They're bucking the trend. While other growers take a hit, mint is bursting. The crop is exploding right now. And their good fortune could save you a lot of money in the end.

They're not on the list of imposed tariffs from Mexico. Cool spring temperatures put mint growers a little behind schedule but warmed up just in time. Now, harvest has come to an end, and it's looking like a banner year. So how is this industry able to escape the hardships of other growers during these tough economic times? Lower fuel costs. It takes a lot of diesel to run the equipment that turns these mint leaves into mint oil. Last year when we saw gas prices hit more than 4 dollars a gallon, mint farmers got burned. " Energy costs. We've got to get water on the field quite a bit and we've to to get electricity to pump that and that's always going high. Fertilizer is connected to the price of fuel because we use fuel to make fertilizer. So anytime fuel goes up everything goes up, " said Bob St. Hilaire, Vice President for SunWest Ingredients, a mint producer in Wapato.

Including the price of your favorite gum or toothpaste. Washington is expected to produce almost 2 million pounds of peppermint and spearmint oil each this year. One pound of oil can flavor more than 12-thousand sticks of gum or a thousand tubes of toothpaste. The Washington Mint Commission says prices look good right now and expects mint oil users to start buying up this year's crop soon. That should keep prices down for you, as you shop for everything from mouthwash to perfume and even some medicines. But some growers still worry the recession could take a bite out of their profit.
Hilaire said, " Who knows how this is going to end up. It's going to affect everybody sooner or later."

But as long as fuel prices hold steady - this year, at least, could be a moneymaker for the mint industry. Mint oil is generally contracted out to large corporations, like Wrigley's and Colgate. Contract prices are right around $20 for a pound of peppermint oil. And with prices like that, the mint commission expects farmers to increase their crops for next year.