Habitat
The peanut is currently found in many places around the world, including North America,
Asia, and Africa. However,
it hasn't always been that way. Most scientists agree that the
peanut originated in South America and grew, both as a crop and in the wild, for millennia. Then, explorers from
Europe arrived and took the peanut with them when they returned
home. From there, the peanut spread across Europe and to Africa
and Asia. It did not reach North America until it arrived with the slave ships. Now that the peanut has spread across the globe, it is
grown in most tropical, subtropical, and temperate regions. The
leading peanut producer is China with 37.5% of the world's peanut
crop, with India, the United States of America (primarily the South
East), Argentina, Vietnam,
and West Africa following behind.
Although the peanut probably used to grow in the wild, it is now primarily grown as an agricultural crop. It is grown and eaten all over the world and is at staple food in Africa, a continent that is often known for its starvation problems, among others.