French fries are served hot, either soft or crispy, and are generally eaten as part of lunch or dinner or by themselves as a snack. They commonly appear on the menus of diners, fast food restaurants, pubs, and bars. They are usually salted and may be served with ketchup(番茄酱), vinegar, or other local specialties, depending on the country. French fries are a very common fast food dish in Europe.
But this year, a poor potato harvest in Europe this summer could mean French fries are up to three centimetres shorter than usual. The poor harvest is because of the very hot summer Europe had. There were record hot temperatures in many countries. The heatwave caused a lack of rain, which meant farmers produced a lot fewer potatoes than they normally do. Pierre Lebrun, a spokesman from a potato growers' association in Belgium, said farmers grew 25 percent fewer potatoes than normal. The effect of this is that potato prices are up and the average size of potatoes is smaller.
Belgium is one country where the French fries are very popular. There are over 5, 000 eateries which serve and specialise in fries in Belgium. Belgians go there and enjoy themselves at mealtime. They love fries so much that there is a campaign to rename them "Belgian fries" instead of "French fries" because Belgians say the fry was invented in their country. Belgium is one of the largest exporters of frozen fries in the world. It exports around 2. 3 million tons of them every year. Mr Lebron explained why fries would be shorter. He said, "Generally, to have long fries, we work with potatoes with a diameter of more than 50mm. Then you get fries of 8 to 9 cm. This time, as the potatoes are smaller, the fries will be shorter. "
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