Pecans: efforts to boost domestic demand fail

April 3, 2024 at 10:26 AM , Der AUDITOR
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ATLANTA. Efforts to boost domestic demand for pecans have failed this season so far as the latest position report issued by the American Pecan Council shows.

Strong US exports

While domestic shipments are struggling, exports are up in the US this season. At 234 million pounds (inshell basis) total shipments are lagging 3% behind the 241 million pounds registered in September to February 2022/2023. Shelled meat shipments to retail and grocery thereby declined by 4% to 70 million pounds and inshell shipments to retail and grocery by as much as 41% to 25 million pounds. This comes as a stab in the back for the US pecan industry. Efforts are underway to improve demand by placing new products containing pecans on supermarket shelves as Pecan Report highlights. Growers are also investing in plantations and are simultaneously retaining old trees.

Exports, by contrast, gained as shelled meat shipments are 5% up at 15 million pounds and inshell shipments have nearly doubled to 39 million pounds. Pecans received stand at 234 million pounds, which is 22% up on the 191 million pounds recorded last year. Inter-handler imports range at 124 million pounds (inshell basis), which is 18% less than last year.

Shipments to Canada may have dropped by 4% but the country has remained the most important export destination for shelled meats this season so far. Shipments to Israel have, by contrast, surged by 31% and the Netherlands has recorded a more nominal rise of 6%. The sharpest downturn of 24% has been witnessed in shipments to the UK and the sharpest rise occurred in shipments to Vietnam, which have more than tripled. China accounts for nearly all inshell pecans shipped as volumes have more than doubled to nearly 39 million pounds.

US pecan exports in 1,000 pounds

Destination

2022/23

2023/24

Diff.

Canada

3,651

3,492

-4.4%

Israel

1,518

1,992

31.2%

Netherlands

1,283

1,357

5.8%

South Korea

908

1,242

36.8%

UK

1,323

1,001

-24.3%

Saudi Arabia

528

866

64.0%

France

773

785

1.5%

Lithuania

336

387

15.2%

Vietnam

84

334

297.6%

Denmark

161

285

77.0%

Others

3,853

3,470

-10.0%

Total

14,418

15,211

5.5%

American Pecan Council, shelled, Sep-Feb

 

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