Austria produjo 1.000 hectáreas de nueces orgánicas el 2016 (texto en inglés)

For a long time, the cultivation of walnuts in Austria led only a meagre existence. There was little diversity in the cultivated varieties; old walnut groves were cleared and hardly any new plant protection products were allowed on the market. Now commercial walnut cultivation has been rediscovered in Lower Austria. In this article, Alexandra Horner (LK NÖ) explains about the market and about the cultivation. Countries such as, Germany, Italy, France and Switzerland increasingly cultivate walnuts, and not only with conventional agriculture but also organic agriculture. In Austria, organic walnuts have been cultivated on about 1,000 hectares in 2016, and the size of this surface is expected increase even further in 2017. Walnuts are now one of the most important produce in Austria. Worldwide, China rules the market with a share of 71%. The USA, Turkey and Iran are three other important walnut producing countries. Since the year 2000 the global production increased with 300%. The quality has to be high to compete with all these players on the market. The current demand for organic quality, Austrian-grown nuts exceeds the production, and the walnuts fetch a good price.