Organic Pine Nuts
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Allergen Information (Tap to open):
We take your health and safety very seriously. If you have any allergen inquiries please Contact Us.
If an allergen is present in the product, it will be clearly declared in the ingredients.
"May Contain" statement NEW FOR 2025 (Progressive rollout):
- In 2025 we will be progressively updating our labels and product pictures with our new label that now include a "May Contain" statement.
- The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) dictates that "Cross-contamination statements may be declared by food manufacturers and importers".
- That said, we hold ourselves to much higher standards than the CFIA and Health Canada rules oblige. Most companies do not and you will only rarely see "May Contain" statements.
- If there is a remote chance that there might be cross-contamination of a priority allergen, we will declare it on the product label in the form of a "May Contain" statement.
- A "May Contain" statement does not mean that the allergen is present in the product, it is simple a precautionary measure we take to stay the most transparent possible.
- If an allergen is present in the product, it will be clearly declared in the ingredients.
- For example our Quebec made flours come from a mill that makes both oat and wheat flours. Since both allergens are present in the mill we automatically declare the possibility of cross-contamination even if all precautionary measures are taken.
- Only priority allergens are declared in the "May Contain" statement, which are:
- Cereals & Grains: Triticale, Barley, Oats, Rye, Wheat.
- Tree Nuts: Almonds, Brazil Nuts, Cashews, Hazelnuts, Macadamia Nuts, Pecans, Pine Nuts, Pistachios, Walnuts.
- Peanuts
- Sesame
- Eggs
- Milk
- Soy
- Mustard
- Fish
- Seafood: Crustaceans, Molluscs.
- Sulphites
- Priority allergens are decided by government agencies and health boards. To read more on the subject see "Common food allergens - Priority allergens" published by the CFIA.
- Full CFIA cross-contamination statement explanation "Food allergen cross-contamination (or precautionary) statements".
Our organic pine nuts are one of the more expensive nuts because of the time required to grow the nuts and the effort to harvest the seeds from their protective encasement. If you ever had a good pesto you can understand that they are worth their price.
What are Pine Nuts?
- Pine nuts (also called pignoli) are the edible seeds of pine trees. Seeds are the inner, usually edible part of a hard, inedible pine cone.
- It takes anywhere from 15 to 25 years for the trees to begin producing the seeds and up to triple that time for them to reach top production. The majority of the North American harvest comes from wild, uncultivated trees. For the most part, the seeds are harvested by hand, a contributing factor to their expensive price tag.
- The pine seeds are found in the pine cones and take about 18 months to mature. Since the pine nuts are ready to harvest 10 days or so before the cone begins to open, they are very difficult to remove. To speed up and ease the process, the cones are placed in a burlap bag and left in the sun to dry for 20 days. Next, the cones are smashed, releasing the seeds, which are then separated from the cone by hand. This is another very time-consuming and patient-testing task.
- The pine cone is not the only covering for the seed; each pine nut has a second shell that must be removed before eating. Some of these shells are thin and easy to take off whereas others are thicker and more challenging. All of the above factors contribute to the understandably high price of the pine nut.
General Storage Tips: