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WEST COAST NUT<br />
Your<br />
DECEMBER 2021 ISSUE<br />
Connection to the Tree Nut Industry<br />
JAN 5, 2022<br />
See page 61<br />
JAN 12, 2022<br />
PECAN<br />
DAY<br />
Yuba-Sutter Fairgrounds<br />
JAN 13-14, 2022<br />
See pages 88-91<br />
PUBLICATION<br />
PUBLICATION
Publisher: Jason Scott<br />
Email: jason@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
Editor: Marni Katz<br />
Email: marni@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
Associate Editor: Cecilia Parsons<br />
Email: cecilia@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
Production: design@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
Tel: 559.352.4456<br />
Fax: 559.472.3113<br />
Web: www.wcngg.com<br />
Contributing Writers & Industry Support<br />
Almond Board of California<br />
Contributing Writer<br />
American Pecan Council<br />
Contributing Writer<br />
Jeff Bowman<br />
Grimbleby Coleman CPAs<br />
Vicky Boyd<br />
Contributing Writer<br />
Danita Cahill<br />
Contributing Writer<br />
California Walnut Board<br />
Contributing Writer<br />
Taylor Chalstrom<br />
Assistant Editor<br />
Kathy Coatney<br />
Contributing Writer<br />
Marieke Fenton<br />
Ph.D. Candidate, Dept. of<br />
Agricultural & Resource<br />
Economics, UC Davis<br />
Brittney Goodrich<br />
Asst. Cooperative Extension<br />
Specialist, Department of<br />
Agricultural and Resource<br />
Economics, UC Davis<br />
UC Cooperative Extension Advisory Board<br />
Surendra K. Dara<br />
UCCE Entomology and<br />
Biologicals Advisor, San Luis<br />
Obispo and Santa Barbara<br />
Counties<br />
Kevin Day<br />
County Director/UCCE<br />
Pomology Farm Advisor,<br />
Tulare/Kings Counties<br />
Elizabeth Fichtner<br />
UCCE Farm Advisor,<br />
Tulare County<br />
Katherine Jarvis-Shean<br />
UCCE Area Orchard Systems<br />
Advisor, Yolo and Solano<br />
Roger A. Isom<br />
President/CEO, Western<br />
Agricultural Processors<br />
Association<br />
Rich Kreps<br />
CCA, SSp., Contributing Writer<br />
Mitch Lies<br />
Contributing Writer<br />
Chris McGlothlin<br />
Director of Technical Services,<br />
Western Agricultural<br />
Processors Association<br />
Catherine Merlo<br />
Contributing Writer<br />
Jerrod Penn<br />
Assistant Professor, Dept.<br />
of Agricultural Economics &<br />
Agribusiness, Louisiana State<br />
University<br />
Mike Wade<br />
California Farm Water<br />
Coalition<br />
Eryn Wingate<br />
Agronomist, Tri-Tech Ag<br />
Products, Inc.<br />
Steven Koike<br />
Tri-Cal Diagnostics<br />
Jhalendra Rijal<br />
UCCE Integrated Pest<br />
Management Advisor,<br />
Stanislaus County<br />
Kris Tollerup<br />
UCCE Integrated Pest<br />
Management Advisor,<br />
Parlier<br />
Mohammad Yaghmour<br />
UCCE Area Orchard Systems<br />
Advisor, Kern County<br />
View our ePublication on the web at www.wcngg.com<br />
The articles, research, industry updates, company profiles, and advertisements<br />
in this publication are the professional opinions of writers and advertisers.<br />
West Coast Nut does not assume any responsibility for the opinions given in<br />
the publication.<br />
By the Industry, For the Industry<br />
IN THIS ISSUE<br />
6 Navel Orangeworm Rejects on the Rise<br />
12 View from the Top: A conversation with Blue Diamond’s Mark<br />
Jansen<br />
16 Planning for Nitrogen Efficiency for 2022<br />
20 CARB Updating Regulations for Trucking Industry<br />
24 Weighing in on Almond Profitability<br />
28 Restoring Soil Health and Ecosystem Services in California’s<br />
Almond Orchards<br />
34 Winter Prep in Walnuts<br />
38 Tips for Financial Planning Through the Drought<br />
42 Almond Pollination 2022: Economic Outlook and Other<br />
Considerations<br />
52 Pollinator Efforts Lead to Prestigious Sustainability Award for<br />
Almond Board of California<br />
56 Start Thinking about Pollinator Contracts<br />
60 Sweet Flavor Keeps Chestnut Buyers Coming Back for More<br />
64 Grower Cooperators a Vital Cog in Research<br />
68 What It Could Mean for Californians if We Have Another Dry Year<br />
70 Organic Walnut Production Increases as Growers Learn New<br />
Management Techniques<br />
74 Health Research Helps Drive Consumer Demand for Walnuts<br />
76 Grower Profile: Joseph Jackson on “Doing What Matters”<br />
78 California Legislative Recap for 2021<br />
82 A Peak into the Pecan Powerhouses Network<br />
84 Ant Management in Almonds<br />
SPOTLIGHT ARTICLE: Navel Orangeworm Rejects on the Rise<br />
With a notable uptick in NOW rejects over the last decade, it's time to double down on almond<br />
IPM, starting with winter sanitation, to reduce damage.<br />
See page 6<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 3
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 5
Navel Orangeworm Rejects on the Rise<br />
Double down on almond IPM, starting with winter<br />
sanitation, to reduce damage.<br />
By VICKY BOYD | Contributing Writer<br />
Timely harvests are part of a navel orangeworm integrated management program. The end<br />
use, whether for meats or for in-shell, also will affect harvest timing (photo by V. Boyd.)<br />
While the amount of Nonpareil almond rejects due<br />
to navel orangeworm (NOW) damage varies from<br />
season to season, Blue Diamond Growers has noted<br />
a concerning uptick over the past 10-plus years. With the<br />
upward trend comes opportunity losses from reduced or no<br />
grower premiums.<br />
University of California Cooperative Extension farm advisors<br />
and Blue Diamond staff point to not one, but a combination<br />
of factors that likely are responsible for the increasing<br />
rejects.<br />
“It’s hard to say exactly what’s going on,” said Jhalendra<br />
Rijal, UCCE IPM advisor for Stanislaus, San Joaquin and Merced<br />
counties. “It could be multiple factors at play.”<br />
Among potential contributors are drought conditions, larger<br />
nut crop acreage that provides increased continuous hosts,<br />
the availability and cost of polling crews for winter sanitation,<br />
and pesticide resistance.<br />
As a result, Extension and industry representatives recommend<br />
growers double down on their IPM practices, which<br />
start with foundational winter sanitation. Proper timing of<br />
the other IPM practices is also crucial, whether it is hanging<br />
monitoring traps in the spring, putting out mating disruption<br />
dispensers, applying hull split sprays or harvesting.<br />
Rejects Up in 2021<br />
So far this season, Nonpareil overall reject levels are running<br />
about 1.75%, second only to the “train wreck” of 2017<br />
and 2018, said Mel Machado, Blue Diamond vice president<br />
Complete Walnut and Pecan<br />
Hulling And<br />
Drying Systems<br />
209-754-9636<br />
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of member relations. In<br />
the past, about 80% of the<br />
rejects could be attributed<br />
to NOW damage. But<br />
that’s not the case anymore.<br />
While NOW still comprises<br />
the bulk of the rejects at<br />
53%, he said other problems,<br />
such as brown hole, are on<br />
the rise.<br />
“NOW is still the primary<br />
problem out there, but<br />
primary is a relative term,”<br />
Machado said. Rather than<br />
looking at average reject<br />
levels, he said he prefers to<br />
look at how much of the<br />
crop goes into the co-op’s<br />
quality programs.<br />
The navel orangeworm moth<br />
itself does not feed on almonds.<br />
Females lay eggs on mummy nuts<br />
or on nuts after hull split begins.<br />
After they hatch, first-instar larvae<br />
bore into the nut meat (photo<br />
courtesy USDA-ARS.)<br />
Based on the amount of the Blue Diamond crop run as of<br />
late October, about one-third failed to make grade and was<br />
considered standard. Broken down, the northern production<br />
area was running 38%, the central 25.7% and the south 44%.<br />
“That’s stunning, 44%,” Machado said. “Even in 2017, it was<br />
37%.”<br />
When Machado compared the crop going for meats to that<br />
destined for in-shell, the differences were glaring.<br />
Only 12% of in-shell failed to make grade. He attributed it<br />
to varieties that have tighter seals, making them less susceptible<br />
to NOW. Growers also are more aware of reject levels for<br />
the in-shell market and manage accordingly.<br />
The Foundation: Winter Sanitation<br />
At the heart of NOW management is winter sanitation,<br />
which not only removes mummies in which larvae overwinter<br />
but also eliminates egg laying sites for the first NOW flight in<br />
the spring.<br />
Franz Niederholzer, UCCE farm advisor for Colusa, Sutter<br />
and Yuba counties, recommended surveying orchards for<br />
mummies on or before Jan. 15. Count the mummies on 20<br />
representative trees and average the results. This should be<br />
done for each variety, regardless of shell thickness or seal,<br />
Continued on Page 8<br />
6 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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Make timely hull split sprays, keeping in mind that nuts at the top of trees typically split<br />
before those at eye level (photo by V. Boyd.)<br />
Mummies not only provide an overwintering site for larvae, they also offer egg-laying<br />
sites for the first NOW moth flight in the spring (photo by V. Boyd.)<br />
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within the orchard.<br />
If there are more than two mummies<br />
per tree, plan to mechanically shake<br />
or have a crew hand-poll the trees to<br />
remove them before bud swell. In the<br />
central to southern parts of the Central<br />
Valley, David Haviland, UCCE farm<br />
advisor in Kern County, recommends<br />
striving for fewer than one per tree.<br />
But the increased cost and reduced<br />
availability of polling crews has made<br />
winter sanitation more challenging,<br />
he said. Afterward, the orchard floor<br />
should be disked or flail mowed by<br />
March 1 to destroy mummies on the<br />
ground.<br />
The optimum time for winter sanitation<br />
is after a heavy dew, fog or rain<br />
when the mummy nuts have absorbed<br />
some moisture. This makes them heavier<br />
and easier to shake and remove. The<br />
moisture also helps rot mummies in the<br />
trees as well as aids larval mortality on<br />
the orchard floor.<br />
Unfortunately, Haviland said, the<br />
southern San Joaquin Valley never<br />
received heavy rains last winter.<br />
“The ground remained bone dry all<br />
winter long,” he said. “Even if a mummy<br />
is below ground and it doesn’t get wet,<br />
a larva can emerge if it’s in the top few<br />
inches. Shallow-buried mummies never<br />
got wet.”<br />
Rijal said sometimes growers and<br />
PCAs think that instead of shaking they<br />
can apply an insecticide to the mummies<br />
due to understandable reason, such<br />
as dry winters and labor shortages.<br />
Regardless, he said, “We cannot beat<br />
the navel orangeworm if we only rely on<br />
insecticides, and we need to find ways<br />
to do the winter sanitation effectively.<br />
In fact, for winter sanitation, any time<br />
after the harvest through early February<br />
works. For example, we had some rain<br />
last week, and mummy sanitation can<br />
be done now if you can.”<br />
Mating Disruption<br />
In response to NOW control challenges,<br />
almond, pistachio and walnut<br />
growers representing more than 400,000<br />
acres combined have successfully incorporated<br />
in-season mating disruption<br />
into their IPM programs, Haviland said.<br />
Among adoptees is Niederholzer,<br />
8 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
Many growers like to wait for dew,<br />
