Walnuts and Hazelnuts as a part of the Dutch diet

Walnuts and Hazelnuts as a part of the Dutch diet

Nuts are of great importance to a healthy diet. Moreover, there is an increasing interest in growing walnuts and hazelnuts locally, supported by the Dutch Association for Nuts. Focus is on both fresh nuts as well as on nuts processed into food products. Keep Food Simple provides technological assistance.

Local production
The main sources of walnuts and hazelnuts are the United States and Turkey. To increase local production in the Netherlands, the growing of nuts as a part of circular agriculture has become an important challenge. This includes questions about the choice of cultivars, production volumes and quality as well as the design of short supply chains.

Consumer preferences
In order to establish consumer preferences, an MSc student of Maastricht University has made a critical evaluation of this literature.

Together with its partners, Keep Food Simple will take the next steps to further support locally grown walnuts and hazelnuts. The focus is on technological opportunities, maximising consumer acceptance and nutritional value.