Pecan imports from Mexico have been rising over last season as inventories have dwindled over the past year reaching near decade lows, while this year’s crop is expected to be significantly smaller than originally forecasted. 

 

Earlier in the year we had reports and rumblings of a larger crop here in North America but as we talk with growers and pecan specialists we are getting a picture of a much smaller crop than what many of us had originally expected. 

 

While the crop here in the US is of good quality, shellers and brokers in the US have been importing pecans from Mexico to hedge any bets against a lack of inventory while also keeping farmgate prices lower here at home. 

 

The AMS released the first pecan report of the season last week detailing pecan import numbers and so far this season pecan imports are approximately 7.4 million pounds ahead of the same time last season representing an increase of 26.18%. 

 

The final imports for last season came in at a hefty 232.2 million pounds and so far this year we are pacing 26% ahead of last year. With a lighter crop here in the US we could see even larger import numbers for this year. 

 

While 232 million pounds is a large amount it is only slightly higher than the previous year but lower than 2020, 2019, 2018 and 2017, see chart below for exact import number as reported by the AMS office. 

 

As we get further into harvest we will have a better understanding of how this crop is shaping up and how many pecans we can expect to come onto the commercial market this year.