North Carolina Newspapers

Future of the Peanut Depends Upon An Expanded Market Record Rise of the Soybean Is Believed Possible for Peanuts, Marketing Specialists Point Out ~ir ~?= ^ Research ^ ork I> Offering (Greatest Hojie For Peanuts liit|?ro\cmt'iil Nailed in Han dling and Marketing Jin* (rooker^ Speaking before Hit twenty-sec (.ii(l annual convention of the South . astern Peanut Association in Pen Fi., t.Mine u... U Ol'i J P Wycoff. Chief cif Marketing Section. United States Department of Agri culture. pointed out that the future ?,.{ ??;.."K p. ,,nu! depends on an expanded market, that research, educational and promotional work will 'have to be advanced if the pea nut former~pr survive The spec ialists address follows TT was only about six inonths ago that I first became seriously inter ested in the peanut industry and its p< : ieiiM> interest has hot .wav ered In not lik< the new office boy -? ^)tployed bv a big. law^ firm After there a couple of weeks cine "f th? members of the firm ra ther factiotisly asked him how lie liked the law. I don't like it. and I wish I'd never learned it" he said: After six months 1 fear I haven't Warned the first rudiments of the peanut business That I am interest ed in it is certain. To the average man the peanut is something connected w ith ball games' or eiephunts On second thought it may occur to him that peanuts add) to tin pal-atabiii.ty of candy bars.' and that peiVnilt."butter- is sometimes) a good filling for a sandwich He has no concept ion ^c>4 tie- present and the. I still greatei potmt'ial value of pea nuts as a source of food for man or beast arid as .. basis , for industrial products In recent years we have seen an other agricultural product, the <suy bean. raise d 'in the public mind front obscurity from the obscurity of an oriental nuvcltv to the spotlight of pi i.msu h; public'iiy The soybean ik al economy Soybean"'.'oil." can; he used in food and lh paint Soybean ~rrrenUi7' a grinrr protein teed, and by lu'rtiiei processing it in ay- In- made to yield Hour and syntiietie p la's i, tie. i lit Modes* Peanut But how itr?? 'lit i'ht' in??d?'st peanut winch lias been gtoyifshyly at home all tinx vt .11 n-while Hit' glam tirous ?! icuta: .s' 'Vbiaii Hits been pal ah * tic I" ! : 1 ''tiaI Mi* Till pi ? MUt I ki.v .ill th? Vll'tUf's I'l t J a ? 11V I" ? 'V ' I'l 11 tat It J (111 IS n<>t ,. H' v " i\ '1 'his m 111 -dry ing quahty.; )ii'\vi \ 1 1 :? ui. itself a vii tin . In , a 11 ' it "p? ? t" peanut -nil many . t-i a rr.ch .SSy^erqi. ??.IV If! a. ..lijl 11 Tl.c *1''. gf tlu beau ii> .1 yttable hion than oft m 1 by i \ ,b .? .t tin p? aiiUt for V. A . .i'Ii "..i'l ' ??' ' viii ;,! . b.il vested f? <X ? ' .? has !icreased from 415 in a? f ? ? if ?19:ib. 2 *i 97.000 r< > in 1935 and ? 4.L'2' i'i tii an increase* of Ml' ?? ? ? hi ,.n !?? j 11 1 cut mi four le i: year*. Piod uctluu lias mcreas id ii'iu .-i.s 7-5.000 bu icls ill 1925 to - 13.471.1"hi tj Us77TTrTf:~1930. 44.376.000 bushi 1? iri 1 935 ai d 67.409,009 bush ? r Is ' 1939 . it incrcaSt of nearly 17oo p? r rtnt 111 hurteen years Kxpress ? ? d 1; weig M. the soybean produc tior. nas nit i < a>? 1 from 146.250 tons in 1925 t.? 404 130 tons in 1930. 1, 331.340 tens m 1935 and 2.622 270 tons in 1939. In the same period peanuts pick en tl.i> ?1.4'd i.avc increased from about 1,000.000 acres to 1,660.000 acr<and the production from around 400.000 tons to 600.000 tons This is a healthy increase, and I do not wuh?to that?therv?should have? been a more rapid increase in production with the me ans of utili zation available, but the comparison of peanut acreage and production with that of soybeans, docs suggest possibilities of further growth of the peanut industry when new methods of utilization are developed. The soybean, of course, has the advantage of a cost of production lower than that for peanuts. The yield per acre is higher and harvest ing requires no hand labor. These advanlagi s iiave made the soybean a valuable alternative crop jj* -ftreitt where oats and corn acreages have been reduced. Similarly, peanuts are the logical alternative to cotton in many areas of the South, but the cost of production is still too