Macadamia Nuts in Hawaii: History and Production - ctahr ...

Figure 88. Husking at M. Uchida Farm using the counter-rotating
double scrolls, 1979.
now being used in production on several farms.
The apparent advantage of this machine is that
the nuts are positively fed into the machine at "22"
from a holding bin at "4" and moved against
adjustable-pressure shoes at "23" to insure complete
husking.
The Uniwai in-field husker (Fig. 90), using the
counter-rotating double scrolls and a tractor PTO
as its power source, was fabricated (75) for use
where electricity is not available or for rocky land
where the husks can be used for mulching in the
field. This machine eliminated the hauling of
husks back to the field from a centralized husking
station.
NUT PROCESSING
In-shell macadamia nuts, as they are received at
the factory, are finally ready to be processed for the
consumer market into the many forms and concoc-
Figure 89. The Gandall husking machine positively feeds the nuts
at "21" through "22" against the adjustable-pressure
shoes at "23."
tions in which the nuts are now being sold. Whatever
form the final nut product takes, the overriding
issue that has to be met and maintained in
the factory is quality. Obviously, the word hasdifferent
connotations for the many different people
involved in the production of macadamia nuts (8).
All the handlers of the nuts, beginning with the
plant breeder, through the growers, and on to the
processors, contribute to the realization of a perfect,
high quality nut. However, to keep quality in
a better perspective, subsequent discussions will
be confined to quality as it is affected orcontrolled
as the nut goes through the factory and is finally
packaged in consumer containers.
Drying
Immediately after the husked nuts are received
at the factory, they are dropped into drying bins, a
series of large containers arranged to allow the
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