Oregon hazelnut yields predicted to be 18% lower this year
The experts say the state will produce 36,000 tons of hazelnuts this year, The Register-Guard reported Thursday. The state produced 44,000 tons last year.
"There are so many variables that it's difficult to come up with this number every year," said Polly Owen, director of the Oregon Hazelnut Industry Office. "For us, it's more of a guideline."
Garry Rodakowski, chairman of the Oregon Hazelnut Commission, said he wasn't too surprised by this year's forecast of a smaller crop.
"As I look at my orchard out of the tractor window, I can see the effects of eastern filbert blight, and my trees won't produce as much as they used to because I'm having to prune that blight out," Rodakowski said in reference to a deadly fungus that has hit some of his hazelnut, or filbert, trees.
Oregon produces 99 percent of the U.S. hazelnut crop, but only about 5 percent of the world crop, according to the Oregon Hazelnut Industry Office. Hazelnut prices are determined by the world market, which is dominated by Turkey.
Source: katu.com