high for competition of peanuts with soybeans on a price basis. The comparison between soybeans and peanuts should not he carried too far, for they are distinct prod ucts, both valuable, and competing With^ach other only for certain uses. The lesson the peanut industry should learn from the success story of the soybean is tlust of the value of research and the value of educa tional and promotional work. Value of Research The rapid increase in the produc tion and utilization of Soybeans was made possible by years of intensive work by the State experiment sta tions in the North Central States, by the Bureaus of Plant Industry and of Chemistry and Engineering in the Department of Agriculture, and by private industry. This research F\KMS DECREASE The number of farms in Mar tin County continues to dwindle, according to preliminary figures released recently by the super visor of the 1940 census. Ten years ago there were 2.759 farms in the county. Five years later or in 1935. the number had drop ped to 2.6K3. and now the num ber is dow n to 2.419. What does the decrease in the number of farms mean? No one seems to offer any definite rea son or any results of the down1 ward trend. It is possible that farm youth in this county is sell ing out his farm interests and looking for a livelihood in4he towns and cities. was directed first to trie creveiopment of new and improved varieties and new methods of cultivation and har vesting. The average yield per acre has been nearly doubled in fifteen j years and varieties of higher oil con-1 tent . have been developed A vast amount of research has been con ducted on new uses for oil and meal and it is thiough. many of these new uses that publicity has been ob | tarned It is interesting to note, how ever, that the much publicized use of soybean meal in plastics has util v.ed less than one per cent of the i meal produced. More than 80 per cent of soybean oil is still used for food purposes and the meal is main | ly utilized as a high protein concen trate feed. Much research work has also been done on peanuts, but it must be ad I milled that peanut research has lag j'ged behind that for soybeans. One reason may be the greater resources : ho experimentation and study in the northern as compared with the : Snpthei n State experiment stations. Another reason may be that .no great ? indur'i rifs?h-ke?The?Ford;?Glidden, : Archil Daniels Midland, Spencer - { Kellogg, and Staley companies have interested themselves in. peanuts. -.Recently;??niton- research work on j.peabtits has been undertaken by i'.sQutfai rn expoTilneht slal iorw port a . : tit..ad pioriMh of peanut studies ha.v been developed for tlie new j Southern Regional Laboratory at ! Wv\ Orleans. '?.' ' Research is needed to develop new and better ???varieties ??f peanuts for [[ various uses There should be varie ties of higher, oil"content than-Jiliy: U:at v\e have today whieh would be us. <T for .-rushing purposes only, and ? tin r varieties for out of-hand eat iiir. and othei purposes. Better meth ods of cultivation and harvesting Uoiild in developed id increase yields and reduce costs It should-be. poss-ihlwt to'reduce the il cost of production of peanuts crushing purposes to a point at lieu iney could -be grown arid sold Potential Markets Tin ii liit rc ale improvements ru t ilt d in the pruct .-scs of handling mechanical process >; incident to crushing them for oil and meal. Pea nut oil is a quality product, and its quality needs to be emphasized. That' means that more attention should >?? pivcn t.? lliw mfiHorniTitig ol cruslung*inills. and especially to the cold pressing' process which Would make available virgin oil for salad and other uses. Advantage should be taken of the fact that pea nut oil is perhaps the best of all veg etable oils for deep-fat frying and | that it ranks with olive oil for salad and table use. Tlu-fe is still much to be learned . bout the chemistry of peanut oil. Know it >s good for shortening, margarine, salad and cooking oils I and synthetic waxes, but better j methods of processing for these uses I may be developed. We need to knovv-ttttrtv?