IELTS Reading Practice: The Impact of the Potato (Full Answer Key)

Potatoes—a staple so common in our daily meals that we rarely give them a second thought. Yet, few realize that this humble tuber was once shunned by Europe, branded as “the devil’s food” before becoming the savior that staved off famine and fueled the population boom of the Industrial Age. The IELTS reading passage “The Impact of the Potato” is a fascinating chronicle of the potato’s journey from the South American Andes to dinner tables across the globe.

In this article, the ECE language center provides a detailed analysis, including essential vocabulary, a summary of the content, and a thorough explanation of each answer to help you conquer this intriguing historical text.

Reading Passage

The Impact of the Potato

Jeff Chapman relates the story of history’s most important vegetable

A. The potato was first cultivated in South America between three and seven thousand years ago, though scientists believe they may have grown wild in the region as long as 13,000 years ago. The genetic patterns of potato distribution indicate that the potato probably originated in the mountainous west-central region of the continent.

B. Early Spanish chroniclers who misused the Indian word batata (sweet potato) as the name for the potato noted the importance of the tuber to the Incan Empire. The Incas had learned to preserve the potato for storage by dehydrating and mashing potatoes into a substance called Chuchu, which could be stored in a room for up to 10 years, providing excellent insurance against possible crop failures. As well as using the food as a staple crop, the Incas thought potatoes made childbirth easier and used it to treat injuries.

C. The Spanish conquistadors first encountered the potato when they arrived in Peru in 1532 in search of gold, and noted Inca miners eating chuchu. At the time, the Spaniards failed to realize that the potato represented a far more important treasure than either silver or gold, but they did gradually begin to use potatoes as basic rations aboard their ships. After the arrival of the potato in Spain in 1570, a few Spanish farmers began to cultivate them on a small scale, mostly as food for livestock.

D. Throughout Europe, potatoes were regarded with suspicion, distaste, and fear. Generally considered to be unfit for human consumption, they were used only as animal fodder and sustenance for the starving. In northern Europe, potatoes were primarily grown in botanical gardens as an exotic novelty. Even peasants refused to eat from a plant that produced ugly, misshapen tubers and that had come from a heathen civilization. Some felt that the potato plant’s resemblance to plants in the nightshade family hinted that it was the creation of witches or devils.

E. In meat-loving England, farmers and urban workers regarded potatoes with extreme distaste. In 1662, the Royal Society recommended the cultivation of the tuber to the English government and the nation, but this recommendation had little impact. Potatoes did not become a staple until, during the food shortages associated with the Revolutionary Wars, the English government began to officially encourage potato cultivation. In 1795, the Board of Agriculture issued a pamphlet entitled “Hints Respecting the Culture and Use of Potatoes”; this was followed shortly by pro-potato editorials and potato recipes in The Times. Gradually, the lower classes began to follow the lead of the upper classes.

F. A similar pattern emerged across the English Channel in the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. While the potato slowly gained ground in eastern France (where it was often the only crop remaining after marauding soldiers plundered wheat fields and vineyards), it did not achieve widespread acceptance until the late 1700s. The peasants remained suspicious, in spite of a 1771 paper from the Faculté de Paris testifying that the potato was not harmful but beneficial. The people began to overcome their distaste when the plant received the royal seal of approval: Louis XVI began to sport a potato flower in his buttonhole, and Marie-Antoinette wore the purple potato blossom in her hair.

G. Frederick the Great of Prussia saw the potato’s potential to help feed his nation and lower the price of bread, but faced the challenge of overcoming the people’s prejudice against the plant. When he issued a 1774 order for his subjects to grow potatoes as protection against famine, the town of Kolberg replied: “The things have neither smell nor taste, not even the dogs will eat them, so what use are they to us?” Trying a less direct approach to encourage his subjects to begin planting potatoes, Frederick used a bit of reverse psychology: he planted a royal field of potato plants and stationed a heavy guard to protect this field from thieves. Nearby peasants naturally assumed that anything worth guarding was worth stealing, and so snuck into the field and snatched the plants for their home gardens. Of course, this was entirely in line with Frederick’s wishes.