dense fog or some rain before they<br />
shake mummies in the winter (photo by<br />
V. Boyd.)<br />
At least a few growers in the northern Sacramento Valley have put tracks on their<br />
shakers so they can remove mummies even in wet orchards (photo by F. Niederholzer)<br />
who also is manager of the Nickels Soil<br />
Lab.<br />
“Over the past two years at Nickels,<br />
we’ve had some of the best control measures<br />
of the last 10 years,” he said.<br />
Hung in orchards in the spring,<br />
pheromone dispensers emit chemicals<br />
throughout the season that imitate those<br />
produced by female NOW. This confuses<br />
male moths, preventing them from<br />
finding females with which to mate. The<br />
system works best on large, contiguous<br />
blocks, but Haviland said even smaller-scale<br />
growers have seen benefits.<br />
“We know it works on 40 acres in<br />
almonds,” he said. “We know it works<br />
better on 100 acres, and anything over<br />
100 is just bonus.”<br />
While not a silver bullet, mating disruption<br />
can help eliminate at least one<br />
in-season NOW treatment, according to<br />
UCCE.<br />
Hull Split Sprays<br />
Although insecticides are part of<br />
NOW IPM, they alone may only be 50%<br />
effective, and in many cases, less, Rijal<br />
said.<br />
“Every time I do a trial with insecticides,<br />
I never reduce damage to zero<br />
even though I dip the nuts in a solution,”<br />
he said. In other words, insecticides at<br />
hull split are critical, but they cannot<br />
solve all of the problems and need to be<br />
combined with other control measures.<br />
Insecticide choice also has grown<br />
more challenging as NOW has become<br />
less sensitive to the pyrethroid class of<br />
chemistries, Haviland said.<br />
“Generally, pyrethroids are not<br />
working as well as they used to; there’s<br />
Continued on Page 10<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 9
Larvae can overwinter in mummies left<br />
on almond trees after harvest (photo by V.<br />
Boyd.)<br />
The lack of availability and increasing cost of polling crews have prompted many growers to<br />
rely solely on mechanical mummy removal (photo by V. Boyd.)<br />
Continued from Page 9<br />
definitely pyrethroid resistance,” he said.<br />
Application timing is critical as the<br />
hulls split and the nuts become susceptible<br />
to NOW egg laying.<br />
Machado said growers should time<br />
hull split sprays based on the crop stage,<br />
not the moth flight. Where they may get<br />
into trouble is not noticing the nuts in<br />
the tree tops that typically split before<br />
those at eye level.<br />
“They need to be watching the tops of<br />
the trees, whether that’s with a pruning<br />
tower or long hook,” Machado said. “If<br />
you look where the nuts are in the canopy,<br />
they’re in the tops of the trees.”<br />
“Timely” Harvest<br />
While some talk about an early<br />
harvest to possibly avoid the third NOW<br />
flight, Machado prefers the term “timely<br />
harvest.”<br />
“What’s the goal?” he asked. Is the<br />
crop going for meats or for in-shell,<br />
since the two end uses prompt different<br />
harvest timing.<br />
Even then, it’s a balancing act. Ideally<br />
for the meat market, Extension recommends<br />
shaking when 100% of the nuts<br />
are one-half to two-thirds of the way<br />
split and the hull is still green, known as<br />
stage “d.” With some varieties, growers<br />
have found that harvesting at stage “c,”<br />
when the hull split is 0.25 to 0.5 inch,<br />
allows for a cleaner shake.<br />
Harvest significantly earlier, and resulting<br />
higher moisture levels will mean<br />
the nuts have to sit on the ground longer<br />
to dry. This makes them potentially<br />
susceptible to additional ant damage,<br />
Machado said. Going too early also may<br />
mean the brown kernel skin hasn’t set<br />
adequately, and you get more “peelers.”<br />
On the other hand, if you let the nuts<br />
dry for a prolonged period on the tree,<br />
you expose them to an increased egg<br />
laying potential from the third NOW<br />
flight. The hulls also cup and become<br />
tough, making them more difficult to<br />
remove.<br />
For the in-shell market, Machado<br />
said growers should wait until the hulls<br />
butterfly before they harvest. Leaving<br />
the nuts on the tree longer also exposes<br />
them potentially to more NOW egg<br />
laying. If the orchard was managed<br />
with high fertility, toxins from hull rot<br />
also could build up with later harvest,<br />
creating more stick-tights.<br />
To determine how well their NOW<br />
program worked during the season,<br />
Rijal said growers shouldn’t just rely on<br />
handlers’ grade sheets. In addition, they<br />
should collect field samples at harvest<br />
because up to half of damaged nuts are<br />
left in the orchard and aren’t reflected<br />
in the reports.<br />
“Take multiple samples of 500 to<br />
1,000 nuts representing the orchard and<br />
crack the nuts out,” he said. “It helps to<br />
know what’s going on and also look at<br />
the history of the orchard.”<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
10 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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View from the Top<br />
‘The Role of the CEO Has Greatly Changed’<br />
A Conversation with Blue Diamond's Mark Jansen<br />
By CATHERINE MERLO | Contributing Writer<br />
Note from the Editor: This new series in West Coast Nut magazine called “View<br />
from the Top” will feature high profile industry executives and their thoughts on<br />
leadership, markets and the future of the industry.<br />
As one of the biggest players in<br />
the global almond market, Blue<br />
Diamond Growers can rightly<br />
credit CEO Mark Jansen for much of<br />
its recent success. But, as Jansen shares<br />
here, the past 21 months haven’t been<br />
easy, and there’s still plenty of work<br />
ahead.<br />
Since he arrived as CEO in 2010,<br />
Jansen has helped transform Blue<br />
Diamond Growers into a $1.75 billion<br />
global food manufacturer.<br />
The Sacramento-based cooperative<br />
has become the leading shipper of<br />
California almonds into the U.S., India,<br />
China and many other countries. In<br />
2020, Blue Diamond was named one<br />
of the nation’s 10 fastest-growing food<br />
companies for the fourth consecutive<br />
year. Its brand is recognized globally,<br />
and its Almond Breeze product, sold<br />
in 100 countries, is the world’s No. 1<br />
almond milk. And the co-op has done<br />
all of this as California set record highs<br />
for almond production.<br />
But even as Blue Diamond enjoys<br />
its success, new challenges are emerging<br />
for the 111-year-old company like<br />
everywhere else. The statewide drought,<br />
water scarcity and the myriad effects<br />
of the COVID-19 pandemic are forcing<br />
business leaders like Jansen to rethink<br />
their approaches to operations,<br />
markets and the future. With 3,000<br />
grower-members, 1,800 employees and<br />
a global customer base, there’s a lot at<br />
stake for Blue Diamond.<br />
“We’re not pessimistic,” Jansen said<br />
in an interview for West Coast Nut.<br />
“But my frustration is our industry<br />
could be so much better if some of the<br />
underlying issues could be solved.”<br />
Q: How are the port congestion<br />
and supply-chain disruptions<br />
affecting Blue Diamond?<br />
Our average shipping order over<br />
the past 18 months has been booked<br />
three times. The sad truth is up to 50%<br />
to 55% of the containers are leaving<br />
Oakland empty, which is just shocking<br />
to me. The berths are there if you can<br />
effectively manage and get through<br />
that. We’ve also seen about 3% cost<br />
inflation over the past year from port<br />
and supply chain issues alone. I don’t<br />
see that going away. My fear is that it’s<br />
actually increasing.<br />
One of our advantages is that we’ve<br />
been a major exporter out of the Port of<br />
Oakland for decades. In fact, roughly<br />
60% of our sales are exports. We’re a<br />
big player. But also because we’re a coop,<br />
we are strong on partnerships. We<br />
look for win-win solutions. We’ve been<br />
working with our suppliers, freight<br />
forwarders and shippers to find ways to<br />
become their best customers.<br />
Blue Diamond has the creativity and the<br />
people to get through the industry’s<br />
challenges, says CEO Mark Jansen (all<br />
photos courtesy Blue Diamond.)<br />
Q: What would you like to see<br />
done about the problem?<br />
What I would love to see happen,<br />
and this is not a short-term fix, is that<br />
important changes, like ports operating<br />
24/7, are truly in place. That needs to<br />
happen consistently throughout the<br />
entire port system.<br />
We need to also think about the<br />
availability of trucking. Very few trucks<br />
can actually service the ports, either<br />
because of unionization of truckers or<br />
more likely because of California state<br />
regulations that limit much of the nation’s<br />
trucking workforce from coming<br />
into California or particularly the ports.<br />
If the ports aren’t working, that sends<br />
ripples throughout the U.S. So, we need<br />
to find ways to ensure that we have adequate<br />
resources with the transportation<br />
structure.<br />
The other big wish I have, and this<br />
is a federal issue, is that we develop<br />
Jansen considers his biggest success as CEO to be creating a shared sense of purpose<br />
between Blue Diamond’s employees and growers.<br />
12 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
deep-water ports on the West Coast<br />
that can take the biggest, most efficient<br />
shippers, because right now they can’t.<br />
We also need to invest in the modernization<br />
of ports. That automation and<br />
technology would provide significant<br />
long-term security.<br />
I’m happy to say that Joshua Woods,<br />
Blue Diamond’s director of transportation,<br />
warehousing and order<br />
management, was named to the U.S.<br />
Federal Maritime Commission’s new<br />
National Shipper Advisory Committee<br />
in September. It’s an honor for him and<br />
for Blue Diamond to have a seat at that<br />
vital table. Other committee members<br />
representing both importers and<br />
exporters include notable companies<br />
such as Amazon, Walmart, Target and<br />
Cargill. Together, they will advise the<br />
commission on policies relating to our<br />
nation’s ocean freight delivery system.<br />
Q: As California enters another year<br />
of drought, what do you foresee<br />
“<br />
We used to pay our growers 1 cent per pound<br />
more than what they would get if they delivered<br />
their almonds to anyone else. Now, we’re<br />
up to 20 cents a pound.<br />
– Mark Jansen, Blue Diamond<br />
for the state’s almond production?<br />
The drought does have an impact<br />
on yields. We are seeing it in this year’s<br />
crop. We came off last year with an<br />
all-time record crop where everything<br />
was working: adequate water, perfect<br />
bloom weather, everything came into<br />
place. We’re looking at a crop this year<br />
that is constrained in yields because<br />
of the drought. What we know about<br />
droughts and almond trees, however,<br />
is that the biggest impact is not the<br />
year when the drought occurs; it’s the<br />
following year. So, we foresee not only<br />
a shorter crop this year but an even<br />
”<br />
shorter crop next year.<br />
The other thing is, if you’re an<br />
almond grower with a tree toward the<br />
end of its lifecycle, you may determine,<br />
