Pecans

Origins
Mexico, USA
Product Category
Conventional, Kosher
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Pecans are the only major tree nut that grows naturally in North America and enjoy special cultural status in many parts of the United States, particularly in the South. Pecans are featured in many snack, candy, and baked good items as well as cereals and granolas, as salad or yogurt topping, and famously in pecan pies, a holiday staple in many households. The name ‘pecan’ is a Native American word of Algonquin origin that was used to describe “all nuts requiring a stone to crack.” There are over 1,000 varieties of pecans. Many are named for Native American tribes, including Cheyenne, Mohawk, Sioux, Choctaw, and Shawnee. Pecans have been exported commercially since at least the early 1800s. The U.S. produces about 80 percent of the world’s pecan crop. U.S. pecans are grown in 15 states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Florida, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Texas and the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Durango, Nuevo Leon, and Sonora. Pecan production has steadily increased in the United States, rising from 2.2 million pounds in 1920 to between 250 and 300 million pounds today.