Market

The July 2023 Crop Corner

The 2023 crop is approaching nut fill, and extreme heat plagues much of the Pecan Belt. Growers are doing all they can to support their trees through these high temperatures while continuing to monitor for pests and diseases. Here’s a quick update on the state of the crop from region to region for July. Southeast:...

The June 2023 Crop Corner

The Crop Corner provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues in Pecan South’s June 2022 magazine. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop...

The Crop Corner May 2023

The Crop Corner May 2023 provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues this month. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop Corner in...

The Crop Corner April 2023

The Crop Corner provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues this month, April 2o23. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop Corner in...

Global Food Trends Give Pecans a Boost

Over the years, global food trends have become increasingly popular among consumers—and for good reason. Global food trends open the door to exciting and unusual flavors, and ingredients and cooking techniques from around the world. Many of these trends are associated with health and wellness benefits, like plant-based cuisine or dishes highlighting nutrient-dense “superfoods” such...

Growing & Diversifying Pecan Production

Many agricultural producers are interested in increasing or diversifying their production operations. Both approaches have benefits and risks. Farmers increase their chance of success if they weigh these potential pros and cons before starting a new venture. So, let’s discuss some benefits and risks associated with different expansion and diversification strategies. Expanding Production Acreage From...

The Crop Corner March 2023

The Crop Corner provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues this March 2o23 issue. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop Corner follows...

Pecans Make Their Mark on Top 2023 Food Trends

The way we buy, eat, and prepare food has significantly changed over the last year. Many of these changes resulted from attitude shifts (sparked by the pandemic), increased focus on climate change, personal health, and environmental issues. However, one of the biggest issues that has shaped current food trends is inflation.  According to the Food...

The Connection Between Supply, Demand, and Pecan Prices

Consumer prices have received significant attention in recent months due largely to inflation observed throughout much of the economy, including food price inflation. In the most recent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report, the 12-month change in food prices was up 10.9%, the highest year-over-year increase in food prices in almost 50 years (Table 1)....

Argentina launches domestic and international pecan marketing campaign

South American pecans are making their way into the markets. Although production volumes are still small compared to those of the big players in the Northern Hemisphere, the marketing and communication efforts of countries such as Argentina and Brazil are gaining strength not only to position themselves in international markets but also to increase pecan...

The June 2022 Crop Corner

The Crop Corner provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues in Pecan South’s June 2022 magazine. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop...

The Crop Corner April 2022

The Crop Corner provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues April 2o22. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop Corner follows these same...

The Crop Corner March 2022

The Crop Corner provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues March 2o22. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop Corner follows these same...

The ins and outs of consumer behavior

Understanding consumer preferences and corresponding behavior is vital for business success. This understanding is important regardless of where you are in the supply chain, although how the knowledge is used may differ. For example, pecan producers who sell inshell or shelled pecans that are, for the most part, homogenous may use knowledge about consumer preferences...

Market and strategy tools for pecan stakeholders

Previous articles in this series have explored the pecan supply chain focusing on pecan producers and consumers. In this article, we shift gears to explore several tools that stakeholders within the pecan supply chain can use to consider opportunities to integrate within the supply chain. For example, a producer may be interested in expanding their...

The Crop Corner July 2021

The Crop Corner provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues in Pecan South’s July 2021 magazine. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop...

Pecan Producers—the Pecan Supply Chain

The previous articles in this series focused on the pecan supply chain and final consumers. In this third article, we’ll look at pecan production and producers in more detail. We’ll explore world pecan production, U.S. pecan production, and issues that pecan producers face. World Pecan Production  Pecans are native to North America, with the name...

The Crop Corner—June 2021

The Crop Corner provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues in Pecan South’s June 2021 magazine. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop...

The Crop Corner—May 2021

The Crop Corner provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues in Pecan South’s May 2021 magazine. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop...

Pecan Consumers

The previous article in this series focused on the pecan supply chain and the marketing channels used to move pecans from producers to final consumers. In this article, we’ll drill down and focus on the final consumers of pecans, both international and domestic. International pecan consumers (exports) The United States exported $150 billion of agricultural...

Six food trends for 2021 and beyond

2020 was a year like no other, but what is in store for 2021? The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the way we shop, eat, and think about food, and while we now see a light at the end of the tunnel, there’s still a long road ahead as we adjust to a “new normal.” Not...

The Crop Corner—April 2021

The Crop Corner provides seasonal updates for readers on pecans throughout the industry and continues in the April 2021 issue. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop Corner...

The Crop Corner—March 2021

The Crop Corner returns in our March 2021 issue with seasonal updates. Created and published by Pecan South editors, The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly harvest and market updates from September through January by compiling reports from growers and market information from reliable sources worldwide. The Crop Corner follows these same standards and technique, and provides...

Pecan Marketing Channels & Players

Most agricultural products, including pecans, make their way through several industry segments, moving from producers to final consumers. The paths these products take are referred to as marketing channels. In this article, we explore pecan marketing channels with an emphasis on better understanding the industry participants in each marketing channel. In future articles, we’ll discuss...

