NutritionDoc

I had an email regarding the green edges on potato chips so here is the answer.

Those chips were sliced from green surfaced potatoes, and they therefore contain small amounts of toxic solanine, which is not destroyed by frying. It is okay to eat them, because in order to experience any ill effects you would have to eat so many bags of chips that you would turn greener around the gills than they are around the frills.

And if you think you can check out the potato chips in the store to see how many green edged ones there might be in a package before buying it, think again. Have you ever noticed that potato chip bags are always opague, unlike the bags of pretzels and other snacks that often let you see the contents? That is not to foil prying eyes, but to keep out ultrviolet light, which speeds up oxidation of the fat in the chips, turning it rancid. All fats and cooking oils, in fact, should be kept out of strong light.

Bags of potato chips are also usually filled with nitrogen gas to displace oxigen - containing air. That is why they are puffed out like balloons. Of course, cynic that I am, I must point out that opaque. ballooned out packages take up more display space and prevent us from realizing that they may be only about half full.