How to open a flax growing business. Growing nuts as a business. Calculations and advice

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An interesting business, growing walnuts, you can start with a traditional fundamental investment and expect profit over the years, or you can also start receiving income right away. Let's consider both options, their advantages and disadvantages.

Own garden

Walnuts, a highly profitable business, get along well in the European part of Russia. After planting the seedlings, the trees begin to bear fruit after 5 years. At first they give a small harvest, but every year it increases, and after 5-6 years you can harvest 6-8 times more nuts. This means that when building a business on walnuts, you cannot count on a quick return on investment.

It is these factors that can cause the loss of part of the planted nut orchard, so it is necessary to prevent the occurrence of diseases, rodent pests, and take the necessary measures during drought.

Expect that about 100 trees can be planted per hectare, which will produce 600-700 kg of nuts in the 5th year. Within a year, the harvest will increase to 1 ton. The increase will continue, reaching its maximum in 10-11 years - up to 4-5 tons of nuts.

It is believed that the yield of kernels from nuts is 50%, but it is more correct to take 35-40% as a basis. It turns out that the harvest will bring 1.4-1.7 tons of walnut kernels. The cost of 1 kg varies from 350 to 600 rubles. Let's take the average figure of 470 rubles as a basis and get 658-799 thousand rubles. year. But this is on an area of ​​100x100 m. If you increase it 3 times, then the income can exceed 1.5 million rubles per year. This is not on an industrial scale, but considering that the average annual salary in the country does not exceed 400 thousand rubles, such an income is very good, despite the fact that it does not require much time for courtship.

To grow nuts on an industrial scale, you need to cover an area of ​​100 hectares, which allows you to receive an income of 40-50 million rubles per year, taking into account overhead costs. Such volumes will require purchasing equipment, fertilizers, hiring personnel, security, paying taxes, etc.

The purchase of seedlings will cost from 100 to 500 dollars per 100 pieces. The cost varies greatly depending on the type. Do not try to save too much, as this will affect the volume of fruit that the trees will bear.

Some points when landing

If you expect that trees will generate constant income, then take planting seedlings very seriously. Ignoring this point can lead to the fact that the 10-30 thousand rubles invested on seedlings can go to waste. And the trees that get along will produce a poor harvest or will not bear fruit at all.

All stages of work can be divided into:

• plowing;
• fertilizer;
• clearing;
• disembarkation

As soon as a site for planting is selected, all vegetation that is removed from it must be destroyed, and the site itself must be harrowed, leveled and disinfected. After this, you need to apply fertilizer at the rate of 100-600 kg of humus per 1 hectare. Clearing is carried out at the end of summer and beginning of autumn to a depth of 0.3 m. In the next two autumn months, partitioning, leveling and division occurs.

It is very important to place the seedlings according to the north-south direction. This allows you to eliminate darkening and provide the trees with the maximum amount of light throughout the day. On an inclined area, the rows should be placed parallel to the horizon, which eliminates darkening, so there is no need to line them up in the north-south direction.

You can plant trees in both spring and autumn, but the first option is better. The fact is that the seedling has time to take root and get stronger before the winter cold, which can negatively affect its growth. Holes for seedlings are made immediately before planting so that they retain the maximum level of moisture. The diameter of the hole should be 55-65 cm.

Before planting, the roots of the seedlings are carefully trimmed and placed horizontally at the level at which they will be buried, leveled around the tree in the shape of a star. Grafting after planting takes place at a height of 4-5 cm from the surface of the earth. There is no need to pour water into the hole before planting. After the planting process is completed, the earth is easily compacted, and around the circumference of the hole you need to make a depression into which up to 20 liters of water is poured. The planting process ends with the trunk being fenced with soil up to 15 cm high, which is not compacted.

How to start earning money right now?

A walnut business does not necessarily have to be accompanied by planting orchards. Where should you start a business that does not involve cultivation? Please note that walnut, like a tree, grows not only in courtyards and farm gardens, but also in neutral territory - along roads and in forest belts. This makes it possible to organize their collection without investing time and money in growing trees.

You can collect it yourself, but this limits the quantity. It is better to organize a collection and pay 60-80 rubles for each kilogram of unshelled nuts collected. 1 kg of unshelled nut yields 350-400 g of peeled nut. Taking into account losses, we will take as a basis the indicator that 3 kg of unshelled walnuts yields 1 kg of peeled walnuts, which sells for 350-600 rubles. As in the case discussed above, we start our calculations from the figure of 470 rubles. It turns out that having invested 180-240 rubles in the purchase, we get a profit: 470-(180-240) = 230-290 rubles. That is, you can count on 100% profit.

If you organize the process correctly, every day in September-October you can collect from 200-300 kg to 2-3 tons of unshelled nuts, which will bring a profit of 25 to 250 thousand rubles per day. In a good season, such earnings can last 30-40 days and bring from 750 thousand to 10 million rubles.