‘I’ve got limited water supplies. I’m<br />
going to put all my water on my young<br />
orchards, and I’ll pull out this orchard<br />
a year or two ahead of time.’ So, we’ll<br />
see some reduced acreage because of<br />
that dynamic. While there are still<br />
some plantings going on, we’ll see some<br />
pull-outs of those older orchards. For<br />
the next couple of years, we’re anticipating<br />
lower supplies of almonds.<br />
Continued on Page 14<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 13
Continued from Page 13<br />
Q: What are the biggest challenges for Blue<br />
Diamond and California’s almond industry?<br />
Certainly, for an almond grower, water is the existential<br />
issue. What concerns us as a co-op, what keeps us up at<br />
night, is inflation. It’s a big deal. It’s not transitory; it’s here<br />
to stay. We’ve announced price increases into the marketplace.<br />
Everything in the grocery store has taken a price increase,<br />
so we’re not alone. Fuel costs, wages, the cost of resins<br />
and steel and other core materials all continue to rise. I don’t<br />
see anything short-term that leads me to believe that this is<br />
plateauing, at least in our business.<br />
Q: What one or two things are you<br />
pushing hardest for these days?<br />
Finding ways to be more effective and efficient. We know<br />
costs are increasing. We have a big focus on what we call<br />
margin enhancement, which is more complex than cutting<br />
costs. It’s also about finding ways to increase capacity without<br />
significant investments. That idea also leads into things<br />
like sustainability. The great news is that sustainability links<br />
up very, very well with those margin-enhancement initiatives.<br />
We’ve actually gone so far as incentivizing our growers<br />
for sustainability in their actions. We think it makes them<br />
and us ultimately more efficient. But, also, we think there is<br />
value that goes beyond that because we know our customers<br />
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One of the biggest challenges facing Blue Diamond and the California<br />
almond industry is inflation, according to Jansen.<br />
value that we are good actors and that we’re doing the right<br />
things. That’s another way for us to distinguish Blue Diamond<br />
in the marketplace.<br />
Q: What are your other priorities for 2022?<br />
One of the big things that’s changed, now that I’ve been<br />
CEO here for 11 years, is broadening out who our stakeholders<br />
are. The role of the CEO has greatly changed in<br />
that timeframe. It used to be, ‘Take care of your customers,<br />
your owners and your employees, deliver good results, and<br />
all is well.’ It’s a very different world today. People want to<br />
know how you’re taking care of the communities where you<br />
operate. We talk about environmental issues, but also other<br />
elements of ESG (environmental, social and governance). For<br />
example, we’ve done a lot of work, really employee-driven,<br />
around social impact and how Blue Diamond impacts the<br />
communities we participate in. It’s about how we align the<br />
values of the co-op and our people in a way that we also can<br />
communicate more broadly out into our communities and<br />
the marketplace. This is an area of priority for our leadership<br />
team.<br />
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Q: What do you consider your biggest success<br />
at Blue Diamond since you became CEO?<br />
Creating a shared sense of purpose between our employees<br />
and our growers. It’s what allows us to be successful.<br />
Drawing those two things together has allowed us to almost<br />
triple in size, to have a 2,000% increase in profitability to<br />
growers<br />
Q: A 2,000% increase?<br />
We used to pay our growers 1 cent per pound more<br />
than what they would get if they delivered their almonds to<br />
anyone else. Now, we’re up to 20 cents a pound. So that’s that<br />
20-times-greater incremental profit margin over and beyond<br />
what they used to get. And that’s real. Particularly in this<br />
past year, where we had historically low market prices for<br />
almonds and increasing costs, that could be the difference<br />
between a grower having a year of loss or breaking even or<br />
being profitable.<br />
Comments about this article? We want to hear from you. Feel<br />
free to email us at article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
14 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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Planning for Nitrogen<br />
Efficiency for 2022<br />
Better Preparation, Calculation, Application and<br />
Assimilation in Light of Skyrocketing N Prices<br />
By RICH KREPS | CCA, SSp., Contributing Writer<br />
Changing nitrogen inputs from a 50-unit slug to (four) 10-unit shots can not only save money but hopefully ensure more absorption (photos by<br />
Marni Katz.)<br />
Nitrogen is 78% of the air we breathe. 78%!? Yet we<br />
have to pour the N to our crops to get them to perform<br />
at optimal levels because we are told they can’t find a<br />
way to use it themselves. Right? So, what happens when N<br />
prices double? It’s damn near as debilitating as California<br />
West Side surface water costing $2000 an acre-foot or more!<br />
The Midwest would be losing their minds if they knew what<br />
we pay to farm here in California, but of course, they have<br />
It’s been a long harvest.<br />
Your trees just ran a marathon, and so did you.<br />
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their own set of problems. One of which is certainly the price<br />
of N. With almost 1 billion acres of farmland in the U.S., the<br />
nitrogen problem and unprecedented rise in all input costs<br />
has to be considered to farm in 2022.<br />
Estimating Yield<br />
When we make our input calculations for our farms this<br />
time of year, we have to consider our expected yields. The<br />
UC has a fluid range of nitrogen used to grow 1,000 pounds<br />
of almonds at about 65 units today. Of course, we all are<br />
hopefully optimistic that we will hit that golden number of<br />
4,000 pounds of almonds, or 8,000 pounds of pistachios, or<br />
four tons of walnuts.<br />
When we assess the crop potential in the spring, many<br />
times we realize our final numbers will be less than optimal.<br />
Here in lies the rub. Nitrogen and phosphorus levels<br />
start high in the spring and taper in our tissues throughout<br />
the season. We have to be right early, yet we waste much of<br />
what we apply later in the spring if our yields aren’t what was<br />
predicted in our planning. How do we make our nitrogen<br />
applications more efficient and timely?<br />
The Western Region’s CCA of the Year, Keith Backman,<br />
was recently speaking at the Crop Consultant Conference in<br />
Visalia, Calif. this fall. He again reiterated his immense lab<br />
experience and observations from years of dedicated service<br />
to us farmers. He noted that typically, a tree will only be able<br />
to assimilate 10 units of nitrogen per week.<br />
Let’s say we plan on making a 3000-pound almond<br />
crop. At 65 units per 1000 pounds, and assuming a 70% use<br />
efficiency, that puts us around 250 units needed to grow<br />
that big of a crop and keep the trees growing. What farmers<br />
for years have taken that to mean is applying 50 units every<br />
month from March to July. But how effective is that? And<br />
what about the other nutrients? We typically need as much<br />
calcium as we do nitrogen. We aren’t getting that from just<br />
applying CAN-17. That would only be half of the calcium<br />
demand. If it were only 70% efficient, we’d need to apply<br />
33 units of phosphorus to get to the proper number in our<br />
16 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
'<br />
When we make our input calculations<br />
for our farms this time of year, we<br />
have to consider our expected yields.<br />
JAN 13-14, 2022<br />
See pages 88-91<br />
tissues. If magnesium needs to be about<br />
20% of your nitrogen number in the tissues,<br />
your trees would have to consume<br />
55 units of Mg in a season. How often<br />
do we even come close to applying that<br />
much Mg?! (And wait until the magnesium<br />
shortage hits harder with all the<br />
alloys used to make electric cars… but<br />
I digress.)<br />
Planning and Preparation<br />
“So, what are you saying, Rich?”<br />
We have to get better at our preparation,<br />
calculation, application and<br />
assimilation. I have a client, Norma in<br />
Madera, who is a bad-ass farmer. She<br />
and her late husband have farmed in<br />
Madera for decades, and on her own,<br />
she has been one of the most adaptive<br />
and forward-thinking farmers I know.<br />
From cover crops, to mulching, to<br />
intensive irrigation management, and<br />
very diligent nutrient management,<br />
she was able to harvest well over 3,000<br />
pounds of nuts per acre (again) on<br />
less than 30 units of in-season applied<br />
nitrogen.<br />
Continued on Page 18<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 17
Continued from Page 17<br />
The sheer tons of green manure that<br />
is produced from her cover crops gets<br />
mowed and deposited out of the centers<br />
on the crotch of the berms. By the time<br />
she harvests, it’s decomposed to organic<br />
matter, into the soil and doesn’t affect<br />
her sweeping. And that’s a very stable<br />
and sustainable future N release.<br />
Her water management practices<br />
keep nutrients in the root zone without<br />
leaching. She does lots of smaller shots<br />
instead of one big one per week, and<br />
the same for her inputs. The amount<br />
of microbiology that has increased<br />
over the years ensures more nutrients<br />
get solubilized and assimilated into<br />
her crops. And it’s all brought up on<br />
rain water in the winter so well or any<br />
surface water is not used to grow it. It’s<br />
taken some work, but her soil biome<br />
and farming system is very efficient.<br />
Improving the Soil<br />
Am I suggesting a farmer cut his<br />
Mycorrhizae and 4-2-2 natural fertilizer<br />
Strong Roots<br />
From the Start<br />
Mycorrhizal Fungi Improves:<br />
• Nutrient Accessibility & Cycling<br />
• Better Use of Available Moisture in Soil<br />
• Transplant Establishment & Survival Rates<br />
PAKS<br />
Re-introduce mycorrhizae and provide<br />
4-2-2 natural slow-release fertilizer<br />
to support healthy root growth during<br />
early stages of plant development.<br />
Yield estimates are an important component in planning for inputs.<br />
applied N next year to 30 units from<br />
250? Absolutely not! But let’s say we<br />
apply two tons per acre of a stable,<br />
well cured compost to our fields this<br />
winter. We plant a cover crop that rain<br />
brings up. All in, we are probably, with<br />
the cost of diesel today, under $150/<br />
ac. If that translates into a much more<br />
efficient and stable soil biome, saving<br />
us nitrogen applications, P, K, Ca, Mg<br />
and S inputs as well as water efficiency,<br />
PAKS<br />
FOR TRANSPLANTING TREES & VINES<br />
how much are we talking about? Let’s<br />
take 80 gallons per acre of UAN-32<br />
down to 50 gallons. At $4 to $5/gallon,<br />
we should be saving $200/ac at least!<br />
And that’s just nitrogen. What if all<br />
the other nutrients, phosphorus and<br />
calcium in particular, become more<br />
efficient? What if we can now save half<br />
an acre-foot of water per acre? On the<br />
westside, that could be another couple<br />
$100 or more depending on where you<br />
