball,I'd say. Definitely not big enough. And the filling was stingy.

I find if you buy them from a greengrocer's stall or shop,I find you can get much bigger ones than the ones on offer in supermarkets.

Completely agree. They aren't far off bite sized!

Thank you, I might try tomorrow. How long do they take to cook them?

My dh grows potatoes and they are huge

Maybe the baked potato is just far away?

Yeah the ones in the supermarkets in bags aren't that big. You sometimes get loose ones that are massive but only in grocery shops or random corner shops.

You need two for a portion