Peanut Industry Faces Data Shortage as USDA Reports Lag Behind Harvest
The U.S. peanut industry is facing a serious challenge this harvest season — a lack of up-to-date data on peanut production. Dr. Adam Rabinowitz of Auburn University recently published an article detailing the problem and how it’s impacting farmers’ ability to price their crop and plan for the market.
“Well, the report, first of all, he started with the World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimate. That comes out first and it was last published in September the 12th, so that’s old. Another special report was All Crops Outlook, which usually carries peanut information. This report has also not been updated, leaving the peanut industry with a month-old forecast during the peak harvest period that indicates a record crop coming in.”
The delay in updated USDA reports is particularly concerning because peanuts lack a futures market, meaning producers rely heavily on these government forecasts to estimate prices. Without timely information, growers are left uncertain about how to market their peanuts or anticipate demand trends.
“Also, the lack of readily available information about the crop prevents farmers from pricing their crop right during the middle of the harvest season. They do not have futures market for peanuts, so they cannot establish a price.”
Several critical data sources remain unavailable or incomplete, compounding the problem.
“Another source not available is the natural tonnage report, which comes from the Federal State Inspection Service. That has been influenced but not complete. The last source of information is the weekly crop progress. Well, that has not been updated either.”
The absence of reliable data means peanut farmers are operating with uncertainty at one of the most critical points of the production cycle. Market participants and processors also face challenges in planning storage, processing, and contract negotiations without clear insight into overall supply.
“There’s still a ways to go before we can figure out how the 25 peanut crop may be little or too big. In the meantime, the lack of official USDA reports is leaving the farmers with no guidance.”
Until updates resume, the peanut sector must navigate this information gap with limited visibility — a situation that underscores the importance of consistent and timely agricultural reporting.
Audio Reporting by Tyron Spearman for Southeast AgNet.