Pacific Nut Producer Magazine

Tag: nut quality

  • American Pistachio Growers Awarded $1 Million for Regional Pest Management Collaboration

    American Pistachio Growers (APG), in collaboration with Washington State University, University of California – Riverside, UC Cooperative Extension, the USDA Agricultural Research Service and regional nut industry partners, has been awarded a $1 million grant through the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Biologically Integrated Farming Systems (BIFS) Program to develop a Regional Integrated Pest Management (IPM) network for Navel Orangeworm (NOW) — the most damaging pest in California’s tree nut industry.

    The project, led by Dr. Houston Wilson (UC Riverside), Dr. David Crowder (WSU), Dr. Jhalendra Rijal (UC IPM), and Dr. Charles Burks (USDA ARS) will pilot a groundbreaking Decision Aid System (DAS) that integrates real-time trap data, weather models, and crop phenology into a single communication platform. The goal is to improve the timing and precision of pest control decisions while fostering regional cooperation among almond, pistachio, and walnut growers.

    “This project moves us beyond the farm gate,” said Joe Coelho, APG’s Director of Sustainability and Member Outreach, who serves as Technical Agronomist and PCA on the project. “For the first time, growers across commodities will have access to shared regional data and communication tools that allow them to anticipate pest pressure before it hits their fields and ultimately make precise, timely treatment decisions. The outcome is fewer sprays, lower costs, and higher quality nuts.”

    Through field-level data acquisition, the system’s meta-analytics will identify regional flight trends coupled with crop-specific phenological development and enhance forecasting of NOW flights — critical steps in breaking the pest’s lifecycle across neighboring farms. Ultimately, the program is expected to help reduce pesticide use, improve nut quality, and lower aflatoxin risk associated with pest damage.

    APG will serve as the grower administration partner, coordinating grower participation and outreach. Carlee Branco, APG Grant Programs Administrator, will conduct on-farm grower coordination, engagement and data collection. “This is a major milestone for sustainable pest management,” said Coelho, “and it demonstrates APG’s leadership in advancing research that directly benefits growers.”

    The Regional IPM for Navel Orangeworm Project represents a pivotal step toward the state’s Sustainable Pest Management (SPM) Roadmap by providing a scalable, data-driven framework that can be expanded statewide.

    “This is exactly the kind of innovation California agriculture needs,” said Dr. Wilson. “Regional coordination is essential to long-term pest reduction, especially for highly mobile insects like the navel orangeworm, and this project will now put those ideas into practice at scale.”

    The program launches in early 2026, with pilot regions in West Fresno County and Modesto, serving as the foundation for a future statewide expansion. Growers within these territories who are interested should contact Carlee Branco for more information at cbranco@americanpistachios.org.

    American Pistachio Growers (APG) is a non-profit trade association representing more than 800 growers and processors across California, Arizona, and New Mexico. APG’s mission is to enhance grower profitability through global marketing, industry research, and sustainability initiatives that promote economically viable and environmentally responsible pistachio production.

  • Texas pecans Near Harvest in Challenging Season

    Texas pecan growers are preparing for the 2025 harvest season with a crop outlook that reflects the state’s diversity in weather and geography, according to a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service expert.

    Photo Caption: Pecan harvest is about to begin in parts of the state and will continue into winter. (Laura McKenzie/Texas A&M AgriLife)

    Monte Nesbitt, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension pecan specialist and assistant professor in the Texas A&M Department of Horticultural Sciences, Bryan-College Station, forecast the state’s crop at 32 million pounds, a number that falls near the middle of Texas’ recent production history.

    Texas’ all-time high pecan production was 91 million pounds in 1979, while the record low – 5 million pounds – occurred in 1951.

    “This year would be considered average — maybe mediocre,” Nesbitt said. “Some regions are looking at decent yields, but weather conditions created challenges for others, and crop losses are expected.”

    Weather drives regional differences

    Harvest is about to get underway, but Nesbitt said conditions throughout the growing season created clear contrasts around Texas. He said nut quality remains in question. Cooler, wetter weather around the state helped trees recover from years of drought and triple-digit temperatures, but it also created higher pressure from pecan scab, a fungal disease that can cause fruit loss and reduce nut quality.

    In East Texas, abundant rainfall and more moderate summer temperatures helped tree health but fueled pecan scab. He said pecan yield and quality losses to the disease could be significant in the region, especially for backyard and smaller commercial producers.

    “Even with best management practices, including fungicide applications, we’ve seen crop injury that would suggest the possibility of quality losses for East Texas,” he said. “Scab is the No. 1 biological threat to pecans, and it was back in full force this year.”

    Central Texas pecan trees in some areas encountered spring frost, but the region overall saw better rainfall and a departure from prolonged drought of the previous three years. Many orchards were in an “off year” of their natural alternate bearing cycle and scab was similarly more of a problem in Central Texas than usual. July flooding in some areas also caused tree damage and crop losses.

    In West Texas, the pecan crop potential was lowered in some orchards by an early spring frost and then hail in late spring, but otherwise the growing conditions have been normal and conducive to good production.

    Market challenges persist

    Even as growers look toward the upcoming harvest, market prices remain a pressing concern for producers, Nesbitt said. Wholesale pecan prices have lingered below $2 per pound in recent years, creating financial strain for many producers.

    “There’s frustration across the industry,” Nesbitt said. “Growers don’t understand why prices are so low. It shouldn’t be from oversupply since domestic production has not been really high. It’s generally thought to be a mix of global trade factors and a reduction in the number of shellers.”

    Retail and direct-to-consumer sales remain strong, with increased consumer awareness of expanded ways to cook with pecans beyond traditional holiday baking. Promotion at state, national and local levels are helping boost that awareness, Nesbitt said, but the wholesale outlook remains uncertain.

    “There’s optimism that new markets, like India, could help,” he said. “But right now, the perception among many growers is that current wholesale prices are not sustainable.”

    Long-term perspective for Texas pecans

    Despite market and weather-related pressures, Nesbitt said Texas pecan producers are hoping better days are ahead. The state’s size and regional diversity mean productivity often shifts year by year, creating statewide consistency overall despite localized highs and lows.

    As growers and pecan industry organizations mobilize to raise the nut’s profile with consumers, researchers like Nesbitt continue to work on solutions for pecan scab and other pest and disease issues that increase costs and hamper production.

    “The good news is that scab-resistant varieties exist,” Nesbitt said. “We’re working to identify and develop trees that can hold up and produce good pecans with fewer inputs. That’s the future for growers and homeowners alike.”