Potato chip lovers New Zealand could be in a big shock. New Zealand is facing a possible potato shortage the next few months. This means there could be a lack potato chips (crisps in British English) until next year. Newspapers are calling this situation the "chipocalypse". They combined the words "chip" and "apocalypse" to make this new word. A possible chipocalypse is because a very wet winter New Zealand. This has hit potato growers. In some areas, a third the potato crop has been lost. The wet weather has particularly hit the potatoes that are used to make potato chips. This means makers will make fewer potato chips and prices for potato chips will be higher.
A spokesman New Zealand potato farmers told the Radio Live NZ news station the problem. Chris Claridge, head Potatoes New Zealand, said: "It started raining March, and it just simply hasn't stopped. We've had the entire year's worth rainfall already, so the rainfall is 25 per cent average and while that might not sound like a lot what it means is it's continuous, so the soils never get a chance to dry ." He added: "Potatoes are actually alive. They need to breathe, and so effectively they drown, and then they start to rot because they're submerged water." A major supermarket chain said: "We are working closely our suppliers to manage supply as much as possible."
