Piedmont hazelnut harvest starts early as growers press for adequate prices

Hazelnut harvesting in Piedmont will begin next week in the region's earliest districts, roughly a week ahead of last year, the local outlet targatocn.it reported. The early start follows a season in which exceptional heat, persistent drought, stink bug attacks and localised hailstorms progressively eroded the strong production prospects recorded in spring.

According to technicians at Confagricoltura Cuneo and Piemonte, the crop is shaping up better than the difficult 2025 campaign, but below the expectations formulated up to the end of May. Widespread vegetative stress has been reported across growing areas.

Better than 2025, below spring expectations

“Piedmontese hazelnut growing is facing another complex year,” said Enrico Allasia, president of Confagricoltura Cuneo and Piemonte. “Farms have worked professionally to contain the effects of very unusual weather, but heat and the shortage of water have inevitably affected production.” Allasia described the season as further evidence of how climate change is testing farm businesses, which are required to bear ever higher costs in order to keep producing quality.

One indicator improved on last year. Cascola, the premature drop of nuts that weighed on the 2025 campaign, was less significant this season, although not in every production area, according to Confagricoltura technician Antonio Marino.

No tonnage estimate was published for the region. Confagricoltura framed the outlook in relative terms — above 2025, below the expectations of late May — rather than in absolute volumes, leaving the size of the crop to emerge as harvesting progresses.

27,000 hectares, uneven results

Piedmont remains one of Italy's main hazelnut regions, with about 27,000 hectares planted, concentrated in the provinces of Cuneo, Asti and Alessandria. The association describes the supply chain as strategic for the regional farm economy, one of the flagships of Piedmontese agri-food production and a key resource for thousands of farms and for the economy of hill areas.

Marino said harvesting in the province of Cuneo will move into full swing in the coming days, with timing varying by area and by variety.

• The Biglini variety is slightly ahead of Tonda Gentile delle Langhe, confirming the earlier start to the campaign.
• Forecasts of a very early harvest need to be revised, as the lack of rainfall in recent weeks has slowed plant development and the fall of the nuts.
• Output will be uneven, with older plantings showing greater difficulty in adapting to water stress, while younger orchards that are carefully managed and well fertilised have suffered less and have good harvest prospects.
• Patchy hailstorms across several hazelnut-growing areas caused heavy damage to trees, with repercussions for coming harvests as well.

Growers press for adequate prices

With marketing about to open, Confagricoltura Cuneo and Piemonte called on the market to value the product adequately, taking into account both the course of the season and the increase in costs borne by farms.

“Quotations will be decisive for the future of the sector,” Allasia said, “as yields will be lower than expected and production costs continue to rise. Adequate prices are indispensable to guarantee income for farms, to encourage the renewal of hazelnut orchards and to keep competitive a sector that represents an economic, environmental and social asset for Piedmont.” He added that the quality of the Piedmontese hazelnut is a strength that the market must recognise and reward.