Pecan harvest is well underway in the southeastern US with growers across Georgia harvesting nearly all varieties. 

 

Early varieties began harvesting at the end of September and most other varieties have now fully ripened and are now being harvested. Growers have been reporting good quality so far here in the southeast, but that is not the case across all of the growing regions. 

 

In the middle parts of Texas growers have reported poor quality due to lack of water, and some say they will not be harvesting anything due to drought conditions and lack of crop. The largest growing regions seem to have been spared in areas such as west Texas and New Mexico, where all around the area farmers have had water restrictions enforced. 

 

Pecan growers in the area are reporting a fairly good crop, while quality seems to be excellent, the quantity is expected to be off this year in the western region. The tariffs on US pecans entering China are continuing to reduce exports to the region from Georgia, however this year has seen more interest from Chinese buyers as Georgia is the largest producer of the bigger size pecans that Chinese consumers prefer, and purchasing options for these size pecans are quite limited in the global market. 

 

The western pecan growers will not begin harvest for another 30 days or more depending on the weather. Early market prices have been holding firm with a slight pullback late last week. 

 

The USDA has begun releasing their weekly Pecan Reports indicating what they have been seeing in the market as reported by growers and brokers in the indicated areas. You can find the latest reports at the link below.