Lebanese farmer grows giant potato

"This giant weighs 11.3 kilos (24.9 pounds)," Khalil Semhat said at his farm in the Tyre area, 85 kilometres (50 miles) south of Beirut.

"I've been working the land since I was a boy, and it's the first time I've seen anything like it."



Semhat, 56, said he had not done anything special to inspire the monster mash. "I didn't use any chemicals at all," he insisted, adding that he had to ask a friend to help him haul the huge tuber from the ground.

Now he hopes the find will get a mention in the Guinness book of records, and said he will send in the details for possible inclusion next year.