The macadamia nut harvest through ACC’s Tree of Life Project has been increasing yield each year as the trees mature. The 2011 harvest yielded over 45 tons (nut in shell). The nuts are being processed before we can determine our final yield.
All the nuts are harvested from the 14,000 tree orchard on the African Christian College campus. The nuts are sold to generate revenue as raw and roasted nuts and cooking oil, even the shells are sold as mulch. The Tree of Life Project is a visionary strategy for ongoing sustainability for the college that will continue to reap benefits for decades to come.
The project also allowed ACC to employ over ten unemployed neighbors as temporary workers during harvest season from February to June. Swaziland’s current unemployment rate is estimated to be over 60% with little availability for jobs. This provided much needed income to neighboring families by employing them in the gathering of nuts in the orchard.