Weekender isn’t quite sure who decides these things, but we’re happy to relay the information when it crosses our desk. In this spirit of sharing we’re delighted to report that November, apparently, is National Peanut Butter Appreciation Month.
Actually, looking at it we suspect it’s probably something decided by peanut producers keen to keep themselves in the spotlight. Indeed, we ought to all make an effort to scoff more of this marvellous stuff because it’s been one of the worst peanut harvests in decades and prices have therefore tripled in the United States.
But let’s remind ourselves of how delicious peanut butter can be. Check out these factoids, nearly all of which are true and some of which were told to us by a man with a strange twitch who we met last weekend.
The peanut is not a nut, but a legume related to beans and lentils.
Peanuts have more protein, niacin, folate and phytosterols than any nut. And we all love a good phytosterol.
Peanuts have a higher antioxidant capacity over grapes, Concord grape juice, green tea, tomatoes, spinach, broccoli, carrots and many more.
Peanuts are naturally cholesterol-free.
In 1884, Marcellus Gilmore Edson of Montreal, Quebec, was the first person to patent peanut butter.
Two peanut farmers have been elected president of the USA – Thomas Jefferson and Jimmy Carter.
Astronaut Allen B. Sheppard took a peanut with him to the moon.
The presumably single Tom Miller pushed a peanut to the top of Pike’s Peak (14,100 feet) using his nose in four days, 23 hours, 47 minutes and three seconds.
Adrian Finch of Australia holds the Guinness World Record for peanut throwing, launching the lovable legume 111 feet and 10 inches in 1999 to claim the record.
As early as 1500 BC, Incans of Peru used peanuts as sacrificial offerings and entombed them with their mummies to aid in the spirit life.
Elton John has the biggest collection of peanut butter jars in Los Angeles, collected whilst touring the world. To date, his collection has reached over 13 jars.
The most expensive jar of peanuts ever is the rare 1946 Heinzland ‘misprint’ jar, which due to a factory error was called ‘Does not contain peanuts’. It was bought by Joe Montana for a reported $6.2 million at auction.
Arachibutyrophobia is the fear of getting peanut butter stuck to the roof of your mouth.
The average American consumes more than six pounds of peanuts and peanut butter products each year. Although for some reason they seem to believe it to be a sweet, rather than savoury, dish. How odd.
Sarah Palin is allergic to people with peanut allergies.
The amount of peanut butter eaten in a year could wrap the earth in a ribbon of 18-ounce peanut butter jars one and one-third times.
If you put all the peanuts that had ever been eaten in one big pile, it would probably make you quite unpopular with your neighbours.
Women and children prefer creamy, while most men opt for chunky. People living on the East Coast of the United States prefer creamy peanut butter, while those on the West Coast prefer the crunchy style.
Names of peanuts worldwide: Arabic – Ful Sudani; Chinese – Lo Huo Sheng; Dutch – aardnoot; French – cacahou; Ewok – eekeeknuteekcakak; Russian- arakhis; Japanese – piinatsu; Hebrew – botnim; Afrikaans – Grondboontjie; Zulu – Amakinati; Xhosa: – Mantongomane. English does not have a word for ‘peanut’.
Peanuts contribute more than $4 billion to the USA economy each year.
Charles M. Schulz wrote and illustrated 17,897 Peanuts strips between 2 October, 1950, and 13 February, 2000. But he didn’t like the title of the comic, which was picked by United Feature Syndicate. He said it had ‘no dignity’.
Peanuts flower above ground and then migrate underground to reach maturity. A mature peanut plant produces about 40 pods that then grow into peanuts.
You don’t have to be a nut to be in this list, but it helps.
Dr. George Washington Carver, considered the father of the peanut industry, researched and developed more than 300 uses for peanuts in the early 1900s. In 1916, he published the research bulletin, “How to Grow the Peanut and 105 Ways of Preparing it For Human Consumption.”
Franklin D. Roosevelt, Henry Ford and Thomas Edison were a few of his many fans.
Weekender was not printed in a factory that handles nuts.
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