They probably came from Peru and are now being grown organically in Patea.
Markus Gripp and Rochelle Bertrand are the only certified organic commercial growers of Maori potatoes in the country.
The couple, originally from Taranaki, returned from Australia about 10 years ago and got into growing the spuds through a friend who worked at Massey University.
"We had to find something to do. I left Patea to get away from the freezing works or having to milk cows.
"They were the only options for work," Mr Gripp said.
He spent a few years at Crop and Food Research studying the potatoes, which he says are the best you can get.
"They taste like potatoes should. Other potatoes have been modifed."
But these ones are just as they were hundreds of years ago.
They are also very healthy, according to Ms Bertrand.
"They are full of antioxidants and have a slow sugar releasing content, which means they are good for diabetics."
There are a few stories behind the name, but no one is really sure how they came to be called Maori potatoes.
"Some people say they came over with Maori in the canoes, but I don't really know if that's true."
Mr Gripp says there is also a hypothesis they originated in Peru.
"They were a delicacy because there was only taro and kumara which would only grow in certain areas. These potatoes could grow anywhere from Bluff to Whangarei."
The couple started wholesaling the spuds, which are sold in New Zealand supermarkets.
"It was a bit hard in the beginning. The wholesalers wanted them, but we had to educate them a bit about the potatoes," said Mr Gripp.
The couple have taken them to food shows all over the country, and they proved popular as wedges at the Wild Food Festival in Hokitika. "They make the best wedges," said Ms Bertrand.
Six months ago, the couple opened The Vege Shed in Patea and started selling the potatoes from there a month ago.
The are slightly more expensive than the conventional potato but that hasn't put people off.
"It's because they are organic and also the yield is low, compared with other potatoes,but I'm confident they will sell well," Mr Gripp said.
GRETA CLEARY greta.cleary@tnl.co.nz - Taranaki | Monday, 05 May 2008
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