39 Crunchy Facts about Potato Chips

By Karin Lehnardt, Senior Writer

Published December 17, 2017Updated September 26, 2024

Laura Scudder created the first modern bag of potato chips in 1953. Previously, they were sold out of wooden barrels or scooped from behind glass counters._[1]
Potato chip bags are not full of air. Rather, they are filled with nitrogen gas. The nitrogen prevents the chips from oxidizing, or turning stale._[13]
The sound of crunching adds to the pleasure of eating chips. Snackers who eat chips with headphones on report becoming bored with chips more quickly._[24]

The United States leads the world in potato chip consumption

Americans eat about 1.85 billion pounds of potato chips, or about 6.6 pounds per person annually._[7]
On September 13, 2013, Corkers Crisps in Pymoor, UK, created the largest bag of potato chips on record: 2, 515 lb. 7.52 oz. (1,141 kg)._[12]
Potato chips are the number one culprit for weight gain because they are high in fat and highly addictive._[18]
In the last 50 years, there have been over 100 different varieties of Doritos._[6]
Lay's was the first successfully marketed national brand of potato chip._[2]
In Britain, potato chips are called "crisps." They say "chips" when they mean "fries."_[2]
The earliest known potato chip recipe is found in William Kitchiner's cookbook The Cook's Oracle, which was published in 1817._[2]
It takes about 11 million gallons (41.6 million liters) of milk to make a year's worth of Cheetos in North America.
_[3]
Worldwide, the market value of potato chips is anticipated to reach $40.3 billion by 2022._[21]

I could just have chips and salsa for dinner every day.

- Mia Hamm

Cheetos come in 50 flavors around the world, including fizzy Pepsi in Japan, ketchup in Poland, strawberry in Russia, and peanut-covered in Europe._[3]
Before Cheetos used Chester Cheetah as a mascot, the company was represented by an unnamed mouse._[3]
Cheetos are designed to be addictive. In what is is known as "vanishing calorie density," Cheetos melt in the mouth quickly so that the brain thinks there are no calories in them. However, just 21 pieces contain 150 calories and 10 grams of fat._[14]
Between four to five potatoes goes into every bag of Lays potato chips.
_[23]
Roughly 28,000,000 pounds (13,000,000 kg) of chips are eaten during the Super Bowl._[22]

Super Bowl Sunday and chips go hand-in-hand

A type of potato chip called "The Whole Shabang" is also called "jail chips" because they are only sold in prison. The chips, however, are unusually delicious, and former prisoners have set up message boards and facebook pages in an attempt to get their snack fix on the outside._[20]
Lay's flavored chips have five fewer chips per bag than the plain chips, which saves the company about $50 million a year._[4]
When Frito-Lay introduced a compostable bag for their Sun Chips brand in 2010, consumers noticed the crinkly new bag was significantly louder than previous bags—a lot louder. The bag tested at 95 decibels, which is about as loud as a motorcycle. It was discontinued in 2011._[25]

Even though potato chip recipes were published in several cookbooks decades before Crum, a local legend associates him with the snack's creation. Here he is pictured with Aunt "Kate" Wicks.

Native American/African American chef George Crum invented the potato chip in Saratoga Springs, New York in 1853 for a disgruntled customer who wanted his fried potatoes crispier._[2]
Founded in 1910, Mike-sells Potato Chips is the oldest potato chip company in the United States. But New England-based Tri-Sum Potato Chips also claims to be America's first potato chip manufacturer._[2]
A brand of potato chips named "Fail Chips" contains tiny, crushed up bits of chips that are typically found at the bottom of a chip bag. The creators of the company believe that these chip sediments are the tastiest part of a chip bag._[10]
Many breakfast cereals, including Corn Flakes, contain more salt than a small bag of chips._[5]
A Cheeto resembling Harambe the gorilla sold on eBay for $99,900 in February 2017._[9]
The name Doritos means "little golden things" in Spanish._[6]

Each Dorito chip is about 29 percent fat by weight, and almost all of that is corn oil, sunflower oil, or soybean oil

Doritos is the top selling chip during Super Bowl weekend._[17]
Although Doritos entered the United States market nearly 50 years ago, corn chips were introduced into New Zealand much more recently, in 2010._[17]
In 1995, Dorito chips underwent a makeover: the chips were made 20% larger and 15% thinner; more seasoning was added; and the corners were rounded to prevent breaking in the bag._[17]
The corn used to make Doritos is grown on every continent in the world except for Antarctica._[17]
On average, in the United States, the most popular time to eat Doritos is between 8:00 p.m. and midnight._[17]

It takes about three or four potatoes to make a can of Pringles (Juanmonino / iStock)

Pringles are not potato chips. A high court ruled that because Pringles are made from dough, they are more like a biscuit or cake._[19]
One small Dorito chip contains over 30 ingredients._[17]
Women are typically bigger snackers than men. Among all genders, preferred snack foods include fresh fruit, chocolate, potato chips, cookies, and yogurt._[16]
The word tortilla comes from the Spanish "torta," meaning "round cake."_[15]
Ignacio Anaya, a maitre’d from Piedra Negras, Mexico, invented nachos in 1943. He was without a chef when a group of hungry guests arrived at his restaurant, so he quickly cut up tortillas and topped them with cheese and jalapenos. He called the dish "Nachos Especiales". Reportedly, "Nacho" was his nickname._[2]
A man in Ohio suffers from a condition called "auto-brewery syndrome." One symptom of this ultra-rare disorder is that his body turns potato chips into alcohol in his stomach._[8]
Tortilla chips and salsa are Texas' official state snack._[15]
Lay's Potato Chips was the first snack food advertised on television._[11]