It’s peanut digging time as the peanuts are about ready and farmers are checking their fields now.
At the same time, the Federal State Inspection Service is getting ready to grade this peanut crop. In Georgia, they said they have 116 buying points across the state with inspectors and assistants. They said we began the refresher training of experienced inspectors back in July and they are ready to go to staff these 116 buying points.
The refresher training course was also put in for the previously experienced inspectors, and they are running over their items to on how to grade their peanuts as farmers bring them into the buying points. Takes about 40 hours of training to learn how to be an inspector. They said the Georgia group is also training the South Carolina state inspectors.
They have 10 buying points in South Carolina, also staff and inspectors and they said we have trained approximately 50 inspectors there and are continuing to hire assistants to assist with the inspection of the farmer’s stock peanuts in South Carolina. So, Georgia, South Carolina getting ready to grade these peanuts as farmers bring them to the buying points.
Audio Reporting by Tyron Spearman for Southeast AgNet.