<>f the cumpusitiofi~&nd properties of peanut oil. Much can still be done with peanut oil by-pro ducts There are among the projects to be undertaken by the New Or leans Regional Research Laboratory. It is known that peanut meal may be used in the manufacture of syn thetic fibres, films, plastics, adhes ives and sizes. One of the most prom ising uses is for the manufacture of a synthetic fibre which may be sub stituted for wool. Indications are that peanut meal may be the beat material available for the manufac ture-44 wool-substitutes. From peanut shells many valu able products may be derived, but too much hope should not be based on industry profits from shells. Most of the products now know from such waste products are either low value products or products of high pro cessing cost. Their production at a profit depends entirely on UM Saw cost of the raw material. One of the most promising uses of peanut shells is in the production of furfural, a chemical which is used in large quan tities for the purification of petrol eum and in the manufacture of syn thetic plastics. The principal source of furfural at present is in oat hulls, a by-product of the manufacture of rolled oats. Peanut shells are an equally good source of furfural and they are available in any quantity that may be needed for a. long time to come. At present the supply of oat hulls is largely limited by the utili zation of oats in hulled form. These are some indications of what may be done for peanuts by research. The next task is to acquaint the mmg public with the excep tional quality and value of peanut ' product*- The modest peanut must 'acquire some of the glamour which 'the soybean has attained. When pea nut processors are able to supply products of uniformly high quality, it should be possible to maker' the tact known to the public by educa tiomil publicity. It lias been said, "This soybean production has grown too fast We're till pretty well scared about it. We know it can't go on at this rate and it may have gone too fast and too far already." I haven't heard anyone I say that about the peanut industry, which in the last four or five years l as done nothing sensational or dis turbmg, but has become a well built i cind well stabilized industrial struc ture, economically sound, and in creasingly profitable to the various elements which constitute the im portant parts of the structure. Its stability comes mainly from a pro 1 gram inaugurated by the Department I of Agriculture in collaboration with I the industry itself and based on a stabilization fund from Congression PRODI CTION The frightening habit annex ed by the world and especially Americans in the use of tobac co products, principally cigar ettes, has only one equal and that is the mad habit of the farmers in expanded production in ex cess of consumption. Last year the twenty tobacco growing states produced 1.81*. 654 pounds of tobacco, including all types of the weed for use in the manufacture of cigarrllrv cigars, chewing tobacco, snuff. Plantings were increased from 1.599.300 acres in 1938 to 2,014, 500 in 1939, North Carolina ac counting for approximately 250, 000 acres of the increase. To ag gravate the situation, per acre yields were greater last year than they were the year before. al appropriations. A fund which might, if this were a corporation, be considered an annual capital promo tional investm^ent.^It^ ^ this j ment in the structure, by the remov I al of which its stability would be w^kened.^^ In cornpar^^]^^ I have been discussing, the pe&nut I industry is a relatively small struc ture possible of definite expansion on a thoroughly sound basis by a united cooperative effort on the part of all the elements in the industry, fighting to maintain the ground al ready gained and to add to it each year in new markets and new uses. I look for a great future for this in dustry. - ? ? Interesting Story Told About Civil War 'Ram* Completed April 18, 1864, Ram Had Brief Bui Brilliant Career *?liip Wu? Finally Blown Up By Torpedo While At Anehor (Continued from preceding page) rolina pine and oak. She fought two battles in North Carolina and was finally covered by North Carolina wa ters. I have before be a letter from Mr Thomas P. Johnston, of Bristol. Tenn . which I am quoting below: October 18th 1939 Judge John W. Darden, Plymouth. N C. Mv dear Judge Darden: I find in the papers of my late father. Mr. Thomas P. Johnston, ol Salisbury. N C. a letter from you written on September 12th 1939. 