Almond Alliance is pushing ahead on trade issues

Under the theme ‘won’t back down’, the Almond Alliance continues to push forward on a host of issues critical to the state’s multi-billion dollar industry. Aubrey Bettencourt,…

The Walnut and Almond Growers Association of Georgia expects a 50% increase in production

The Walnut and Almond Growers Association of Georgia interviewed 180 farmers who harvested about 1,300 tons of almonds and 2,000 tons of walnuts (Chandler) from commercial…

Turkish hazelnut market is in a hard situation

There are major issues with the world’s leading hazelnut producer Turkey. Many EU buyers are now preferring other alternatives, which include Georgia. Competition is getting…

The Spanish and European pistachio seeks common references and synergies in California's leadership

“Spain and some producing areas of Mediterranean Europe are experiencing the emergence of pistachio, but, compared to California, we are like a drop of water in the ocean. There are synergies that we should all take advantage of. If we want to maintain the current profitability, we have to increase…

‘Macadamia consumption does not lead to weight gain’

According to a recent study, published in The Journal of Nutritional Science, macadamia consumption does not lead to weight gain. It may have other positive benefits on…

"The lower prices are however seeing demand for macadamias pick up locally"

The South African macadamia harvest starts around February and lasts until September, the country 72,652 hectares in production. Weather has for the most part been favourable and South Africa has delivered another bumper crop. The total yield has surpassed last year's 68840 (2022 actual) tons to reach 81…

Select Harvests announces net loss after tax of $96.2 million

Select Harvests Limited announces a Net Loss after Tax of $96.2 million for the first six months of the 2023 Financial Year. The result has been materially impacted by La Nina…

EastFruit

UAE retail is interested in expanding the assortment of Georgian products

The UAE-based company – LuLu Group International – is interested in introducing Georgian products into the retail chain, EastFruit reports with reference to the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of Georgia. Minister of Agriculture Otar Shamugia met with representatives of one of the largest trading companies…

California Almond Stewardship Platform System simplified for better grower experience

The California Almond Stewardship Platform (CASP) led by the Almond Board of California (ABC) has been improved to better meet the needs of industry members. The online CASP…

EastFruit

Dates top the ranking of Moroccan fruit and vegetable imports

African countries, including Morocco, accounted for about 40% of the global production of dates in 2021, according to FAOStat. Nevertheless, as reported by EastFruit, Morocco has never been among the global leaders in exports of dates and even continues to increase its imports! In 2022, Morocco was the…

Dried fruit company looking for opportunities with wholesale markets and supermarket chains

Although it was set up only a few months ago, Leonetti Food already has clear objectives in mind, i.e. penetrating the wholesale markets and supplying big distribution chains in Italy and Europe. FreshPlaza has talked about it with Fabiana Leonetti (in the photo below), owner of the company from Puglia…

Operating with sustainable intralogistics in mind

Automation can help get more out of less, making it intrinsically sustainable. Automation and strategically planned intralogistics can enable businesses in diverse industries to become more eco-friendly. Global intralogistics specialist, Cimcorp has customers in two core sectors – grocery retail and the…

25 tons of almonds seized in Alicante due to dangerous toxins

In a joint operation of the Guardia Civil and the Tax Agency this Saturday, 25 tons of almonds with very dangerous toxins were seized in Alicante. Three Spanish nationals and…

Macadamia growers all over the world urged to keep the faith

Although falling prices and over-supply are concerning, the World Macadamia Organisation (WMO) assured macadamia growers across the globe that their nuts still have a lot to…

Mintec

USDA Subjective Almond Forecast comes in above industry expectations

The USDA Subjective Almond Forecast, published on 12th April, estimated the 2023 Californian almond crop at 2.50 billion pounds, down 3% from last season but above existing industry estimates. The USDA pegged yields at 1,810 lb/acre, compared with the Wonderful yield estimate of 1,731 lb/acre and the…

40th World Nut and Dried Fruit Congress set to start in London

The 40th World Nut and Dried Fruit Congress, organized by the International Nut and Dried Fruit Council (INC) is set to start from 22 to 24 May, 2023. About 1,300…

USDA forecasts smaller almond crop

The 2023 California Almond Subjective Forecast published Friday by the U. S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA-NASS) estimates that…

Falling prices and over-supply of macadamia nuts not all doom and gloom

Falling prices and over-supply has been topic of discussion, but it is not all doom and gloom, says Jillian Laing, CEO of, the World Macadamia Organisation (WMO). Keep the…

Grenoble walnut PDO presented at Macfrut for the first time

The Grenoble walnut PDO participated for the first time in the Italian Macfrut event that took place from May 3rd to 5th. With 18% of its exports to Italy, this small nut with its own PDO decided to meet its Italian clients this year. It was also the opportunity for a wider public to (re)discover the…

