By Morgan Roan
University of Georgia
Pull out your favorite peanut product in celebration of March
as National Peanut Month.
The Georgia Peanut Commission is celebrating peanut month by
giving samples of peanuts and peanut recipes to tourists who
stop at Georgia Welcome Centers.
The promotion, “Travel Light, Pack Peanuts” encourages
travelers take along peanuts as a fun and healthy snack.
Representatives from the peanut commission will also travel to
the Valdosta and Savannah welcome centers to fry peanuts for
tourists.
Georgia farmers rely on peanuts
Georgia is one of nine states that rely heavily on peanut
production. About 10 percent of the world’s peanut crops are
produced by these nine states: Georgia, Texas, Alabama,
Carolinas, Florida, Oklahoma, Virginia and New Mexico.
This national celebration began in 1941 as National Peanut
Week. It was extended to a month-long celebration in 1974. Even
our 39th President Jimmy Carter, who was a peanut farmer from
Georgia, contributed greatly to the celebration and popularity
of this food.
Peanuts can be used in more than 300 different ways, but almost
half of the nation’s peanut crop goes into peanut butter.
They are healthy in small amounts
Aside from being a popular snack food, peanuts have high
nutritional value and may even reduce the risks of
cardiovascular disease and cancer when eaten in small
amounts.
“A small handful or about one-fourth cup is all that is
needed,” said Connie Crawley, an Extension Service nutrition
and health specialist with the University of Georgia College of
Family and Consumer Sciences. “They are also a good source of
protein, fiber, and vitamins and minerals such as vitamin E,
folic acid, niacin, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc.”
Peanuts may be high in fat, but they contain “good” fats, said
Crawley.
“They are mostly made of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated
fats that help lower bad cholesterol,” she said. “And they are
naturally cholesterol free and low in saturated fat.”
Crawley says unsalted, dry roasted peanuts are the best
choice.
Peanuts are believed to have originated as a food source in
Brazil or Peru about 950 B.C. The demand for peanuts increased
in the U.S. during the Civil War when soldiers relied on them
as a food source. Today, Americans eat about 2.4 billion
pounds of peanuts each year.
