News
The 2026 Spring Symposium of the Australian Hazelnut Industry is being held in Orange, NSW on the 12th and 13th September.
“While a small nut industry the Australian Hazelnut Industry has the ability to grow over the coming decade offering real opportunities for current growers, new growers and potential investors” said Mr Trevor Ranford, Executive Officer, Hazelnut Growers of Australia Inc.
“The industry has the opportunity to grow its production to over 3,500 tonnes as part of an import replacement program along with further development and expansion of specific value adding including hazelnut oil, hazelnut meal and other hazelnut ‘by-product development”.
Research and development being undertaken as part of the Australian Hazelnut R&D Program – AUSHAZ – funded through AgriFutures Australia is an integral part of the program. There will be a strong focus on production topics, sustainability, industry marketing, pest and disease management and bird management.
A full conference program, conference dinner and the Annual General Meeting will be held at ‘The Remington’ on Saturday 12th and orchard/farm visits on Sunday 13th.
‘Over 30 growers, researchers and allied industry representatives will descend on Orange for this annual event.”
Additional initiatives will be discussed as part of a number of grower panels and at the Annual General Meeting of the Hazelnut Growers of Australia Inc.
For more information:
Contact:
Trevor Ranford
Executive Officer
Hazelnut Growers of Australia Inc.
Mobile: 0417 809 172
E-mail: sahort@bigpond.com
Website: hazelnutgrowersaustralia.org.au
Additional information:
Conference Program is attached
Hazelnut Growers of Australia Inc
Australia’s hazelnut industry is still small and offers great potential for new growers, with increasing demand for domestically grown hazelnuts. People interested in growing hazelnut trees have a number of resources available to them and a few sources are listed below as a starting point. However, one of the best ways to learn about growing hazelnuts is to become a HGA member and connect with other growers, access training opportunities through farm walks and seminars along with technical information resources and regular industry updates.
The single best information resource available for newcomers to the industry is the Hazelnut Grower’s Handbook by NSW DPI, which is provided as a complimentary electronic copy to all new HGA members. It reflects best practices from other hazelnut-producing areas around the world and includes information from Australian research programs. The book summarises general climatic and soil requirements, wind shelter, orchard layout, nutrition and fertilisation, irrigation, flowering and pollination, varieties, propagation, buying and planting nursery stock, weed control, pruning and shaping, diseases and pests, harvesting, post-harvest management and marketing of hazelnuts.
Hazelnut Growers of Australia Inc is strongly committed to ensuring the Hazelnut Industry effectively reduces the potential for incursions of emergency plant pests and diseases that could adversely impact on domestic trade/international trade/market access/public health/food safety/regional and national economy/environment. The Hazelnut Industry is also strongly committed to ensuring responses to any pest incursions that may occur are undertaken as rapidly and effectively as possible to minimise costs to growers, the industry, other plant industries, government parties and the wider community.
Hazelnuts are grown in the temperate areas of south-eastern Australia. The main production regions are the Central Tablelands of New South Wales around Orange and north-east Victoria around Myrtleford. They are also grown in central and eastern Victoria and increasingly in northern Tasmania. There are small levels of production in South Australia and Western Australia.
The 2024 Hazelnut production was valued at $5.5 million (LVP). The industry is set for an expansion — there are approximately 600 hectares planted, consisting of around 200,000 trees.
Production is about 544 tonne in-shell, which is expected to increase as new orchards begin producing commercial quantities.
