Almond Journey

While exports got off to a slow start at the beginning of the marketing year, record monthly shipments during the last quarter resulted in the second largest volume of exports on record, despite a multitude of ongoing challenges including logistical problems, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a strong dollar and ongoing, pandemic-related lockdowns in China.

Trade has remained front and center! We continued to monitor global tariff and technical barriers, even though this Administration maintains its focus on climate, sustainability, and worker-related issues. In addition, we’ve been addressing a wide variety of market access issues in key markets (new and never-ending) including China’s Decree 248 and the EU’s drive to push their environmental and agricultural policies on trading partners via the proposed Green Deal and Farm to Fork mirror policies.

The GTRA team has been working across global markets, leveraging partnerships and fact-based data to mitigate issues that could disrupt almond shipments. As we look to FY 22/23, we are also working to identify new markets and find ways to lower barriers to trade in order to boost almond exports in the future.

Almond grower and pest control adviser (PCA) Patrick Romero shares some of the issues he has been seeing with plant bugs in orchards, including leaffooted bugs and stink bugs. Mel Machado, Blue Diamond Growers vice president of member relations, has been seeing this problem show up at the processor in brown spot damage. In some cases, the economic losses have been significant.

“We had deliveries that were rendered as oil stock, and it was entirely because of brown spot as a result of plant bugs. Oil stock means there is no value to that crop. Those loads were literally discarded…. That’s a huge economic loss. It is a couple thousand dollars an acre.” - Mel Machado

To remain proactive with brown spot, Machado says it’s important to be vigilant in your scouting and monitoring and work closely with your PCA. Romero advises growers on both row crops and tree crops throughout five counties in the San Joaquin Valley, and has 200 almond acres of his own that he considers his “weekend hobby”. Over the past 40 years, Romero has seen acres of row crops turn to tree crops. The changing pest and disease landscape that comes with that transition sets the scene for the recent problems with plant bugs and brown spot.

“When you have that kind of degree of acreage you're also creating a climate, or call it a predisposer, for disease or pathogens that hit those crops. You are going to have a problem with not only diseases, but insects. The insects will build up over time because you've got a lot of hosts….. Everything spreads across the board when you've got that many acres of tree crops.” - Patrick Romero

There’s a lot of nuances in the scouting, monitoring, and managing of pests like leaffooted bugs, stink bugs and other plant bugs. Adding to the challenge is that tools to control these insects are gradually being phased out.

“If you don't bring the processor a clean crop, you tend to lose more money than the drop in the price. You're going to get paid less per pound for your commodity because you didn't spend another hundred or two hundred dollars an acre trying to control an insect or a disease.” - Patrick Romero

In Today’s episode:

• Meet Patrick Romero, an almond grower and independent PCA, and Mel Machado, Blue Diamond Growers vice president of member relations
• Explore the ever-increasing threat of brown spot and pest pressure on almond orchards
• Learn about different measures that can be taken to monitor and mitigate pest levels and the obstacles producers face with added regulations

For more information about this or any of the topics we discuss on this podcast, reach out to the Almond Board’s Field Outreach Team directly at [email protected]. 

The Almond Journey Podcast is brought to you by the Almond Board of California. This show explores how growers, handlers, and other stakeholders are making things work in their operations to drive the almond industry forward. Host Tim Hammerich visits with leaders throughout the Central Valley of California and beyond who are finding innovative ways to improve their operations, connect with their communities, and advance the almond industry.

ABC recognizes the diverse makeup of the California almond industry and values contributions offered by its growers, handlers, and allied industry members. However, the opinions, services and products discussed in existing and future podcast episodes are by no means an endorsement or recommendation from ABC. The Almond Journey podcast is not an appropriate venue to express opinions on national, state, local or industry politics. As a Federal Marketing Order, the Almond Board of California is prohibited from lobbying or advocating on legislative issues, as well as setting field and market prices.

Today we head east of Modesto to the town of Denair to visit with Brian Wahlbrink of Sperry Farms. Brian grows almonds with his brother-in-law, Wes Sperry, on their 5th generation farming operation. As many of you know, Brian is also the current chairman of the Almond Board of California (ABC). 

Wahlbrink shares about the unique journey that led him to almonds, his long tenure on the global market development committee, keeping up with marketing a rapidly growing crop, and an exciting new partnership with Marvel that positions almonds with the health and wellness journey of Thor in the recently released movie Thor: Love and Thunder. 