are and how much you need to buy.<br />
Let’s take that to another level. Let’s say<br />
you are in a white area like I am and<br />
may be limited to pumping less than an<br />
acre foot of water per year in the future.<br />
A 1% increase in organic matter holds<br />
20,000 more gallons of water per acre in<br />
the root zone! Being that efficient with<br />
water may be the difference between<br />
farming or not.<br />
The government is forcing us to be<br />
more efficient (again) with water and<br />
inputs. The more hands-on we become,<br />
the more efficient we become, may<br />
actually buy us enough time to outlast<br />
the idiocracy of our current state and<br />
federal government. Changing our<br />
inputs from a 50-unit slug to (four) 10-<br />
unit shots will not only save us money<br />
but hopefully ensure more absorption.<br />
Balancing all the other essential nutrients<br />
should dramatically enhance the<br />
assimilation of each. Letting Mother<br />
Nature do some of the heavy lifting<br />
with rain water can help shoulder the<br />
load we are carrying.<br />
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Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
18 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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CARB Updating Regulations for Trucking Industry<br />
New executive order could change the trucking fleet within the next decade.<br />
By CHRIS MCGLOTHLIN | Director of Technical Services, Western Agricultural Processors Association<br />
Under the proposal, seasoned agricultural trucks on the road today will no longer be allowed to operate in the state (photo by Cathy Merlo.)<br />
INFO@RST-CLEANTECH.COM<br />
In January 2021, Governor Gavin<br />
Newsom signed Executive Order<br />
N-79-20, which banned the sale of<br />
light-, medium- and heavy-duty combustion<br />
engines in the transportation<br />
sector by 2035. While 2035 is still over<br />
a decade away, his administration and<br />
representative government agencies<br />
have wasted no time in developing<br />
strategies to expedite that commitment.<br />
With the completion of the California<br />
Air Resources Board’s (CARB)<br />
Truck and Bus Regulation ending in<br />
January 2023, many seasoned agricultural<br />
trucks on the road today will<br />
no longer be allowed to operate in the<br />
state. Fleets throughout the state will<br />
be reduced and replaced with 2010 or<br />
newer heavy-duty diesel equipment.<br />
While many businesses and industries<br />
look ahead to strategize how they will<br />
be able to move goods and products<br />
in the near future, CARB has already<br />
begun developing and workshopping<br />
new regulations pertaining to the 2010<br />
and newer equipment.<br />
Advanced Clean Truck Regulation<br />
The first significant regulation to<br />
impact the trucking industry begins<br />
20 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
with the Advanced Clean Truck Regulation.<br />
The intent of this regulation is to<br />
evaluate larger, heavy-duty fleets and<br />
see where opportunities for electrification<br />
could occur and benefit the fleet.<br />
The initial requirements of this regulation<br />
are focused on the manufacturing<br />
sector of the trucking industry. CARB<br />
aims to require that “…manufacturers<br />
who certify Class 2b-8 chassis or complete<br />
vehicles with combustion engines<br />
would be required to zero-emission<br />
trucks as an increasing percentage of<br />
their annual sales from 2024-2035”.<br />
(CARB ACT Fact Sheet).<br />
The regulation would require percentages<br />
of total manufacturer sales<br />
made in the state of California be in<br />
zero-emission equipment. While many<br />
have seen the high-profile demonstration<br />
of Tesla’s new battery-powered<br />
Semi model, there are a surprising<br />
number of other manufacturers with<br />
different models of electric trucks as<br />
well. CARB cites that by 2023 more<br />
than 71 different manufacturers will be<br />
marketing zero-emission trucks, and<br />
the projected number of truck models<br />
is set to increase from 468 current<br />
models on the market to over 600 by<br />
2023. CARB is not solely focused on<br />
Class 8 trucks; the regulation ties in<br />
several medium-duty rated vehicles<br />
such as vans and three-quarter-ton<br />
pickup trucks like the F350 and Ram<br />
2500. While having the technology is<br />
a great first step, this doesn’t address<br />
the significant costs associated with<br />
purchasing one of these pieces of<br />
equipment as well as the electric infrastructure<br />
costs that are required when<br />
equipment like this is purchased. Additionally,<br />
equipment testing in agricultural<br />
settings is typically not included<br />
in a manufacturer’s research.<br />
The second step in this regulation is<br />
the requirement of larger businesses to<br />
report their fleets into a newly developed<br />
CARB database. Large entities<br />
are defined by CARB in this regulation<br />
as companies with over $50 million in<br />
annual receipts as well as companies<br />
that own, operate or dispatch 50 or<br />
more vehicles within the state of California.<br />
The purpose of the reporting<br />
component is so CARB can evaluate<br />
electrification opportunities within applicable<br />
fleets. This broad applicability<br />
of “Larger Entities” brings in numerous<br />
agricultural and food processing facilities,<br />
and opens the door for requiring<br />
these same businesses to upgrade their<br />
fleets a second time after the completion<br />
of the Truck and Bus Rule.<br />
Inspection and<br />
Maintenance Program<br />
While the Advanced Clean Trucks<br />
regulation applies to larger businesses,<br />
CARB is developing updates to<br />
their Heavy-Duty Vehicle Inspection<br />
and Maintenance Program (HDVIMP)<br />
Continued on Page 22<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 21
Continued from Page 21<br />
which would apply to every heavy-duty<br />
vehicle owner. Currently, trucks that<br />
are still operating under the existing<br />
Truck and Bus Regulation are required<br />
to have a Periodic Smoke Inspection<br />
(PSIP) annually. These inspections<br />
measure engine opacity with the<br />
engine running, and if an engine is<br />
found to out of compliance with the<br />
truck’s engine model year opacity<br />
limitation, then the vehicle must have<br />
the necessary repairs done in order to<br />
operate the equipment. Oftentimes, if a<br />
fleet owner is locked out from updating<br />
their Truck and Bus fleet online, CARB<br />
staff will ask for the most recent PSIP<br />
inspection in order to verify mileage.<br />
The proposed updates to the HDVIMP<br />
program will still incorporate PSIP<br />
testing for some model year-specific<br />
vehicles (2010-13), but CARB is looking<br />
to take a more creative approach to ensure<br />
equipment and their emission control<br />
systems are functioning properly.<br />
CARB intends to take advantage<br />
of the technological advancements<br />
made by the equipment manufacturing<br />
industry, specifically the on-board<br />
diagnostic (OBD) systems that are tied<br />
directly into the engine. CARB is proposing<br />
to require fleet/vehicle owners<br />
to take their equipment to a licensed<br />
repair shop twice a year to have their<br />
trucks evaluated. From there, the repair<br />
shop would connect their computer<br />
with the OBD system within the truck.<br />
The repair shop would evaluate all<br />
emission control systems within the<br />
heavy-duty truck as well as monitor<br />
the opacity of the exhaust coming out<br />
of the truck as it is in operation. If any<br />
of the emission control systems show<br />
any sign of failure, a notice will be<br />
issued to the vehicle owner requesting<br />
immediate repair. Fleet/vehicle owners<br />
The intent of the Advanced Clean Truck Regulation is to evaluate larger, heavy-duty<br />
fleets and see where opportunities for electrification could occur.<br />
are given 90<br />
days to repair<br />
the equipment<br />
and bring it<br />
back to the<br />
repair shop to<br />
have the truck<br />
re-evaluated.<br />
Failure to repair<br />
and re-test the<br />
equipment<br />
would result in<br />
CARB notifying<br />
DMV of the<br />
truck’s failure<br />
and a temporary registration hold being<br />
placed on the equipment. Similar to<br />
tactics used in the most recent years of<br />
the Truck and Bus Regulation, CARB<br />
is working directly with the DMV in<br />
order to ensure compliance through<br />
registration holds.<br />
Owner operators would have to<br />
maintain their compliance with the<br />
mandatory inspections as well as keep a<br />
copy of their certificate on file. Vehicles<br />
would also need to be entered into a<br />
separate CARB database. Additionally,<br />
a $30 compliance fee would be included<br />
in a truck owner’s DMV Registration<br />
Renewal invoice. CARB is also looking<br />
for businesses to act as the agencies’ enforcement<br />
inspectors, asking that any<br />
business that contracts any trucking<br />
work ask to see a compliance certificate<br />
with the HDVIMP before beginning<br />
any work, and if one cannot be supplied,<br />
that the contracted trucking<br />
business not be allowed to continue<br />
working at the site.<br />
‘Through the workshop process,<br />
many agricultural associations<br />
have raised the alarm that agricultural<br />
trucking works slightly<br />
different than overall goods<br />
movement.’<br />
Through the workshop process,<br />
many agricultural associations have<br />
raised the alarm that agricultural<br />
trucking works slightly different than<br />
overall goods movement. The seasonality<br />
of agricultural goods movement and<br />
harvest support warrants some consideration<br />
from CARB staff, and truckers<br />
in the agricultural sector should be<br />
identified differently than the intended<br />
target for both regulations. Western<br />
Agricultural Processors Association<br />
along with several other agricultural<br />
organizations and associations has<br />
been active in supplying comments and<br />
working directly with staff to try and<br />
make both of these proposed regulatory<br />
changes more workable for the industry.<br />
Stay tuned for more updates!<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
22 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
WHY WAPA?<br />
From addressing combustible<br />
dust to arguing port<br />
congestion and backlog.<br />
From lobbying at the state<br />
Capitol to bringing legislators<br />
to the field.<br />
From testifying at the State<br />
Water Board to pushing back<br />
on fee increases.<br />
From creating the tree nut<br />
processing line at Fresno State<br />
to being industry leaders.<br />
From safety plans to testifying<br />
before Cal/OSHA.<br />
From writing food safety<br />
plans to training food safety<br />
inspectors on tree nuts.<br />
From safety training to<br />
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From air quality permits to fighting<br />
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WEIGHING IN<br />
ON ALMOND<br />
PROFITABILITY<br />
Growers weigh tough<br />
decisions to continue<br />
farming as costs<br />
continue to rise.<br />
By CECILIA PARSONS | Associate Editor<br />
As growers near the break-even point, they said there is really no way to cut production<br />
costs without sacrificing yields (all photos by Paul Ewing, RPAC.)<br />
There is no doubt that production<br />
costs per acre in tree nut farming<br />