Regardless of whether the nut is obtained from your own garden or as a result of purchase, it still needs to be sold.

Moreover, this must be done quickly, because the peeled nut requires proper storage conditions, and violation of this requirement will lead to its spoilage.

It is necessary to conclude supply agreements in advance with stores, confectionery factories, and food warehouses. You can post advertisements online.

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* The calculations use average data for Russia

In botany and in cooking, the word “nut” is understood differently. From a scientific point of view, nuts mean the fruits of a very limited number of plants, while in everyday life it is believed that nuts are represented by almonds, pine nuts, cashews, pistachios, peanuts, coconuts and many other fruits that are not very common or popular in Russia . A real nut is the fruit of the hazel, or hazel, which has nothing to do with the nut family, but its fruit, the hazelnut (or hazelnut), is a classic example of this type of fruit. Commonly used nut products also include walnuts and acorns, which also include edible chestnuts. Thus, this article will discuss the cultivation of real nuts that are in demand on the Russian market: hazelnuts, walnuts and chestnuts.

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It should be immediately noted that promising areas are also the cultivation of this type of fruit such as beech nuts, which in some regions of Russia are consumed in quantities comparable to the volume of consumption of sunflower seeds. Also, the nut family has several species with edible fruits, these are pecan and black, gray and Manchurian nuts. However, due to the fact that traditionally they are rarely eaten in this country, their cultivation cannot be called a highly profitable business. Also, these plants can often be cultivated only in a limited area of ​​the country, so their cultivation is even less widespread.

To work, you need to register a business entity form. The cultivation of nuts is entirely related to agriculture, unless their subsequent processing is intended. If you plan to have a plot of less than one hectare, then you can not register, remaining the owner of a personal subsidiary plot (LPH), which is not considered a form of entrepreneurship. In this case, it is possible to sell the surplus products received without the need for reporting, because it is considered that private household plots are maintained for personal use. But in the case where the area exceeds one hectare, registration is necessary, because according to the law such activity falls under industrial cultivation. In this case, it is better to register your peasant farm (peasant farm), which is essentially an association of several citizens, although it can be founded by one person.

You can register a simple legal entity or become an individual entrepreneur, and in all these cases you can pay taxes in the amount of only six percent (unified agricultural tax Unified Agricultural Tax for peasant farms and a simplified taxation system under the simplified tax system for individual entrepreneurs and LLCs). The activity code is the same for the cultivation of all real nuts and falls under (OKPD 2) 01.25 Fruits of other fruit trees, bushes and nuts.

The site must be chosen in such a way as to accommodate plants that live for a very long time. Many walnut and chestnut plantations become a family business, which is passed down from generation to generation, because these trees can bear fruit for decades; for example, a walnut remains productive even at the age of 500 years. Even hazel, being a bush plant, bears fruit for 30 years, after which it can be “renewed” in order to completely restore all its properties. Walnut trees are also valued for their high-quality wood, but a business cannot be built by growing and then cutting down the trees, because it takes a lot of time for the tree to become large enough to produce large volumes of high-quality wood. But in order to get the fruits, it is worth considering the option of renting land only if it is planned to buy it gradually. Otherwise, there is a possibility of investing significant funds and getting nothing at all.

The nut growing business is designed for the long term. Many varieties of these plants begin to bear fruit only after 5 years, and sometimes later, so the investment will not be returned very soon. Therefore, it is very good to start growing nut plants in multidisciplinary farms. Large trees that have not yet begun to bear fruit, but already have a spreading crown, shade the area well, which makes it possible to grow shade-loving crops between the rows under them. These trees are also honey plants, and their pollination depends not least on insects. Therefore, walnut tree orchards go well with your own apiary, but honey obtained from chestnut trees is very low in value, and it is not advisable to have it only as a honey plant. However, it is not worthwhile to deal only with nut crops, because profits will appear over a long period of time, and you will have to invest a lot of money in caring for the trees. Moreover, their benefit for their farm can be very great even when they do not bear fruit.

Nuts are harvested using special machines, which can be universal, but also cost more and can be specialized. If you have a garden of fruit crops, then it is better to take a universal device that will be used constantly. You can, of course, harvest the crops manually, but this is too labor-intensive and requires the involvement of a large amount of hired force. Machines for harvesting nuts are special “shakers” that grab the tree trunk and vigorously shake them, after which the crop itself falls to the feet. To do this, you need to first prepare the ground under the tree so as not to lose the fruits. Nuts do not hit the ground, so harvesting them is much easier than collecting fruits with pulp. Also, if hazel is grown, then it is harvested, usually by hand, because it is a shrub that does not grow too many nuts.