Trouble ahead if no power to pump diesel to the generators running water pumps, packhouses and cold stores

When you see Kent mangoes in a greengrocer at the moment, priced at R50 (2.38 euro) for a tree-ripened fruit, you are looking at the only mangoes this time of year harvested in South Africa and produced under close to impossible conditions.“I don’t know if we even have six hours of electricity a day,”…

"Promising summer market for frozen chestnuts"

The Chinese chestnut market can be roughly divided into sugar-fried chestnuts in winter and iced chestnuts in summer. It is understood that in the just-concluded sugar-fried chestnut sales season, the price of chestnuts rose due to the reduction in production last year, resulting in a lack of demand in…

Australian macadamia farmers face near record-low prices

Harvesting is underway on macadamia orchards across Australia.. However, after record high prices in recent years, farmers are now facing financial troubles. In the past few…

Portugal and Spain want to strengthen their position on the almond market in France

Pere Ferré, president of the Spanish SAB-Almendrave group, and Albino Bento, president of the Portuguese Centro Nacional de Competências dos Frutos Secos, have presented a new initiative aimed at boosting the almond sector in and outside of the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal and Spain want to strengthen their…

USDA

Utilized production of pecans in state of Georgia was up 47 percent in 2022

The USDA has released key findings for the Southern Region crops.  Regarding avocados, Florida's utilized production for 2022 totaled 17,840 tons, up 25 percent from 2021 while its associated value of production was up 7 percent to $14.3 million. BlueberriesGeorgia's utilized production, at 56.2 million pounds,…

Mintec

Market participants expect lacklustre April almond shipments

Market participants surveyed by Mintec in the first week of May were expecting lacklustre shipments and new sales ahead of the April position report, which is due for release on 11th May. Estimates for April almond shipments were reported in the range of 190-240 million pounds, with most market…

Saudi Arabia date exports increase to SR1.280 billion

Exports of Saudi Arabian dates increased 5.4 percent in 2022 over the previous year, reaching SR1.280 billion (€307 mln). The new figure was released following the center’s…

Spain and Portugal launch joint campaign for more sustainable EU almond production

At a press conference last week, the presidents of SAB-Almendrave from Spain and the Centro Nacional de Competências dos Frutos Secos (CNCFS) unveiled a collaboration - an EU-funded project to promote more almond production from Europe, with a focus on the Iberian Peninsula. The project aims to increase…

Macadamias to become more accessible for Australians

Macadamia supplier Nutworks International, situated on the Sunshine Coast, has revealed that macadamias will become more accessible for the average Australian. An increased…

Korean pine nuts will be added to the list of strategically important goods

Korean pine nuts will be added to the list of strategically important goods, according to a draft government resolution posted for public discussion by the Ministry of…

Spain: Almond industry boosted by China export deal

Recently, a deal was finalized by Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez in Beijing. This involves 50,000 tons of Spanish almonds will be exported to China in 2025. This amount should…

Commodity downturn could increase farm sales in South Africa

Global markets for citrus, macadamias and avocados remain subdued due to the worldwide economic downturn. At the same time, volumes are increasing from more orchards coming…

California is getting ready for a larger 2023 pistachio crop

The push is on to move the remainder of the 2022 crop of California pistachios to make way for a larger 2023 crop which will begin harvesting in late August. Jeffrey Gibbons of Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella says that the incoming 2023 crop looks strong. “We’ve had plenty of winter chill, which you want…

New organization of producers for the French almond sector

The almond sector will soon have its own organization of producers. This was announced by the Compagnie des Amandes during a press conference on the first day of medFEL 2023. Amandiers de France will be created to structure the sector and organize the French production. But the Compagnie des Amandes also…

Australian macadamia growers witness price cuts due to global glut

Macadamia prices will be dropping as a global glut, caused by COVID lockdowns and increased plantings, sent farmgate prices tumbling. Just a few years ago, growers were being…

Georgian Mkisa expects first almond harvest this year

The Georgian group of companies Mkisa expects the first harvest of almonds in its super-intensive orchards this year. Almond orchards with an area of 40 hectares, the…

Dried fruit recovering after a bad 2022

"After a very complex 2022 when it comes to both volumes and production costs, made worse by the high temperatures in the fall that did not favor consumption, the first trimester of 2023 started positively for dried fruit, mainly thanks to the big retail chains," reports Francesco Perego, sales manager…

Schnucks issues allergy alert on Select Culinaria Nut Mixes due to a mislabel

Schnuck Markets, Inc. has issued an allergy alert due to a mislabel on select containers of Culinaria Nut Mixes. The products may have mislabeled packaging, and the Culinaria Cashew & Macadamia mix may contain almonds, which is an allergen for some people. Due to the mislabel, the Culinaria Cashew &…

