Strictly first-class nuts may be disposed of to advantage to the first-class grocery or fruit trade in the larger cities. In cities of any considerable size, there will always be found a grocer or fruiter who is willing to take a first-class article at a price considerably above the usual market price of ordinary nuts. The writer once submitted samples of nuts of medium, but uniform size and good quality, to a grocery firm in New York. They replied that they would take nuts like the samples at twelve and a half to fifteen cents a pound in carload lots, when the common run of pecans could be purchased at four or five cents per pound.
As the output of high-grade pecans is increased, they may be disposed of through the usual nut trade channels—the commission men. The bulk of the product in the country to-day is handled by commission men, either being purchased direct or sold on consignment. If sold for cash in the home market, well and good, but if sold on consignment, choose one reliable commission house in each city in which the product is to be marketed—never two in the same city—and ship to it right along.
Storing. During the cold weather following the gathering of the crop, little or no change takes place in the flavor of the kernels. During the heat of summer, however, they deteriorate. The natural amount of moisture in them is reduced, the air enters, oxidation takes place and the flavor becomes rancid.
These changes can be prevented if the nuts are kept in cold storage, say at a temperature of from thirty-five to forty degrees. When nuts are kept in the house, they should be stored in the coolest possible place, in sealed jars or tight boxes.