have cut into profit margins.<br />
Rising labor and fuel costs are part<br />
of the production cost increase, but<br />
water availability and cost is ultimately<br />
the deciding factor in almond profitability.<br />
According to information on almond<br />
production supplied by UCCE Orchard<br />
Systems Advisor Franz Niederholzer,<br />
since 2016, total cost per acre (at 2,200<br />
pounds per acre) has gone from $3,890<br />
to upwards of $4,000 per acre. While<br />
almond prices have fluctuated since 2016,<br />
they have garnered positive net returns<br />
for most growers.<br />
Water costs and availability vary<br />
throughout the state, said CCA Bill<br />
Brush. Water is the most critical input as<br />
it determines crop production. Loss of<br />
water and reduced water quality is causing<br />
growers to make hard decisions on<br />
farming individual blocks of trees.<br />
Growers who see their surface water<br />
deliveries cut can be forced to pump<br />
groundwater or buy water, placing them<br />
at the break-even point or even losing<br />
money depending on market prices.<br />
Paying higher prices for water to ensure<br />
good yields is difficult when the market<br />
demand is low. Brush said there is really<br />
no way to cut production costs without<br />
sacrificing yields.<br />
“There is nothing to be saved. Cut<br />
back on pollination, you lose yields.<br />
Fungicides, fertilizers, they have a proven<br />
benefit to yield and crop quality,” he said.<br />
There may be a little money to be<br />
saved here and there, he said, but the<br />
number one cost in UC production cost<br />
studies points to water.<br />
In a 2019 report, the UC Agricultural<br />
Issues Center reported water<br />
costs will vary considerably depending<br />
upon the irrigation district and, when<br />
pumped, the pumping level, energy<br />
costs and type of irrigation system.<br />
Water costs may also change depending<br />
on availability and ground water<br />
regulations.<br />
Their study for almonds in the<br />
southern San Joaquin Valley assumed<br />
100% ground water usage and availability.<br />
An estimated cost of $22 per<br />
acre-inch ($264 per acre-foot) is used.<br />
A total of 52 acre-inches of water is<br />
applied to a fifth leaf orchard March to<br />
October. An additional six acre-inches<br />
are applied in January to leach salts and<br />
fill the soil profile. Costs for irrigation<br />
were listed at $1,264 per acre.<br />
Tough <strong>Dec</strong>isions<br />
RPAC partner and almond grower<br />
Paul Ewing said the number one factor<br />
in considering the profitability of an<br />
almond orchard is the yields per acre.<br />
But, the same numbers don’t hold true<br />
for every almond growing region.<br />
“If they have good water availability,<br />
and prices are historically high, unlike<br />
current prices, some growers might<br />
hang on to a 1,500 pound producing<br />
block a little longer. But, if water prices<br />
are high and availability is an issue,<br />
even a 2,200 pound block could get<br />
pulled out,” Ewing said.<br />
Tree count per acre is another<br />
consideration on assessing profitability,<br />
Ewing said.<br />
It is important that the value of<br />
the crop weighs on farming decisions.<br />
Outside of water, there are not massive<br />
24 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
Almond grower Paul Ewing said if the outlook for water does not look good, growers might consider removing orchards earlier than expected.<br />
differences in operating costs, Ewing<br />
said. With a strong market and a<br />
productive orchard, growers can still<br />
expect a profit.<br />
Some almond growers are making<br />
the decision to pull orchard blocks due<br />
to water uncertainty, he confirmed. If<br />
the outlook for water does not look<br />
good, such as in some federal districts,<br />
they might look at removing orchards<br />
earlier than they would have.<br />
In the almond industry, Ewing said,<br />
there is a price/market cycle where,<br />
when prices are low, there is an uptick<br />
in replanting. When prices are good,<br />
more orchards are retained.<br />
Planting a permanent crop like nut<br />
trees is a long-term decision. Market<br />
trends and recent history are part of<br />
that decision, along with water outlook,<br />
Ewing said.<br />
Sound Plans are a Must<br />
Tom Vermeulen, a certified public<br />
accountant and an almond grower in<br />
the Modesto area, said growers must<br />
have a sound plan for their almond<br />
farming operation going forward.<br />
Stakeholders in the operation, including<br />
family members who depend on<br />
you to make good financial choices<br />
and your banker who must judge your<br />
decisions, rely on your financial plan,<br />
he said.<br />
Considerations in the plan must<br />
include water availability or alternative<br />
land use, age of orchard and soil profile<br />
or amendments needed to optimize<br />
production. Those considerations are<br />
vital in a decision to invest in a new<br />
orchard for future productivity.<br />
When assessing orchards, Vermeulen<br />
said, look at production per acre,<br />
cost per acre and cost per pound of<br />
nuts produced.<br />
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With those numbers, he said, the<br />
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Continued on Page 26<br />
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When assessing orchards, certified public accountant Tom Vermeulen said to look at production per acre, cost per acre and<br />
cost per pound of nuts produced.<br />
Continued from Page 25<br />
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for contingencies, Vermeulen suggested.<br />
A farming plan for the next 5 to 10<br />
years should also be laid out. Capital<br />
improvements, equipment needs and<br />
orchard replacement are major components.<br />
FOR<br />
Loss<br />
ORGANIC<br />
of income and cash flow<br />
PRODU<br />
until an orchard is producing and debt<br />
service are important considerations.<br />
Review the plan, Vermeulen said.<br />
”Develop a best case, a worst case and<br />
reasonable expectation. Ask if the plan<br />
is SMART: specific, measurable, achievable,<br />
relevant and timely.”<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
‘PLANTING A<br />
PERMANENT CROP<br />
LIKE NUT TREES<br />
IS A LONG-TERM<br />
DECISION. MARKET<br />
TRENDS AND<br />
RECENT HISTORY<br />
ARE PART OF THAT<br />
DECISION, ALONG<br />
WITH WATER<br />
OUTLOOK.’<br />
26 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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RESTORING SOIL HEALTH AND<br />
ECOSYSTEM SERVICES IN CALIFORNIA’S<br />
ALMOND ORCHARDS<br />
By ERYN WINGATE | Agronomist, Tri-Tech Ag Products, Inc.<br />
Sustaining agricultural production<br />
through climate change,<br />
prolonged drought and economic<br />
pressure largely depends on the soil’s<br />
ability to support high-yielding crops<br />
under increasing stress and resource<br />
scarcity. California’s almond industry<br />
garners public scrutiny for its high<br />
water consumption and environmental<br />
impact. Yet, growers have installed<br />
microsprinklers and other irrigation<br />
system upgrades, successfully decreasing<br />
water usage by 33% since 1990. The<br />
Almond Board pledged to decrease<br />
consumption another 20% by 2025.<br />
Meeting water conservation goals<br />
requires a multipronged approach, and<br />
soil health management can contribute<br />
to the puzzle.<br />
While water usage rightly receives<br />
public attention, the environmental<br />
impacts incurred by poor soil quality<br />
also deserve urgent consideration. Marginal<br />
cropland with low organic matter<br />
maintains productivity by spoon feeding<br />
fertilizer and water. Compaction,<br />
salt accumulation, nutrient imbalances<br />
and soilborne diseases compromise<br />
yield and increase the amount of water,<br />
fertilizer and pesticides needed to<br />
maintain yields. Ag chemicals runoff<br />
into surface waters and leach down to<br />
aquifers. Nitrous oxide and methane<br />
emissions contribute to climate change.<br />
Yet, food production and environmental<br />
protection goals do not need to<br />
remain at odds. Adopting management<br />
strategies that increase soil organic<br />
matter can slowly transform agricultural<br />
lands to provide significant ecological<br />
benefits while promoting crop<br />
health and vigor.<br />
Nut crops may require a lot of water,<br />
but soil conservationists advocate<br />
farming systems designed around permanent<br />
crops that offer greater carbon<br />
sequestration potential than heavily<br />
tilled annuals. Tillage depletes organic<br />
matter by disturbing the ecology<br />
and exposing soil to the air. Microbes<br />
previously limited by low oxygen concentration<br />
suddenly accelerate growth,<br />
oxidizing soil carbon faster than it can<br />
be fixed. Annual net carbon loss ensues,<br />
compromising soil structure and fertility.<br />
Orchard and vineyard soils can<br />
remain undisturbed for many years,<br />
allowing enough time to accumulate<br />
organic matter and reap the environmental<br />
and agronomic benefits.<br />
Organic Matter Does It All<br />
Organic matter improves almost<br />
every aspect of soil health, including<br />
28 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
‘<br />
Nut crops may require a lot of water,<br />
but soil conservationists advocate<br />
farming systems designed<br />
around permanent crops that offer<br />
greater carbon sequestration potential<br />
than heavily tilled annuals.<br />
’<br />
JAN 5, 2022<br />
See page 61<br />
physical, chemical and biological characteristics.<br />
Organic matter builds soil<br />
structure, the physical architecture that<br />
facilitates movement of water and air<br />
through the soil profile. Organic matter<br />
adheres to clay surfaces, forming<br />
organo-mineral colloids that prevent<br />
further decomposition. Mineral and<br />
organic matter complexes bind together<br />
forming stable soil aggregates separated<br />
by pore spaces that hold water and air.<br />
Soil with stable aggregation and<br />
plenty of porosity prevents runoff by<br />
allowing fast water penetration and<br />
infiltration during heavy rainfall or<br />
irrigation. Organic matter and improved<br />
structure increase the soil’s<br />
water holding capacity, allowing the<br />
field to retain more water to sustain the<br />
crop during drought. Organic matter’s<br />
adhesive properties also prevent water<br />
and wind erosion, conserving topsoil<br />
while protecting the surrounding environment<br />
from nitrate, phosphorus and<br />
pesticide residue contamination. Excess<br />
water captured during major storms<br />
can replenish aquifers rather than runoff<br />
into streams, eroding the landscape<br />
along the way.<br />
Organic matter’s chemical characteristics<br />
provide important benefits to<br />
crop production by buffering pH and<br />
increasing nutrient availability. Plant,<br />
animal and microbial remains decompose<br />
into carbon molecules with both<br />
positive and negative charge sites. The<br />
reactive sites attract and hold cations,<br />
Continued on Page 30<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 29
Continued from Page 29 exuded by microbes bind soil particles ‘<br />
into aggregates and earthworms burrow<br />
through soil, creating channels for<br />
water and air flow. Microbial metabolites<br />
chelate micronutrients, delivering<br />
iron, zinc and other elements to roots<br />
