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Interest Growing In Hybrid Hazelnuts
"The future of the world is nuts."
That's the slogan at Badgersett Research Farm near Canton, Minn., which specializes in a special new crop - Hybrid Hazelnuts.
Researcher and entrepreneur Phillip Rutter is looking for people and companies willing to invest in the new crop and grow along with what could
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Interest Growing In Hybrid Hazelnuts 28-6-9 "The future of the world is nuts."
That's the slogan at Badgersett Research Farm near Canton, Minn., which specializes in a special new crop - Hybrid Hazelnuts.
Researcher and entrepreneur Phillip Rutter is looking for people and companies willing to invest in the new crop and grow along with what could turn into a big new industry.
Europeans eat about a cup of Hazelnuts per week because Hazelnuts are often used instead of almonds and peanuts.
In the U.S., Americans eat about 2 nuts per year because Hazelnuts aren't grown widely.
Hazel oil is about 70 percent mono-unsaturated and can be used as a cooking oil with a long shelf life. It can also be turned into "hazel diesel" for burning in diesel engines. The nuts contain vitamins E and B6 and are high in protein. The meal, left over after oil extraction, can be used as a pastry flour and even as livestock feed.
Hazelnut bushes can be planted as windbreaks or snow fence with the added benefit of producing income. They reach a maximum height of 15 ft. during their 50-year life span.
Hazelnut bushes have a growth pattern that's similar to the lilac bush and they thrive in most soils. They start producing nuts in their 3rd year and reach full production in their 4th.
The shrubs need to be kept free of weeds and some critters do eat them. Although few insects damage the bushes, weevils tend to attach to the nuts.
Harvesting nuts is a labor-intensive task for small operations because the nuts need to be removed from the husks before marketing.
"This is not yet a crop for people looking for a æturn-key' operation. We've demonstrated all the necessary pieces of the puzzle but scaling up and expanding the crop in different regions always brings risks and surprises," Rutter says.
Rutter sells different kinds of Hazelnut plants through his website.
The National Arbor Day Foundation in Nebraska City, Neb. also has a project established with Rutter's hybrid genetics and can provide information regarding Hazelnuts.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Badgersett Research Farm, R.R. 1, Box 141, Canton, Minn. 55922 (email: BadgersettInfo @aol.com; website: www.badgersett.com); or The National Arbor Day Foundation, 211 N. 12th, Lincoln, Neb. 68610 (ph 800 448-7337).
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