Abstract:
Macadamia (Macadamia spp.) is considered the world’s finest dessert nut because of its delicate taste
and numerous health benefits. It is grown in Kenya both as a cash crop and foreign exchange earner
with Kenya producing about 10% of the world’s total production. Macadamia has great potential for
poverty reduction due to the high value of its products and its low requirement for external inputs.
Although the crop has been grown in the country for over 5 decades, the growth of the industry is not
commensurate with the demand and market potential that exists. Some of the challenges facing the
macadamia industry in Kenya include lack of cultivars adapted to various agro ecological zones,
inadequate planting materials of high quality, high cost of the available good quality planting materials
and pests and diseases that affect nuts thus lowering post harvest quality. This paper discusses the
potential of agricultural biotechnology relevant to genetic
