Hazelnuts

hazelnuts

Revised December 2023

Production

Turkey dominates the world hazelnut industry, producing about 70 percent of the world's total and exporting 75 percent. In the U.S., Oregon is the primary producer of hazelnuts. The moderate climate of the Willamette Valley in Oregon makes it a well-suited location for the production of hazelnuts. The most common hazelnut variety grown in the U.S. is the European hazelnut. Other varieties include the California hazelnut, American hazelnut, and beaked hazelnut  (USDA Climate Hubs).

In 2022, there was 77,500 tons of hazelnuts harvested valued at nearly $101 million dollars. Of the hazelnuts harvested, 31,800 tons were sold in-shell and 45,700 were sold shelled (NASS 2022)

Value-added Products

Hazelnuts are often featured in chocolate truffles or ground into meal and used as flour in cakes, cookies and breads.

Chocolate-hazelnut spreads are a popular product similar to peanut butter. An increasing number of food companies have started to make their own version of this spread, which are now available at most major grocery chains.

Hazelnuts are sold unshelled, as whole, diced, sliced or ground kernels, as paste or as oil. The highest quality nuts, which command the highest prices, are sold unshelled. The most important market for these nuts is the snack food industry.

The U.S. bakery, breakfast cereal and confectionery industries use domestic and imported hazelnut. Companies in these sectors often convert shelled hazelnuts to paste for use as an ingredient.

Financial

Helpful enterprise budget for hazelnuts:

Sources

Climate-Resilient Hazelnuts in Oregon and Washington, Climate Hubs, USDA
Fruit and Tree Nut Data, Economic Research Service (ERS), USDA.
Global Agricultural Trade System (GATS)
National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), 2022
Tree Nuts Annual, Foreign Agricultural Service, USDA 2023