Australia is home to approximately 800 macadamia growers and has over 38,000 hectares planted. Australia produced a crop of 51,500 tons in-shell at 3.5% moisture content for the 2021 season (March 2021 – February 2022). This represented a 10% increase on the 2020 crop. While the NSW growing regions were impacted by severe weather early in the season, most Queensland growers experienced a comparatively good season, with favorable weather and good harvest conditions.
Growers in South-East Queensland had a particularly good 2021 season with no adverse weather conditions, and they experienced higher yields than in 2020. In addition, the final crop figure was positively impacted by new plantings (predominantly in Bundaberg and the Clarence Valley) coming into production earlier than anticipated.
Macadamias are grown along the eastern coast of Australia from Nambucca Heads in the south to the Atherton Tablelands in the north. Collectively Bundaberg and the Northern Rivers region produce around 80% of the Australian crop
Production by region data
The 2022 season is expected to reach 49,340 tons in-shell @3.5% moisture content, a 4.3% reduction on last year. The crop was heavily impacted by severe weather and flooding in NSW and South-East Queensland, resulting in physical crop loss and delayed harvest. Growing regions affected by the severe weather in March include Glass House Mountains and Gympie in Queensland, and the Northern Rivers and Mid North Coast regions of NSW. The Northern Rivers region was the hardest hit, with many growers facing very challenging conditions for several months due to prolonged rainfall following two flooding events.
However, the largest macadamia producing region of Bundaberg was not impacted by the severe weather and should see an increase in crop given the new plantings in recent years in this region.
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Source: trade.australian-macadamias.org