An Irish company has invented a super potato which they say can protect the body from heart disease and cancer.

The super potato is packed with selenium, an essential mineral and super antioxidant which plays an important role in the immune system.

The company, Peter Keogh & Sons of Co. Dublin, says they were able to enrich the Rooster potato with selenium by infusing the soil at planting.

Tom Keogh, General Manager of Peter Keogh & Sons, said: “Our Selena Rooster contains over 50 percent of the recommended dietary allowance of selenium per serving."

Irish soil is naturally low in selenium which means that Irish people may not be getting enough of the nutrient they need.

The humble potato is getting more recognition these days.

Just this week, nearly 600 international experts at the seventh World Potato Congress in Christchurch, New Zealand, sang the potato's praises.

Former New Zealand prime minister Jim Bolger, chairman of the U.S.-based World Agricultural Forum Advisory Group, said potatoes could help feed billions of people who might be risk of starvation in 2050.

"The potato [is] only now being recognised as the truly remarkable source of food that it is and for the very much bigger role it will play in the future," he said.

Historian Larry Zuckerman said that the potato was a super source of nutrition because a small crop could feed many familiies.

The conference heard that China and India were now growing potatoes on a massive scale.

And, if they follow the Irish lead, they can pack the potatoes full of anti-cancer properties.