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Chestnut. Cultivated species – Castánea sativa, Beech family. This plant produces edible fruits, although it is very easy to confuse it with the common aesculus (Æsculus species). The latter is often used in tree plantations, landscaping and artificial forests, but its fruits are poisonous to humans, although they are very similar to chestnut fruits. This plant generally belongs to the Sapindaceӕ family. Edible seed chestnut is difficult to grow in central Russia, since it is not a winter-hardy plant and may die after the first severe frost. Chestnut is cultivated in the south of Russia, and there it can produce a good harvest after reaching its maturity. In addition to the climate, chestnut is very demanding on the quality of the soil, and the seed must be planted to a considerable depth. However, edible chestnut trees are grown, as a rule, from seedlings. You can buy them at a relatively low price of 250 rubles per seedling. But some other varieties (such as Japanese chestnut or scalloped chestnut) are slightly more expensive.

One hectare can accommodate up to 120 plants, and thus it will take 30 thousand rubles to purchase all the seedlings. It must be taken into account that the chestnut crown is the densest and transmits light the worst, which makes it difficult to grow anything under it, unlike a walnut.

Chestnuts that grow in natural conditions can begin to bear fruit only after 10-20 years, but cultivated varieties begin to bear fruit at 4-6 years of age. Like all fruit trees, maximum yield will be achieved only after about 10 years of life, but even at the age of five, chestnut can provide its owner with a decent amount of fruit.

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From one mature tree you can collect an average of 150 kilograms of nuts, which is 18 tons per hectare. If we consider that the average price for one kilogram of edible chestnuts is 400 rubles, then the income per hectare alone will be 7 million 200 thousand rubles. It is also necessary to take into account the fact that chestnuts are grown by a small number of farms, which allows them to be sold to a large number of buyers at high prices. Of course, the economic importance of chestnut is somewhat lower than that of walnuts or hazelnuts, and it is popular in many European countries, but not in Russia, but it is used not only in its raw form, but also as an ingredient in many dishes.

Hazel. Also often called hazel, it is a close relative of the birch, but not the hazel. This species of Corylus avellana produces fruits that are commonly called hazelnuts. This plant also grows wild, and the cultivated variety is called Large Hazel (Corylus maxima). The fruits of this plant are called hazelnuts, although in appearance and taste they are not very different from hazelnuts. In addition to being actively consumed as food, hazelnuts are also used as a substitute for almonds, because they not only taste similar to them, but also produce a similar oil. However, hazelnuts are still a substitute for almonds, and are valued a little less. In Russia, this plant can grow in many regions, so it is usually not difficult to cultivate. Hazel grows well in sunny areas; it needs a lot of moisture and phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizers. An excess of potassium can negatively affect yields, which may not exist at all in some years.

This plant is planted in early October or very early spring, and it must be taken into account that one plant requires about 36 m2, even though it is a shrub and not a large tree. One hectare can accommodate no more than 270 plants, however, there are varieties that are designed for intensive farming, and then up to 600 plants can be placed on one hectare. Therefore, you first need to familiarize yourself with the variety that you plan to plant. However, it is best to purchase several different varieties of this plant, because their cross-pollination will allow you to get the largest yield and have healthier plants.

They begin to fertilize hazel only in the second year of life, and organic fertilizer is also added. The yield of this plant is about one ton per hectare, which is an order of magnitude less than that of other nut-bearing plants. There are varieties that produce more fruit, but an average of one ton is considered even good. In lean years, it is possible to harvest very few hazelnuts, and therefore their price on the market is consistently high. However, proper cultivation reduces the risk of crop loss; and not least of all this depends on pest control.

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So, to get your own nut orchard, you need to buy 270 seedlings for 300 rubles (the cost of some varieties can reach 700 rubles). Costs per hectare are 81 thousand rubles. To increase the value of your products, hazelnuts can be cleaned with special equipment. Its cost is about two million rubles, but then the cost of a kilogram of hazelnuts will increase from 400 rubles to 700. That is, instead of 400 thousand rubles, it will be possible to earn 700 thousand per hectare. But it is cost-effective to purchase such equipment for a plot size of 5-10 hectares. Then you will be able to quickly recoup your investment and engage in targeted sales of peeled fruits. The equipment may cost more if you do not buy it from a Chinese manufacturer, and then the equipment will be of higher quality and will last longer, but its cost is also an order of magnitude higher.

This plant also begins to bear fruit at the 4-5th year of its life, giving an annual harvest up to 20-30 years. But the hazel that has stopped producing fruit is cut off, leaving the root and covered with fertile soil. Next season, a renewed plant will grow and bear fruit again. At the same time, the hazel wood obtained after cutting is a valuable resource that can be sold at a high price.

