When was the last time that you ate french fries? French fries are just slices of potato that are fried in
vegetable oil. They are sprinkled with salt before they are eaten. This simple food is very popular. On
average, each North American eats more than 30 pounds (about 14 kg) of french fries a year. We buy a lot of
french fries at fast food restaurants.
About 400,000 acres of farmland in Canada are used for growing potatoes. More than half of those potatoes
are used to make french fries. The potatoes are sliced and then frozen in factories. The frozen fries are then
shipped to grocery stores and restaurants across Canada. Canada also exports more than a million tonnes of
frozen french fries to other countries.