Rivoira reconfirms its trust in Aweta to satisfy overseas markets with apples

“Today the sector is in a critical situation because these two years of crisis, first the pandemic then the war within European borders, have meant that costs are quite high, that the sector has lost competitiveness. The only way that our company sees to be able to make up for these high costs is to…

Nyeri County macadamia growers troubled by poor market prices

Macadamia farmers in Nyeri County are faced with poor market prices. They claim that local processors are buying their nuts at prices as low as Sh10 and Sh20 per kilogram.…

Californian almond acreage dropped in 2022, despite more bearing acres

California’s almond acreage decreased in 2022 for the first time in more than 25 years, despite a slight increase in bearing acres, according to new reports released Thursday…

“In 6 or 8 years, Spain will have the capacity to supply pistachios to major international chains”

The area devoted to producing pistachios continues to increase in Spain. According to the surface and production advances shared by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food, last year, the area increased by almost 15% over the previous year, going from 61,231 hectares in 2021 to almost 70,300 in…

UC Davis

NIFA looking for climate-resilient pistachios

A federal research agency is devoting nearly $3.8 million over four years to improve pistachio production during periods of drought and warmer-than-average winters. The National Institute of Food and Agriculture-funded project will include research to ensure pollination, experiments to calculate…

Iranian pistachio exports earn over $360 million during 11 months

According to data released by the Agriculture Ministry, the nation of Iran exported over $360 million worth of pistachios over the past 11 months. The next most profitable…

Kenya: 'Grow Fairly' CEO immersed himself in the macadamia export business

Frank Omondi had been in the macadamia business for nine years as an exporter. However, he was disturbed by middlemen taking advantage of smallholder farmers. He saw it as…

Moldovan farmers are advised to protect walnut orchards from diseases

April precipitation added moisture to the soil on farms but also affected the plantations of early walnut varieties, which had already formed fruit buds. To protect the future…

Kenyan government decides to lift the ban on exports of raw macadamias

The Kenyan government has decided to lift the ban on exports of raw nuts. However, industry sources claim that what the country’s macadamia nut sector sorely needs is policy…

"This year, we saw a worldwide hype for Medjool dates"

The end of Ramadan coincides this year with the end of the Medjool season in Egypt, and producers are pleased with a "very successful year," Ramadan Elsayyad, export manager of Palm Hills, reports. Ramadan said, "This year we have witnessed a very high demand for Egyptian Medjool dates. This reflects…

KIND pledges to exclusively source almonds from farms leveraging regenerative agriculture practices by 2030

KIND Snacks, a company whose mission is to create a kinder and healthier world by being kinder to our communities, bodies and the planet, is launching a three-year pilot…

Jordan set to increase date production, reach new Eastern European markets

Jordan with its production of mainly Medjool and Barhi dates -400 meter below sea level is set to increase production volumes and reach more markets in Europe. The country, ranked 9th in worldwide Date exports in value, is enjoying increased Ramadan sales says Eng. Anwar Haddad, Chairman of the Jordan…

A good hazelnut harvest is expected in Georgia in 2023

The head of the Georgian Hazelnut Growers Association (GHGA) forecasts a much better hazelnut harvest in 2023 compared to last year, provided that hazelnut growers are active,…

Pedro Sánchez and Xi Jinping sign agreement on export of persimmon and almonds

A new strategic Spanish-Chinese phytosanitary agreement promoted by the president of the PSOE-Unidas Podemos coalition government, Pedro Sánchez, has made quite an impression.…

Mintec

March almond shipments set new record

The Almond Board of California March position report shows that March shipments reached 281.07 million pounds, up 14.7% year-on-year. This is a record for the month and the highest monthly figure since October 2020. This was the third consecutive month of record shipments, placing Q1 2023 as the highest…

Date brand focuses on increased presence in Canada

Medjool date brand Natural Delights® returns to CPMA this year with award-winning products and a successful Canadian marketing program in tow. For the last several years, Natural Delights has focused its efforts on expanding distribution globally to meet the growing demand for Medjool dates. As part of…

New study emphasizes benefits of daily nut consumption

A major new research review has found that eating a daily handful of nuts is linked with improved blood lipid profiles. Examining 19 previously published scientific papers,…

California’s largest almond cooperative streamlines supply chain

California provides 80% of the world’s almond supply, but these volumes have to be able to be transported around the world. As the pandemic disrupted the supply chain at Blue…

Rain and hail destroys 42,000 hectares of crops in Maharashtra

In the first week of April, unseasonal rain and hailstorms have destroyed crops on some 42,000 hectares in Maharashtra. Horticultural crops such as grape, pomegranate, cashew,…

