You can’t spread a peanut on your sandwich, but you can spread peanut butter. What happens to peanuts between the field and the lunch table?
First, a machine digs up the peanut plants and shakes off the dirt. Another machine separates the pods, or shells, from the leafy tops. Then the peanuts go to a warehouse, where blowers remove the stems.
Rollers crack open the pods. Inside each pod are one, two, or even three peanut seeds. Another machine gently brushes the skins from seeds. A laser scans for rotten ones.
The remaining seeds are washed and roasted. They go into a grinder with salt, oil, sugar, and other ingredients. The mixture is ground. A conveyor belt moves clean, empty jars along while nozzles squirt peanut butter into the jars. The belt carries the filled jars to the next machine. This machine seals the jars and puts on the caps.
Now the jars are ready to be labelled and shipped.
Today, most foods are canned, frozen, put in jars, or packaged in some other way. These are called processed foods. Food is processed to preserve it, or keep it fresh longer. Processing also makes food easier to use. Peanut butter is a good example.
Picture Credit : Google