in plant-available forms. Beneficial<br />
fungi extend the crop’s root system,<br />
exchanging water and nutrients for<br />
photosynthate and signaling when to<br />
activate stress defense mechanisms.<br />
Microbial biomass also provides<br />
nutrient storage, releasing plant-available<br />
nitrogen, phosphorus and other<br />
elements as populations turn over.<br />
such as hydrogen, calcium, potassium<br />
and magnesium, and anions, including<br />
hydroxide, nitrate, borate and molybdate.<br />
Binding with organic matter prevents<br />
essential nutrients from leaching<br />
to groundwater or precipitating out of<br />
soil solution with other minerals. Ions<br />
buffer into or out of soil solution to<br />
maintain chemical equilibrium, keeping<br />
pH near neutral and replenishing<br />
nutrient concentrations in response to<br />
plant absorption.<br />
The living fraction of soil organic<br />
matter drive all of the activity contributing<br />
to healthy soil development.<br />
Fungal networks, beneficial bacterial<br />
populations, earthworms and more<br />
contribute to carbon cycling and<br />
organic matter fixation. Micro and macroorganisms<br />
decompose raw organic<br />
matter, returning essential elements to<br />
plant available form. Sticky substances<br />
Highly productive,<br />
carefully managed<br />
orchards might not<br />
show any changes<br />
in yield or crop quality,<br />
but better soil<br />
health may allow<br />
growers to decrease<br />
water and fertilizer<br />
use while maintaining<br />
productivity.<br />
Feed the Soil its Carbon<br />
Microbial activity, nutrient cycling,<br />
and structure development require<br />
carbon. Almonds and other tree crops<br />
feed the microbiome by sending photosynthate<br />
down to the rhizosphere, but<br />
significant improvement in soil quality<br />
requires more biomass. Feeding microbial<br />
populations by growing cover crops<br />
and applying compost or mulch can<br />
help achieve net carbon gain, initiating<br />
the processes that build organic matter<br />
and improving agricultural sustainability.<br />
Soil structure and beneficial microbial<br />
ecology take time to develop.<br />
During the first few years of cover<br />
cropping, the orchard might require<br />
more water and fertilizer to establish a<br />
robust cover crop stand without jeopardizing<br />
the crop’s access to sufficient<br />
moisture and nutrition. Over time,<br />
the investment pays off. Incremental<br />
increases in organic matter ramp up<br />
the soil’s capacity to sustain diverse,<br />
active microbial populations. Increased<br />
microbial activity accelerates humus<br />
formation and the other beneficial<br />
soil characteristics follow. Improved<br />
nutrient availability, soil moisture and<br />
beneficial microbes can improve tree<br />
health, reducing symptoms of micronutrient<br />
deficiency, drought and salinity.<br />
Measurable improvements in water<br />
holding capacity, bulk density and<br />
nutrient availability may take several<br />
years to develop. Soil type, management<br />
practices, weather, water, fertilizer and<br />
many other factors influence organic<br />
matter accumulation and soil health.<br />
While some soils may respond quickly,<br />
others resist organic matter fixation.<br />
Very sandy soils lack the clay particles<br />
that bind and stabilize organic matter,<br />
preventing accumulation. The type of<br />
’<br />
30 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
organic matter added to the system<br />
also impacts results. Some studies show<br />
better water-stable aggregate formation<br />
after cover cropping compared with<br />
compost application, but the effect varies<br />
with both soil type and cover crop<br />
species.<br />
Further research on interactions<br />
between cover crops, soil types, and<br />
microbial response will improve our<br />
ability to adjust management practices<br />
to suit the conditions on each ranch. In<br />
the meantime, feed the soil microbiome<br />
with diverse carbon sources from cover<br />
crop mixes, mulch, and compost. Send<br />
soil samples to labs to check for parasitic<br />
nematodes and other soil borne disease.<br />
Select cover crop species that do<br />
not host the pathogens present in the<br />
Continued on Page 32<br />
Feeding microbial populations by growing cover crops and applying compost or mulch<br />
can help achieve net carbon gain, initiating the processes that build organic matter<br />
and improving agricultural sustainability (photo by Roger Duncan, UCCE.)<br />
MAKING EVERY DROP COUNT<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 31
Continued from Page 32<br />
Further research on interactions between cover crops, soil types, and microbial response can help fine-tune management practices to suit the<br />
conditions on each orchard (photo courtesy Paul Lum, AFT.)<br />
Continued from Page 31<br />
field. Consider other drawbacks, such as gopher population<br />
growth in response to legumes or winter frost exacerbation<br />
when soils remain colder under cover crops.<br />
UCCE advisors, cover crop seed companies and experienced<br />
growers can provide guidance on cover crop establishment<br />
and may suggest options to avoid some of the pitfalls.<br />
Comprehensive soil chemical analysis can guide fertilizer<br />
applications and labs providing soil health diagnostics can<br />
help measure change after implementing new soil building<br />
practices. Field evaluations can measure changes in structure,<br />
water infiltration rate and erosion potential.<br />
Highly productive, carefully managed orchards might<br />
not show any changes in yield or crop quality, but better soil<br />
health may allow growers to decrease water and fertilizer use<br />
while maintaining productivity. Increasing organic matter<br />
and improving soil health takes time and experimentation,<br />
but long-term changes in land management provide an array<br />
COMPLETE PLANTS<br />
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of environmental benefits, including water conservation, erosion<br />
prevention and resiliency against extreme climatic stress.<br />
California’s almond orchards and other permanent crops<br />
provide a critical opportunity to sequester carbon and build<br />
healthy living soils that will remain productive and efficient<br />
far into the future.<br />
Sources:<br />
Almond Cover Crops Benefits-to-tradeoffs Assessment<br />
https://projects.sare.org/wp-content/uploads/Almond-Cover-Crop-Article.pdf<br />
Brady, Nyle C. and Weil, Ray R. (2008). The Nature and Properties<br />
of Soils. Fourteenth Edition. Pearson Prentice Hall.<br />
California Almonds – Orchard Management<br />
https://www.almonds.com/almond-industry/orchard-management<br />
Cover Crop BMPs<br />
https://live-almonds-next.pantheonsite.io/sites/default/<br />
files/2021-07/Cover%20Crops%20Best%20Management%20<br />
Practices%20BMPs.pdf<br />
Magdoff, Fred and Weil, Ray R. Soil Organic Matter in Sustainable<br />
Agriculture. CRC Press 2004. Print.<br />
University of California Drought Management:<br />
https://ucmanagedrought.ucdavis.edu/Agriculture/Crop_Irrigation_Strategies/Almonds/#<br />
WizardManufacturing.com<br />
info@wizardmanufacturing.com<br />
530.342.1861 • Ca Lic. # 1036445<br />
Comments about this article? We want to hear from you. Feel<br />
free to email us at article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
32 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
®<br />
IMAGINATION<br />
INNOVATION<br />
SCIENCE IN ACTION
WINTER PREP IN WALNUTS<br />
Start Thinking about Control Strategies for<br />
Weeds and Disease<br />
By MITCH LIES | Contributing Writer<br />
Winter annual weeds pop up in the spray strip in this young walnut orchard just as trees<br />
are defoliating. <strong>Dec</strong>ember and January offer ideal times for certain weed management<br />
programs (photo by L. Milliron.)<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>ember and January provide<br />
ideal opportunities for walnut<br />
growers to get a head start on<br />
weed and disease control programs.<br />
In terms of weed control, that may<br />
mean laying down some long-residual<br />
preemergence herbicides to keep orchard<br />
floors clean going into spring. In<br />
terms of disease control, the early winter<br />
is an ideal time to measure walnut<br />
blight inoculum levels and prepare your<br />
season-long control strategy.<br />
Luke Milliron, UCCE farm advisor<br />
for Butte, Glenn and Tehama counties,<br />
said most growers have a good sense<br />
of the walnut blight inoculum in their<br />
orchards from monitoring nut drop the<br />
previous May, June and July. In cases<br />
where they don’t, he advises to scout in<br />
winter months and sample for inoculum<br />
levels in walnut spurs with terminal<br />
buds.<br />
According to the UCCE walnut<br />
blight sample guidelines, buds can be<br />
sampled up to the time they start to<br />
open, or anytime from <strong>Dec</strong>ember into<br />
early April for late-leafing varieties. But<br />
earlier sampling provides more time for<br />
designing disease control strategies.<br />
The sampling guidelines include a<br />
recommendation that growers cut 100<br />
or so three-inch-length dormant spurs<br />
with fat terminal buds from several<br />
trees in an orchard. “Walk the entire<br />
area, collecting a random sample,” the<br />
guidelines state. “One or two buds per<br />
tree should spread the sample adequately…<br />
One sample could easily represent<br />
50 acres if experience suggests reasonable<br />
uniformity.”<br />
Growers or PCAs should place<br />
samples in paper bags, which will<br />
allow samples to breathe and eliminate<br />
condensation, and store them in a cool,<br />
dry place before mailing to a lab. UCCE<br />
advisors can help interpret lab findings<br />
and discuss the relative disease risks.<br />
Getting a bead on walnut blight inoculum<br />
levels and utilizing an aggressive<br />
spray program, if necessary, are<br />
keys to staying ahead of a disease that<br />
ranks as the number one disease threat<br />
to walnuts, according to Milliron.<br />
The disease is caused by the bacterium,<br />
Xanthomonas arboricola pv. juglandis<br />
(Xaj), which overwinters inside<br />
dormant bud scales and causes infection<br />
in spring when it is rain splashed<br />
onto developing shoots and flowers.<br />
Low Blight Pressure<br />
Fortunately, blight pressure has been<br />
low the last two years, Milliron said,<br />
and inoculum levels should be low this<br />
winter. “A lot of people will be going<br />
into this next spring hopefully with<br />
very little blight pressure, because we’ve<br />
had those two back-to-back dry years,”<br />
he said.<br />
In cases where blight pressure is<br />
high, Milliron advises growers to act<br />
early. “If you know you have high blight<br />
pressure, you are going to start earlier<br />
in terms of sprays, really quite early,<br />
just the very start of prayer stage or<br />
catkin emergence,” Milliron said. “And<br />
you are going to be back with a second<br />
34 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
spray a week after that. “It is a very<br />
aggressive program. You are going to<br />
treat it differently [than if you have low<br />
disease pressure].”<br />
He added that regardless of pressure<br />
levels, growers will want to get a spray<br />
on ahead of rain events. “That doesn’t<br />
change,” he said. “The advantage of<br />
knowing inoculum levels ahead of time<br />
is really more about how early you start<br />
and how aggressive you are with those<br />