Georgian Nuts Incorporated expects first commercial almond harvest this year

The large Georgian company Nuts Incorporated owning more than 700 ha of almond orchards (Supernova, Lauren, and Guara varieties) in Eastern Georgia, is waiting for the first…

"Dates sales have been excellent recently"

As usual, the Dutch dried fruit and nuts company Tovano was busy last week because of Easter. "In recent years, Easter sales have always been excellent. People often receive plenty of packages at Christmas, but at Easter, they take more time to make their homes welcoming," says Richard Strijbis. "Plus,…

Kenyan government removes ban on raw macadamia exports

The Kenyan government has temporarily lifted the ban on export of raw macadamia nuts, which was in place since 2015, to offer the growers better prices. According to Moses…

Non-traditional wholesale buyers have paid attention to Moldovan walnuts

According to the Union of Associations of Nut Producers of Moldova, the members of the organization began to receive requests to buy walnut kernels this week. This has…

Pistachio brand kicks off 2023’s “Get Crackin’ campaign

The “Get Crackin’” campaign from Wonderful® Pistachios is back. Wonderful Pistachios will feature nostalgic talent alongside some of the latest trends to relaunch Get Crackin’…

Global demand strengthens US pistachio market share

US pistachio industry officials are optimistic that the American crop can continue to gain market share as signs suggest improved global demand for the crop. The alternate…

Mintec

Market players expect strong March almond shipments

Market participants surveyed by Mintec in the first week of April were expecting strong shipments ahead of the March position report, which is due for release on 11th April. Estimates for February almond shipments were reported in the range of 240-270 million pounds, with most market participants…

Almonds a potential new crop for Hawke’s Bay

The Hawke’s Bay landscape could one day see almond trees popping up beside the apple trees and grapevines it’s more traditionally known for. Research conducted by Plant & Food…

South African macadamia prices continue to drop due to oversupply

South Africa is set to deliver another bumper crop of macadamia nuts this year, surpassing last year’s total yield of 68 840t dry-nut-in-shell at 1,5% moisture, to reach…

Bangladesh witnesses undervaluation of dates

In the Bangladesh retail market, the average price of dates is Tk700-1,000 per kg, with premium quality selling goods over Tk1,800 or above. This came about due to the wrong valuation of imported dates: whatever price is paid, importers have to quote between $0.50 and $1 per kg and pay duty accordingly.…

Annual exports of Spanish almonds to China may reach 90,000 tons in 2032

The Association of Almond and Hazelnut Exporters of Spain (SAB-Almendrave) has expressed its total satisfaction after the Government of Spain announced last week the…

China greenlights the export of kaki and almonds from Spain

Last week, Spain and China signed two trade agreements that will allow the export of kakis and almonds to the Asian country, as reported by the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA). The signing took place within the framework of the visit of Spanish president Pedro Sánchez to China…

China imported macadamia nuts worth US$ 5.18 million from Zimbabwe in 2022

China imported macadamia nuts worth US$ 5.18 million from Zimbabwe in 2022. In total, the nation imported agricultural products worth US$ 657 million from Zimbabwe in 2022, up…

Despite heavy rains, California almonds could be out of luck

California is the world’s largest producer of the nut, contributing 80% of the globe’s almond supply in 2020. Almonds raked in around $5 billion for California’s farmers in 2021. However, Californian almonds have likely not escaped injury from the recent deluge, despite a single nut needing 1 to 3…

High Middle East and Asia demand for Chilean inshell walnuts

As Chile’s harvest of walnuts started earlier this month (March) in the northern areas, demand for the inshell product is strong in the Middle Eastern markets. “Despite high US inventories their quality is not the best because of the weather conditions the last season, that allows Chilean walnuts to be…

Egypt and Australia to increase economic cooperation

Egypt’s Minister of Trade and Industry Ahmed Samir held a meeting with Australian Ambassador to Egypt Axel Wabenhorst on Sunday to discuss ways to strengthen economic…

African food products more accessible to Chinese under Xi Jinping’s “green lanes” promise

As African food products are more accessible under President Xi Jinping’s “green lanes” promise, a range of raisins from South Africa are now reaching Chinese consumers. This…

Chestnut land at Macfrut 2023

This year, a significant number of representatives from the chestnut production sector will attend Macfrut - one of the leading fresh produce events in Europe to be held in Rimini on May 3-5, 2023 - for the first time. The idea to give voice to this segment came to life thanks to CSDC-Centro di Studio e Documentazione sul Castagno…

Saudi Arabia donates 35 tons of dates to Mauritius

Saudi Arabia has donated 35 tons of dates to the Republic of Mauritius, through the King Salman Humanitarian Aid & Relief Centre. The donation ceremony was held at the…