National Peanut Day – September 13, 2026

Peanut butter, peanut cookies, and peanut ice cream... These are some of my favorite foods that have peanuts.  Roasted, unsalted peanuts are very good also since you can carry them and eat them. 

Did you know that the peanut is not a nut, but a legume like beans and seeds? (Daysoftheyear.com) 

The peanut is from South America and European explorers spread it to other parts of the world.  The peanut even replaced the bambara groundnut in West Africa.  It is still grown in Valencia, Spain and evolved in its use in the United States. (Wikipedia.org) 

In the U.S., the peanut was introduced in the colonial period, used as a garden plant, then starting in 1870 used as animal feedstock until human consumption rose in the 1930s.  Later George Washington Carver used it in crop rotation in the southern U.S. and the growing of the peanut plant helped the soil after the growing of cotton had worn it out. (Wikipedia.org) 

Celebrate National Peanut Day by eating something with peanuts, but don’t eat peanuts or any food that has peanut if you have a peanut allergy. (Clevelandclinic.org) 

Also learn about the American Peanut Council and their work with peanuts at: www.peanutsusa.org. 

Sources: 

1. Days of the Year. 2026. National Peanut Day. www.daysoftheyear.com/days/peanut-day/
2. Wikipedia. 2026. Peanut. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peanut#cite_note-20 
3. Cleveland Clinic. 2024. Peanut Allergy. my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21511-peanut-allergy 
4. American Peanut Council. 2026. American Peanut Council. www.peanutsusa.org 

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Check out these titles on peanuts:

Creamy & Crunchy

Let's Enjoy Our Peanut Butter in Many Different Ways, Any Day of the Week!

Slaves for Peanuts

Migrants, Credit and Climate

Detecting Alzheimer's With Peanut Butter

Pizza, Peanut Butter, and Pickles

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Written by:

Aaron Brown

Librarian II

Central Library