Pistachio Prices Hit 8-Year High Amid Iran Crisis

Global pistachio prices have reached an eight-year high as war in Iran, the world’s second-largest producer of the nut, disrupts supply chains and tightens availability in a market already facing constrained output.

The conflict, which began in late February 2026, has upended global supply chains used to move critical fuels and fertilizers, further restricting the delivery of pistachios to global markets.

Supply Constraints and Production Declines

Global production for the 2025/2026 season is estimated at 1.09 million metric tons, an 8% year-on-year decline from the 1.19 million metric tons produced in 2024/2025. This drop has reduced buffer stocks and increased market vulnerability to external shocks.

Pistachio production remains highly concentrated among a few nations. According to data for 2025/2026, the market shares are distributed as follows:

• United States: 65% (712,682 metric tons)
• Iran: 18% (200,000 metric tons)
• Turkey: 11% (120,000 metric tons)
• European Union: 4% (40,000 metric tons)
• Syria: 2% (20,000 metric tons)

While the United States is the largest producer, Iran plays a significant role in export markets, particularly within Asia and the Middle East, meaning disruptions in Iranian supply have an immediate effect on global pricing.

Compounding Geopolitical Factors

The current price surge is the result of several overlapping crises in Iran. Nick Moss, a nut market analyst at Expana Markets, stated that the country’s pistachio trade was already complicated by sanctions and geopolitical frictions before the war began.

Supply was further crimped by a smaller than expected 2025 crop and communications blackouts in January 2026, which occurred during a government crackdown on civil unrest and limited the coordination of exports.

The outbreak of war in late February made matters worse, compounding an already constrained situation and resulting in a shrinking pool of pistachios that is increasingly difficult to deliver to global markets.

Nick Moss, Expana Markets analyst

Surging Global Demand

The supply crunch coincides with a significant increase in consumer appetite globally. Demand was supercharged across Asia, the Middle East, and Europe after pistachio-filled Dubai chocolate bars went viral on TikTok and Instagram in late 2023.

Major corporate food and beverage brands have also integrated the nut into their product lines. Starbucks popularised pistachio-flavoured coffee, while brands such as Tache and Haagen-Dazs added the nut to their plant-based milk and ice cream ranges.

Market Pricing Trends

The combination of geopolitical instability and rising demand has led to sharp price increases. Benchmark prices for US pistachios climbed approximately 30% in the two years following the end of 2023.

In a report dated March 31, 2026, Global Agriculture noted that global pistachio prices surged by more than 50% in the months leading up to that date, exposing the fragility of a supply chain dependent on a small number of producing countries.

This price volatility follows a decade of steady growth; between 2016 and 2025, global production grew at a compound annual growth rate of 4%, with a ten-year average of 886,348 metric tons.