The majority of Australian pistachio growers – more than 95 per cent – make a voluntary contribution which is currently set at 7 cents a kilogram of marketable nuts. Of that amount, 3 cents a kilogram covers the Pistachio Growers’ Association operational costs, and the other 4 cents a kilogram is deposited into the Hort Innovation Pistachio Fund to support research and development that addresses the priority needs of the industry.
As well as contributions from yield, PGA collects a voluntary contribution from growers with young non-bearing trees. The non-bearing contribution is set at $20 a hectare. It is intended that this contribution to the industry’s R&D program will reflect the benefit to growers with non-bearing trees as well as those who pay the voluntary contribution based on yield.
Pistachio growers paid about $145,700 in contributions into the Pistachio Fund in 2022-2023. Income varies from year to year because of the biennial bearing of pistachio trees and changes in seasonal and market conditions. The agreement with Hort Innovation allows for changes to the voluntary contributions to ensure that the income is sufficient to address R&D needs. Expected increases in production as juvenile trees reach maturity in coming years will give PGA the opportunity to reduce the contribution rate or increase the services it provides.
There’s more detail about current and previous research projects in the Growers section here.
