What is the difference between the state of shelled peanuts when harvested and the ones in the market?

most of them are roasted

They are dry roasted

This reduces the moisture content from 50% to approximately 10% so they can be stored without spoiling.

Roasting or boiling.

I’m sure that someone, somewhere, also has pickled peanuts for sale.

Other than freshness, what is the difference between the state of shelled only (not salted not flavored not roasted etc) peanuts in the market, and the ones shelled right after harvest, other than freshness?

Non-roasted peanuts are not sold in the market except, perhaps, in specialty shops and farmer’s markets. Peanuts must have a significant amount of their natural moisture removed in order to keep them unspoilt inside their packaging. The most common way to have the moisture removed is through dry roasting.

Small farmers and home-gardeners can, if they choose, leave their peanuts in the sun for a few days to dry without roasting. This would be inconvenient for an institution like, say, Planter’s.

Hi everybody! Me new here. :-)

Roasting also affects the taste. Fresh peanuts taste a lot more like fresh (uncooked) green peas, with a little almond-like bitternes added.

There are unroastred and uneverything else, shelled peanuts, along wiith the salted, flavored, being sold in (huge and small and in between, not spelcialty stores at all) without packaging. Take the scooper take the plastic bag buy exactly the amount you want.

@olivier5 Wecome to Fluther.
I have noticed some (very small degree of) bitterness, thank you for mentioning that.