Why is the price of pecans so high

Because tree nuts such as almonds and walnuts are only produced once a year and have low yields to crop areas, they can only grow in very specific conditions. Here are a few other things to know about how price is factored by the growing and harvesting process. Almonds require a temperate Mediterranean-style climate. Like all nuts, walnut prices have increased because they are more in demand than they used to be.

Like pecans, they are grown high in the trees and produce a small yield, making the labor and harvest more of a task. Pecans are grown in many countries, but like a warmer climate with just the right number of chill hours each winter. Pecan trees take 10 years to really mature and produce a real crop. They require a good deal of water, sun, and chill hours. Cashews are expensive because they are tough to harvest without breaking the nut into cashew splits a break lengthwise or butts a break in half.

Additionally, cashew nuts are actually just a small portion of the fruiting part of a cashew tree, as shown in the picture below.

Brazil nuts require a tropical climate. They need to be wild-harvested from the shrinking Amazon rainforest from extremely tall trees. Macadamia nuts require a temperate climate.

The trees take years to start producing, and flowering takes months, which means macadamia nuts mature at different times during the year. The harvesting and cultivation of peanuts are typically automated.

There is a spectrum of peanut pricing: from the small, red-skinned Spanish peanut that costs less to the larger, crunchier more gourmet peanut grown in Virginia, which costs more. However, even though some nuts are expensive, they are also nutritious, healthy, and good for you check out our nuts and pecan health guide.

Not to mention tasty, which means millions of people who choose to enjoy nuts, buy premium products, and invest in themselves and their health every day. The price of these items is due to conditions similar to pecans and other tree nuts world demand, labor required, yield, freshness, and domestic vs.

Many feel the tradeoff of a higher cost with a quality product coupled with better business practices and ethics is well worth it. Here are a few tips for getting the best price for quality nut and pecan products:. We invite you to try and our high-quality Sunnyland pecans and nuts. The pecan sales are led by the US processors although Mexico, which will again have a bigger crop than the US, is set to diversify its markets and cut its dependency on the American processors, according to the International Nut and Dried Fruit Council INC.

The global pecan crop is expected to reach , in-shell tonnes, 9. The US may total , in-shell tonnes, 9, tonnes up from after suffering the impact of Hurricane Michael Mexico is gradually increasing its output and it is expected to increase by 8. Finally, South Africa is expected to total 20, in-shell tonnes, Benjamin Smith is one of the managing editors of Moneyinc.

He has a strong interest in sports, video games and acting his age and he's not even in college yet! You must be logged in to post a comment. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Prev Article Next Article. According to Wikihow , an almond tree can take five years to start producing nuts, but other varieties might go as long as 12 years before reaching peak production 2. Related Posts. However, the demand has not translated into increased production.

With many people turning to natural foods and nuts, in particular, this has strained nut production. The price of pecans is determined by the prevailing market forces of supply and demand.

When the produced nuts do not satisfy the market needs, prices increase, affecting the supply chain. However, this only partially explains why pecans are so expensive. As a consumer, you might not know what goes into the planting, maturing, and harvesting of pecan nuts. The entire process is labor-intensive with high overheads.

These determine the price of the end product in the market. With half of the total pecan production based in the U. The Chinese population is growing as such, the demand for this rare nut does too. A lot of effort goes into the pecan orchards. From planting to harvesting, with many farmers opting for fast-maturing nuts.

Pecans are seasonal, and the tree takes over 10 years to mature and start producing the prized nuts. Harvesting is sometimes disrupted by the extended wet season, which creates distribution gaps in the market, and causes the price increase. Many retailers opt to buy the product during bumper harvest and sell when there is scarcity in the market.