Dry fruits are a delicious and healthiest addition to your daily diet. They are loaded with minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants to help you stay healthy and fit.
But even though we all love dry fruits, do you know that there are some varieties in this category that fetch a higher price tag than others.
You can gift these dry fruits to your loved ones or can also add them to your diet.
Let’s take a look at these world’s top 10 most expensive dry fruits.
10 Most expensive dry fruits
Macadamia nuts, pine nuts, almonds, chestnuts and cashews are among the most expensive dry fruits in the world.
Because prices vary depending on demand, supply, and brand, I have not listed the price of all of the dry fruits listed below.
Let’s get started with the list.
Macadamia nuts
Macadamia nuts are the most expensive of all the dry fruits.
These are produced by the macadamia tree, grown in Australia, South Africa, and the western Pacific. These nuts are Australian native grown primarily in Queensland, where they are the state’s most important agricultural product.
They are not only delicious, but they are also a great source of protein, fiber, minerals and antioxidants.
But why macadamia nuts are expensive?
These nuts are expensive because
- It takes 7 to 10 years to grow nuts from trees, and the harvesting process is slow.
- Their thick shell, which is frequently removed before sale, makes distinguishing between ripe and unripe nuts difficult, making the harvesting process more labour intensive and costly.
- In addition, demand for macadamia nuts exceeds supply, resulting in higher prices.
Many people think macadamia nuts are unhealthy because of their high-fat content. However, all of the fats in macadamia nuts is cholesterol-free and contain palmitoleic acid, which can help improve metabolism.
However, many other countries, such as China, have begun to grow this nut, increasing overall production, which may snatch the title of most expensive dry fruit from it.
Pine nuts
Pine nuts are seeds or the endocarp of a pinecone. They are available in their shells or shelled and are high in fats and proteins, making them a healthy snack. These nuts have been widely used in the cuisines of both Asian and European countries. They are used to prepare a variety of foods or as an ingredient to add flavour and texture to a variety of dishes.
These nuts are the world’s second most expensive, costing upwards of 117$ per kilogramme in the United States.
But what makes pine nuts so costly?
- The pine trees grow naturally in the forest and take at least 25 to 50 years to produce bear cones and seeds.
- Picking pine nuts from trees is a labour-intensive and dangerous job that requires scaling a 100-foot tree, rising labour costs.
- Because most pine trees are grown in the wild in forests, the yield varies significantly from year to year. As a result, demand frequently outstrips supply, raising the overall price of the nuts.
Because of the increased demand for pine nuts, the pine nuts price is likely to continue to rise in the coming years.
Almonds
Almonds are among the most popular nuts in the world. They are delicious and packed with essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals.
Almond trees take a long time to start producing nuts. It usually takes about five years. However, it can take up to 12 years for a tree to reach full nut-producing capacity in some varieties.
Because of the high demand and slow production of almonds, their price is higher than many other dry fruits on the market. Some almond varieties, such as mamra, are the most expensive because they account for only 4% of total almond production.
Also, almonds take a lot of work to grow, and they don’t grow in just any climate. So you’ll have to pay if you want to get your hands on these nuts.
Also read: How To Identify Good Quality Almonds And Avoid Bad Ones
Chestnuts
Chestnuts are among the most nutritious and expensive nuts on the planet.
They are rich in vitamins and minerals, including manganese, vitamin C, riboflavin, thiamine, pantothenic acid, and magnesium. They are also known for having high levels of antioxidants.
The nuts are Non-GMO, hypoallergenic, vegan, gluten-free, and easily digestible.
Also read: Hazelnut vs Chestnut: Which Is The Most Nutritious Nut?
Cashews
Cashew nuts are some of the tastiest and healthiest nuts you’ll ever eat. They’re a small part of the cashew tree’s fruit, found in tropical places like India, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka.
These are high in vitamin E, magnesium, potassium, and various other nutrients.
Cashews can cost up to $10 per Kilogram, which is about 6 to 7 times the price of peanuts.
But why are cashews among the expensive ones?
There are three major reasons for this:
- First, cashews can only be harvested once a year, resulting in an increase in the price.
- Second, unprocessed cashews contain the toxin urushiol, which can cause skin irritation and burns. This is why cashews require more extensive processing than other nuts.
- Third, growing cashews need proper climate conditions, a heavy rainfall can impact the quality and quantity of nuts.
In today’s date, Vietnam is the largest cashew exporter globally.