“Thor is actually one of the larger characters in Marvel with a huge following. And he goes on a journey, kind of a health and wellness journey. So we just thought the fit was perfect with almonds.” - Brian Wahlbrink

Check out Brian's Instagram and the website to learn more about this partnership!

In Today’s episode: 

• Get to know ABC Chairman Brian Wahlbrink and his journey to the almond industry
• Learn about the evolution of almond promotion programs over time
• Discover ABC’s new partnership with Marvel and why it’s a great fit for almonds
• Understand market development opportunities like the Marvel partnership, and what this means for the almond industry

ABC Update:

Thor: Love and Thunder hit theaters on Friday, July 8th. Almonds had a rare opportunity to be a part of this event. Almond Board of California vice president of global market development Emily Fleischmann shares details of this unique strategic partnership and why this matters for the almond industry. 

The Almond Journey Podcast is brought to you by the Almond Board of California. This show explores how growers, handlers, and other stakeholders are making things work in their operations to drive the almond industry forward. Host Tim Hammerich visits with leaders throughout the Central Valley of California and beyond who are finding innovative ways to improve their operations, connect with their communities, and advance the almond industry.

ABC recognizes the diverse makeup of the California almond industry and values contributions offered by its growers, handlers, and allied industry members. However, the opinions, services and products discussed in existing and future podcast episodes are by no means an endorsement or recommendation from ABC. The Almond Journey podcast is not an appropriate venue to express opinions on national, state, local or industry politics. As a Federal Marketing Order, the Almond Board of California is prohibited from lobbying or advocating on legislative issues, as well as setting field and market prices.

ABC staff attended the Agriculture Transportation Coalition (AgTC) annual conference in Tacoma that focused on ongoing transportation disruptions and touched on many aspects of the logistics crisis. Numerous discussions focused on how and when things may begin to improve; the consensus among those presenting was that things will continue to improve throughout the calendar year with something like a return to normalcy being realized in 2023. Carrier rates, however, are expected to continue to be significantly higher than their historical average.

While things continue to improve, there was also much discussion regarding the Ocean Shipping Reform Act (OSRA) which was recently signed into law. While formulation of exact regulations for carriers will be ongoing through the year, many of the law's provisions immediately went into effect, including those requiring carriers to provide justification for detention and demurrage fees, as well as the provision barring carriers from unreasonably declining cargo bookings. For more information, contact [email protected].

The American Port Access Privileges Act (H.R. 8243, introduced June 29 by Rep. Garamendi, D-Calif.) would build on OSRA by encouraging ocean carriers to ship U.S. exports to foreign markets. ABC will be evaluating the legislation and working with our partners at AgTC to ensure they have any information needed to assist almond exporters.

According to information from Garamendi’s office, this bill would:

• reward ocean carriers that serve multiple ports in the U.S. or with significant cargo bookings of U.S. exports (i.e., those accounting for at least 51 percent of the vessel’s carrying capacity by weight or container volume) by moving those vessels to the front of the queue for unloading and loading;
• require export-carrying vessels seeking preferential berthing to report cargo bookings at least seven days in advance to port operators;
• authorize the Department of Transportation to collect data on berthing and cargo practices at U.S. ports to evaluate carriers’ practices for port calls and cargo bookings and the impact of preferential berthing; and
• codify current preferences for military, Jones Act, and other U.S.-flagged vessels in place at many major U.S. ports.

ABC staff continues to work with U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in finding ways to finalize facility registrations initially fast-tracked by General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China (GACC) back in December. It’s still not clear how FDA and GACC will sort out the review and approval of registrations submitted more recently including the addition of products that were not requested in the initial registrations.

The United States Agricultural Trade Office (ATO) based in Guangzhou, China, held a webinar on July 6 featuring GACC experts on self-registration for those products that don’t require support from the competent authority. Although these facilities do not require assistance from FDA, much of the documentation required is the same such as production process flowcharts, signed enterprise statements, and the proposed “licensed production certificate (business license?)” requirement. ABC is working with FDA and USDA/China to address many of these outstanding issues. If you have questions about the registration process, please contact [email protected].

Farmers Kyle Nichols and Rory Crowley discuss the benefits and tradeoffs of planting cover crops. They examine the economics and agronomics of the practice, and what this means for water management. Crowley is also the habitat program director for Project Apis m., running the Seeds for Bees program. Seeds for Bees encourages growers to support honey bee habitat and soil health by planting cover crops.

