Tesco has employed a “Spudhunter” with “all the zest of a modern-day Sir Walter Raleigh” who has already sought out a bizarre new variety for the retailer - the purple potato.
The little known vivid purple potatoes, grown in Hawaii, were tracked down by new potato buyer Jonathan Corbett and will be launched in Tesco stores across the UK this week.
Besides its vibrant colour, the Purple Jewel sweet potato has a creamy and nutty taste and has been launched as part of a drive to bring exotic new potato types to the UK.
Tesco will also launch the Mayan Queen potato grown by the Incas in Peru, which has also never been sold before in Britain and is said by experts to be the ultimate roasting spud.
The discoveries are the work of Tesco’s new potato buyer, Jonathan Corbett, who has been nicknamed the Spudhunter by colleagues for his enthusiasm in wanting to track down rare and unusual varieties.
“Everyone who has tried them says that both the Purple Jewel and the Mayan Queen are two of the most delicious potatoes they have ever tasted,” said Corbett.
“Besides its unique taste, the Purple Jewel will also add an exciting touch of colour to anyone wanting to create a bit of theatre to the dinner table. We think it will be especially popular with children as its bright lavender hue should prove to be a real attraction at the dinner table.
“And the Mayan Queen is the ideal potato for roasting, resulting in a spud that is perfectly crispy on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside,” he said.
Corbett has tracked down the potatoes in Hawaii and Peru in the last few months.
“My aim is not only to find delicious and exotic types of potato but to try and get them grown in the UK, which is what we are already doing with the Mayan Queen.
“These are now being grown for us by one of our suppliers in Lincolnshire and we anticipate that within a few years it will be regarded as Britain’s favourite roasting potato,” he said.
The Purple Jewel, however, thrives in deep volcanic soils and needs an average annual rainfall of about 120 inches, meaning it could never be grown naturally in Britain.
The Purple Jewel costs £2.39 per 500g bag, while the Mayan Queen costs £1.99 per 2kg bag. Both will go on sale this week at 100 Tesco stores nationwide.
Last year, sales of sweet potatoes grew by 16 per cent while roasting potatoes grew by four per cent, according to TNS data.
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