Economic Significance of Peanut Production and Income to Georgia Farms, Rural Communities

Peanuts accounted for 34 percent of Georgia’s crop income and 13 percent of the State’s total farm income in 1992. The total economic impact of peanut production to the Georgia economy is $1.16 billion annually. Per acre, peanuts provide 2.8 times the debt serving capacity of cotton, 6.1 times that of soybeans and 16.4 times that of corn. The peanut price support and quota program adds economic stability to local economies. The value of peanut quota adds an estimated $48 million to Georgia farmland values, which provides collateral for agricultural lenders. A reduction in peanut prices would adversely reduce farm income and cash-flow, quota values, land values, and the real estate tax base of rural communities. Adverse changes may not alter the comparative advantage of peanuts in Georgia but would result in fewer but larger peanut-producing farms.