Captain Cook, HI — The Big Island features five volcanoes, black sand beaches and eight different climate zones. And, it produces world-famous Kona coffee and macadamia nuts.
“Mac” nuts, as they’re called here, are actually native to Australia. They were introduced to Hawaii in the late 1880s and gradually became an important export crop by the 1950s. The trees are evergreens, which can reach 30-40 feet in height.
The nuts are enclosed in a husk that splits open when mature, and they are typically manually harvested from the ground, and sometimes the tree. They are dried, husked, shelled and roasted, although some are dehydrated and sold as “raw.”
Hawaii annually produces about 50 million pounds of macadamia nuts, with nearly all of those coming from the Big Island, according to John Cross, president of the 53-member Hawaii Macadamia Nut Association. In addition to his association work, Cross helps to manage 1,200 acres of macadamia trees for the Hilo-based Edmund C. Olson Trust.
FoodWorld 