Back in the 19^th century when the "infernal combustion engine" was first invented, there were a few far-sighted individuals, even then, who knew that the world's supply of petroleum wasn't going to last forever.

One of those visionaries was a fellow named Rudolf Diesel.

You may have a car or truck equipped with one of his engine designs, though it's been greatly refined and improved since it was invented in 1892. Diesel's engine was originally designed to run on coal dust, not peanut oil – but as it turned out, peanut oil worked quite well.

It still does – but this is only one of the industrial uses of the lowly peanut. The peanut has a potentially huge role to play in agriculture above and beyond that of a direct food source. For example, the tops of a peanut make excellent hay, while the protein cake residue left over from processing the oil itself can be alternatives to commercial animal feed as well as petroleum-based fertilizers.

It goes without saying that low-grade peanut oil is potentially useful as a fuel for a wide range of farm machinery. However, there are a lot of commercial products that the peanut finds its way into that gets used on the farm. The use of peanut oil in paint and varnish is a less-toxic alternative to turpentine. If you raise horses, that oil makes for a fine leather dressing as well.

Out in the field, pest control with peanut oil is starting to catch on. It turns out that ants and other insect pests are repelled by it.

Some of the more unusual ways in which peanuts are used include furniture and various types of glue – and ladies may find this substance in a number of common cosmetics as well. Green-minded builders may be interested to know that peanut products are starting to find uses in construction materials, including wallboard, abrasives, plastic fixtures and other handy items.

In fact, there is little that peanuts can't be used for. As the world's petroleum supplies continue to dwindle – affecting the many, many products containing oil– farmers along America's Sun Belt may be called on to increase their production in order to fill the void.