USDA figures show that consumers bought near-record quantities of peanuts over the past year, despite a salmonella outbreak blamed for nine deaths and more than 700 illnesses.
Canada-based company Hilton Soy Foods has developed a soy butter for nut-free environments which it claims looks and tastes just like peanut butter – and food safety concerns are widening its appeal.
Damage from Hurricane Ivan that struck the US last week could send
prices for peanuts, a common confectionery ingredient, rising as
reports suggest that virtually all of the nation's 2004 peanut crop
could be at risk.
