Nut Shells and Fruit Pits: Their Composition, Availability, Agricultural and Industrial Uses

Excerpts from the report Introduction: Nut shells and fruit pits accumulate in quantity about cracking plants, canneries, and similar food processing plants. Their presence about these plants presents not only a nuisance but a hazard and an expense. Under favorable conditions and with proper handling, these residues can be converted into profit to the processors. Efforts to maintain and improve the national economy require that industry eliminate its wastes and make more effective use of byproducts. These requirements are being increasingly recognized and many branches of industry are now converting what has heretofore been considered "waste" into salable products. An outstanding example of "waste" utilization is the practice of the pulping and wood processing industries in converting their wastes into useful chemicals and structural materials such as resin bonded panel boards. Practical use of shells and pits accumulating in the nut-cracking and fruit-processing industries can likewise be promoted. For the purpose of this discussion the agricultural residues include only those materials that accumulate in quantities large enough to make their processing and use worth while. They comprise the pits of apricots, cherries peaches, and dates, and the shells of almonds coconuts, filberts, peanuts pecans, and of both English (or Persian) and black walnuts. Pits of certain fruits such as prunes have not been considered and certain of the nut shells have been omitted from this discussion because the quantities available from commercial processing are insufficient for industrial use. Of the materials considered here, it is estimated that more than 1 billion pounds are available annually within the United States.