Wendiam Sawadgo writes in Southern Ag Today: The United States planted an estimated 1.53 million acres of peanuts in 2026, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Acreage report released on June 30th. This marks a 22% decrease compared to what was planted in 2025 and a 146,000 acre decrease compared to what was forecast in the March Prospective Plantings report. A higher relative price for competing row crops, such as cotton, is one factor that may have decreased peanut acres this year. December cotton futures prices increased from below 70 cents per lb. in early March to above 85 cents per lb. in mid-May as the peak southern crop planting season progressed.
All major peanut-growing states’ 2026 planted peanut areas are equal to or less than what they were in 2025, as shown in Figure 1. Texas had the largest drop, amounting to 105,000 fewer peanut acres, or a 37% reduction. Georgia, the largest producing peanut state, had a decrease of 70,000 acres (22%), for a total of 720,000 acres planted. Oklahoma was the only state that did not decrease peanut area planted, with its 19,000 acres being identical to last year’s value.
The decrease in peanut acres this year could have a major effect on peanut production and prices. Peanut ending stocks are expected to increase by 81% to 1.41 million tons at the end of the 2025/26 marketing year, due to the 3.59 million ton record-high 2025 peanut crop. If 95% of planted peanut acres are harvested this year and the yield remains near the 3-year average of 3,750 lb. per acre, this would put production at 2.87 million tons, a 20% decrease from last year’s total. This would also represent a 5% decline from what was forecast to be produced based on the area estimated in the March report. Lower production this year could help bring peanut stocks back down and provide a boost to peanut prices, which dropped by 11% to an average of $466 per ton for the 2025/26 marketing year, as reported in the June 2026 USDA Oil Crops Outlook. The USDA is expected to release updated peanut stock estimates in the 2026 Oil Crops Outlook on July 14.
