Our Story

Hardy Farms has been a family owned business since 1935. From supermarkets to roadside stands, Hardy Farms has been turning out the finest, gluten free peanuts around.

Family tradition since 1945...

The Hardy family has been growing peanuts in the heartland of Georgia for over 70 years. Our growers are part of a multi-generational legacy with experience being handed down from one generation to the next.

Peanut farming began in the mid 1900s for the Hardy family when patriarch, Norman Hardy began farming after returning from the war. He ran a multi-crop farm and livestock operation in the heart of Dodge County. When Mr. Norman unexpectedly passed in 1977 at the age of 57, his sons, Alex, Kenneth and Randy, along with their cousin Terry partnered up to transform the family operation. At the time, the Hardy clan faced agricultural industry hardships during a decade of droughts and low commodity prices.

With innovative thinking and minds focused on mitigating crop losses, the Hardy relatives formed a production business for green peanut sales in 1991, well-known today as Hardy Farms Peanuts. The company focused on selling and marketing green peanuts exclusively until the addition of cousins Brad and Ken Hardy, sons of brothers Alex and Kenneth Hardy to the family business in the late 1990s. Brad and Ken focused their efforts on the production and growth of the boiled peanut market for the family business. The Hardy Farms Peanuts brand recognition grew significantly throughout Middle Georgia with the growth of its road-side retail stands in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Today, six members of the Hardy clan manage Hardy Farms Peanuts. That includes Alex Hardy, his son Brad, brother Kenneth Hardy, his son Ken, brother Randy Hardy and cousin Terry Shadix.

Hardy Farms is now a leading producer of fresh green and boiled peanuts. They produce over 5 million pounds of green and boiled peanuts annually, that are sold all over the United States. Now with over 25 roadside retail locations throughout Middle Georgia and supermarket presence throughout the southeastern U.S., Hardy Farms peanuts are readily available to anyone craving the true country caviar.

Also, the market for oil and dry roasted peanuts is global. In 2014, cousins Brad Hardy and Ken Hardy, elevated the family business to include the production of oil and dry roasted peanuts with the opening of their roasting plant. Hardy Farms Roasting can produce up to 3,000 pounds of oil and dry roasted peanuts an hour. The company does private label packaging and bulk packaging for commercial companies who use it in their products. It also launched its own retail brand – Party Peanuts by Hardy’s Peanuts Inc. – in four flavors: Simply Salted, Sweet Southern Sriracha, Delicious Dill Pickle and Crushed Black Pepper.

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The Hardy Business

The family-oriented operation works because everyone has an interest in making sure the business is successful! The business is divided into two parts: Hardy Farms grows the peanuts and Hardy Farms Peanuts sells them. About 50% of the business is dedicated to producing the green peanuts and the other 50% is devoted to the boiled peanut business and roadside stands that span from Gray to Sandersville, to Tifton.

The Hardys work in all main aspects of their business

production, processing, and marketing. From the time the peanuts are planted until the time they are put in the bag and shipped out for distribution, the Hardys have their hands on the process. Although green peanuts are sold about three months out of the year, boiled peanuts and roasted peanuts are sold year-round.

The Hardy Farms picking and cleaning process...

the details of which we guard as trade secrets -- place our peanut operation in a category usually reserved for fresh produce. While handpicked peanuts are the gold standard, we’ve worked on innovative equipment and technology to try to emulate that standard and still produce the highest quality of peanut. While yield volume, harvesting process, operational expansions and regulatory guidelines have changed from our first year, our commitment to those that purchase our peanuts has not. We pride ourselves on producing peanuts affectionately known by many as “The Country Caviar.”

Our Growers

We’ve been growing peanuts in the heartland of Georgia for over 70 years. Our growers are part of a multi-generational legacy with experience being handed down from one generation to the next.

Our generational family farm and family business continues to enjoy a long standing reputation for quality and of providing the best tasting peanuts to be found anywhere. We can truly say that we love what we do and we bring that passion out into our farm every day.

The farm

Our scenic peanut fields are spread over 1,000 acres of land in Middle Georgia and approximately 450 acres of land in Florida. As far as production goes, 100% of Hardy Farms peanuts are grown on our farms.  We believe the warm conditions and abundantly rich soil in Middle Georgia allow us to produce the highest quality green peanut. To learn more about our peanuts and production operations,