Courtesy of the California Almond Board

The 2023 California Almond Objective Measurement Report published Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (USDA-NASS) estimates that the crop harvested in 2023 will come in at 2.6 billion meat pounds, 1% percent above last year’s 2.57 billion pounds.

The estimate is up 4 percent from USDA-NASS’s Subjective Forecast in May and comes after one of the wettest winters on record, limited bee flights because of rain and wind, and a cool spring. USDA’s Forecasted yield is 1,880 pounds per acre, down 20 pounds from 2022 and the lowest since 2009.

The slight increase comes partly because of larger nut size and despite difficult conditions, USDA-NASS said. “Record level rainfall and unprecedented stormy conditions hindered bee pollination activity in orchards across the state. Cooler than normal temperatures continued through early summer and delayed the maturity of the crop,” the report said.

“Almond farmers have faced a series of challenges in recent years, and this wet, cool winter and spring created different obstacles after three years of drought. Yet the forecast for a larger crop shows the resiliency of California almond orchards,” said Richard Waycott, president and CEO of the Almond Board of California (ABC). “Almond farmers have worked hard while dealing with higher production and financing costs and a bloom with highly compromised bee flight hours. They are very thankful, however, for the abundant rain and snow which vastly improved the water situation, at least for now, and for shipping logistics that continue to improve. The perseverance of California’s almond farmers is admirable as is their commitment to meet future growth in global demand with high quality California almonds.”

The forecast for the average nut set per tree is 3,953, 3 percent down from 2022. The Nonpareil average nut set of 4,004 is 1 percent more than last year. The average kernel weight for all varieties sampled was 1.67 grams, up 14% percent from the 2022 average weight. The Nonpareil average kernel weight was 1.69 grams, up 9 percent over from last year.

The 2023 Objective Report is based on actual almond counts using a statistically rigorous methodology. The survey was conducted from May 26 to July 3 and 1,824 trees were sampled in 912 orchards, 32 more orchards than in 2022. USDA-NASS conducts the annual Subjective Forecast, Objective Report and Acreage Report to provide the California almond industry with the data needed to make informed business decisions.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reminded growers of current and new federal assistance this week for producers impacted by floods and facing financial risk.

California continues to be inundated with surface water, both runoff from snow melt and extended precipitation. USDA reminded California growers that both technical and financial help is available through federal disaster assistance. Producers with flooding damage are heavily encouraged to document the damage with pictures, receipts and farm records. Any of those items will help expedite assistance, said Farm Service Agency’s California Executive Director Blong Xiong in a press release.

The Almond Alliance is helping almond growers with the process. The Almond Alliance has created a Storm Damage Reporting & Resource page to help producers take advantage of programs that were triggered under the Presidential Disaster Declaration. The Almond Alliance reminds growers to document and notify damage to the proper agencies. “A simple phone call can make the difference between resources available and being left out. Timely notice of loss reported to your local FSA office is critical to ensuring adequate resources and assistance is deployed to your area, as well as your ability to participate in potential future programs,” said Aubrey Bettencourt, Almond Alliance president and CEO.

Also this week, USDA announced additional assistance for producers with qualifying farm loans who are facing financial risk. The extra $123 million funding will begin in April and is made possible through the Inflation Reduction Act. Loans that qualify for the assistance are “borrowers of direct or guaranteed loans administered by USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) whose operations face financial risk.”

USDA offered an example of qualifying loans in a press release, stating “in the October payments, farmers that were 60 days delinquent due to challenges like natural disasters, the pandemic or other unexpected situations were brought current and had their next installment paid to give them breathing room.”

Again, this assistance is automatic and will begin in April. Contact your local FSA office for more information. You can locate your local USDA Service Center by going to www.farmers.gov.

By The Almond Board of California

In the past few years, the Almond Board of California has introduced two identification manuals that have proven to be popular with thousands of almond growers, PCAs and others involved in orchard management. Soon, there will be a third.

At the 2022 Almond Conference in December, the final booklet in the identification series will be released, known as the Almond Disease and Nutrient Deficiency Identification Cards. As the name suggests, it will focus on common diseases and nutrient deficiencies that afflict almond trees and also provide management insights, provided by UC almond industry experts.

Prior to this new resource, the Almond Production Resources: Pests, Water and More Booklet was released in the 2020-21 crop year, followed by the Weed Identification Manual the next season. Both booklets are free and include easy-to-understand photos and captions to help growers and PCAs identify specific issues they may confront in the orchard.

Like the previous two booklets, the third manual was developed by the Almond Board in conjunction with experts associated with the University of California’s Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources team.

“This third ID set rounds out the family of tangible, easy to use resources that help key decision makers in their daily management of producing almonds” explained Jenny Nicolau, senior manager for industry relations and communications for the Almond Board.

Nicolau said the new booklet contains “calculated and well-informed production practices that can help a grower’s bottom line.” She added that reaction to the first two set of booklets has been “amazing,” and she expects a similar response this time.

“We continue to hear from pest control advisers and growers about how helpful the booklets have been to them,” she said. “And what we’re now hearing is kind of this pass along or domino effect where we know we gave a weed ID or a pest ID booklet to a grower or PCA and they don’t have it anymore. And the reason they don’t have it is that they passed it on to their farm manager or somebody on the labor team. … It’s really helping people identify what they’re seeing.”

Like the previous two booklets, the disease and nutrition guide will be laminated for durability.

“The idea was to create something that was very strong and heavy in pictures with brief descriptions that a grower or PCA could keep in their truck … that they could reference throughout the year when they need to identify different things in the orchard and remind them of some of those management tools available to them,” said Nicolau.

The Almond Disease and Nutrient Deficiency Identification Cards will be available for free at the ABC booth at next month’s Almond Conference, set for Dec. 6-8 at the SAFE Credit Union Conference Center in Sacramento. Attendees can register online now. As in years past, there will be hundreds of vendors representing all facets of the industry on the convention center floor as well as informative panel discussions on a variety of key topics.

Growers or PCAs who want a copy of the pest or weed booklets, or any other ABC resource, can request one by emailing the Almond Board’s Field Outreach Team at fieldoutreach@almondboard.com.

The Almond Board of California

The Almond Conference has been held every year since 1973, making this the 50th consecutive year. The event now attracts more than 250 exhibitors and covers the latest advancements in growing, producing and supplying high-quality, great-tasting, and healthy almonds!

This year’s agenda will be packed with content focused on helping growers improve ROI, including water supply, pollination, irrigation, fertigation, rootstocks, pest management and more!

Make plans to join your fellow almond industry members at The Almond Conference on December 6-8 at the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in downtown Sacramento.

Register here.