first two sprays.”<br />
If treating for walnut blight, growers<br />
should consider utilizing Kasumin in<br />
combination with copper or mancozeb,<br />
according to UCCE guidelines.<br />
Kasumin, which was registered for use<br />
in walnuts in March of 2018, offers<br />
excellent and consistent efficacy when<br />
applied with either copper or mancozeb,<br />
according to UCCE research. The<br />
product also has a unique mode of action,<br />
providing an excellent rotational<br />
material for resistance management.<br />
Milliron advised growers to follow<br />
label directions when spraying for walnut<br />
blight and to rotate chemistries to<br />
avoid the build-up of resistance.<br />
“If the effectiveness of the copper-mancozeb<br />
combination was lost<br />
due to resistance, it would be an incredibly<br />
tough hit to the industry, particularly<br />
in the Northern Sacramento Valley<br />
where rainfall levels are the greatest,”<br />
Milliron wrote in a Sacramento Valley<br />
Orchard Source article in 2018.<br />
Winter Weed Control<br />
Like walnut blight programs, winter<br />
weed control programs require a good<br />
understanding of the pressure in an<br />
orchard. According to a Sacramento<br />
Valley Orchard Source article from Milliron<br />
and UCCE Weed Specialist at UC<br />
Davis Brad Hanson, that understanding<br />
often comes from past observances and<br />
a fall weed survey. Documenting weed<br />
discovery and escapes is also advised to<br />
help growers understand what worked<br />
and what didn’t in last year’s program<br />
and to help in devising a change in<br />
strategy if need be.<br />
“I think it is really important to be<br />
smart about understanding the weed<br />
problem you are trying to resolve,”<br />
Hanson said. “That includes properly<br />
identifying the weed and having some<br />
idea of its biology, such as when does it<br />
come up versus when are my interventions.”<br />
In developing orchards, UC Davis<br />
weed management guidelines say it is<br />
important to maintain a weed-free strip<br />
at least 30 inches from the trunk of<br />
trees to prevent weeds from competing<br />
with trees for water and nutrients. In<br />
established orchards, weed control is<br />
less about removing competition for<br />
water and nutrients, although that remains<br />
a consideration, and more about<br />
Continued on Page 36<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 35
Continued from Page 35<br />
When sampling for walnut blight, select dormant<br />
spurs with terminal buds from several trees interspersed<br />
in an orchard (photo courtesy UC IPM.)<br />
improving water distribution, removing<br />
impediments to harvest operations<br />
and removing habitat for vertebrate<br />
pests, insects, mites, nematodes and<br />
diseases.<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>ember and January offer ideal<br />
opportunities for growers to come in<br />
with long-residual preemergence herbicides<br />
that will be worked into soil with<br />
winter rains. “If rains do not come after<br />
application, you may need to water<br />
in your preemergent herbicide if your<br />
irrigation system and water availability<br />
allow it,” Milliron said.<br />
The treatment regime will depend<br />
on a variety of factors, according to the<br />
UC Davis Integrated Weed Management<br />
guidelines, including soil type.<br />
Different soil textures and organic matter<br />
tend to influence the types of weeds<br />
present and can factor into control<br />
tactics. On light-textured soils, annual<br />
species such as puncturevine, crabgrass<br />
and horseweed, and perennial species<br />
such as johnsongrass, nutsedge and<br />
bermudagrass, are more common. Perennial<br />
weeds, such as curly dock and<br />
field bindweed, are more common on<br />
heavier soils.<br />
When devising control strategies,<br />
it is important to remember that clay<br />
or clay loam soils often require higher<br />
rates of preemergence herbicides to<br />
achieve the same level of weed control<br />
than in light, sandy soils. Good herbicide-to-soil<br />
contact also is important<br />
for a successful herbicide application,<br />
so it is important to keep orchard<br />
floors and berms clean by removing<br />
leaves and other debris before treatment.<br />
Hanson provided a list of several<br />
preemergence and postemergence herbicides<br />
that could have a fit in different<br />
orchards, depending on weeds targeted,<br />
soil textures and other factors. The list<br />
includes indaziflam (Alion), penoxsulam<br />
(PindarGT) and flumioxazin (Chateau<br />
and others). Products that typically<br />
work well in tank mixes include<br />
pendimethalin (Prowl H20 and others),<br />
rimsulfuron (Matrix and others), flazasulfuron<br />
(Mission) and oxyfluorfen<br />
(Goal, GoalTender and others).<br />
“I usually think of those first three<br />
as the heavy hitters in this market,”<br />
Hanson said. “But good programs can<br />
be built for specific sites out of many of<br />
them in various combinations.”<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
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TIPS FOR FINANCIAL PLANNING THROUGH THE DROUGHT<br />
By JEFF BOWMAN | Grimbleby Coleman CPAs<br />
Longer-term conditions are impacting the value of land based on the future water outlook, and this impacts both the net worth of the owner and<br />
the value of securities that might be the source of lending from the grower’s bank (photo courtesy California Farm Water Coalition.)<br />
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As we watch growers rapidly implementing deficit<br />
irrigation to keep their crops alive with what water they<br />
have, protecting those same growers against wild financial<br />
fluctuations has never been more important. While much<br />
decision-making and troubleshooting is being executed at the<br />
moment, it’s a crucial time to set some concrete plans.<br />
The lack of water has meant diminished current-year<br />
crops, leading to less revenue. Undeveloped land must<br />
continue in fallow condition so that water allotments can<br />
be used elsewhere on existing crops. Longer-term conditions<br />
are impacting the value of land based on the future<br />
water outlook, and this impacts both the net worth of the<br />
owner and the value of securities that might be the source of<br />
lending from the grower’s bank. All of these events and the<br />
resulting financial stress present a myriad of challenges for<br />
growers and processors.<br />
Being Financially Resourceful<br />
Tough decisions have growers researching how to be<br />
resourceful with their finances. Scaling down the business to<br />
protect capital has been a frequent topic of discussion with<br />
our growers. Our team has advised on fallowing fields and<br />
delaying new plantings, early removal of mature orchards to<br />
prepare for future development, and even reducing operations<br />
in the short term.<br />
Diversification is another topic that is back on the table.<br />
We’ve seen clients use a 1031 tax-deferred exchange to sell<br />
ag land and invest in other commercial real estate ventures.<br />
38 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
This can help diversify assets for clients<br />
with primarily ag-based real estate<br />
holdings when there is concern about<br />
long-term water or market issues. For<br />
example, a family that has farmed for<br />
multiple generations may have accumulated<br />
a sizeable amount of farmland.<br />
From a financial perspective, it may be<br />
wise to consider diversifying a portion<br />
of those assets into other forms of real<br />
estate.<br />
Growers should also be mindful of<br />
the market dynamics regarding supply<br />
and demand for their crops. If water<br />
constricts supply by reducing the size<br />
of the crop, then in theory, the existing<br />
‘THIS IS ALSO A GOOD TIME TO ASK IF THERE ARE<br />
OPPORTUNITIES TO PRODUCE LESS PRODUCT BUT AT<br />
A HIGHER QUALITY OR CONSIDER ANOTHER VALUE-<br />
ADD THAT WILL HAVE A GREATER FINANCIAL RETURN<br />
IN THE MARKET.’<br />
demand levels should cause prices and<br />
overall returns to go up. This is also a<br />
good time to ask if there are opportunities<br />
to produce less product but at a<br />
higher quality or consider another value-add<br />
that will have a greater financial<br />
return in the market.<br />
Planning for Expense Variances<br />
Fickle water pricing and availability<br />
have led us to examine some best- and<br />
worst-case expense scenarios with our<br />
clients seeking preparedness and opportunities.<br />
We start with a budget or<br />
Continued on Page 40<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 39
Jeff Bowman at Grimbleby Coleman<br />
CPAs encourages growers and processors<br />
to come to the table with hard-hitting<br />
questions on the modeling of cash flows,<br />
tax impacts and losses, write-offs from<br />
new developments and financial resourcefulness<br />
ideas to get through this drought<br />
(photo courtesy Grimbleby Coleman CPAs.)<br />
Continued from Page 39<br />
cash flow projection tool to understand<br />
your “normal year” or average costs of<br />
production. With a budget or cash flow<br />
projection in hand, consider the following<br />
questions:<br />
How much revenue loss can you<br />
handle and still break even?<br />
What pricing of water is justifiable?<br />
What is the cost of water (if available)<br />
versus loss of yield? If water is available,<br />
can higher water costs be offset if the<br />
crop price increases due to shrinking<br />
supplies?<br />
Do you have capital available to<br />
withstand losses from drought years, or<br />
should land be sold/put to alternative<br />
use?<br />
What does the model of cash flow<br />
look like three to five years in the<br />
future under various water availability<br />
and pricing scenarios? Remember, permanent<br />
crops cannot be easily scaled<br />
down in small increments; more often<br />
than not, related decisions impact large<br />
blocks of land and long-term investments<br />
(or loss) as plants are removed or<br />
time passes before new plants become<br />
productive.<br />
Are your farm lenders in the loop? If<br />
the land is security for a debt or operating<br />
lines, will the lender impair value<br />
based on decreasing water allocations?<br />
Will that impact the borrowing base?<br />
How will losses impact taxes and<br />
cash flow? Can losses be carried back<br />
to reduce prior-year taxes paid, or<br />
should they be held to offset future<br />
income?<br />
Our team at Grimbleby Coleman<br />
CPAs encourages growers and processors<br />
to come to the table with hard-hitting<br />
questions on the modeling of cash<br />
flows, tax impacts and losses, write-offs<br />
from new developments and financial<br />
resourcefulness ideas to get through<br />
this drought. With that information,<br />
we can develop the right financial plan.<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
40 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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Almond Pollination 2022: Economic<br />
Outlook and Other Considerations<br />
By BRITTNEY GOODRICH | Assistant Professor of Cooperative Extension, Dept. of Agricultural &<br />
Resource Economics, UC Davis<br />
MARIEKE FENTON | Ph.D. Candidate, Dept. of Agricultural & Resource Economics, UC Davis<br />
and JERROD PENN | Assistant Professor, Dept. of Agricultural Economics & Agribusiness, Louisiana<br />
State University<br />
In this article, we summarize some considerations<br />
