The price received from US Pecans is at a current level of 2.16, up from 1.42 a year ago. This represents a 52.11% change compared to a year ago. Buyers evaluate these factors and take into account shelling costs and profit margins to arrive at the prices per pound of meat they are willing to pay for each grade. This Committee discussed alternative spending levels, based on the relative value of various activities for the nut industry and the impact of the new research and promotion program.
The Order states that, based on the Council's recommendation or other available data, the Secretary shall set three basic quota rates for pecans in shell handled during each fiscal year. Pecans purchased for immediate or later sale as pecans in shell tend to generate higher prices than pecans purchased for shelling, thus defining the expensive end of the market. This rule does not impose additional reporting or record-keeping requirements on small or large pecan handlers. Under the new program, pecan research and promotion activities are funded through the collection of evaluations of U.
The relatively small number of pecans entering the end-use market with shell must have certain characteristics that make them pleasing to consumers. The prices that buyers ultimately expect to receive for pecan meat are essential in calculating the price offered to the producer. The program will be funded through evaluations of pecan handlers grown in the production area and will be administered locally, under the supervision of the USDA, by a Council of seventeen industry-nominated and USDA-appointed producers and shellers (handlers). For example, droughts and heavy rains in Texas last year could be an environmental factor affecting pecan supply.
The percentage of emptying refers to the amount of production of nut meat relative to the weight of the whole nut that is determined by a emptying test on a small sample collected from each batch. If batches graduate to Choice or Amber, the same pricing strategy is used, except that the price paid for pecan meats in those grades would be lower than for Fancy. Assuming a normal distribution, most pecan producers and handlers can be classified as small entities. Domestic buyers have been busy reviewing the lots that have been offered and producers are taking their nuts out of storage areas and taking them to the market, as prices remain stable.
There are approximately 4,500 pecan growers in the production area and approximately 150 handlers subject to Order regulation. Price expectations for pecan meat are influenced by several factors, including the current annual production of competing pecans and nuts, the number of pecans and other nuts carried over from the previous year, domestic demand for nuts, and imports and exports of pecans and other nuts.
