Skip to Main Content

Indiana’s in mint condition

The United States produces 70% of the world’s peppermint and spearmint supply, but you may be surprised to learn that Indiana is the 4th leading producer of mint in the U.S.

The “muck” soils of northwest Indiana, which are high in organic matter and loosely textured for good root growth, make it ideal for growing peppermint, native spearmint and Scotch spearmint.

Most of Indiana’s crop is distilled to make mint oil to flavor products like gum, candy and dental products. The oil is intensely flavored and goes a long way — one pound of mint oil flavors approximately 40,000 sticks of gum!

Mint Infographic

Featured Stories

rows of corn growing
Cultivating industry partnerships in agriculture: Plant breeding, Beck’s Hybrids and The Data Mine

After decades of recording detailed information about different varieties of crops, their traits...

Read More
Tyler Hoskins collects zebrafish from wetlands near Purdue.
Working together to mitigate forever chemicals

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of chemicals used to make consumer...

Read More
Steve Lindemann wearing lab coat in a lab
Researchers explore connections between human and animal health

Steve Lindemann, associate professor of food science and head of the Diet-Microbiome Interactions...

Read More
Senay Simsek holding beakers
Food science researchers contribute to Purdue’s One Health Initiative

In Purdue’s Department of Food Science, researchers are taking on issues of food and health...

Read More
Kaur and Hill stand by robotic dog on a table
Tracking ticks and tackling disease: AI transforms medical entomology

A robot “dog” may soon make its way from a Purdue entomology lab to fetch real-time...

Read More
Linda Lee in front of trees
Agronomy’s Lee receives Spirit of Land-Grant Mission Award

Long before Linda Lee realized that a path to academic excellence existed, she took a...

Read More
To Top