Fun facts about the Horizon Nut Company:
Horizon Nut Company has been in Tulare since 2008. They have 170 full time employees and 275 additional seasonal employees during harvest.
Pistachios are shaken from the trees and taken by a truck to the hulling plant. They pass on conveyors to be cleaned, hulled and dried. The pistachios are then sent to Horizon where they are sized, sorted and then either roasted or left raw and packed ready to go to their customers.
Their product is shipped worldwide but the largest customers are Europe and Asia, and China mainly. Horizon said there has been growing demand domestically and in the Middle East.
Horizon is grower owned; 98% of the pistachios are from grower owners. They ship 4.5 million pounds a month. The company is building an additional hulling plant in Firebaugh and is hoping it will be ready for the 2015 crop year .
Pistachios need to be hulled and dried to a stable moisture within 12-24 hours. They open naturally on the tree and it takes 5-7 years before a crop will be ready to produce product.
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Online: www.horizonnut.com