Macadamia Nuts (NIS & Kernel)

Nut-in-shell and kernel styles 0 to 8 from South Africa, Australia, Kenya & China

Macadamias trade in two forms that go to different buyers. Nut-in-shell (NIS, HS 0802.61) is bought by crackers and by in-shell snack markets, and is priced on sound kernel recovery, moisture and nut size; kernel (HS 0802.62) is bought by food manufacturers and packers and is graded by style. UN Comtrade 2024 export declarations show South Africa leading both: NIS exports across reporters total USD 279 million, with South Africa USD 133 million and 44,104 MT and Australia USD 81 million and 25,270 MT; kernel exports total USD 396 million, with South Africa USD 160 million and 18,508 MT, Australia USD 77 million and 7,117 MT, Kenya USD 55 million and 7,431 MT and China USD 34 million and 2,984 MT. About half of South Africa's crop is exported in-shell, mostly to China and elsewhere in Asia, and half as kernel. Kenya is a kernel-only origin: its Agriculture and Food Authority reinstated the ban on exporting raw in-shell macadamia in July 2025, so Kenyan supply is processed kernel. Harvest runs from March in both South Africa (to about July) and Australia (to about August).

Kernel is sold by style, and the style is size and wholeness. Under the World Macadamia Organisation style guide, Style 0 is at least 95% whole kernel above 20 mm, Style 1 at least 90% whole at 16-20 mm, Style 1S at least 90% whole at 13-18 mm, Styles 2 and 3 are mixes of wholes and halves, Style 4L is at least 80% halves above 13 mm and 4S at least 50% halves at 10-14 mm, and Styles 5, 6 and 7 are pieces at 8-12 mm, 5-9 mm and 3-6 mm, with Style 8 the fines and meal below 3 mm. Wholes (0 and 1) go to premium snack and chocolate-coated lines; halves and pieces go to bakery, cookies, ice cream and confectionery; fines go to paste and meal. UNECE standard DDP-23 caps kernel moisture at 2.0%, and the Australian NIS quality standard requires in-shell nuts held longer than 90 days to be stored below 15°C. In the EU, macadamias fall under the general tree-nut aflatoxin limits in Regulation (EU) 2023/915: 2.0 µg/kg B1 and 4.0 µg/kg total for nuts placed on the market, 5.0 / 10.0 µg/kg for nuts to be sorted. CBIL is a commodity brokerage company and brokers macadamia NIS and kernel from South African, Australian, Kenyan and Chinese processors against a certificate of analysis for style, moisture, aflatoxin and microbiology, a phytosanitary certificate and a certificate of origin. Kernel ships vacuum-packed or nitrogen-flushed in cartons and NIS in bulk bags, both container-load on FOB, CFR and CIF terms. Send the form, style or NIS specification, volume and discharge port, and the enquiry is screened and worked against it.

Excluded origins are not offered, including product re-exported, blended or re-processed through a third country. Every lot moves with a certificate of origin naming the producing plant, mine or grower country, and nothing is quoted before the seller and loading point are known.