Nuts - Import export

Productinformation Harvesting of the Brazil Nut primarily takes place around november, all the way through march. A Brazil Nut is more than one nut: There can be as far as forty of them inside of a three kilo heavy capsule – which is around the size of a coconut. When these capsules fall off their trees in the amazon region, caution is advised: harvest workers can get badly hurt, if not taking precautions like wearing helmets. The Brazil Nut is a powerful nut on many levels – but primarily in its nutrition value and its powerful taste. Origin Growing areas include South America - Brazil, Bolivia and Peru. The tree of the para nut is native all over the whole amazon region. The trees are real giants of the rainforest: up to three meter in width and up to sixty meters in heighth. They even tower above the thick roof of the tropic rainforest. All atempts to cultivate the para nut tree elsewhere in the world have failed – so with the ongoing expoitation of the rainforest, the Brazil Nut actually is an endangered species of nuts.

Productinformation Harvesting of walnuts normally takes place around september and october – in Chile they are harvested between september and october. The History of the walnut dates back as far as the year 7000 b.c.: The walnut tree derives from Persia, centuries later they were brought all over the world through british merchant shipping. At the end of the 19th century a big industry branch in producing walnuts developed in California. After the planting of walnut trees it takes at least six to eight years until they are fully developed – they can achieve a height of thirty meters and become up to a hundred years old. And every year, a mature tree can yield up to four-thousand nuts per tree. Origin The highest concentration of walnut trees can be found in the US, Chile, France, India and Moldavia.

Productinformation Harvesting of pistachio happens in the middle of september. Pistachio trees look very alike to almond trees, their female trees carry fruit after they have been fertilized through their male counterparts. The very first harvest of pistachio is then possible after seven years, and afterwards in a two-year-cycle. Around april pistachio trees are beginning to bloom. When the plant begins ripening, its pit is growing so fast, it will downright burst open its surrounding shell. Pistachio will be roasted in their shell and are traded salted. These tasty green pits are not only consumed as a snack, they can also be found in special types of sausages or on top of chocolate candy – as they are always a delicious addition. Origin Pistachio are cultivated over extended areas in Iran to Turkey and from Pakistan to India. The United States by now also have an enormous industry branch of producing pistachio.

Productinformation The Pecan nut normally can be harvested around october and december – in South Africa harvesting happens between april and may. In the 15th century the pecan nut primarily was popular around indian tribes in South America – today one type of pecan still carries the name of one of those tribes: "Cheyenne". French immigrants then entitled the nut "la pacaniere", which lead to its present-day name "pecan". The american Hickory-tree carries the pecan nut. Its pit is very similar to that of a walnut – but it is quite different in its taste, a lot milder and with an even richer flavor. Origin Growing areas include the US, Mexico, South Africa und Australia.

Productinformation The queen of all nuts was discovered by Dr. John Macadam in Australia in 1857 – that’s how she got her name. A few years later, first ship loads were delivered to Hawaii. The pacific island developed a really fast growing, big industry branch in cultivating macadamia nuts. Since then, the majestic tasty nut became more and more prominent. Nowadays Australia remains the second largest industry branch cultivating the nuts, right after Hawaii. Once planted, the nut trees need five years before being able to carry first fruits – their maximum carrying capicity is reached after ten years. The shell of a macadamia nut is really strong – you need special nutcrackers to open them. This is why macadamias are solely traded as peeled nuts. Origin The macadamia’s growing areas reach from Australia – their country of origin – over New Zealand as far as Hawaii. They also can be found planted in South Africa and Kenya.

Productinformation The main time for harvesting hazelnuts is around september and october, in Turkey, for example, already around july and august. The hazelnut tree is a long-lived, small shaped tree with round, oval leaves. Contrary to other nut-carrying trees it shows no signs of blossom in spring time: The male flowers are larval-shaped tassels, and the female ones simply small, nearly not visible, buds. Origin Growing areas of hazelnut can be find in Turkey, Georgia, Italy, France, Spain – and the US. The hazelnut’s historical origin is in the Black Sea region in Turkey: From there the nuts were first brought to Rome, from where they were spreaded all over the world. The oldest document of the hazelnut nonetheless can be found in China: The now famous nut was already known there in 2838 b.c.

Productinformation Cashew nuts are harvested in India around the time of may and june. The “Kashu” tree derives from the same family of trees as mango- and pistachio-trees. They carry their first fruits approximately after three years - the tree’s maximum carrying capacity is reached after seven years. The cashew tree’s fruit consists of two parts: the cashew “apple” and the actual cashew “nut”, which grows right under the apple part. Cashew nuts are eaten raw in asian regions, but in the rest of the world there are known as a deliciously roasted nut-snack. The cashew apple itself also has a tasty purpose: in the indian market, juices and wine made out of the fruit are very common and popular. Origin India is the major exporting country – especially the national regions of Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andrdhra Pradesh, Orissa, Maharashtra and Goa. Other countries of origins are Brazil, Mozambique, Kenya, Tansania, Vietnam and Sri Lanka – from America and Africa just over to Asia.

Productinformation Actually, almonds are not really nuts – in a botanical sense they are stone fruits. Almonds are harvested around september and october, whereas in Australia they are ripe and ready around march and april. Once planted, almond trees need four to five years to be fully developed to make a good harvest. Around march almond trees are in full bloom: Having very sensible flowers, the beautiful almond trees can be easily destroyed by sudden frost. Origin Almonds are cultivated mainly in the US, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Morocco and Australia. The first almond trees were brought from Spain to America by franziscan monks – 200 years ago. The number of plantations increased fast – until today a big industry branch producing almonds is developing in the western region of the US.