Coming Events

The Second Grand New Zealand Pickled Walnut Competition

Get ready to pick those green walnuts soon if you are wishing to enter the second Grand New Zealand Pickled Walnut Competition to be judged during March 2010.

In 2008 our first winner, Ngaroma Ngata of Tolaga Bay, took home the winner's trophy and a runners up certificate.

Jan MacKenzie, of Christchurch, with her 'Jan's Jungle' pickled walnuts was the other runner-up.

Overall there were 23 entries forwarded from all parts of New Zealand.

The second Grand Pickled Walnut Competition run by the New Zealand Walnut Industry Group is to be held in conjunction with the New Zealand Tree Crops Association's National Conference to be held at the Sudima Hotel, Christchurch, Canterbury Thursday 25th - Sunday 28th March 2010

A special dinner on Friday 26th March as part of Taste of Canterbury will feature the Pickled Walnut Competition entries and the winners will be presented with their awards.

The judge for this event is well known food writer and food identity, Mavis Airey, who will speak at the Taste of Canterbury dinner and present the awards.

Entry Form

Entry form and competition information is also available on the NZTCA Conference 2010 website www.treecrops.org.nz or contact Nelson Hubber email nelson@digitalprint.co.nz

NZ Tree Crops Association - Conference 2010

This is the biggest conference about tree crops and particularly nuts for a decade - don't miss it!

Now with a special 'speakers only' registration option - here

The programme is full of interest. Check it out and register on-line at the conference website.

Of special interest to walnut growers will be the presentation by Professor David L McNeil, Director of the Tasmanian Institute of Agricultural Research.

Professor McNeil will speak, Friday morning 26 March. His topic is:

A look at the changing demographics of walnut production and use and how future expansion and production will be affected by resource availability, production and demand as well as new scientific developments in walnut production systems. Finishing off with a look at the place of new and emerging producers in the future.

He is also attending Field Visit 2. Nearly all Nuts, Friday 26 March, and Lincoln University Pre-conference Tour, Thursday 25 March.

Professor David L McNeil (PhD) is the Director of the Tasmanian Institute of Agricultural Research. He was formerly Professor of Horticulture at Lincoln University and has published widely on developing new crops including over 100 scientific and popular articles in the area over the past 25 years.

In particular he has published articles on developing walnuts as a crop in New Zealand with articles on variety selection, agronomy, harvesting and processing methods, composition, blood composition effects and economics of production.

He has worked both in the scientific research field as well as the more practical areas in developing walnuts as a new crop in Australasia.

David presently oversees a small group in Tasmania conducting walnut research, particularly related to walnut blight. He was the Symposium Scientific Committee Chairman for the 6th International walnut conference recently held in Melbourne Australia and editor of the symposium proceedings. He has travelled widely looking at walnut orchards around the world (Europe, America, Pacific) and is a strong supporter of nut industries in total.