About Our Mac Nuts

Hawaii’s Best Macadamia Nuts are grown on our family farm on the Big Island. Our Macadamia Nuts are preferred by Birds especially Hyacinth Macaws and Black Palm Cackatoos. Macaw birds love our In Shell Mac Nuts! Our Nuts are always naturally air dried…never cooked (cooking robs the nuts of flavor and nutrition). Our nuts are 100% pesticide free and are approved for shipping by the USDA. 
 
Description and Botany
Our macadamia nut trees belong to the family of Proteaceae. They are native to the coastal rain forest areas of Australia. Macadamia seeds were first imported into Hawaii in 1882 by William Purvis and macadamias have since become the most important tree crop in Hawaii.
 
Productivity
In our orchard in Hawaii the trees are planted with grafted seedlings. The trees can start bearing a crop in the fifth year after planting and full production is reached in 12 to 15 years. The trees require 60-120 inches of rainfall a year and are grown at an elevation of 1300 ft. above sea level.
The macadamia nuts are harvested manually after they have fallen every 3 weeks. In Hawaii the nuts typically drop 5 months out of the year from August to December.
 
Soil and Fertilization
Our macadamias are grown on volcanic lava soil and are fertilized four times a year to ensure good production and growth. All the husks, leaves and trimmings are used to replace and supplement the soil nutrients on our farm. Bee hives are also kept on the farm because the bees help to pollinate the trees to increase blooms.
 
Harvest and Processing
At Hawaii’s Best In-Shell Macadamia Nuts the processing of the In-Shell Nuts is very labor intensive and most of the work is still done by hand. Once the nuts are hand-picked from the ground they are gathered into bags weighing around 50 lbs each and brought to the husking facility which is located within the orchard. The outer green husk is then taken off by a machine which is completed within 24 hours of harvest to prevent heat respiration and molding. The nuts are then sorted manually by size. Bad nuts are discarded and nuts which may be unacceptable for humans or pet consumption are mulched, composted and introduced back into the orchard.
 
Air Drying In Shell
When the nuts are first harvested they have a high moisture content of up to 25%. By drying the nuts in open air for 2-3 weeks in well ventilated bins the moisture content then goes down to 3 – 6%.
 
Inspection of Macadamia Nuts
A visual inspection is done of each mac nut before it is put in the mesh bag and shipped out to look for any bad nuts. Our nuts are also approved for shipping by the USDA in Hawaii. If you find an occasional moldy or shriveled nut that might be one that was not picked from the orchard quickly enough. Either the pickers did not see it on the ground, or it was in a grassy area or something similar. A few moldy nuts in your order are possible but we always include several extra macadamia nuts in each order to account for those.
We recommend using a mac nut cracker to slightly crack the nut before feeding it to your bird. This way you can be sure that the kernel does not have a mold problem. While most birds will not eat a moldy nut, some especially young birds may still eat it. This is a safe way to know that your bird will not come into any contact with mold spores. We sell a variety of mac nut crackers here on our website.
 
Macadamia Nut Sizes
Small size Mac Nuts range from 5/8 - 7/8 inch diameter
Standard size Mac Nuts range from 7/8 - 1 inch or more diameter
 
Cracking the Tough Shells
The nuts can be cracked by carefully tightening them in a bench vice or striking them with a hammer after placing them in a clear plastic bag. We also have specialty nut crackers available from our store.
 
Feeding the nuts to Hyacinth Macaws
No pesticides are used on our farms Macadamia Nut trees or nuts, and at the time of shipping the nuts are throughly inspected for quality and only the best of what is avaiable is included in your order. That being said, we recommend, as with any food item that does not come in a sealed package, such as a apple, that you inspect and wash the nuts right before giving them to your bird, and do not let the nut shells come in contact with your birds' water source. While the chances of your order coming into contact with any outside factors and becoming contaminated before you recieve it are slim, the safety of your beloved pets is paramount and we would hate for your pet to get sick from something getting on the shell and then going in its mouth.
 
 
Storage of Macadamia Nuts
Macadamia nuts contain more oil than other nuts therefore care should be taken in order to prevent the nuts from going rancid over time.
 
We recommend storing the nuts in the freezer or fridge. They can be stored in the mesh bag it comes in or in zip lock bags if in the freezer. The nuts will stay fresh for at least a year in the freezer.
If you do not have room in the fridge or freezer then we recommend hanging the mesh bag in a cool, dry area such as an air-conditioned room or a cool breezy area.
Do not keep the mac nuts in their box or in a sealed container unless frozen. Our nuts are air dried not heat dried so the kernel has a higher moisture content and will mold if air is not able to circulate around them.
 
To avoid any problems created by long term storage we strongly encourage you to try our stay fresh auto subscription program. This is a great way to ensure your nuts are always fresh. You can sign up to have your order shipped every 1, 2 or 3 months with whichever quantities you desire. You will also receive our lowest bulk price of $5.00/lb.
 
Best time of year to place orders
The harvesting season in Hawaii runs from August-December. The nuts are freshest during this time. We recommend placing your order in the Fall and winter months and store them in the above recommended ways during the spring and summer months to keep them fresh year-round. You can also sign up for our stay fresh subscription program.