This story was produced by the Oregon Journalism Project, a nonprofit newsroom covering the state.
While many Oregon farmers pull back amid tariff worries, low crop prices and a difficult labor market, Jeff Newton plans to invest in new hazelnut trees at Christensen Farms near Amity in Yamhill County. Newton, along with other Oregon hazelnut growers, is waiting for a final tally of the volume of nuts they sold in 2025. But acreage and preliminary data show that hazelnut farming is booming in the Willamette Valley.
Although hazelnut trees require a relatively large investment up front and take years to produce a crop, they are a rapidly growing slice of Oregon agriculture. Demand for the nuts—and the money that yields—is the reason, according to researchers and members of the Oregon Hazelnut Commission. (Historically, Oregonians called the nuts filberts, a name the commission says reflects French settlers’ early influence on the industry, but since 1981, the commission has used the more common name, hazelnuts.)…