From where do peanuts come?

by Gloridene Hoyte-John

Groundnut sugar cakes, peanut butter and peanut punch are popular among Vincentians, but from where do peanuts come?

Most of the peanuts consumed in St Vincent and the Grenadines are grown on small farms around the country. One of these areas is Fancy, the northernmost village of the country, located on the northeastern coast of mainland St Vincent.

In Fancy, most villagers earn a livelihood from farming or fishing, with peanuts, or ‘groundnuts,’ as Vincentians call it, being one of the crops popularly grown.

SEARCHLIGHT visited one such farm in Fancy, where a family walked us through the process of harvesting groundnuts.

The crop is planted from two seeds or nuts, following which it is nurtured for about five to six months before it is reaped. 

Unlike most plants, groundnuts flower above ground, but the fruit is produced below ground.

During harvesting, the entire plant is pulled from the soil and the plant gently shaken to remove any lingering soil. The land is then scraped to retrieve those nuts that remained in the earth or burst off the plant when it was pulled up.

The nuts are picked from the roots of the plant, then washed with water.  The groundnuts are then spread out in a container or on the ground to be dried by the sun.

Groundnuts maybe eaten raw, boiled (freshly picked) and/or parched (baked). 

The nut comes from the legume family and is considered the only nut to grow in or below the soil. 

The nutrients found in groundnuts are: phosphorous, thiamin, niacin and a very high level of protein. Research has also shown that peanuts can help control blood sugar in both healthy individuals and those with Type 2 diabetes.

Some of the end products of the groundnut include: peanut punch, groundnut sugar cakes and peanut butter.