The rising demand for cashews directly impacts its price from being used in many foods or an alternative to milk and butter.
Walnuts
Walnuts are the fruit of the walnut tree. They come in a hard shell with thin brown skin and cost several times more than other edible nuts.
Walnuts are available in a wide range of shapes and sizes. The most common variety, which grows in North America and China, is black walnut.
The price of walnuts can vary depending on where they are grown and when they are picked.
Also read: 6 Walnut Benefits For Hair That You Absolutely Need To Know
These are highly nutritious and delicious foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids. They are high in protein, fiber, and vitamin E as well.
Why are walnuts expensive?
- Walnut prices are usually high because the yield is low and the demand is high. They’re used to making walnut oil, cooking, garnishing with, and eating as a snack.
- To thrive, they require particular conditions.
- Walnuts are usually ready to pick between September and October, and they can only be harvested once a year.
The high labour costs of walnuts, combined with low yields, have a significant impact on the final price of the walnuts.
Brazil nuts
Brazil nuts are not nuts at all, but instead seeds that are encased in a hard shell. They’re made from the nuts of a nut tree native to the Amazon rainforest. The trees are extremely tall and take years to mature, making harvesting them very difficult. However, when they mature, they produce hundreds of nuts per tree.
Bolivia is the leading producer of brazil nuts globally, accounting for more than half of total production.
But why are brazil nuts so costly?
- Brazil nuts are extremely expensive due to the fact that they must be harvested by hand.
- The trees that produce the Brazil nut are found deep within the Amazon rainforest, so finding and gathering them takes a lot of time, effort, and human resources.
- Also, the shelled brazil nuts are difficult to open and are usually open by hand, which takes a lot of time and effort.
These nuts are one of the best sources of selenium globally and have a nutty, creamy, buttery flavour similar to macadamia nuts.
Pecan nuts
Pecan nuts are the fruit of the pecan tree, a deciduous tree native to North America’s midwestern region. It is one of the most popular nuts in the United States, and it is typically eaten roasted or baked.
But what makes pecan so expensive?
- It takes 7 to 10 years for a pecan tree to produce prized nuts.
- Bad weather frequently disrupts pecan nut harvesting, causing a distribution gap in the market, resulting in a price increase.
- Pecan nuts require more intensive production methods, making them more costly and valuable.
- Pecans are in high demand due to their high nutritional value, which has resulted in a price increase on the market.
Pecans aren’t the easiest plants to grow in the wild. They are expensive because they take so long to mature and produce, and because of this, new pecan trees cannot be planted.
However, these are so tasty and full of essential nutrients that everyone should try them at least once in their lives.
Hazelnuts
Hazelnuts, also known as filberts, are the edible seeds of the hazel tree. The outer skin of these nuts are hard, and it must be removed before eating. These nuts are used to make praline in confectionery. They’re also popular in baked goods like pastries, frostings, and confectionery like Nutella.
They have a sweet flavour and are high in vitamins (B6, B1), minerals (iron, potassium, and magnesium), and fibre.
But there is one big question here why hazelnuts are so expensive?
- This is because they are hand-picked and harvested in a short period of time.
- They are grown in Turkey and Greece and require ideal growing conditions.
- They’re notoriously difficult to grow and harvest, and their popularity has skyrocketed in recent years.
Despite their high price, hazelnuts are a must-try nut.
Pistachios
Pistachios are one of the finest nuts in the world, but they are also quite expensive to produce.
These are nutrient-dense and are popular as snacks around the world, and are often used for garnishes or desserts.
But what makes pistachios expensive?
- Pistachios can only be found in a few locations and require specific weather conditions.
- A pistachio tree takes four to five years to bear fruit. To produce just a handful of nuts in the start, it takes between 15 and 20 years to reach peak production.
- The demand for pistachios is high, but the production is low.
- These are labour-intensive crop that is picked and sorted manually.
Although high in price, these green coloured nuts are worth every penny.
Final words
The above-mentioned dry fruits are the most expensive. Some of these may be hard to find, but I am sure that if you search long enough and far enough, you will be able to find them!
After knowing how difficult it is to produce them, the price is reasonable. These dry fruits are well worth your money because of their incredible crunch, flavour, and health benefits, as well as all of the hard work that goes into them.
If you enjoy the taste of dry fruits and are looking for new varieties to try, why not consider adding some of these to your next shopping list?
These are definitely worth trying!
