By Clint Thompson
Georgia’s final pecan total this season is estimated to be less than half of its total in 2020. While that’s not a surprise to growers and industry leaders, it’s still a tough pill to swallow following last year’s 142 million pounds of production.
“I don’t think it’s going to be much over 50 million pounds, if that,” University of Georgia Cooperative Extension pecan specialist Lenny Wells said. “I think what really made it so bad is there was a seven-day period during September when our light levels, the solar radiation, was about half of what it should be that time of the year. It came at a very critical time during the time when the kernels were filling. We had a lot of orchards that even looked like they had some pecans, the volume just wasn’t there. The kernels weren’t able to fill like they should.
“I think the rainfall throughout the summer and the cloudy weather, especially in September during kernel filling, that was kind of a nail in the coffin there. Those were the two biggest contributing factors.”
One highlight of this season was the strong prices for growers from the start of the season to the end. It was a sign of the decreased production felt industry wide.
“Prices were very strong. I think that was pretty much a reflection of a lack of a crop, not just in Georgia, but in many pecan-producing regions throughout the world; South Africa, Mexico, even over in Texas,” Wells said. “A lot of areas had a really short crop this year.”