1 doubt If my father made any answei to this inquiry. He was quite old. in fact when he died on October 12, he had lived 94 years, one month and four days. I suspect that my father was the last living representative of the crew of the Confederate Kam "Albemarle.' He did no^^a^n^^^tten record. MUTE EVIDENCE That the old "Albemarle'* saw real action la evidenced by the remains now on display in Kal eirh. The old smokestack In the State Hall of History is riddled from top to bottom. in regard to his service on the boat, but he had told me often of his ex periences. I should have written down these reminiscences, but a very busy life has prevented by engaging In so welcome a pastime. My father served In the early days of the Confederacy under Captain A. O. Brenizer as an ordinance messen ger. He enlisted in Raleigh. N. C.. on his eighteenth birthday. September 8th 1863. He was assigned to the Ram "Albemarle" during the con struction and. therefore, helped In building her until she was floated In the spring freshets of 1864. In the crew he was the paymaster's special, buying provisions and paying oil members of the crew. He was In all battles of her brief career 'about six i months' and was aboard her when ? she was sunk in Plymouth harbor by ' Lieut. Cushlng. 1 He was then assigned to the de fense of Fort Fisher and was In the I Fort during the bombardment on i Christmas day 1864. When Fort Fish ! | er fell, he was sent to join Lee's Ar r, my in Virginia. Soon after the war ': was over, he returned to his home In II Rallshnrv N He dM Just this When you lure finished your story on the "Albemarle." I shall be very glad to have a copy. Very sincerely yours. THOMAS P. JOHNSTON Many stories are told about the great Ram Albemarle and her acti vities around Plymouth and In the Albemarle Sound during her brief existence. I shall relate one of them here. I do not vouch for the truth fulness of the story. I am relating it as it was told to me many years ago. The Federal troops, which had oc cupied Plymouth for some months, as a precautionary measure, had placed large calibre guns at the intersection of Water and Monroe Streets, as well as other streets that cross Water Street. There was at the intersection of Monroe and Water 8treets one of the largest of the guns, which was trained on river traffic. They un doubtedly knew that the Albemarle was coming on down the river and was expected to arrive at Plymouth about dawn on the morning of April 19th Tlie gun crew was at their post and ready for action at a moment's I notice Just as the big ship was drift ing into the range of the big gun and jthe crew was about to fire a young 1 soldier, dressed in a Pederal officer's ! uniform, appeared on the scene and exclaimed. ''Mr1 God men. don't fire on that vessel. It is one of ours." This threw the crew into confusion and the vessel passed by without being fired upon They soon learned that it was not one of their boats but the Confederate Ram Albemarle. They then made a careful search for the officer, who had misled them, but he could not be found. If the above story is true, I would like very much to leam Just who the brave young Confederate soldier was who did such a heroic act. NO 7 BLOWING CONTENTED I SAVED ant I Saved Regularly With The Guaranty Bank & Trust Company An Institution Devoted to Serving the People of This Section The Guaranty Hank and Trust Company is proud to say that it has the reputation of be in*: the most liberal and the most accommo dating institution of its kind in the State. It is our one and only purpose to serve the peo ple. We, of course, transact our business af fairs ever keeping in mind our depositors. However, when loans are deserving we are glad to make them. We would be glad to have you as one of our customers and friends. Come To See Us. SELL TOBACCO IN WILLIAMSTON The Best Market In All The State TRY WIIJJAMSTON YOU'LL LIKE OUR MARKET AND TOWN Guaranty Bank & Trust Co.