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On the Cover: Researchers in France have investigated the effects of three diets, containing: i) cooked potatoes, which provide a variety of antioxidant micronutrients; ii) purified wheat starch (complex carbohydrates); or iii) sucrose (simple sugar). The antioxidant status was improved in the potato fed group which may be of importance in preventing the development of atherosclerosis. See paper by Robert et al. (pp. 109–116). The potato has - as do the other major food crops, corn, wheat and rice – significant geographical and historical associations, Idaho and Ireland coming quickly to mind, but for quite different reasons. A so-called New World plant, the potato grows high to the ground and produces a beautifully colored flower with a striking yellow stamen and a tuber which is universally consumed. The United Nations has made 2008 “The International Year of the Potato” in order to call attention to its nutritional value, proclaiming the year officially at UN headquarters in New York City on October 18, 2007. The image of the flowers of a potato plant is the work of a United States Department of Agriculture employee, taken during the course of the person’s official duties. As a work of the U.S. federal government, the image is in the public domain.