Almond Alliance of California — Today, the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District made several decisions which impact the California almond industry.
The District accepted and appropriated $178,200,000 in state funding and approved enhancements to alternatives to the open burning incentive program. These funds were divided into two categories of incentives.
For more specific details, please contact the Almond Alliance.
The new Board of Directors of the Almond Board of California (ABC) took their seats on Wednesday with five voting members – three of them new to the board – beginning new terms to help oversee ABC’s support of one of California’s most important agricultural crops.
Board members, whose terms officially began Aug. 1, also elected Brian Wahlbrink as chair and George Goshgarian Jr. as vice chair.
“This is a knowledgeable, talented board,” Wahlbrink said. “Our board members come from across our industry and around our state. They bring a great energy and an impressive range of experience, and we’re all eager to continue moving California almonds forward as one of the state’s most valuable and important crops.”
The 10-member board of ABC has five grower members – three representing independent growers and two representing growers working with cooperatives – and five handler members, also with three independents and two co-op reps.
The new grower representatives are:
The new handler representatives are:
In addition, the board has five new alternates:
The ABC board sets policy and recommends budgets to the Secretary of Agriculture in major areas including production research, public relations and advertising, nutrition research, statistical reporting, quality control and food safety.
About the Almond Board of California
ABC is a Federal Marketing Order dedicated to promoting California almonds to domestic and international audiences through marketing efforts and by funding and promoting research about almonds’ health benefits, efficient and sustainable farming, food safety and more. ABC works on behalf of the more than 7,600 almond growers and processors in California, many of whom are multi-generational family operations.
The Almond Alliance of California today commended Rep. Josh Harder (C-10) for including funding to support ten nationwide pilot programs to convert tree nut by-products into biocarbon products in the Future of Agricultural Resiliency and Modernization (FARM) Act.
Almond Alliance President Elaine Trevino explained that in California the funding will help accelerate efforts to develop new biofuels or other biocarbon products derived from almond harvest by-products. For example, in a process called “pyrolysis” almond harvest by-products can produce biochar, a soil amendment with excellent carbon sequestration potential and syngas and bio-oils, which can be used directly to fire furnaces or more importantly as inputs to produce motor vehicle biofuels and other biochemicals.
Trevino commented, “California’s almond growers are proud to be innovators who remain focused on sustainability and are constantly looking to put everything we grow to its highest and best use. We expect that biofuels produced using California Grown almond by-products will become a major contributor towards meeting California’s carbon neutral goals. We appreciate Congressman Harder’s ongoing support of almond growers and especially his inclusion of funding for pilot projects in the FARM Act that will catalyze development of climate-friendly biocarbon and biofuel products.”
About the Almond Alliance
The Almond Alliance of California (AAC) is a trusted non-profit organization dedicated to advocating on behalf of the California almond community. California almonds generate more than $21 billion in economic revenue and directly contribute more than $11 billion to the state’s total economy. California’s top agricultural export, almonds create approximately 104,000 jobs statewide, over 97,000 in the Central Valley, which suffers from chronic unemployment. The AAC is dedicated to educating state legislators, policy makers and regulatory officials about the California almond community. As a membership-based organization, our members include almond processors, hullers/shellers, growers and allied businesses. Through workshops, newsletters, conferences, social media and personal meetings, AAC works to raise awareness, knowledge and provide a better understanding about the scope, size, value and sustainability of the California almond community.
For more information on the Almond Alliance, visit https://almondalliance.org/ or check out the Almond Alliance on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Merced County almond, walnut and peach grower, Randy Fiorini is proud to be the first farmer to work with both the Henry Mayo Newhall Foundation and California Farmland Trust in a conservation fundraising campaign to protect agricultural land from urban expansion. Watch this brief video with Randy Fiorini as he explains the program and needed support to realize his goal.
Please thank this video’s sponsor Suterra for their industry support.
American Pistachio Growers (APG), armed with voluminous data that pistachios are packed with a multitude of benefits for active bodies and minds, is inaugurating a new 2021-22 Facebook Live Series — Friday Fuel-Up with Dr. Mike Roussell — to engage some of the most energetic and interesting people in the world with the question, What fuels you? The monthly series, which debuts August 6 and continues the first Friday of every month, is hosted by nutritionist Dr. Mike Roussell, a noted author and nutrition advisor to Men’s Health Magazine.
“I’m ecstatic about the opportunity to bring to online audiences conversations with some of the world’s top athletes, adventurers and authorities in key areas of life,” said Roussell. “We’ll delve into their mindset, what drives them to succeed in their field, as well as the physical aspect of fueling success. In all episodes, there should be key takeaways that any listener can apply to their own life.”