Pecan Demand: Current Status & Pandemic’s Impact

In early June this year, I was honored to facilitate a Pecan Roundtable for the International Nut Congress (INC) webinar series on nuts and dried fruits. It was a virtual meeting with participants from around the world. Joining me on the pecan panel were Andreas Snyman from GWK Pecans in Northern Cape, South Africa, and...

The Pecan Crop Corner — September 2020

Pecan South’s Pecan Newsletter will be kicking off this month, because of that, the 2020 Crop Corner will go on hiatus. If you’d like to continue to receive crop updates and market news throughout harvest, subscribe to the Pecan Newsletter. The Pecan Newsletter provides weekly news and information gathered from across the industry. Once the...

Pecan Innovation Corner

The Pecan Innovation Corner returns for another month and another great pecan product. This month Pecan South presents Wicked Harvest’s Pecan Bourbon Whiskey! Owners of Wicked Harvest, Jim and Gloria Zion have created four craft Bourbon Whiskies out in Kentucky. These are Wicked Harvest Pistachio Bourbon Whiskey, Hazelnut Bourbon Whiskey, and two expressions of Pecan...

Building your brand across multiple markets at half the cost

In the American pecan industry, it is impossible to remain insulated from export market forces, especially today. From counter-tariffs in China to the predicted growth of South African pecans, all U.S. growers and shellers, whether they export or not, are competing internationally. Thankfully, American pecans have several key supports in place. The American Pecan Council...

Part 1: Exploring the National Marketing Campaign, Q&A with the APC

The American Pecan Council launched pecans’ national brand and congruent marketing campaign just a little over four months ago. Since then, “The Original Supernut” has made appearances on “Good Morning America,” been featured in numerous national publications, and been promoted by food bloggers, dietitians, and influencers. But if you’re not looking for it, the marketing...

Chinese Pecan Demand: Short Term or Here to Stay?

While I don’t get to attend as many pecan grower association meetings as I would like, I always find the conversations and comments interesting. Some of the more interesting comments that I regularly hear include: “Pecans will always be the highest priced nuts”; “The Chinese market is only going to get bigger because they can’t...

U.S. Pecan Growers Council Continues Promotional Effort in China

This is the second of a planned bimonthly series of articles describing the mission and operation of the U.S. Pecan Growers Council (USPGC) and its work in developing overseas markets for American pecans. Following an article in the April issue, this article will dive into the Council’s work in China. For more than a decade...

U.S. Pecan Growers Council Explained

This is the first of a planned bimonthly series of articles describing the mission and operation of the U.S. Pecan Growers Council (USPGC) and its work in developing overseas markets for American pecans. This first article will cover in brief the background of the USPGC, why it was established, what are its basic mission and...

Marketing Guide 2017—November edition

Marketing Guide 2017—October edition

2017 Marketing Guide—September edition

Mexico Produces Third Consecutive Record High Crop

Back in September, during their annual meeting, the Mexican pecan growers projected a 2016 crop of approximately 270 million pounds. After 2 consecutive years of record crops, many within the industry greeted the estimate with skepticism even though it is common knowledge that plantings in Mexico continue at a robust pace. On May 5, 2017,...

USDA reinstates pecan crop report

USDA has recently released the summary for the 2013 pecan crop, a report which was dropped a year ago due to budget cutbacks and then reinstated after considerable industry feedback. The report, shown on opposite page, gives state by state production for both natives and improved varieties. For 2013, USDA reports the utilized production for the entire...

Seoul food show suggests promising pecan market in South Korea

The National Pecan Growers Council sent 4 representatives to the Seoul Food and Hotel show in Seoul, South Korea (Republic of Korea) from May 9-17. Rosemary Alexander from the Georgia Pecan Growers Association and Blair Krebs from the Texas Pecan Growers Association were team leaders on the mission and were joined by 2 industry representatives,...

Cold storage totals 310 million

Pecans in cold storage at the end of March 2014 included 50 million pounds of shelled meats and almost 200 million pounds of inshell pecans. When these two numbers are converted to an inshell total, the inshell equivalent of 310 million pounds remained in cold storage inventories throughout the U.S. That compares with 313 million...

Shortest U.S. Pecan Crop Since 1998

The U.S. pecan crop appears to be about 170 million pounds, the shortest crop since 1998, according to Bill Goff, professor and Extension pecan specialist at Auburn University. Pecan industry forecasts made from June through September of 2013 estimated the U.S. crop at an average of 213.6 million pounds. Now that harvest is nearing completion...

Marketing Pecans 101: Agricultural products impacted by unique constraints

Last month I introduced readers to the concept of target markets and discussed some of the pros and cons associated with each market segment. This month I will provide readers with a discussion of the 4 “P’s” of the marketing mix: product, price, place (physical distribution) and promotion, and their counterpart the 4 “C’s”: customer,...

Pecan prices low, consumption strong

Prices paid to growers for U.S. pecans have plummeted as this season has progressed. Some growers are putting pecans into cold storage and others have pecans stacked in their barns debating what to do with them. Pecan meat prices are also lower, especially for pieces. With a significant portion of the large-nut in-shell crop going...

Are record high prices sustainable?

Pecan prices reached record highs this past season and the industry is concerned with the sustainability of these high prices. While it may be difficult to sustain these high prices this coming on-year, it appears doubtful that prices will weaken significantly. Increased demand from China has been an important factor influencing the recent surge in...