International travels sharpen tree nut industry insights for Midwest development

As we work to grow Midwest tree nut industries within agroforestry systems, our team understands the importance of collaborating with international partners that steward established tree crop farms and markets abroad. While their growing contexts and market conditions may be distinct from our own, reciprocal knowledge exchange among tree crop professionals in other countries is invaluable as we simultaneously work with our domestic partners to develop opportunities for profitable family farms through growing high-value specialty crops like hazelnuts, pecans, black walnuts, and chestnuts in our region.

In August, Associate Research Professor Andrew Thomas, an affiliated faculty member with the Center for Agroforestry, introduced black walnut orchard nut production to attendees of the first ever International Temperate Tree Nut Symposium in Naples and Alba, Italy. Thomas chaired a colloquium titled “Plantation Systems for Sustainable/Organic Orchard Management”. 

The Symposium included two intense days of scientific sessions followed by four full days touring hazelnut, almond, pistachio, and chestnut farms and research sites from southern to northern Italy. An important part of the Symposium was a tour of the massive Ferrero plant in northern Italy. Ferrero consumes a quarter of the world’s hazelnut supply (more than 100,000 tons per year) to make products like Nutella and chocolates. 

At the Symposium, Thomas gave the only paper on black walnut, which was well-received with lots of interest and questions, especially after he handed out dozens of snack samples provided by Hammons Products Co, the nation’s largest black walnut processor located in Stockton, Mo.

In September, Center for Agroforestry Researcher Bryan Webber traveled to Beaulieu (“Beautiful view”) in the rural southeastern countryside of France to tour the nut equipment manufacturer AMB Rousset during this year’s harvest. AMB Rousset is a family-run nut production manufacturing company that first started in 1970. They produce specialized machinery for nut crops including chestnuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, pecans, macadamia nuts, apples, and more. The equipment includes tree shakers, harvesters in multiple sizes, nut-specific washing lines, nut dryers, nut crackers, and sorting equipment. Their equipment is tailored to help farmers of all sizes produce and take their crops to market while maintaining high quality. Our team is particularly interested in the chestnut washing line, which will be the mainstay of our proposed chestnut processing facility for the MU Horticulture and Agroforestry Research Farm. Webber was able to see the chestnut processing line in action with the European chestnut cultivar ‘Bouch de Betizac’. It turned nuts from the field with burs, sticks, and all into clean nuts ready for storage until the holiday season.

Other highlights of Webber’s visit included testing the AMB Rousset CRC nut cracker on pecan and black walnut. The CRC is a workhorse for cracking common walnuts, hazelnuts, and almonds but this was their first time running pecan and black walnuts. Cultivars ‘Kanza’ pecan as well as ‘Hay’ and ‘UMCA Hickman‘ black walnuts were shipped from Missouri ahead of the visit so Webber could collect data on the crack out efficiency. The machine can be adjusted for cracking size and blower speed while working, and was easily calibrated to crack pecans with satisfaction. Black walnuts are by far our toughest nut to crack but the CRC was able to do the best job of any mechanical cracker we have seen. We have this machine in proposals to purchase for research and demonstration.

Finally, although the trip was brief, Webber was able to enjoy the sites and culture of this unique French region home to La Noix de Grenoble (Grenoble walnuts). This area can be characterized by fresh and fine foods, beautiful scenery, and being immersed in a traditional agrarian community. There was even some alley cropping with squash in young walnut trees! AMB Rousset has been serving tree nut growers overseas for over 55 years, growers that are similar in size and ideals to many of the family farmers we serve at the Center for Agroforestry. We look forward to continuing to build these international connections for continued tree nut industry development in the Midwest and Eastern US.