Walnut. Also called king nut, species – Júglans régia. Very famous and popular culture. Currently, it is used in a very large number of industries, and at the same time there is a shortage of this product on the market. Growing walnuts is a highly profitable business, which, unfortunately, will also begin to make a profit only after 5-6 years. The land for walnuts should be landscaped with a drainage system, because excess water has a detrimental effect on this plant. It is very demanding on light, so you need to select well-lit areas with good air recirculation - this is necessary so that cold air masses do not linger in the area.

For effective cultivation, you need to allocate a very large area per plant. A nut will develop correctly and produce a good harvest only if at least an acre of land is allocated for it, that is, one hundred square meters. It turns out that only 100 trees can live on one hectare, and this is a very small indicator for cultivated plants. The plant is relatively frost-resistant, especially for young non-fruit-bearing plants. Mature trees after severe frosts can significantly reduce yield. Therefore, you need to constantly care for trees properly, applying the necessary fertilizers on a schedule. While the tree does not bear fruit, other garden crops that do not like large amounts of light can and should be grown under it. When the tree begins to bear fruit, it is better to clear the land only for it.

The cost of one walnut seedling is 400 rubles, and then for one hectare an amount equal to 40 thousand rubles will be required. When the trees begin to produce fruit, they will enter a five-year period of small yields, after which they will begin to produce large quantities of fruit, maintaining this ability for centuries.

On one hectare it will be possible to collect about 3 tons of crop, but only 60% of this will be the kernels themselves, which are valued in the food industry. It turns out that the useful yield of one hectare of walnut tree garden will be 1.8 tons. But peeled kernels cost 600 rubles per kilogram, and then the income from this site can be a little more than 1 million rubles. As already noted, walnuts are currently considered a scarce commodity, so any quantity of products received will be sold with a high degree of probability. Growing walnuts can truly become a family business that will provide for more than one generation of the farmer’s family. After all, you don’t have to limit yourself to just one hectare of plantings.

We can say that growing nuts today is a very, very promising activity, because they are used in many areas of industry (not only food, but also cosmetics, paint and varnish, which require large volumes of nut oil). At the same time, the market is in need of these products; not too many nuts are grown due to their long period before fruiting and large areas that do not participate in crop rotation and are simply taken over for these crops. But growing nuts is also relatively simple; nut-bearing trees have always been natural inhabitants of the flora of Russia. Thanks to breeding work, today it has become possible to cultivate these plants even in places where they initially could not grow. In this regard, growing nuts can be considered a business designed for many years, starting to make a profit only after a few years, but profitable and fits well into a diversified economy.

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Interest in nut farming as a profitable business is growing. Director of the Institute of Nut Crops Vitaly Radko talks about the features of this segment.

- What trends in the field of walnut farming can you note?

Walnut farming in Ukraine, despite the existing problems in the state, is developing, not least thanks to the purchase price for nuts, which remains at the level of 150 UAH, which encourages farmers to pay attention to this crop as a source of main or additional income. Unfortunately, so far 95% of the nut harvest is collected in the private sector. I would like to believe that the situation will change soon, because the demand in domestic and foreign markets is very high.

- What can you name as the main obstacles to the development of walnut farming?

Financial questions. Consider for yourself, at the initial stage you need to spend at least 80-100 thousand UAH for 1 hectare, of which 50 thousand UAH should be paid immediately. If you add the cost of irrigation, then this is another $1-1.5 thousand/ha. Add the cost of maintenance in the first 4-5 years, until the garden begins to fully bear fruit, and you will feel how high the threshold for “entry” into the business is.

The walnut farmer cannot take out a loan from a bank because he needs to pay interest and there is no working capital. No bank will defer payments for 5 years. Of course, we hope for government support. New programs initiated by the Ministry of Agrarian Policy could somehow solve the issue of financing the industry.

Producers complain that the limiting factor in growing walnut plantations is not so much the cost of planting as the lack of quality planting material on the market. This is true?

According to my data, Ukraine produces about 150-200 thousand seedlings per year, imports 30-50 thousand per year. If you compare prices, an imported seedling costs € 11-16/piece. The main supplier of walnut seedlings to the Ukrainian market is Moldova. Their seedlings are of good quality, but the cost somewhat offsets the profit. Seedlings are also imported from France, but they do not take root well in Ukraine. The price of Ukrainian seedlings is 300-320 UAH/piece.

- Why so expensive? Due to high demand?

You correctly noted that in Ukraine there is a relatively low supply of quality seedlings. I do not agree with the fact that the price has increased recently. The euro exchange rate has risen, and the domestic price has also risen. And the price was €10-15 2-3 seasons ago.

- What is better - to patriotically buy seedlings in Ukraine, or to import?

The most appropriate thing is to establish modern nut nurseries in Ukraine in order to increase the resources of existing ones.

