Start of potato growing in Russia is usually attributed to Peter the Great. Unconfirmed historical myth mentions Peter the Great tasting potatoes for the first time while in Holland during one of this European travels. Impressed by the valu...e of the new food item, he sends a sack of potatoes back to St. Petersburg, addressed to Count Sheremetiev. However, proof of such royal parcel existence is lacking, but nevertheless, even if it was true, this would have been only one of the potato pathways into Russia.