Bainbridge, GA

Unlike many of the farm tours held around the state each and every year, the Georgia Peanut Tour is specifically designed to attract guests unfamiliar with agriculture and peanut production. It’s a three-day crash course that provides guests with the most up-to-date look at the industry.

“You know, things are evolving in the peanut world as new research, new information, and we want people that are not in the industry to understand better what goes on in the peanut world. And so, it’s a wonderful opportunity for people that don’t know anything to come. It’s a wonderful opportunity for those who do know a lot to come and learn more about what’s going on and to see what the latest research and information and also to get an idea of what the crop is,” says Joe Boddiford, Chairman of the Georgia Peanut Commission.

“It’s really for people new to the industry, is who we target; legislators, aides, to see what it takes to farm. And we try to educate people. And that’s the purpose of this tour, is to educate people,” says Tim Burch with the Georgia Peanut Commission.

That knowledge can be beneficial outside production agriculture as it gives those in attendance a new appreciation for all the challenges that go into growing a crop.

“Each part adds to the puzzle to give you a clearer picture of what’s going on,” SAYS Boddiford. “We want people to understand the opportunities, but also the difficulties of trying to produce these crops and some of the things we deal with as we go through a season, Year to year can be differently too, and this year has been a pretty tough one. We’ve had a lot of cool and wet early and hot and dry during the summer, which is not quite the way we want it.”

While there was major concern about the crop early in the growing season, it does appear that conditions have improved. Now, it’s just a matter of getting them out of the field.

“We thought it would be delayed and it was delayed in May and June. But July and August really pushed that maturity back up to where it ought to be. So, the challenge is now going to be able to get the peanuts dug if the ground gets too hard and dry. And, of course, we hope it doesn’t get too wet, but there’s a lot of variability out there in the crop. Some places are stressed significantly in the growing season and how that’s going to pan out at the end remains to be seen,” says Boddiford.

Of course, harvest is just the first step in a long process, which those on the tour got an up-close look at.

“You got the digging. You got the picking. You got the hauling. You got drying. You got grading. You got storage, ultimately transportation to the shelling plant, shell the peanuts. And then, they’re shipped to a manufacturer. A lot of Georgia’s peanuts go to Jif to go into Jif peanut butter, and then from there to the grocery store shelves and then to your home,” says Boddiford.

As for the overall goal of this yearly event, it’s to impress just how much this commodity means to the state.

“South Georgia is the hub of the peanut industry. We grow fifty one percent of the peanuts the last couple of years and most of them are grown in Southwest Georgia. So they’re getting a look at the heart of the peanut industry while they’re on this tour this year,” says Burch.

By: Damon Jones