There is great interest in creating queen cells, but from a technological point of view it is difficult to plant them. First, you need to grow seedlings with a specific root system in a specific growing area (zoned varieties). Secondly, you need a high-quality rootstock, which is difficult to find in Ukraine. Third, it’s a matter of time - if we establish a mother garden in Ukraine, we will receive rootstocks only in 5-6 years. Until they live, several more years will pass - in total, 7-8 years. The market will not wait for that much product.

If you are starting new industrial walnut orchards, on what number of hectares is it advisable to start?

Everything is individual. It is difficult to recommend someone to start a plantation of 20 hectares if the funds are only enough for 1 hectare. At the same time, if there is 2 hectares of personal peasant farming, then it is not practical to switch directly to industrial production, which requires mechanized harvesting. The most optimal economy starts with 10 hectares of walnut plantations. Massifs of more than 50 hectares also deserve attention, but you need to be careful here. For example, in the Dnepropetrovsk region, a walnut orchard with an area of ​​500-600 hectares was established, and it had to be uprooted due to the spread of fungal diseases on the trees, against which plant protection products were powerless.

- What is the average walnut yield in Ukraine? How does it compare with European and global indicators?

There are few orchards producing commercial fruit in Ukraine, so there are also problems in terms of productivity. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the average nut yield in the country is 7 t/ha, however, this statistics is very arbitrary, because most of the crops are grown on household farms, so we are not talking about accurate accounting of areas and yields. In reality, the normal yield of a walnut orchard in Ukraine is 2-2.5 t/ha, sometimes we have record holders who receive 6-7 and even 8 t/ha. Abroad, walnut yields vary depending on climatic conditions and varieties. In California, 7 t/ha of nuts are harvested, in France - 5-6 t/ha, in Moldova - 3-3.5 t/ha.

- Which regions, according to your observations, are the most suitable for the development of walnut farming?

There are a number of criteria for planting a walnut orchard, including temperature, precipitation, groundwater level, and soil acidity. It is impossible to clearly identify any area. The largest number of plantings and leadership in walnut growing are now in the Chernivtsi, Khmelnitsky, Odessa and partially Nikolaev regions. Chernihiv region, Slobozhanshchina, Dnepropetrovsk region are risky walnut growing zones. There is a pronounced continental climate here - moderate frosts, sudden temperature changes, which walnut categorically does not accept. Last year's frost of -5 0 C caused irreparable damage to 50-60% of plantings in some regions.

Regarding the practical aspects of cultivation. What do plantation owners most often have to struggle with?

First of all, the safety of seedlings: our people sometimes have a “mentality” - if an entrepreneur has planted a walnut orchard, then he has high-quality seedlings and you can take “a little” home. Sometimes it happens that people plant 30-70 hectares and literally after 2-3 weeks 30% of the seedlings disappear in an unknown direction. The owners no longer have enough money to hire security - after all, in addition to wages, it is necessary to create living conditions for the security guards, buy dogs and the like.

Another nuance is the type of planting of the garden and, accordingly, its fruiting. In Ukraine, apical planting is practiced - the nut grows along the perimeter. But in California, the lateral type of planting is common - around the perimeter and inside. With this scheme, thanks to special pruning, the nuts can be encouraged to grow and intensify. If mass pruning is carried out in Ukraine, then next year the owners will not reap the harvest, so it is carried out 4-5 years after planting, and adult trees are subjected only to sanitary pruning.

The nut, whatever one may say, needs additional hydration. If this is ensured, it is possible to increase the overall yield, kernel fullness, and minimize diseases. The type of irrigation must be chosen carefully. Conventional drip irrigation for walnuts is technologically difficult to apply - moisture, if it gets on one side of the tree, is not transferred by the roots to the other side, so on one side the plant will be waterlogged, and on the other it will dry out. Therefore, when installing systems, it is extremely necessary to use the advice of specialists.

Nowadays there is a lot of talk about the fact that greater profitability can be obtained in the production of hazelnuts. Is this true?

Economic calculations show that walnuts and hazelnuts have approximately the same profitability. Usually there is a difference between technology and start-up capital, but the total costs are the same. Judge for yourself - a walnut according to the 10 * 10 scheme is one hundred seedlings at a price of 35,000 UAH, the price of one hazelnut seedling, depending on the variety and origin, is 80-100 UAH, 35-40 seedlings are needed for 1 hectare, so the cost of planting virtually equal to a walnut garden. The maintenance and technological care of hazelnuts in their natural (technological) form differ, but the cost is approximately the same $400/ha. Now let’s compare the revenue - walnuts give a yield of 3 t/ha, if you multiply them by 40% of the yield at a price of 120 UAH/kg and this will give 144 thousand UAH/ha, hazelnuts also have a yield of 2 t/ha, and not peeled, directly from the field, costs approximately 70-80 UAH/kg, which in monetary terms is approximately 150 thousand UAH/ha. That is, I cannot say unequivocally that hazelnuts are profitable.

