The macadamia market has faced many onslaughts over the past two years, including lower demand due to economic pressure on consumers, and logistical constraints as a result of the COV1D-19 pandemic.
Speakers at the recent AusMac conference said the average price for nut-in-shell products had fallen to US$3,20/kg (about R57/kg) from the high of US$6,50/kg (R115/kg) reached in 2017. Processors had also started paying according to "the style of crackout of the nuts", with the price difference between each category increasing.
At least half of the orchards in South Africa were planted to the Beaumont variety, which was notorious for its lower-quality styles, according to Roelof van Rooyen, director of Marquis Macadamias. He said there was pressure in the market, with much uncertainty about when "the movement of stock will return to a normal pace".
"Issues affecting [product] movement include the 'COVID-19-related hangover' [on trade], logistics at both local and international ports, economic pressure, the increase in the global crop, and even
