A man-made biological pesticide developed by the Agricultural Research Service (the in-house research arm of the U.S. Department of Agriculture) to protect peanut crops from aflatoxin, a carcinogenic mold, will soon be on the market.
The Agriculture Research Service in cooperation with the National Peanut Research Laboratory created the biological pesticide from spores of a nontoxic strain of Aspergillus flavus that is applied to barley kernels. Then, those kernels are applied beneath the plant to fight the fungi that are naturally present.
Aflatoxin occurs when specific crops, like corn and peanuts, are stressed by drought.
In field tests, Afla-Guard, the commercial biopesticide now being produced by a Georgia company, lowered the amount of aflatoxin by as much as 90 percent after the first application. Repeated treatments over years cut the spread of aflatoxin by 98 percent.
Some 8,000 acres in Alabama and Georgia were slated for treatment this summer.
Science Daily June 25, 2004
Despite the good news about Afla-Guard, eating peanuts isn't terribly safe. Why?
However, if you're looking for a safer peanut product, try Arrowhead Mills organic, and therefore pesticide-free, peanut butter. The peanuts Arrowhead uses to make its peanut butter are grown in New Mexico--an area where aflatoxin hasn't been reported.
By the way, walnuts are a much better choice if you like to eat nuts, as they will give you some beneficial omega-3 fat.
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