| The fruit, native to Australia, was introduced to Costa Rica in 1960. Thanks to the ideal altitude of our location, we are able to prolong the macadamia harvest for nine to 10 months of the year. The macadamias are first dried in ovens for 24 to 36 hours, to remove 10% of their moisture. The hot-air drying oven can dry up to 4 tons of macadamias at once, and is fueled by the nuts? own shells. This wood-free process complies with the strictest environmental standards. The fruit is then taken to the processing plant, where it is dried again in heat silos, to remove all but 1% of their moisture. Of all the fruit taken through the entire process, 45% are sold as complete nuts. Of these, 60% are used in baking or are processed further: covered in chocolate, caramelized or candied. More than 90% of our national production is exported to Japan, the United States and Europe. |
