A crowd gathered for the ribbon cutting of a new one-of-a-kind peanut sheller at the Texas A&M AgriLife Foundation Seed facility.
New Sheller Will Preserve Quality, Identity Texas A&M AgriLife and the states’ producer board unveil new $1 million shelling plant.
T
he longtime goal to preserve both peanut quality and seed integrity is a step closer in Texas. Together, Texas A&M AgriLife and the Texas Peanut Producers Board recently unveiled a new $1 million peanut shelling facility. The sheller has a ton per hour capacity, can process lots as small as 250 pounds and offers the ability to process identity-preserved peanuts. With design modifications built in by Bratney Corp., the new sheller will reduce seed split losses to less than 10%. The sheller capacity, combined with its ability to clean and sort seeds, makes it one of a kind, says Patrick J. Stover, Texas A&M AgriLife vice chancellor, who is also dean of
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THE PEANUT GROWER • NOVEMBER 2021
the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and director of research. “With the technology we are unveiling today, Texas A&M AgriLife Foundation Seed can now work with both food companies and farmers in an identity-preserved production system that delivers specific peanuts to end users. Now AgriLife-bred peanuts can specifically target improved nutritional traits, benefiting the consumer and enhancing value for the farmer.” Stover thanked industry partners Shelly Nutt, Texas Peanut Producers Board executive director, and Bob Parker, National Peanut Board president and CEO, for their support, saying, “We are incredibly thankful for everything you both do for Texas peanuts and Texas A&M AgriLife.” PEANUTGROWER.COM
