HARROLD, S.D. — Field peas have been grown in South Dakota since the late 1980s, primarily in the central part of the state. Researchers at South Dakota State University said peas were initially introduced as a rotation crop option that fits well with the winter wheat production area of the central and western portions of the state. However, acreage has remained limited.
Initially, field peas in South Dakota were grown as an opportunity for livestock producers to grow their own high-protein feed, which was appealing to those in lower rainfall areas where soybeans were not as well adapted. But now, many long-term pea producers are growing for seed and human consumption.
“Peas are a fantastic addition to the Great Plains, South Dakota area,” said Chris Werth, an agronomist with Puris. “It’s a fantastic, cool-season legume, nitrogen-fixing, short-season crop.”
Chris Werth, an agronomist with Puris.
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Puris, a pea processing company with global headquarters in Minneapolis, creates pea protein that is used in a variety of different food products. Puris was founded in 1985. It started as a genetics company and is now the largest pea protein manufacturer in the United States.
They have six locations across the Midwest, one of which is in Harrold, South Dakota, which was built in 2019.
“We work with farmers, hundreds of farmers, across the Midwest who grow our yellow field peas and we purchase those back and we turn them into plant-based ingredients,” said Lauren Hoistad, chief of staff for Puris.
Lauren Hoistad, chief of staff for Puris.
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Having a short season legume is a good fit for the central South Dakota area home to the Harrold plant.
“That’s a big benefit. 90 to 95 days from plant to harvest and they can germinate as low as 38 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit,” Werth said. “So, basically growers can get out here in South Dakota nice and early, plant before weed pressure really starts to hit and then harvest nice and early mid-July. Then they have the second half of the season opened up for cover crop, winter wheat, grazing and a bunch of different options.”
The Puris pea genetics were bred in Iowa, which is a warmer climate than a lot of the pea growing parts across the country.
“We actually do have like a unique tool in our tool chest where our genetics were bred in a warmer area. So, you know, North Dakota, Montana, it’s a cool season and peas do have a bit of a risk of heat bloom, a heat burst, if it gets too hot during flower, 90 to 95 degrees. That doesn’t typically happen too much in Montana and North Dakota. But once you get further down, we get warmer during that July time of the year,” Werth said. “That’s where some of our genetics being developed in southern Iowa have that benefit. They have that advantage, especially in South Dakota.”
The pea crop is looking good this year, Werth said.
“It has been fantastic this year. We actually have some growers just like not too far from Pierre and they had a nice snowfall and they had a fantastic emergence,” he said.
Peas are a good fit for the central and western South Dakota climate. One of the Puris processing facilities is in Harrold, South Dakota.
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Pea acreage in the Harrold area has grown slow and steady since building the facility.
“I think first it’s just kind of introducing peas to the local community in the area, getting them to understand why peas would be beneficial to their crop rotations and to their, you know, operations,” Hoistad said. “But it’s slow and steady and if you’re interested in growing peas, we would love to chat with you.”
“We’ve definitely seen some acre adoption around the South Dakota plant. We typically are the premium in the market. So, we do a lot of growers wanting to grow around here,” Werth said. “We’ve seen a lot of adoption west of Pierre too, further out on the dry land areas. They’re really seeing the benefit to peas and their nitrogen-fixing capabilities.”
According to the June 30, 2026, USDA Acreage report, nationwide dry edible pea acreage in 2026 of 1.05 million acres is down 11% from 2025. Planted area decreased in Idaho, Nebraska, Montana and North Dakota, while it increased in Washington. South Dakota acreage is not included in the list of pea-growing states, because the USDA considers acreage in the state marginal. In 2020, farmers in the state planted 11,000 acres of edible peas.
Puris contracts over 100,000 acres of peas across Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa, Werth said.
The company purchases and grows both conventional non-GMO peas, as well as organic peas. The peas are sourced primarily from the Midwest from over 400 farmers.
“We are starting to see a lot more adoption of peas kind of push into the Corn Belt. A lot of growers are starting to see some versatility there and it’s really exciting on our end,” he said. “But, our bread and butter is definitely the North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana pea country.”
Once the peas are harvested, they go to the Puris facility for processing.
The Puris company website describes the Harrold plant as “the vital link between local growers and … (its) production hub” located in Dawson, Minnesota.
The Harrold facility transforms yellow field peas from raw harvest into clean, ready-for-processing inputs, according to Puris, and its Dawson facility produces pea protein, pea starch and pea fiber.
“We clean the peas, we take them, you know, get rid of the sticks, stems and stones, split them, send them over the border from South Dakota to Minnesota, where we mill them into a pea flour,” Hoistad said.
Puris contracts more than100,000 acres of peas. This is their processing facility in Harrold, South Dakota.
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The pea flour gets turned into protein.
“We add some water, make a nice little pea slurry and then turn it into pea protein starch and fiber that ends up in foods in your pantries, frankly, from anywhere from cereal and snacks, to beverage and think anything in between,” Hoistad said. “We also service feed industries and pet food industries.”
With protein trends continuing to rise,
so has the demand for this pea protein.
“Demand has been fascinating. I would say that we’ve seen a huge growth, and it’s not just about plant-based ingredients, frankly. I think when plant-based proteins were introduced, it was all about that plant-based narrative, when frankly, it was always about protein. As humans, we need that protein intake,” Hoistad said. “We have a movement to, you know, make America healthier again, and so you’re seeing that sweep through policy and legislators.”
The interior of the Puris pea processing facility in Harrold, South Dakota, is shown.
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GLP-1s have also played a role, Hoistad said.
“People are eating less if they’re on a GLP-1, so they are trying to eat more nutrient-dense foods, just because they are not able to eat as they traditionally would,” she said.
The protein is used in a lot of different food products on the market, including brands like Ritual protein powder and Be Amazing clear protein powder.
“Unfortunately, a lot of our brands think that we’re the secret sauce inside and don’t want us to share, so it’s a little tricky. So, we always love just sharing that if you see pea protein on the back of a pack on an ingredient label, it most likely is us,” Hoistad said.
