NUT GROWING 



1443 



which is more protein and energy than 

 is furnished by many rations regarded as 

 adequate for a day. Although peanuts 

 supply protein and energy for a smaller 

 sum than bread, they are outranked by 

 dried beans, which, at 5 cents a pound, 

 will supply for 10 cents over 200 grams 

 of protein and 3,200 calories of energy. 

 If more peanuts and dried beans were 

 used by fruitarians, their diet would be 

 enriched and the cost decreased. The al- 

 mond, so much in favor with fruitarians, 

 furnishes for 10 cents about one-fourth 

 the protein and less than one-third the 

 energy supplied by peanuts. 



Handling: and Marketing Jfuts 



Within the last few years the trade in 

 shelled nuts has very markedly increased, 

 and shelled walnuts, hickory nuts, al- 

 monds, English walnuts, pecans, etc., are 

 now very commonly found in shops. The 

 bulk of the nut crop is, however, mar- 

 keted unshelled. Some -of the unshelled 

 nuts, notably pecans and peanuts, are 

 very often polished before marketing by 

 rotating them in rapidly revolving drums 

 in such a way that the shells are worn 

 down until they are more or less smooth. 

 This method of treatment also removes 

 any dirt and is supposed to make the nut 

 more salable. It is worthy of note, how- 

 ever, that the highly prized, large fancy 

 pecans are marketed without such treat- 

 ment. 



In cracking nuts, if one wishes to ob- 

 tain the meats unbroken, it is necessary, 

 as everyone knows, to hold the nut in 

 such a position that the shell will be 

 crushed along certain definite lines. 

 Thus, hickory nuts must be struck on 

 the thin side and pecan nuts and native 

 butternuts or white walnuts on the end. 

 With such nuts as the almond and filbert 

 or cobnut less care is needed, as the nut 

 is loosed inside the shell. There are a 

 number of machines for cracking nuts on 

 a wholesale scale for market purposes, 

 which give a very large proportion of 

 unbroken nut meats. In most of these 

 the nuts passing from a hopper to some 

 device like an enriless chain with pockets 

 for holding them in the right position 

 are crushed one at a time by automatical- 



ly moving plungers. The machines 

 which are used naturally vary in prin- 

 ciple and in details of construction, one 

 which would be satisfactory for a pea- 

 nut or soft-shelled almond being less well 

 adapted for use with such nuts as hick- 

 ory nuts or pecans. Some of the ma- 

 chines used for peanuts and almonds are 

 equipped with devices for removing the 

 skin or hull which covers the nut meat. 



In order to meet the market demand 

 for clean and uniformly colored nuts, 

 many nut growers have resorted to the 

 process of bleaching their product. The 

 first attempts in this direction were made 

 by sulphuring — that is, by exposing the 

 nuts to sulphur vapor. This treatment, 

 though improving the color of the shell, 

 proved injurious to the flavor of the nuts 

 and lessened the keeping qualities. At 

 the California Agricultural Experiment 

 Station experiments with bleaching solu- 

 tions have been carried on and very satis- 

 factory results have been obtained with 

 a mixture of sal soda, chlorid of lime 

 and water. According to reports of the 

 Imperial Department of Agriculture of 

 the West Indies,* a similar process has 

 been successfully used for bleaching pea- 

 nuts. The consumer should bear in mind 

 that the bleaching of nuts is entirely un- 

 necessary and in no way increases their 

 food value. The process is carried on 

 solely for the purpose of improving the 

 appearance of the nut, and thus com- 

 manding a higher price. It will doubtless 

 be continued as long as the public is 

 willing to be guided by appearance rath- 

 er than food value. The term "bleach- 

 ing," as applied to nuts, must not be 

 confounded with the household term 

 "blanching," which applies to the process 

 of removing the skins from nut meats, 

 as almonds and pistachio nuts, by im- 

 mersing them for a short time in hot 

 water and then rubbing off the skin. 



Vegetables and fruits exposed for sale 

 under ordinary conditions may be readi- 

 ly contaminated with bacteria, dirt and 

 dust. Nuts sold in their shells are pro- 

 tected in large measure from such con- 



* Imp. Dept. Agr. West Indies Pamphlet No. 

 43, n. s. 