“Everything on the market seems to be more and more difficult so growers are having a really hard time. It's because of that, that Seeds for Bees is pushing out more free seed allocations this year.... At Project Apis m., we believe that cover cropping is important and even more so when we're having difficult times and difficult weather to plant in” - Rory Crowley

In Today’s episode:

● Meet Rory Crowley, almond grower and the habitat program director for Project Apis m., and Kyle Nichols, farm manager at Cinderlind Farms

● Explore the Seeds for Bees program, the benefits it provides and the process for applying to participate

● Discover the compost technique Kyle Nichols has used on his operation along with cover crops to enhance the biological activity in the soils of his orchard

“You can help keep that soil open and allow the drainage to happen, allow that water to get there and then leave. And that's what I've noticed as we implement cover crops... it brings that water over and it disperses that water across the entire row. I call it kind of making a water bank. It's going to hold all that water.” - Kyle Nichols

For more information about this or any of the topics we discuss on this podcast, reach out to the Almond Board’s Field Outreach Team directly at [email protected].

The Almond Journey Podcast is brought to you by the Almond Board of California. This show explores how growers, handlers, and other stakeholders are making things work in their operations to drive the almond industry forward. Host Tim Hammerich visits with leaders throughout the Central Valley of California and beyond who are finding innovative ways to improve their operations, connect with their communities, and advance the almond industry.

ABC recognizes the diverse makeup of the California almond industry and values contributions offered by its growers, handlers, and allied industry members. However, the opinions, services and products discussed in existing and future podcast episodes are by no means an endorsement or recommendation from ABC. The Almond Journey podcast is not an appropriate venue to express opinions on national, state, local or industry politics. As a Federal Marketing Order, the Almond Board of California is prohibited from lobbying or advocating on legislative issues, as well as setting field and market prices.

Transportation-Logistics Update

The Almond Alliance, along with other agricultural export leaders, has met with significant ocean carriers such as CMA/CGM, OOCL, MAERSK, the Ports of LA, LB, and Oakland, and railroads - UP & BNSF, to find immediate solutions to current industry shipping logjams. Using ABC data, the Almond Alliance was able to show that there is the demand to warrant alternatives to shipping out of the Port of Oakland.

As a result of these meetings, the Alliance was able to bring the parties together to offer a viable alternative. The new route would have shippers directly book with the ocean carrier OOCL for drop-off at the Oakland ramp. The product would be railed directly to LA/LB for final loading and shipment to various Asian markets (currently, service to India is not being offered). Concurrently, an additional rail service from the Central Valley directly to LA/LB is under development.

More information on that rail service will be provided as details become available. Additional information will be released by the Almond Alliance. Visit their website here to stay up to date.

Additionally, the gridlock surrounding the Ocean Shipping Reform Act in Congress is expected to be resolved in the next few weeks. The House is planning on taking up the version of the Bill passed by the Senate earlier this year. While this version does not include as strong of provisions that bar carriers from “unreasonably” declining export bookings, it includes stronger provisions related to reining in detention and demurrage fees.

MRL Conference Highlights More Challenges for Ag

Industry members attending the annual Minor Crops MRL Conference discussed challenges related to import tolerances, risk assessments and sustainable ag production. Increasing efforts to define “sustainable” food chains and acceptable processes and production methods will impact not only producers but also ag trade. It was highlighted that consumers generally do not appreciate the importance of chemical tools in mitigating food loss in the field resulting from insect pressures, drought, etc. – which impacts developing countries.

Concern was expressed over the need for expedited approvals and reviews for chemical tools, to reduce the burden on industry and agency reviews. It was pointed out that about 14% of global noncompliance would “go away” if science-based Codex MRLs were followed. A presenter from Mexico raised awareness that there is a number of shifts in how pesticides are to be regulated within Mexico. Those shifts include a ban on imports of glyphosate thus precluding its use by Mexican growers, along with efforts to increase organic production and reduce pesticide use within Mexico.

To date, it’s not clear if these changes will impact MRLs and thus imports, but if the outlined changes take effect, then Mexican growers will likely push for import MRL changes.

Pakistan Bans Imports of Almonds

On May 19, Pakistan announced a formal import ban on various products, including agricultural products, in an effort to lower its trade deficit and preserve foreign currency reserves. Imports of nearly all products under Chapter 08, including almonds and all other nuts, are banned. In 2021, the U.S. exported 2,714 MT of shelled almonds and 1,698 MT of in-shell almonds to Pakistan.

More information can be found in a recent USDA GAIN report. ABC staff are following up with USDA/FAS offices in Pakistan and USTR.

