Mascot Pecan Co. grows from tourist stop to Glennville landmark
by Michelle Wolf
Mascot Pecan Company in Glennville had a humble beginning in 1955 as a roadside tourist stop. Back then, they catered those traveling to and from Florida on the once busy Highway 301. Started by Mills and Juliet Tarver, and Juliet’s brother, Hugh Oliver, Mascot became known for its unique handmade candies and fresh Georgia pecans, which soon were a must-have for travelers. Today, Mascot Pecan Company is a Glennville landmark that sells products to customers all over the nation.
“Mills started shelling pecans by hand and putting them in bags for tourists. The customers were soon calling back and asking for more. That’s when Mills started a small mail order business shipping pecans,” explained second-generation Mascot owner Kenny Tarver.
The business grew, and soon Mills added an automated cracking system. By the time the interstate was built, Mills and Hugh were well on their way to forming Mascot Pecan Company in 1968.
Mascot Pecan Company kept growing over the years to a pecan shelling business. The store and gas station were closed back in the late 1960s when most of the traffic on Hwy. 301 was routed to the Interstate. In 1974, Hugh left the business and opened Atwell Pecans in Wrens, Georgia.
Kenny and his brother, Tim Tarver, took advantage of the opportunity to buy the business from their father in 1991.
“We grew up in the business. I’ve never worked anywhere else. We learned the business from the bottom up. My father passed away two years ago. Up until then, he was still active in the business. He was so proud to see his two sons take over and continue the family business,” Kenny said.
Kenny’s wife, Kim, also works part time at Mascot. Tim’s wife, Donna, is a school teacher.
“Mascot has diversified into specialty candy making. We sell to fundraising groups, small stores, and distributors as well as continuing our commercial pecan shelling,” Ken said.
Over the past ten years, Mascot Pecan Company has offered a gift shop filled with gift baskets, specialty candies, and nuts. Customers can choose from shelled roasted and salted pecans in halves or pieces; roasted and salted cashews; chocolate covered pecans, glazed, and cinnamon glazed pecans; English walnuts, butter toffee popcorn with pecans, pecan caramel clusters, and gift cards.
Mascot makes their unique candies on site, and their chocolate covered pecans are their top seller.
“We roast and salt the pecans first, and then we coat them with chocolate. After the pecans are inspected for quality, they are lined up by a singulator. As they go through the process, the chocolate is put on the bottoms of the pecans, then they roll onto a cold slab to set the chocolate. From there, they move under a chocolate waterfall that puts chocolate on the top. Then, they move through a cooling tunnel. We can produce about 1,000 pounds of chocolate covered pecans an hour,” Kenny said.
The candies are then bagged and boxed, ready to sell, guaranteed fresh and delicious.
Mascot Pecan Company is located on south Hwy. 301 in Glennville.
“There is still time to pick up special items for the holidays. Our gift shop is open to the public; you can order by phone by calling (912) 654-2195, or you can order online at www.mascotpecan.com," Kenny said.