- What other types of nuts may become popular among producers in the near future?

We calculated the profitability of black walnuts and pecans - these are interesting and profitable products. Their supply on the market is very limited. However, in Ukraine there is neither experience in growing them, nor normal technology. Among other things, there is an implementation problem - you need to provide a certificate of origin, which no one can currently issue to the manufacturer. There are problems with walnuts here, not to mention pecans and black nuts, which are essentially wild plants. Therefore, from an administrative point of view, introducing new varieties of nuts into the culture is a difficult issue.

How satisfied is domestic demand for nuts? Are Ukrainian products competitive on the international market?

According to standards, a person should consume 26 kg/year. Ukrainians consume no more than 1.3-1.5 kg/year. But the economic side of the issue comes into play here - Ukrainians are ready to consume more, but the price of the product is stopping them. Purchasing power is very low.

Regarding potential exports. According to FAO experts, Europe needs an additional 100 thousand tons of walnuts annually. Ukraine ranks 4th in the EU in nut production and is a leader in exports in Europe. We need to maintain these positions and increase our presence in other countries. And it’s worth it, because the price of hulled walnuts on the world market is $5-7/kg, depending on the color, fraction and country of origin, unshelled walnuts are $2/kg.

- How do you see the nut market in the future, say, in 3-4 years?

This area will continue to develop in two to three years and beyond. The two biggest problems are the inaccessibility of funds for planting walnut orchards and the lack of quality seedlings. If we overcome it, everything will be fine.

Irina Zolotareva

Walnut is a plant whose fruits are highly valued in many industries due to their unique and beneficial properties. The price for this product on the market is high, especially for nuts without shells. Growing nuts as a business can be an interesting investment and occupation for more than one generation of the family.

Where to begin?

I would like to immediately note that agricultural business is not an easy task, as it might seem at first glance.

To grow walnuts, you will first need land and a small area is not suitable for such an activity.

In Russia, walnuts are rarely grown in plantations due to widespread rumors about the unsuitable climate. There are types of nuts that are resistant to climate change and severe frost.

Walnuts drying in the sun

Another nuance that scares many people away when entering this type of business is the long-term return on investment. Investments will be considerable, and the walnut tree will produce its first fruits only after about 5 years.

Over these years, the plantation will require constant care and monitoring. You will have to spend money on fertilizers, organizing irrigation and security. Not everyone is ready to wait that long for profit, so you first need to decide this issue for yourself.

After the decision is made, it is necessary to formalize the status of a legal entity in the form of an individual entrepreneur or a limited liability company. Choosing the status of an individual entrepreneur or LLC is based on the taxation and accounting system that is convenient for a businessman.

Walnut packed in bags

Beginning businessmen often prioritize the question of the distribution channel for future products, which is their mistake. There will be no problems with selling products due to little competition in the market and high demand. In the first years, you need to pay attention directly to the plantation, the quality of the future product and its care.

It is better to purchase land rather than rent it, since trees may begin to bear fruit later than planned.

How profitable is it to grow walnuts?

Walnuts are used not only as a product, but also for cosmetic and medicinal purposes.

A variety of creams and oils include walnuts. This product is also widely used in the confectionery industry.

As a result, about 15-20 kg of unpeeled fruits can be obtained from one tree.

Peeled fruit costs on average about $5 per kilogram, and unpeeled fruit is half the price.

On a plantation of about 1 hectare, it would be optimal to plant about 150 trees. As a result, from one harvest, the plantation will bring an approximate profit of $10,000.

Walnut shells can also be sold, which can reduce the cost of caring for the plantation and harvesting.

Registration

The registration of a future business depends on the area of ​​land that the businessman plans to use for planting trees.

If the area is less than 1 hectare, then the sale and cultivation of nuts can be considered as a personal subsidiary plot.

If the area is greater than or equal to 1 hectare, then it is necessary to register the status of a legal entity and pay taxes. In any case, if you plan to sell shelled nuts in the future, then it is better to open an individual entrepreneur or LLC and work officially.

When registering an enterprise of this type, the simplified taxation system (STS) is most often chosen.

Land lease

Land for organizing a walnut plantation can not only be purchased, but also rented. As a rule, land for agricultural planting costs less than land for construction and can be rented for a long period. Choose an area of ​​at least 1 hectare, otherwise the costs of maintaining the plantation will not pay off.

The soil should be light loamy, turf or sandy loam. Trees love the sun and do not tolerate high humidity or, conversely, drought.

When organizing space on a future site, do not forget to take into account the need to organize a warehouse. If this is not possible, then you can also rent a room for storing nuts.