Richard Waycott is the president and CEO of the Almond Board of California (ABC). Over the past 20 years he has seen almond production triple from one billion to three billion pounds. Recent travels to Spain, Portugal, India, and Duba have informed Richard’s perspective on the global supply and demand drivers impacting almonds. Richard shares some takeaways from these trips and how emerging trends will inform ABC’s strategies going forward.  

“I'm focused on the industry and the importers and the manufacturers, to make sure that they understand who we are, what we're doing, that we want to help them develop new products and innovation.” - Richard Waycott

In Today’s episode: 

• Richard Waycott is the president and CEO of the Almond Board of California.
• Explore the almond market on a global scale and the obstacles the market may be facing
• Discover the actions by the Almond Board of California to grow international demand and market share
• Learn about a new venture with Marvel and how this partnership will promote almond consumption

“The board of directors really works hard to make sure we're focused in the right areas and putting resources behind issues in the industry be they on the farm or globally where we can move the needle” - Richard Waycott

For more information about this or any of the topics we discuss on this podcast, reach out to the Almond Board’s Field Outreach Team directly at [email protected].  

The Almond Journey Podcast is brought to you by the Almond Board of California. This show explores how growers, handlers, and other stakeholders are making things work in their operations to drive the almond industry forward. Host Tim Hammerich visits with leaders throughout the Central Valley of California and beyond who are finding innovative ways to improve their operations, connect with their communities, and advance the almond industry.

ABC recognizes the diverse makeup of the California almond industry and values contributions offered by its growers, handlers, and allied industry members. However, the opinions, services and products discussed in existing and future podcast episodes are by no means an endorsement or recommendation from ABC. The Almond Journey podcast is not an appropriate venue to express opinions on national, state, local or industry politics. As a Federal Marketing Order, the Almond Board of California is prohibited from lobbying or advocating on legislative issues, as well as setting field and market prices.

On April 25, a group of agricultural stakeholders, led by the Almond Alliance of California (AAC), sent a letter to the United States Department of Agriculture, the Department of Transportation and other Federal agencies requesting they convene a meeting between agricultural exporters and ocean carriers to address the current trade imbalance. Other signatories included California Farm Bureau; Western Growers Association; National Milk Producers Federation; U.S. Dairy Export Council; Western United Dairies; and the California Walnut Handlers Alliance.

Working with the Alliance, the Almond Board contributed to the letter by developing data regarding the economic impacts of the present situation and the current state of the industry.

On May 4, California Senators Feinstein and Padilla referencing the AAC-led effort, sent a letter, to 13 ocean carriers requesting they provide the necessary equipment for exports and for them to engage with the affected industries to develop a resolution to the export delays.

Kirk Pumphrey grows 160 acres of almonds on Westwind Farms in Yolo County. He has been on a seven-year journey to finetune his operation, especially in the areas of irrigation efficiency and distribution uniformity.

“In ‘13 and ‘14 the market was down, and a piece of property became available. I got through the planning of the orchard probably moving, I would say a bit quick in not doing as much research as I probably should have…. I quickly learned and understood the deficiencies of those decisions and reached out for help. - Kirk Pumphrey

Through this process he has developed close relationships with researchers at UC Davis, local resource conservation districts (RCDs) and others. Pumphrey has been driven to find the latest research and best practices that work for him on his farm. Not only is he collaborating with UC Davis on multiple research projects, but he has also worked with Kevin Greer at the Tehama County Resource Conservation District to run distribution uniformity tests, and has found a way to remove boron from his water and sell it as a fertilizer to areas that are deficient. Given the last few years of severe drought, Pumphrey has explored flowmeters and the impact they have had on his water efficiency.

“We'll find at the beginning of the year, the output of that well is “x.” We've already noticed by the end of this month of April that we're in right now, a difference that our well output already has. Consequently, runtimes are a bit longer and I'm sure as we progress through the season, the same thing's going to happen, and the water volume will change. You can't use anything that's theoretical. You've got to base it on gallons.” - Kirk Pumphrey

In Today’s episode:

• Meet Kirk Pumphrey, an almond grower on Westwind Farms in Yolo County.
• Explore the journey he has taken towards collaborating with researchers and RCDs to best use the resources he has available
• Discover Pumphrey’s use and recommendation of flowmeter sensors to increase his water efficiency
• Learn about his best practices in timing and application for pursuing grant money to help your operation be as efficient as possible without incurring extra expense

“The volume of water in the world is not going to change tomorrow. It's a closed system and we have a management problem of that water. And we, as a society, need to understand how we are going to manage this better.” - Kirk Pumphrey

ABC Update

There’s no easy year when it comes to farming in California, and as you just heard from Pumphrey, the journey to get it right doesn’t really have a final destination. Since 1973 the almond community has supported more than $89 million in research to improve farming practices. One of the many deliverables from this investment is a number of helpful research-backed resources that growers can access for free. Almond Board Senior Manager of Industry Relations and Communications Jenny Nicolau says a good place to start is almonds.com/growertools, where you’ll find a whole irrigation section with each tool listed separately and east to access. The page also contains educational videos from the irrigation station series that the Almond Board produced a few years ago. Growers can get more information about the tools and topics by accessing the “Orchard Management” section of the “Almond Industry” tab and search by topic.

