Frost Pushes South Carolina Peanut Harvest to the Front of the Line

South Carolina added significant peanut acres this year, and now the proof’s in the pudding with harvest in full swing. Edisto Research & Education Center Peanut Specialist for Clemson, Scott Monfort says investment has been made into peanut production with the construction of two drying stations in the state:

“We have added two in the Maron county area of the state. We are very proud and have invested a lot of infrastructure into peanuts here in SC. We hope that we can maintain all of the facilities based on the acres. Acres will go down next year, the price wont allow it to be at the height that it is now. But that’s the ups and downs of the markets.”
 

Monfort explains that harvest is progressing very nicely for peanuts:
 

“Based on the data I have seen coming from the Federal Inspection Service, we are close to that 70% mark of everything being graded, which would leave about 20% still out there. We are around the 85% mark of at least dug.”
 

While some peanuts were late this year, Monfort says a frost has pushed harvesting to the front of the line:
 

“We do have some very late peanuts. We did have a frost in the northeast part of the state that’s going to get those acres out of the ground. Farther south we are ok in that we don’t have to dig everything right this minute.”
 

As far as yields, Monfort says they’re very good:
 

“The irrigated land has been about 2 tons to 5500. Non irrigated is probably 85% of our acres and in the 3800 pound range.”

South Carolina Peanut Specialist for Clemson University’s Edisto Research & Education Cente