H. Historians debate whether the potato was primarily a cause or an effect of the huge population boom in industrial-era England and Wales. Prior to 1800, the English diet had consisted primarily of meat, supplemented by bread, butter, and cheese. Few vegetables were consumed, most vegetables being regarded as nutritionally worthless and potentially harmful. This view began to change gradually in the late 1700s. The Industrial Revolution was drawing an ever-increasing percentage of the populace into crowded cities, where only the richest could afford homes with ovens or coal storage rooms, and people were working 12-16 hour days which left them with little time or energy to prepare food. High-yielding, easily prepared potato crops were the obvious solution to England’s food problems.

I. Whereas most of their neighbors regarded the potato with suspicion and had to be persuaded to use it by the upper classes, the Irish peasantry embraced the tuber more passionately than anyone since the Incas. The potato was well suited to the Irish soil and climate, and its high yield suited the most important concern of most Irish farmers: to feed their families.

J. The most dramatic example of the potato’s potential to alter population patterns occurred in Ireland, where the potato had become a staple by 1800. The Irish population doubled to eight million between 1780 and 1841, this without any significant expansion of industry or reform of agricultural techniques beyond the widespread cultivation of the potato. Though Irish landholding practices were primitive in comparison with those of England, the potato’s high yields allowed even the poorest farmers to produce more healthy food than they needed with scarcely any investment or hard labor. Even children could easily plant, harvest, and cook potatoes, which of course required no threshing, curing, or grinding. The abundance provided by potatoes greatly decreased infant mortality and encouraged early marriage.

Questions 1 – 5 (TRUE/FALSE/NOT GIVEN)

Do the following statements agree with the views of the writer in Reading Passage 1? Write:

• TRUE if the statement agrees with the information

• FALSE if the statement contradicts the information

• NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this

1. The early Spanish called the potato by the Incan name ‘Chuchu’

2. The purpose of the Spanish coming to Peru was to find potatoes

3. The Spanish believed that the potato had the same nutritional value as other vegetables

4. Peasants at that time did not like to eat potatoes because they were ugly

5. The popularity of potatoes in the UK was due to food shortages during the war

Questions 6 – 13 (Sentence Completion)

Complete the sentences below with NO MORE THAN ONE WORD from the passage for each answer.

6. In France, people started to overcome their distaste for potatoes because the King put a potato ________ in his buttonhole.

7. Frederick realized the potential of the potato but he had to handle the ________ against potatoes from ordinary people.

8. The King of Prussia adopted some ________ psychology to make people accept potatoes.

9. Before 1800, the English people preferred eating ________ with bread, butter, and cheese.

10. The obvious way to deal with England’s food problems was high-yielding potato ________.

11. The Irish ________ and climate suited potatoes well.

12. Between 1780 and 1841, based on the ________ of the potatoes, the Irish population doubled to eight million.

13. The potato’s high yields helped the poorest farmers produce more healthy food almost without ________.

Summary of “The Impact of the Potato”

The reading passage recounts the history and impact of the potato on human civilization.

1. Origins (A, B): Native to South America (the Andes), cultivated by the Incas thousands of years ago. They knew how to preserve potatoes (making Chuchu) for long-term storage.

2. Arrival in Europe (C): The Spanish discovered the potato while searching for gold in Peru. Initially, they failed to realize its value, using it only as ship rations or livestock feed.

3. European Distaste (D, E, F): Upon arrival in Europe, potatoes were met with suspicion, fear, and were considered animal fodder. People found them ugly and feared they were toxic (due to their relation to the nightshade family).

4. Conquering Europe (E, F, G): Governments (England, France, Prussia) had to use various tactics to encourage cultivation to combat famine. King Louis XVI wore potato flowers, and Frederick the Great used “reverse psychology” (guarding the fields to make peasants curious enough to steal and plant them).

5. Population Boom & Industrial Revolution (H, I, J): Potatoes became the perfect solution for the poor working class in England during the Industrial Revolution due to their ease of cultivation, high yield, and simple preparation. In Ireland, in particular, potatoes allowed the population to double in just a few decades without advanced agricultural techniques.

Key Vocabulary

1. cultivated (v) (Paragraph A): grown or farmed.

2. staple (n) (Paragraph B): a main or important food item.

   • Example: “As well as using the food as a staple crop…”

3. conquistadors (n) (Paragraph C): conquerors (referring to Spanish soldiers).

4. unfit for human consumption (phrase) (Paragraph D): not suitable for people to eat.

5. sustenance (n) (Paragraph D): food and drink regarded as a source of strength; nourishment.

