Macadamia market in positive territory as weather taxes end harvest

Australian Macadamia Society chief executive officer Clare Hamilton-Bate reported to member growers this week that a 9 per cent drop in the 2024 crop forecast from earlier predictions would reflect dry conditions at flowering and a very wet harvest.

Most plantations are continuing to pick up nuts off sodden laneways with some parts still inaccessible. Usually the harvest would be wrapping up by this time.

In spite of the drop, from 60,000 to 56,000 tonnes of nut in shell at 10 per cent moisture the industry estimates a 5pc increase in overall supply as new plantations come on-line.

Ms Hamilton-Bate says there were improvements in kernel recovery and nut size compared to last year and overall quality remained good.

Meanwhile supply of quality kernel has been diminished, with more in-shell product heading offshore last year, particularly China.

As a result less crop was available for processing and the stockpile that had existed has been whittled away.

The challenge looking forward is to manage increasing supply, with significant new tree numbers in the Bundaberg, Childers and Maryborough districts of Queensland while new plantations on Northern Rivers floodplains will also lift that volume, with two-thirds of those yet to reach full bearing capacity.

This comes despite older red soil macadamia plantations being thinned to encourage better yield. Some farms have been converted to other production in the wake of low prices.

However, Ms Bate said the industry had turned a corner with a range of prices significantly better than last year.

Industry sources say they are being paid above $3/kg for the better nuts.

"There is a place for every type of cracked nut, from grade 0 to 7," said Ms Bate. "We just need to make sure there is kernel available to service the market."