Peanuts were grown as far north as Mexico by the time the Spanish began their exploration of the New World. The explorers took peanuts back to Spain, where they are still grown today. From Spain, traders and explorers took peanuts to Africa and Asia. In America the plant became common in the western tropical region and was regarded by many Africans as one of several plants possessing a soul.

Around 1900, equipment was invented for planting, cultivating, harvesting, shelling and cleaning peanuts. This made peanut production easier and produced better quality peanuts and demand for peanut oil, peanuts, peanut butter and confections increased.

In 1903, Dr. George Washington Carver began his research at Tuskeegee Institute in Alabama. The talented botanist recognize the value of the peanut as a cash crop and encouraged Southeastern cotton farmers to use peanuts as a rotation crop in areas that were threatened by the boll weevil insect. Farmers listened and the face of Southern farming was changed forever. Carver also helped find a market for these extra peanuts by developing more than 300 uses including shoe polish and shaving cream.

Peanut production increased rapidly during World Wars I and II, when they became an integral part of the Armed Forces’ rations, and after, during the postwar baby boom.

Today peanuts contribute over four billion dollars to the U.S. economy each year. Americans eat more than 600 million pounds of peanuts and about 700 million pounds of peanut butter each year.

* Information supplied by the  Peanut Advisory Board, 1025 Sugar Pike Way, Canton, GA  30115

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