Walnut harvest coming to a close

Throughout September, most Berber villages in the Moroccan High Atlas mountains have been involved in the walnut harvest. These villages rely on the annual harvest of walnuts for cash – something often in short supply in village life! There are exceptions to this of course – Imlil at the foot of Toubkal has in addition to walnuts, apple, almond and cherry harvests and the Ait Bougammez valley near Mgoun has apples but in the main, walnuts are the main cash crop for Berber mountain villages. The unfortunate reality is that these two villages / valley areas also benefit hugely from tourism income, often giving the wrong impression to visiting trekkers and climbers that Berber villages are relatively well off – but I digress…..

There is always a big difference between the retail price and the price paid to the producer for most agricultural produce – and the walnut is no exception. Producers from developing countries often lay prey to big multi-nationals which is where the likes of Fairtrade have come into their own. Producers receive a minimum price that covers the cost of sustainable production and an extra premium that is invested in social or economic development projects. We are all familiar with Fairtrade coffee, chocolate, cocoa, cotton products and the like. However whilst there is a large array of products falling within the Fairtrade ambit, the walnut for whatever reason is not included. (I am open to correction on this but this is the position as far as I am aware).

Walnuts are one of the best plant sources of protein. They are also rich in fibre, B vitamins, magnesium, and antioxidants such as Vitamin E. The 2006 BBC report about the health benefits from eating walnuts lead to a reported 80% increase in demand at Waitrose.

The producer in the Berber villages sells walnut by the 1000 (not by weight). 1000 walnuts in their shells weigh approx 7.5kg. The going price at the moment for 1000 nuts is between 150 – 200dh. This equates to around 25dh per kilo.

Once they are shelled and brought down to the local town souk (market), the price has more than doubled to 55dh for a kilo of walnut halves.

However this is good value compared to some UK health-food websites where the retail price averages out at 240dh (£14.95) for a kilo of shelled walnut halves.

The margin therefore between the price paid to the Moroccan Berber producer and the price you pay in the UK is around 215dh per kilo – in other words over £13 difference for every kilo!

More on this later, but in the meantime must get cracking on all these walnuts we’ve been given by our Berber friends…..