An Expert Settles the Debate: This Is Actually the Best Way to Keep Potatoes From Sprouting

Whether you like them fried, roasted, baked, or made into tots, you probably have at least one favorite potato dish. The USDA says we each eat about 50 pounds of potatoes every year. Not only is the country’s most popular vegetable universally craveable, it’s also packed with quality nutrition, including protein and fiber. Plus, potatoes are inexpensive—you can often get a large 5-pound bag for just a few dollars. 

But if you’re a household of one or two, it can be a challenge to eat all those potatoes before they go bad, no matter how much you like them. That’s why videos of people stashing apples in their bags of potatoes to prevent sprouting have popped up all over social media. But does this trick work? We looked to the science, talked to an expert, and tried it ourselves to find out for you. 

How to Prevent Your Potatoes From Sprouting

If you don’t store potatoes correctly—in a cool, dark, ventilated place—they’ll quickly start to sprout, says Sastry Jayanty, Ph.D. and postharvest physiologist at Colorado State University’s Potato Program. You can still eat a potato that has sprouted as long as you’ve completely cut the sprout away, according to Jayanty. You shouldn't however eat them once they've turned green.

But in addition to storing them in that cool, dark, and ventilated space, can putting an apple in your potato sack really stop or at least slow the potato spoilage? Well, it’s a little complicated. 

There’s some scientific evidence to support this hack. Ethylene gas is a natural plant hormone produced by fruits like apples, bananas, and tomatoes. It plays a crucial role in the ripening process of fruits and the aging of vegetables. The theory behind the apple-potato trick is that apples release ethylene gas, and ethylene gas has been shown to inhibit potatoes sprouting in at least one lab experiment. 

The study was published in the Journal of Food Science and Technology, and it looked at the effect of ethylene on potatoes.  Researchers used Favorita potatoes (yellow potatoes) kept in cold storage and treated at timed intervals with specific doses of ethylene gas. They analyzed the sprouting, respiration rate, sugar content, starch content, and activities of key sugar-metabolizing enzymes at various intervals following ethylene treatment.

The study showed that ethylene treatment delayed the sprouting of potatoes, at least under these tightly managed conditions.

Since the sprout-inhibiting chemical chlorpropham (CIPC) was banned in Europe in 2020, many potato producers have been looking for an alternate way to treat their crops to ensure freshness, says Jayanty. These big companies have been very interested in the possibility of using ethylene based on this and other promising research. But even with all their resources, it’s proven hard to get the process right. 

If it doesn’t work for big companies with tanks of lab-grade ethylene and scientists on the payroll, can home cooks pull it off with nothing more than an apple?  

Does an Apple Keep Potatoes From Sprouting?

To put this apple-potato trick to the test, I conducted a simple experiment in my home kitchen. I divided a bag of potatoes into two groups: one stored with an apple and the other without. I kept both bags in a relatively cool, dark pantry and checked on them every day for more than a week.

Surprisingly, after seven days, I found that the bag of potatoes with the apple actually sprouted first, while the bag without the apple sprouted about 24 hours later, after eight days. It’s a puzzling result considering the research. However, it’s important to remember that the effectiveness of ethylene gas in preventing sprouting depends on a wide variety of factors, including the concentration of ethylene in the air, the type of potato, and storage conditions, says Jayanty.

My pantry isn’t a lab, and my climate control was anything but precise. Plus, different potato varieties may have varying susceptibility to sprouting. Most conventional supermarket potatoes have been treated to prevent sprouting while farmers market potatoes like mine probably weren’t. Some potato varieties may be more resistant to ethylene gas than others. And most importantly, who knows how much ethylene gas my apple was throwing off?  

“I once judged a science fair where a middle school student did this very experiment. In his project, he wanted to know what would work better at preventing potatoes from sprouting—apples or bananas?” says Jayanty. The student found bananas worked better than apples, which makes sense because they typically produce more ethylene. This hack comes with a major disclaimer: Results may vary. 

The Bottom Line & The Best Way To Keep Potatoes From Sprouting

There is no harm in trying this trick at home, says Jayanty. Whether you go with an apple or a banana, it won’t hurt the potatoes and it just might delay sprouting. But don’t count on it. Jayanty says the best way to extend the life of your spuds is to store them according to these guidelines: 

• Keep them cool and dark: A temperature range of 45-50°F is ideal. Avoid direct sunlight and as much temperature fluctuation as possible.
• Give them some air: Potatoes need good ventilation to prevent moisture buildup, which can lead to rot. Store them in a breathable container like a paper or burlap sack, a mesh bag, or a wooden crate. 
• Keep them separated: Don’t keep potatoes with onions. Onions are the anti-apples: they release gases that can cause potatoes to spoil more quickly.
• Avoid refrigeration: While it may seem logical to store potatoes in the refrigerator, it's not recommended. The cold temperature can convert the potato starches into sugars, affecting their taste and texture. Instead, keep them in a cool pantry or cellar.
• Watch for rot: One bad potato can spoil the bunch. Remove any bad potatoes to prevent them from affecting the others.

An even better way to keep good potatoes from going bad? Eat them up in all your favorite recipes.