Mar 3 2010
Pine Nuts – Where to buy

In the last year or so the prices of pine nuts have skyrocketed.

The best price I could find was at Costco, but recently the price there has gone way up. At $27 for 1.5lbs.

Are there other sources for pine nuts?

Pine Nut products on Amazon – lots of good selections here

Sources for Pine Nuts:

https://www.wholesalepinenuts.com/

https://www.bulkfoods.com/search_results.asp?txtsearchParamCat=25&txtsearchParamType=ALL&txtsearchParamMan=ALL&txtsearchParamVen=ALL&txtsearchParamTxt=1256

https://www.nutsonline.com/nuts/pinenuts/pine.html?gclid=CPrjys_unKACFSMXawodB18gTg

The pine nuts sold at Costco are from China, but packed in the US under the Kirkland brand.

Here’s some references:

https://babyccinokids.com/2009/02/03/the-bitter-after-taste-of-chinese-pine-nuts/

The pine nuts shipped from other countries are usually sprayed so they are irradiated or fumigated or the storage containers they are shipped in can be sprayed. This could be the possible source of the bad tase…Yet another reason it is always best to buy locally (Farmer’s Markets, etc.) or at least from the U.S. when at all possible rather than from over seas. (You never know what chemicals they allow in those countries that might be banned here in the U.S.) Here are some interesting links you may want to check out, as pine nuts are the only things subject to these treatment methods:

https://search.mercola.com/results.aspx?k=irridation

https://www.foodproductiondaily.com/Quality-Safety/Metallic-pine-nut-taste-Industry-hypotheses

https://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/publications/PDF/te_1201_prn.pdf

https://www.phdeb.org.pk/paras/paras.php

https://corditecountryshownotes.wordpress.com/2009/05/08/41109/

Hope you find these links both informative and helpful.

pinenuts, a product of Russia or Korea, at Trader Joe’s

I purchased pine nuts at Costco.
Both my husband and are experiencing the same symptoms of bitter taste in our mouth. Also, my neck hurts.
I wrote to Costco today and received a typical “pass the bucket” reply.
It turns out Costco is aware about the problem:
https://www.tennessean.com/article/20091015/FEATURES02/910150311/1061/ENTERTAINMENT02

Viva Internet!

If just here there are 225 posts about the pine nuts problem, why FDA received only a dozen reports?

If you wish to report this to FDA please email to:
consumer@fda.gov
subject: food safety report

I just did.

Wikipedia describes the risk of eating pine nuts!

Apparently, according to a scientific article that appeared in 2001 in the European Journal of Emergency Medicine, certain pine nuts, and specifically the ones imported from China, can cause a taste disturbance — a bitter, metallic taste in the mouth, especially prone when eating, can develop and last for days!

infestation in pinon trees all over the west.

pignoli (pine nuts)

Pine nuts can even be harvested in limited amounts from one national park: Great Basin National Park in White Pine County, NV.

https://home.nps.gov/applications/parks/grba/ppdocuments…
Exerpt:
(c)(1), (c)(2) The following fruits, nuts, berries or unoccupied seashells may be gathered by hand for personal use or consumption, in accordance with the noted size, quantity, collection sites and/or use or consumption restrictions:

• Pinyon Pine cones and nuts (Pinus monophylla): 25 pounds of nuts or 3 bags of cones (each bag no larger than 2 ft. by 3 ft. when laid flat) per household per year.

• Fruit in the historic Lehman Orchard may be picked for on-site consumption. No picked fruit may be removed from the orchard. Fruit found on the ground may be removed from the orchard for personal consumption.

• Other fruits, nuts and berries may be collected for non-commercial use subject to the following limits: 2 quart limit per family per day.

• Only freestanding ladders may be used for picking. Cutting, pulling, shaking or climbing trees to obtain fruits, nuts or berries is prohibited.

The Superintendent has determined that removal of small quantities of these items will not deplete supplies available for wildlife or plant reproduction.

It has been determined that limiting the amount of fruit removed from trees will provide a harvest experience to the greatest number of visitors. Since fruit on the ground will not remain fresh for very long, it can be utilized outside the orchard.

Personal note: Pine nuts are mighty tasty but a lot of work to harvest once they hit the ground. Some folks back their truck up to a tree to bump the nuts out into a tarp spread on the ground, but this is frowned upon by the locals. People in Baker, NV get pretty disgusted with all the Utah folks who come into NV just to get pine nuts. It’s not like UT doesn’t have plenty of its own

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