As the 2017-2018 pecan harvest continues forward across the southern US and Mexico, many new buyers and producers alike continue to watch the pecan markets very closely. With global demand for pecans continuing to rise pecan growers and shellers are reaping a bountiful reward.

Just over 10 years ago the pecan was introduced into the Asian markets. China has been a big consumer of pecans in the Asian market, and their appetite for both in-shell and shelled pecans continues to grow. Since the MAP program was funded China has been the number one export market for In-shell pecans. But they are not the only country with a growing taste for pecans. South Korea is also another growing region. Since 2011 exports of pecans to South Korea have consistently trended upward. Vietnam is another growing region for in-shell pecan exports, in 2016 Vietnam came in 2nd behind China. While the pecan meat market has seen growth in Asia, the European Union is where the pecan meat market has seen most of its growth. Exports of shelled pecan nuts to the European Union have almost tripled since 2011. The significance of all this growth is that even though the export numbers look impressive, the footprint of pecans in these countries and even in the US is still very small. The room for growth is still staggering when compared to other similar tree nuts. With demand for pecans continuing to rise around the world, many expect prices to continue to move upward until significantly more production is available to keep up with the demand. With the time it takes to get a pecan tree into production the industry desperately needs more producers to help fill the gap between supply and demand.