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Ken Dorey's recent review of The Macadamia – Australia’s Gift to the World was written for people outside the macadamia industry - but it makes a compelling case for why we should all be gifting this book far and wide to friends, relations, schools and libraries in a bid to set the story straight about macadamias as a uniquely Australian nut.

Review by Ken Dorey, macadamia grower and macadamia conservation champion

If you are fortunate enough to have grown up eating macadamias from your own tree, then you may be a little bemused that your humble childhood treat has attained ‘World Gift’ status as asserted by Ian McConachie in his new book ‘The Macadamia: Australia’s Gift to the World.’

There is so much still to learn about macadamias. Many people have never seen a macadamia nut, never mind eaten one. Many Australians do not know that macadamias come from an Australian tree or that there are actually four species, all threatened with extinction.

Ian McConachie takes a systematic approach to removing the mystique and myth from the origins of the macadamia - from human discovery to establishment as an industry, to its conservation in the wild. Throughout, Ian’s knowledge, research and lived experiences are on full display with an easy storytelling style driven by enthusiasm and a sense of humour. If you read this book, you will learn much about macadamia’s origins, how an industry grew around it and, perhaps, what its future may be.

The great value in this book is the assemblage of knowledge, now recorded for posterity, by the only man capable of doing so. Only Ian has fanatically researched all things historical about macadamias from old documents to Aboriginal lore. Ian has been a very active pioneer in the industry’s development and a driving force behind conservation of the original macadamias.

The wild macadamias needed a conservation champion. The macadamia industry needed pioneers. We who love and eat macadamias needed someone to tell this great story. There is only one man with the knowledge and passion to do all this and this is his book - Ian’s gift to the macadamia world.

Ken Dorey

Macadamia Grower

Macadamia Conservation Trust Committee Member

For more information about the book and the author, click here.

To purchase the book online click here.