By Clint Thompson
Practicing peanut production differently does not mean growers need to cut back in the upcoming season. That’s the message Scott Monfort, University of Georgia Extension peanut agronomist, stressed during the recent Georgia Peanut Farm Show.
Georgia farmers produced 843,543 acres in 2024, the state’s most in the last couple of decades. However, peanut yields were the least during that same timeframe.
Peanut acres are expected to stay the same, if not increase this upcoming season. Growers hope to improve yields but can’t afford to reduce inputs at a time when they’ll need them the most.
“That’s what growers need to take to heart. We can’t put all of our eggs in one basket. We can’t put all of our eggs in miracle products, because they don’t work. We’ve got to put them in the mainstay, proven stuff,” Monfort said. “Yes, we can trim back one or two different parts to this whole thing, but if we start cutting back on a lot of things, then we’re just going to erode away at what we’re making.”
What would really help peanut growers find success in the future is if markets for other row crops, namely cotton and corn, would improve as well. Producers would be able to reduce peanut acres and extend rotations.
“They don’t have to be where we make money on each individual crop every year; I’m talking about good money,” Monfort said. “We just need cotton to be in the game, to make a little bit of money. If we make a little bit of money there, we can make good money in peanuts, and then things work. Corn plays a role in that, too. We just can’t seem to get the price on that one.”