The 2017-18 pecan harvest season is only days away and seems to be off to a rocky start. The US pecan crop was recently reduced by an estimated 30 million pounds as a result of tropical storm Irma, and the effects on Georgia; while Texas recently saw losses from hurricane Harvey. To compound this supply shortage, Mexico is estimating a 30% reduction in crop from last year. While pecan growers in Texas and Georgia are cleaning up limbs and storm debris to make ready for harvest in less than 10 days, Mexican pecan growers are negotiating with shellers for better prices.

In years past many Mexican pecan growers would have already made deals and be focused mainly on harvest this time of year; but with a shorter than average crop, and an ever increasing global demand the pecan growers are holding out for better offers.

As each day passes inventories dwindle in cold storage, leaving many shellers and accumulators anxious to get new crop coming into the warehouses.  We will be keeping a close eye on the markets to see how this unfolds.