Meat is a product that is always bought, even in times of crisis. can be a very profitable direction. In the article you will find calculations of costs and profits when organizing such a business project.

See business plan for a children's store with calculations.

Do you want to start a manufacturing business? Here we will consider the prospects for organizing a business in the production of paving slabs.

Purchasing seedlings

Nuts can be grown from either seedlings or seeds.

It is more difficult to grow a tree from seeds, although a plant grown this way bears fruit better.

It is not always possible for a sprout to break through a thick shell and sprout.

An excellent option would be to purchase ready-made seedlings, which you can choose from species adapted to the desired climatic conditions. The most common types of walnuts are:

• The ideal is frost-resistant and has a large core weight.
• Aurora is a species whose fruit ripens quickly.
• Elegant - tolerates dry weather well and is little susceptible to disease.
• Dessert – bears fruit early and ripens.
• Fruitful - resistant to frost and begins to bear fruit in the 3rd year after planting.

Before purchasing, you should decide on the type of nut that will feel most comfortable in the existing climatic conditions.

Do not buy seedlings on the market, but purchase them only from official nurseries. This eliminates the possibility of purchasing a low-quality and unfruitful tree.

Sales market

After many years of waiting and harvesting, the question arises about distribution channels for the products.

Peeled nuts are more expensive, but you will have to purchase special machines to crack the nuts, or hire people to do it manually.

When cleaning manually, additional problems arise in the form of employee theft, which negatively affects the company’s budget.

To sell the collected nuts, you can consider the following marketing options:

• Wholesale sales to stores. At the same time, you can choose large hypermarkets in large cities, as well as small stores that also need similar goods. With this approach, you will have to take care of your own packaging of the goods.
• Confectionery production. In this case, it is worth concluding an agreement for the supply of nuts with confectionery factories or bakeries.
• Pharmaceutical companies. Nuts are used for the production of medicines and drugs, so the supply of such goods at a favorable price will be of interest to these companies.
• Special reception points. In cities with large and medium populations, there are points where they accept nuts for sale abroad.
• Own store. You can sell nuts through your own store in the form of a retail outlet or online sales. It is better to consider this method of selling goods as complementary to all others.

During sale, nuts must be stored in an organized warehouse, which will be kept warm and dry.

It is better to take care in advance to ensure that nuts are not accessible to rodents and other animals. When properly stored, nuts retain their presentation and properties for a long time.

Production profitability

The idea of ​​growing walnuts for subsequent sale sounds tempting and promising.

Such a plantation can serve as an excellent source of income during retirement.

Subsequent generations in the family will be able to continue this business, since many varieties of walnut trees have been growing for more than 100 years.

The organization of such an enterprise has high profitability due to the increased demand for products and the small supply on the market. Growing walnuts is a long-term investment that requires additional costs during the entire period of plant growth. As with any other business, there are certain risks associated with insufficient yields and unpredictable competition in the market after so many years.

Nut business – business plan

Before organizing your own walnut orchard, you should calculate the necessary investments and approximate indicators of the future business.

Let's look at a brief business plan for growing walnuts:

• Initial investments: rent/purchase of land (cost depends on the specific region), seedlings (from 200-400 rubles per piece), fertilizers, organization of a drainage system (provides timely access to moisture), wages to workers (protection and planting of seedlings), registration of individual entrepreneurs or OOO.
• Associated costs: machines for harvesting and cleaning nuts, warehouse space for storing nuts, workers' salaries, packaging, logistics for delivering nuts to the buyer.
• Approximate profit: $5 from a shelled nut, $1-2 – in shell, from 1 hectare of land the approximate income without deducting expenses is $10,000.
• Payback period: 5-7 years.
• The profitability of the nut business is quite high.

To summarize, we can say that a walnut growing business looks like a promising idea. Before you start organizing your own plantation, you need to realistically assess all possible difficulties in the form of features of growing and caring for plants, a long payback period and subsequent costs. This niche can be an excellent family business that will generate profits for many years.

Video on the topic

There are about 30-40 populations of nuts on the globe. Walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, cashews, pistachios, peanuts (groundnuts), coconut and pine nuts are the most common types that are best known to us. The existence of nuts has been known since the Stone Age. They contain microelements, vitamins, easily digestible proteins, carbohydrates and amino acids necessary for human health. We can talk endlessly about the beneficial properties of nuts. A useful product is in wide demand, has a decent price, and with such a profitable product it is not difficult to build a profitable nut business. The plan for this business is quite simple - purchase various types in bulk, peel, fry, package in beautiful packaging and sell the finished product. Income can be 30% or more.