The first eight months’ line-up of guests reads like a page out of Who’s Who. His first guest on August 6 is Luke Coutinho, a globally renowned holistic lifestyle coach and best-selling author, based in India, who’s known for his take on Eastern philosophy, nutrition and practices that also incorporate well into Western lifestyles.
The balance of the 2021 line-up includes: Scott H. Smith, PhD., Nutritionist and Manager for Nutritional Biochemistry for NASA’s Johnson Space Center, September 3; renowned Big Mountain snow boarder and National Geographic Adventurer of the Year Jeremy Jones, October 1; two-time Olympic gold medal-winning British triathlete Alistair Brownlee, November 5; and Bryan Snyder, Director of Nutrition for the Denver Broncos, December 3.
For 2022, Roussell will welcome 2021 Iditarod champion Dallas Seavey, January 7; Vicky Losada, international soccer star and leading advocate for womens’ and girls’ sports, February 4; and pro quarterback Josh Allen, March 4.
Audiences can join the conversations LIVE between Roussell and Coutinho on August 6 at 10 a.m. PST at Facebook.com/AmericanPistachios, the same time and place for all subsequent episodes in this first Friday-of-the-month series. Recorded programs will also be available on Instagram and YouTube.
“People who are physically and mentally active will find these guests fascinating, as they discuss what fuels their goals and their achievements,” said Judy Hirigoyen, Vice President of Global Marketing at American Pistachio Growers. “We’re proud to sponsor this effort and engage consumers in the dialogue. Those using the live chat feature on FB Live will have the opportunity to win serious swag,” she added.
American Pistachio Growers is a non-profit trade association representing more than 865 members of the pistachio growing communities in California, Arizona, and New Mexico.
Almond Board of California — The California Almond Objective Measurement Report, published Monday by the United States Department of Agriculture-National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA-NASS), estimates that the 2021 crop will come in at 2.8 billion meat pounds, 10 percent below last year’s record of 3.1 billion pounds. (Editor’s Note: The steep decline in production this year comes as a big surprise with the May subjective forecast suggesting a larger crop at 3.2 billion pounds)
The drop comes during a very difficult water year across California and at a time when the almond industry is navigating a complex market with record shipments but with returns to growers down from recent years.
“The report still forecasts a really large crop, and it’s further proof that California is an ideal place to grow almonds, even in difficult times,” said Kent Stenderup, Chair of the Almond Board of California (ABC) Board of Directors. “It’s also a testament to the hard work of growers and their efforts to improve stewardship practices and meet the demands of consumers despite the hurdles we’re facing this year.”
The 2021 Objective Report’s forecast is 13 percent below the 2021 California Almond Subjective Forecast in May of 3.20 billion pounds. The forecast for the average nut set per tree is 4,619, down 18 percent from the 2020 almond crop. The Nonpareil average nut set is 4,512, down 20 percent from last year’s set. The average kernel weight for all varieties sampled was 1.46 grams, down 3 percent from the 2020 average weight.
“Shipment numbers show that the demand for California almonds continues to increase both in the U.S. and around the world,” said Almond Board President and CEO Richard Waycott. “The strong forecast means the California almond industry will keep up with that growing global demand with a steady supply of high quality almonds. With such strong demand, competition for the 2021 crop could lead to a much needed increase in the return to growers, which is currently below the cost of production due to the recent record crop.”
ABC’s June 2021 Position Report showed that both exports and total shipments increased the records set in May for a single crop year, while shipments within the U.S. are on pace for a record year. Through June, total shipments reached 2.67 billion pounds. The crop year ends July 31.
USDA-NASS conducts the annual Objective Report, Subjective Forecast and Acreage Report to provide the California almond industry with the data needed to make informed business decisions and it thanks all farm operators, owners and management entities for their time providing the information necessary to create these reports. These reports are the official industry crop estimates.
About the Almond Board of California
Almonds from California are a healthy, natural, wholesome and quality food. The Almond Board of California promotes almonds with a research-based approach to responsible farming, production and marketing on behalf of the more than 7,600 almond growers and processors in California, many of whom have third- and fourth-generation family operations. Established in 1950 and based in Modesto, California, the Almond Board of California is a non-profit organization that administers a grower-enacted Federal Marketing Order under the supervision of the United States Department of Agriculture. For more information on the Almond Board of California or California almonds, visit Almonds.com.