For more information about this or any of the topics we discuss on this podcast, reach out to the Almond Board’s Field Outreach Team directly at [email protected]. 

The Almond Journey Podcast is brought to you by the Almond Board of California. This show explores how growers, handlers, and other stakeholders are making things work in their operations to drive the almond industry forward. Host Tim Hammerich visits with leaders throughout the Central Valley of California and beyond who are finding innovative ways to improve their operations, connect with their communities, and advance the almond industry.

ABC recognizes the diverse makeup of the California almond industry and values contributions offered by its growers, handlers, and allied industry members. However, the opinions, services and products discussed in existing and future podcast episodes are by no means an endorsement or recommendation from ABC. The Almond Journey podcast is not an appropriate venue to express opinions on national, state, local or industry politics. As a Federal Marketing Order, the Almond Board of California is prohibited from lobbying or advocating on legislative issues, as well as setting field and market prices.

It has been in the works for a long time, but it appears

Australia and India have finally concluded their Economic Cooperation and Trade

Agreement (IndAusECTA) on April 2, 2022. The agreement provides for competitive

tariff elimination or reduction on a wide range of goods including Australian

almonds. The aim is to enhance bilateral trade to $54 billion in the next five

years which is currently at $27.5 billion. As soon as the Agreement is ratified

by both parliaments, India has agreed to create a combined annual tariff rate

quota up to 34,000 MTs for shelled and inshell Australian almonds.

From the information available, it appears importers will be

required to obtain import licenses to utilize the TRQ. The in-quota rate will

be 50% of the current MFN rate which would equate to 17.5 rps/kg for inshell

and 50 rps/kg for shelled almonds. Meantime, the U.S. duties, given retaliatory

tariffs, remain at 41 rps/kg for inshell, and 120 rps/kg for kernels. This is

only the second agreement that India has signed in the last 10 years. The last

agreement India signed was with Japan in 2011 followed by the UAE and now

Australia in 2022.

The deal with India removes tariffs on more than 85% of

Australian goods exported to India, worth US$9.4 billion, rising to almost 91%

over 10 years. Tariffs will be eliminated on sheep meat, wool, copper, coal,

alumina, fresh Australian rock lobster, and some critical minerals and

non-ferrous metals to India. It will see 96 percent of Indian goods imports

enter Australia duty-free. Australia is currently negotiating nine FTAs

including bilateral agreements with three of its largest trading partners,

China, Japan and South Korea. Meanwhile, the United States is waiting to engage

in talks related to the proposed Indo-Pacific Economic Framework.

The Senate unanimously approved the Ocean Shipping Reform

Act in a vote last week. The bill’s support comes at a time of peak

congressional concern over the resiliency of American supply chains, which has

become an even more critical issue in light of the Ukraine/Russia conflict. The

bill, which aims to ease maritime supply chain issues, “is designed to support

the growth and development of U.S. exports and promote reciprocal trade in the

common carriage of goods by water in the foreign commerce of the United

States.”

The bill now goes into a process to work out the differences

between the House and Senate versions. Once the differences are worked out, the

bill will need to pass both chambers a second time. Have logistics updates you

want to share? Please contact: [email protected]

The war in Ukrane has “pressed the pause button” on the

EU’s flagship food policy, the Farm to Fork strategy, but the long-term

ambition for the sector remains unchanged, according to the EU Health Commissioner

Stella Kyriakides.

Between skyrocketing food prices and shortages of key inputs

such as fuel and fertilizer, the war has sent the EU agri-food sector reeling.

“We’re working hard to address global food security and for food affordability

in the EU, including finding alternative feed sources for the short term,” said

EU Health Commissioner Kyriakide. EU Commission and European industry have been

meeting frequently to identify those temporary measures and policy implications

brought about by the war and disruption to food supply systems. Several

short-to-medium term measures are being considered to minimize disruption,

which includes allowing farmers to plant crops on marginal/set-aside lands,

packaging label changes, etc.