6. distaste (n) (Paragraph D, E): a mild dislike or aversion (often regarding food).

7. prejudice (n) (Paragraph G): preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience.

   • Example: “…overcoming the people’s prejudice against the plant.”

8. reverse psychology (n.p) (Paragraph G): a technique involving the advocacy of a belief or behavior that is opposite to the one desired, with the expectation that this approach will encourage the subject of the persuasion to do what actually is desired.

9. populace (n) (Paragraph H): the general public.

10. embraced (v) (Paragraph I): accepted or supported willingly and enthusiastically.

11. primitive (adj) (Paragraph J): relating to an early stage in the evolutionary or historical development of something.

12. infant mortality (n.p) (Paragraph J): the death of young children under the age of one.

Answers and Detailed Explanations

Questions 1 – 5 (TRUE/FALSE/NOT GIVEN)

1. FALSE

• Question: The early Spanish called the potato by the Incan name ‘Chuchu’.

• Evidence (Paragraph B): “Early Spanish chroniclers who misused the Indian word batata (sweet potato) as the name for the potato…”

• Explanation: The text states the Spanish misused the word “batata” to refer to the potato, not “Chuchu”. “Chuchu” was the name the Incas used for their preserved potato product.

2. FALSE

• Question: The purpose of the Spanish coming to Peru was to find potatoes.

• Evidence (Paragraph C): “…when they arrived in Peru in 1532 in search of gold…”

• Explanation: Their primary goal was to find “gold,” not potatoes.

3. NOT GIVEN

• Question: The Spanish believed that the potato had the same nutritional value as other vegetables.

• Evidence (Paragraph C): “At the time the Spaniards failed to realize that the potato represented a far more important treasure… use potatoes as basic rations…”

• Explanation: The text says they failed to realize the potato’s value and used it as rations, but there is no information comparing its nutritional content to other vegetables.

4. TRUE

• Question: Peasants at that time did not like to eat potatoes because they were ugly.

• Evidence (Paragraph D): “Even peasants refused to eat from a plant that produced ugly, misshapen tubers…”

• Explanation: The text confirms that peasants refused to eat them because the tubers were “ugly” and “misshapen.”

5. TRUE

• Question: The popularity of potatoes in the UK was due to food shortages during the war.

• Evidence (Paragraph E): “Potatoes did not become a staple until, during the food shortages associated with the Revolutionary Wars…”

• Explanation: Potatoes only became a staple food during the food shortages caused by the Revolutionary Wars.

Questions 6 – 13 (Sentence Completion)

6. flower

• Location: Paragraph F

• Evidence: “…Louis XVI began to sport a potato flower in his buttonhole…”

• Explanation: The King wore a “potato flower” in his buttonhole.

7. prejudice

• Location: Paragraph G

• Evidence: “…faced the challenge of overcoming the people’s prejudice against the plant.”

• Explanation: Frederick had to overcome the people’s “prejudice.”

8. reverse

• Location: Paragraph G

• Evidence: “…Frederick used a bit of reverse psychology…”

• Explanation: The King used “reverse” psychology.

9. meat

• Location: Paragraph H

• Evidence: “Prior to 1800, the English diet had consisted primarily of meat…”

• Explanation: Before 1800, the English diet consisted primarily of “meat.”

10. crops

• Location: Paragraph H

• Evidence: “High-yielding, easily prepared potato crops were the obvious solution…”

• Explanation: The solution to food problems was “potato crops.”

11. soil

• Location: Paragraph I

• Evidence: “The potato was well suited to the Irish soil and climate…”

• Explanation: The Irish “soil” and climate suited the potato.

12. cultivation

• Location: Paragraph J

• Evidence: “…beyond the widespread cultivation of the potato.”

• Explanation: The population growth was linked to the widespread “cultivation” of the potato.

13. investment

• Location: Paragraph J

• Evidence: “…produce more healthy food than they needed with scarcely any investment or hard labor.”

• Explanation: Farmers could produce food with almost no “investment” or hard labor.

Conclusion

“The Impact of the Potato” is more than just a reading passage about agriculture; it is a lesson on shifting perceptions. From being shunned, the potato rose to become a pillar of survival for millions and a catalyst for the development of industrial nations. This passage is an excellent opportunity to practice detailed reading skills (True/False/Not Given) and information summarization (Sentence Completion), while also expanding your vocabulary related to history and sociology.