First you need to research the sales market. Nuts are widely used in cooking, so it is advisable to arrange delivery to confectionery shops, cafes, restaurants and other catering establishments. You can also supply goods to markets, you can discuss the supply of packaged nuts to shops and supermarkets in the city, or you can organize your own retail outlet or your own online store. If you plan to develop the business on a larger scale, then it is possible to export walnuts to Europe, where the demand for it is about 100 thousand tons per year.

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Making money from walnuts

Let's consider the costs and payback of the walnut business. There may be three options: selling collected free-growing wild nuts, selling nuts purchased at a low price from the population, or selling your own grown nuts. As you know, walnuts are not frost-resistant, so they grow mainly in the southern regions of Russia, therefore, it is recommended to purchase or grow walnuts there. As your business develops further, you can consider purchasing from Central Asia or Ukraine.

Often walnut trees grow on their own along roads or in a nearby forest. You can harvest from them yourself or with the help of local residents by advertising in the local newspaper and organizing a collection point. The average wholesale price of unshelled walnuts when purchasing is 50 rubles per kg. The price depends on the abundance of nuts in the region and can be much lower. Next you need to free them from the shell. This can be done either on your own or by involving neighborhood boys who want to earn extra money in this activity. To get 5 kg of peeled nuts, you need to process about 10 kg of unshelled nuts. The price of nuts in supermarkets in winter ranges from 150 to 350 rubles. per kg, i.e. on average - 250 rubles.

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Payback of walnuts

Let's make some simple approximate calculations. Let's say you purchased 100 kg of nuts for 50 rubles. They paid 15 rubles for cleaning the shell. per kg. We spent 500 rubles on packaging. In total, all costs amounted to about 5000 + 1500 + 500 = 7000 rubles. The yield of the purified kernel was 50 kg, which was sold for 200 rubles. Thus, from 100 kg the income is 3,000 rubles. If you work yourself, the profit will be greater. Walnut kernels can be sold raw or roasted. Here you should take into account additional investments in purchasing a frying oven, but the price for fried kernels will increase significantly. Additional income can also be generated by the sale of shells and membranes to pharmaceutical companies and beauty salons.

If you want to work for the long term, and you have the financial start-up capital, then consider starting a walnut orchard. Investments in planting a garden were made per 1 hectare. Plowing the land - 6,000 rubles, preparing planting holes - 3,000 rubles, purchasing 100 pcs. seedlings - 30,000 rubles, transportation costs for delivery of seedlings and their planting - 2,500 rubles. Watering and caring for seedlings per year costs about 15,000-20,000 rubles. It is necessary to take into account the costs of renting land and protecting the site. Starting from the age of 5, the costs of protecting seedlings can be reduced due to its irrationality. The need for protection will be only 2-3 months a year during the fruiting period.

Trees begin to bear fruit around the 3rd year, but in full force - in the 5th-6th year. From 100 seedlings you can expect 2-4 tons of nut harvest, depending on the variety of seedlings and natural conditions. Every year the yield will increase by about 20%. The amount of harvest will be significantly influenced by climatic conditions - during frosts, some of the flower stalks die, which affects the fruit set. Profit from walnuts is guaranteed for decades.

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Payback of pine nuts

If the southern region of Russia is optimally suited for the walnut business, then the north is optimally suited for pine nuts. These “tough nuts” do not have to be grown; mother taiga is rich in them, and they are classified as wild plants. Since September, local residents go out to the cedar harvest and, before the first deep snow, collect pine cones, shell the nuts from them and sell them in bulk to entrepreneurial buyers. If you decide to collect cedar cones yourself, you will need to purchase a forest ticket, which allows you to collect up to 50 kg free of charge, and above - 3 rubles. per kg. Counting on making money from pine nuts, you can go in two ways: buy pine cones, process them and hand over clean nuts to wholesalers, or you can go further - fry pine nuts, pack them and sell them, or peel them, obtaining a kernel, and sell the pine nut kernels themselves.

Cost estimates (average figures; in each region they may vary in one direction or another depending on your entrepreneurial spirit):

• rental of premises - the price is purely individual;
• purchase of cones - 2,000 rubles. per bag;
• purchase of a plant for processing pine cones into nuts - 50,000 rubles;
• service for processing cedar cones (if you do not have your own equipment) - one bag (50 kg) of cones - 25 rubles. Keep in mind that losses after processing are no more than 3-5%;
• drying chamber - from 270 thousand rubles. up to 500 thousand rubles;
• vacuum packaging machine - 45,000 rubles;
• The cost range for ready-made, assembled workshops for processing pine nuts per kernel is from 1.5 million rubles. up to 11 million rubles depending on productivity per shift;
• price for 1 kg of unshelled pine nuts - 250 rubles;
• the price for 1 kg of peeled cedar kernel is 800-1000 rubles.

Necessary documents for engaging in business activities in nuts: registration of a private entrepreneur, certificates of conformity of product quality.