Texas Peanut Tour Farmers & A Peanut Recipe

Just outside of Lubbock, Texas, is home to the most abundant peanut crops grown in Texas. If you didn’t know already (I didn’t), Texas is the second-largest peanut-producing state in the nation. My post ‘Texas Peanut Tour, Farmers’ is sponsored by The Texas Peanut Producers Board. The recipe and all opinions are my own.

So, as you can imagine, we saw a lot of peanuts on our tour. It means one thing for sure; peanut farmers rely heavily on their peanut crops to provide for their families each year.

Our 2017 Texas Peanut Tour and Peanut Farmers provided us great knowledge of the peanut industry of our state.

In my story, I hope to convey to you a better understanding of the peanut industry in Texas.

Texas Peanut Tour 2017

The Texas Peanut Board invited thirteen Texas influencers to Lubbock to learn about Texas’s peanut industry to share what we learned with our readers. This organization promotes the industry and helps the farmers survive daily tasks and their crops.

Day 2

During our 2-day tour, we went from field to factory to learn as much as we could about peanuts grown in Texas and how it affects the local farmers and their families.

I’m a native Texan, and there’s so much I learned that I did not know. Our tour started with a visit to a peanut field, then to the factory where peanuts are prepared in many different ways to be sold and shipped out to Texas, our country, and other parts of the world. We had great food at local restaurants all weekend long. We visited a grape field and a winery and had wine while getting in and out of a cool black limousine. It was an exciting weekend, one that I’ll forever remember.

Peanut Farmers in Lubbock, Texas

Peanut crops provide a livelihood for many farmers and their families in West Texas.

Whether you or I agree or disagree on how farmers grow their peanut crops, it’s a means of families’ livelihood. Even though I would prefer to eat organic peanuts, I would never want farmers to turn to organic farming if it meant their families would suffer.

In particular, one farmer took time out of his busy day to talk to us about his peanut farm and better understand the industry as a whole. Information I never knew or understood. We picked his brain about how peanuts are grown, how much is produced in a year, the difference between conventional and organic farming, and many more questions. Though he farms both ways, traditional farming brings him the most money. Our tour was very much investment of knowledge.

Facts about Peanuts Grown in Texas

Did you know peanuts are grown in the ground? I bet you thought they grew on trees. I bet you also thought peanuts are in the nut family. They are not. Peanuts are related to the bean family, which makes them legumes.

Did you know there are four varieties of peanuts? The Runner Peanut, Virginia Peanut, Spanish Peanut, and the Valencia Peanut. Texas is the only state to produce all four types and organic peanuts.

On average, Texas farmers plant about 200,000 acres of peanuts each year.

Each year, Americans consume more than 600 million pounds of peanuts and 700 million pounds of peanut butter – WOW!

Texas Size Peanut Smoothie Bowl Recipe

Ingredients:

1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
One frozen banana
1 cup sweet potatoes
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/3 cup frozen apple chunks
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Toppings:

plain Greek yogurt (optional)
unsweetened shredded coconut
1 tbsp peanuts (I used Virginia Peanuts found in bulk at the grocery store)
1 tbsp walnuts
raisins

Directions:

Add all ingredients into a blender; blend until smooth. Serve with toppings.

To learn more about the peanut industry, please visit the Texas Peanut Board. You can also read what the other bloggers say about our trip by following #TXPEANUTTOUR17 on all social media.