Buying Nuts in Bulk

Take a crack at buying wholesale nuts

Commercial nuts are an integral part of many retailers, restaurants and manufacturing operations. Every grocery store stocks nuts, often in both packaged and bulk quantities. Restaurants need them for salads, desserts and many other dishes. Manufacturers from peanut butter to candy require nuts to stay in business.

Although peanuts account for half of the snack nuts market, gourmet nuts, mixed nuts, cashews, walnuts, almonds, pistachios and macadamia nuts are also worth stocking. Planters dominates the snack nuts market, which has boomed in recent years with the increasingly popular low-carb diets. Snacking nuts come in a wide variety of seasonings and sweet coatings.

Some nut suppliers specialize in one type of nut, such as peanuts, but most offer many nut varieties. Whether you need nuts on a large or small scale, consider these variables when buying wholesale nuts:

1. Shelled or unshelled.

2. Raw or roasted.

3. Whole, chopped or sliced.

4. Organically-grown nuts.

5. Convenience of packaging.

 

Reduce costs by buying bulk nuts

Look into buying raw or roasted nuts by the pound for your grocery store, restaurant or manufacturing operation. Bulk nuts are sold with and without the shell.
Try: Caromac sells mostly raw nut varieties in 1-lb. to 50-lb. cartons. Order raw, shelled Georgia peanuts from PeaNutTree.com. Start with a 2-lb. bag to sample the quality and then order up to a 40-lb. case. Buy 5-lb. and 25-lb. bags of shelled nuts from Western Mixers, Inc. This supplier has a whole, sliced, slivered and chopped almonds.

Buy packaged products from a nut wholesaler

There are many nut wholesalers that sell packaged nuts, both baking and snack varieties, for retailers. Start with peanuts, walnuts, pecans, almonds, cashews and macadamia nuts. Expand into the less popular pistachios, hazelnuts and Brazils if there's a demand for them.
Try: Foodservicedirect.com sells packaged nuts by the case from Planters, Diamond and lesser-known brands. You can also buy whole and chopped nuts for baking directly from Diamond Foods, Inc. Order packaged almonds by the case from Blue Diamond Growers, the largest tree nut manufacturer in the world.

Keep it natural with organic nuts

Whether you are making luscious nut-filled candy or incorporating nuts into your restaurant's signature dishes, organic nuts can help achieve a positive response from customers. Organic food retailers also need a steady supply of nut products from a reputable source.
Try: Diamond Organics, Inc. sells organic raw and roasted nuts by the pound. Find shelled and unshelled USDA-certified organic nuts at SunOrganic Farm. Organic nuts are completely free of salt and artificial colors.

 

• The expansion of gourmet nuts into a wide variety of sweet coatings and spicy seasonings are stealing the market share from traditional sweet and salty snacks. Look for some niche sales by stocking more than just chocolate coated nuts and honey roasted peanuts.

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