National Nut Day
Crack a handful of nuts on National Nut Day. This informal October 22 food date is for almonds, walnuts, cashews, hazelnuts, and the rest of the bowl — and for the farmers who grow them — not for a joke about “nuts” as a personality type.
About National Nut Day
History & origins
National Nut Day falls on October 22. It is an informal food observance, not a government holiday.
Liberation Foods, a UK farmer-owned Fairtrade nut company (a community-interest company whose producers own a large share of the business), is the organization most often credited with promoting the date. National Day Calendar says Liberation created National Nut Day in 2016 to advocate Fairtrade nuts and healthy eating. Other Liberation-related coverage places the company’s UK push earlier — including a 2010 introduction of a National Nut Day already used in the United States — or notes the date on Liberation’s site around 2015. The first year is not fully settled; what is consistent is that Liberation used October 22 to talk about small-scale nut farmers and Fairtrade, and that U.S. food calendars now keep the same date. There is no U.S. proclamation.
Culinary “nuts” are a mixed bag botanically. Almonds and pistachios are seeds of drupes; peanuts are legumes. The food day includes them all as people actually eat them. It is separate from National Peanut Day and from National Macadamia Nut Day, which already have their own TheDayOf pages.
Why it matters
Nuts are a snack, an ingredient, and a farm product with a long supply chain. The day is useful when it stays on those two tracks: eat them, and notice who grew them. Fairtrade labeling is one way Liberation asked shoppers to do the second part. If you have a tree-nut allergy, skip the food and use the date for one of the other October 22 observances — do not treat allergy as a punchline.
How to celebrate
Eat a handful of unsalted nuts, or cook with them — pesto, mole-adjacent spice pastes are not this day, but a walnut cake or almond granola is. Look for Fairtrade nuts if that is the point you want to mark. Make trail mix. Put chopped nuts on a salad or a vegetable dish. If you are allergic, do not eat them; cook something else and leave this page for people who can. This is not National Peanut Day.
Facts
- Liberation Foods, a UK Fairtrade nut company, is the group most often credited with promoting October 22
- National Day Calendar lists Liberation as creating the day in 2016; some earlier UK coverage used the same date
- Peanuts are legumes; almonds and pistachios are drupe seeds — culinary “nuts” are not one botanical category
- The day is informal; there is no U.S. federal proclamation
- It is separate from National Peanut Day and National Macadamia Nut Day on TheDayOf
Upcoming dates
- Thursday, October 22, 2026
- Friday, October 22, 2027
- Sunday, October 22, 2028
- Monday, October 22, 2029
- Tuesday, October 22, 2030
Frequently asked questions
When is National Nut Day in 2026?
National Nut Day in 2026 falls on Thursday, October 22, 2026.
What is National Nut Day?
It is an informal food observance for nuts as food and as a farm product, including a Fairtrade emphasis from Liberation Foods. It is not a government holiday.
Who started National Nut Day?
Liberation Foods is the organization most often credited. National Day Calendar dates their creation of the day to 2016; other reports put Liberation’s UK use of the date earlier. There is no single U.S. government founder.
How do you celebrate National Nut Day?
Eat nuts, cook with them, or choose Fairtrade nuts if you want to mark the farmer side of the day. If you have a nut allergy, skip the food.
Is National Nut Day an official holiday?
No. It is not a U.S. federal holiday and not a UN day. Offices and schools follow their usual schedules.
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