Kurt Merrill becomes the Society’s 15th president as the non-profit organization renews efforts to reconnect growers and strengthen California’s macadamia industry
Temecula farmer Kurt Merrill has been named President of the California Macadamia Society, becoming the 15th president in the organization’s 73-year history. Founded in 1953, the California Macadamia Society has supported growers for more than seven decades through education, research, cultivar development, grower networking, and the exchange of practical information about growing and handling macadamias in California.
Merrill operates Gold Crown Farms, an 11-acre farm in Temecula growing macadamias, honey and Christmas trees. His appointment comes as the Society begins a renewed effort to reconnect California’s macadamia-growing community and strengthen awareness of a specialty crop that many Californians do not realize is grown commercially in the state.
“It is an honor to step into an organization with this kind of history,” Merrill said. “There are macadamia trees and small groves scattered throughout Southern California and beyond, but many of those growers are no longer connected to one another. One of our biggest priorities is simply finding those growers, bringing people back together and rebuilding that sense of community.”
Merrill succeeds longtime President Tom Rastle, who remains involved with the Society and continues to serve on its Board of Directors.
The Society’s leadership history includes generations of growers, researchers and agricultural advocates who helped develop California’s macadamia industry. Merrill follows former presidents including Colonel Wells W. Miller, Ray Moy, Dr. Luis James, Alva Snyder, Jim Russell and Rastle. Under Merrill’s leadership, the Society is focusing on rebuilding membership, identifying and connecting growers, documenting historic cultivars and grower knowledge, expanding educational resources and developing a stronger identity for California-grown macadamias.
The organization is also expanding its year-round grower programming. A Spring Growers Conference is scheduled for Saturday, April 3, 2027, and will bring growers together at a working Southern California macadamia grove for education, demonstrations and discussion on topics including tree care, irrigation, pruning, fertilization, cultivar identification, harvesting and post-harvest handling.
Membership is open to growers of all sizes—from people with a few backyard trees, small-grove owners and commercial growers.