for the 2022 almond pollination season,<br />
including results from a 2021 survey of commercial<br />
beekeepers regarding their almond pollination<br />
agreements. The survey results provide<br />
insights on pollination fees, agreement details<br />
related to advance payment and limiting pesticide<br />
exposure as well as beekeeper preferences for<br />
bee-friendly cover crop mixes.<br />
Almond Industry Update<br />
Almond prices rebounded this summer due<br />
to a lower-than-anticipated almond crop for the<br />
2021-22 marketing year following roughly a year<br />
of low almond prices. Relatively low competition<br />
from other exporting countries, coupled with<br />
steady growth in almond demand have kept almond<br />
prices strong despite monumental growth<br />
in production over the last two decades (Bruno,<br />
Goodrich and Sexton 2021).<br />
The Almond Board of California and Land<br />
IQ estimate the removal of around 48,000 acres<br />
of almonds by September 2021, approximately<br />
3.6% of the 1.3 million bearing acres in 2021.<br />
This is up slightly from 2020, with an estimated<br />
39,000 acres removed. Aging orchards are the<br />
likely candidates for removal, and a few industry<br />
sources speculate the removal of additional orchards<br />
after harvest this year due to water scarcity<br />
concerns from consecutive years of drought<br />
and expected limitations due to the Sustainable<br />
Ground Water Management Act. Land IQ estimates<br />
13% of almond orchards are more than 21<br />
years old, compared to 20% of young orchards<br />
that will begin bearing in one to three years. Between<br />
June 2019 and May 2020, nurseries reported<br />
66,000 acres of sales, with over half being for<br />
new orchards and the remainder replacing aging<br />
orchards. These numbers suggest that almond<br />
acreage is still expanding, though likely at lower<br />
rates than previous years due to the recent low<br />
prices and uncertain water availability.<br />
3,000,000<br />
2,800,000<br />
Table 2,600,000 3<br />
2,400,000<br />
Beekeepers 2,200,000Preferred Cover<br />
Potential Benefits to Almond<br />
Bloom timing<br />
Percentage of Response<br />
Crop Mix<br />
Orchard<br />
2,000,000<br />
Any 1,800,000 of the following<br />
bee-friendly 3,000,000 cover crops are<br />
33%<br />
welcome<br />
1,600,000<br />
1,400,000<br />
2,800,000<br />
Brassica mix (mustards,<br />
Increased soil organic matter,<br />
canola, 1,200,000 etc.) 2,600,00<br />
January-March<br />
37%<br />
water infiltration<br />
1,000,000 2,400,00<br />
Erosion control, nitrogen<br />
Clover mix<br />
March-June<br />
10%<br />
2,200,00 2016 2018 fixation2020 2022<br />
Soil builder mix (Combination<br />
Almond Pollination<br />
Combination<br />
Season<br />
of Brassica and<br />
2,000,00<br />
January-May<br />
brassicas, legumes and grains) Colonies Estimated Demand Total U.S. Colonies<br />
13%<br />
Clover mix benefits<br />
1,800,00<br />
into CA for Almond Pollination on Jan 1<br />
Aesthetically pleasing, not<br />
Wild flowers<br />
1,600,00<br />
(California poppy,<br />
February-June ideal for planting within<br />
3%<br />
Figure black-eyed 1. Total susan, U.S. etc.) colonies on January 1, estimated demand for colonies, and shipments<br />
orchards<br />
of colonies 1,400,00 into California, 2015-22<br />
Sources: I would 2015-20 prefer 1,200,00 my Almond grower Acreage not Reports, USDA NASS and CDFA; Apiary Shipments through California Border 1%<br />
plant a bee-friendly cover crop<br />
Protection Stations, 1,000,00 CDFA Plant Health and Pest Prevention Services; Honey Bee Colonies Reports, USDA NASS<br />
Other 3%<br />
Note: Estimated demand is two colonies 2016 per acre for traditional varieties 2018 and one colony per 2020 acre for self-fertile.<br />
Note: Bloom timing and potential benefits taken from PAm Seeds for Bees site:<br />
202<br />
https://www.projectapism.org/pam-seed-mixes.html and California Native Plant Society California Wildflowers gui<br />
https://www.projectapism.org/pam-seed-mixes.html and<br />
Almond<br />
California<br />
Pollination<br />
Native Plant<br />
Season<br />
Society California Wildflowers guide<br />
https://www.cnps.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/wildflowers-peak-season-guide.pdf Exact bloom timing will<br />
https://www.cnps.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/wildflowers-peak-season-guide.pdf Colonies Estimated Demand Exact bloom Total timing U.S. Colonie will<br />
depend on timeliness of planting and rain or irrigation.<br />
depend on timeliness of planting and rain or irrigation. into CA for Almond Pollination on Jan 1<br />
Colonies<br />
Colonies<br />
Figure 3<br />
Figure Winter Mortality Rate<br />
(Proportion of Colonies Lost)<br />
0.4<br />
0.35<br />
0.3<br />
0.25<br />
0.2<br />
0.15<br />
0.1<br />
0.05<br />
0<br />
2010 2011<br />
0<br />
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021<br />
Figure 3. Almond pollination colony strength and winter mortality rates, 2010-21<br />
Sources: The Pollination Connection, BIP Winter Loss Surveys<br />
20<br />
15<br />
10<br />
5<br />
Colony Strength: Average<br />
Frame Count<br />
42 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
Colony Demand<br />
Figure 1 (see page 42) plots the estimated demand for<br />
colonies based on bearing almond acreage each year from<br />
2015 to 2022 as well as the total colony shipments into<br />
California for almond pollination and the total number<br />
of colonies in the U.S. on January 1. Estimated demand<br />
is calculated using two colonies per acre for traditional<br />
varieties and one colony per acre for self-fertile varieties<br />
(Shasta and Independence). A consistent gap between estimated<br />
demand and colony shipments is filled by colonies<br />
that remain in California year-round. For the 2021 almond<br />
bloom, roughly 1.3 million almond acres (3.3% in self-fertile<br />
varieties) required an estimated 2.6 million honey bee<br />
colonies for pollination (Figure 1, see page 42). According<br />
to apiary shipment data provided by CDFA, other states<br />
shipped 2.1 million honey bee colonies into California for<br />
the 2021 bloom, up 16% from 2020.<br />
As seen in Figure 1, the estimated demand for colonies in<br />
2022 is 2.63 million colonies, slightly above that of 2021. It<br />
seems the recent increase in self-fertile variety plantings have<br />
started leveling off the estimated demand for colonies. However,<br />
the required colonies for almond pollination in 2022<br />
still represent 90% of the 2.92 million colonies in the U.S. on<br />
January 1, 2021, so at least in the short run, it’s unlikely this<br />
leveling off of demand will put downward pressure on<br />
pollination fees. Additionally, an article published in Nature<br />
found the Independence variety showed an increase<br />
in yield by 20% from allowing bee visitation (Sáez et al.<br />
2020). The researchers used the standard stocking rate of<br />
two colonies per acre. This study eliminates any claims that<br />
these self-fertile varieties do not require honey bee colonies<br />
for commercial production. Growers of self-fertile varieties<br />
who do not currently place honey bees in their orchards are<br />
likely “borrowing” pollination services from neighboring<br />
orchards. In the future, growers with traditional orchard<br />
varieties surrounded by many self-fertile orchards with few<br />
(or no) colonies per acre may have to compensate by placing<br />
more colonies per acre.<br />
Weather Impacts on Colony Supply<br />
Much of the western U.S. and major honey producing<br />
states in the northern plains have been under severe<br />
drought conditions throughout the summer, which could<br />
have implications for colony strength and numbers for the<br />
upcoming almond pollination season. Figure 2 shows the<br />
U.S. drought monitor for the week of July 27, 2021, a time<br />
when major honey flow should have been taking place in<br />
states where most commercially managed honey bee colonies<br />
are located for honey production in the summer (North<br />
Dakota, South Dakota, Montana). As of the week of October<br />
12, 2021, 35% of the U.S. was still in a severe drought<br />
or worse. Consequently, many commercial beekeepers have<br />
seen decreased honey production, increased costs of feeding<br />
and poor colony nutrition, all likely to negatively impact the<br />
supply and strength of colonies for almond pollination.<br />
To get an idea of potential impacts of this drought, we<br />
looked back to 2012 when a similar drought took place.<br />
Figure 2. U.S. Drought Monitor, July 27, 2021<br />
In October 2012, approximately 40% of the U.S. was in a<br />
severe drought or worse, slightly more area affected than our<br />
current situation. According to national honey yields from<br />
USDA, the 2012 honey crop was the lowest production in<br />
over 30 years. Figure 3 (see page 42) shows winter mortality<br />
rates and colony strength delivered at almond pollination for<br />
Continued on Page 44<br />
ALMOND<br />
POLLINATION<br />
SERVICE<br />
Beekeeper & Pollination Broker since 1996<br />
M & D HONEY, Inc.<br />
Madera, CA<br />
559-974-4042<br />
manddhoney@gmail.com<br />
WWW.MANDDHONEY.COM<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 43
Average Colony<br />
Strength<br />
Requirement<br />
8-frame<br />
Total<br />
Percentage of<br />
Responses<br />
11%<br />
28%<br />
46%<br />
15%<br />
Continued from Page 43<br />
Average Pollination<br />
Fee<br />
$ 192.00<br />
$ 184.81<br />
$ 192.05<br />
$ 211.43<br />
years 2010-21. Following the 2012<br />
drought, winter mortality rates were<br />
31%, according to Bee Informed Partnership<br />
(BIP), 38% higher than the previous<br />
winter. Average colony strength<br />
delivered for 2013 almond pollination<br />
dipped Beekeepers 20% Preferred lower than the previous<br />
Bloom timing<br />
year. Cover 2022 Crop almond Mix pollination could see<br />
similar impacts on colony availability<br />
and strength from the 2021 drought.<br />
January-March<br />
Average Premium/<br />
Discount compared<br />
to 8-frame<br />
-0.03%<br />
-3.77%<br />
10.09%<br />
2021 Almond Pollination<br />
Survey Results<br />
March-June<br />
In February 2021 to April 2021, we<br />
conducted an online survey of over 90<br />
commercial beekeepers that participated<br />
in the 2021 almond pollination<br />
market to better understand their almond<br />
pollination decisions. The sample<br />
represented over 19% of hives demanded<br />
for the 2021 almond bloom. The<br />
following sections summarize some key<br />
findings of interest. Some participants<br />
chose not to answer certain questions,<br />
so sample sizes vary and will be indicated<br />
in figures, tables and text.<br />
Potential Benefits to<br />
Almond Orchard<br />
Percentage of<br />
Almond Pollination Responses Fees<br />
We asked survey respondents to<br />
report the fees associated with their<br />
largest almond pollination agreement<br />
in 2021. Reported fees ranged from<br />
$130/colony to $225/colony. Fees vary<br />
due to a number of factors, a primary<br />
determinant being the colony strength<br />
requirement in the agreement. Table<br />
1 shows the average, minimum and<br />
maximum pollination fee by colony<br />
Increased soil organic<br />
matter, water infiltration<br />
Combination of Brassica<br />
and Clover mix benefits<br />
Minimum<br />
$ 175<br />
$ 130<br />
$ 160<br />
$ 200<br />
Maximum<br />
$ 205<br />
$ 200<br />
$ 225<br />
$ 225<br />
$ 192.84 $ 130 $ 225<br />
Table 1. Average 2021 almond pollination fees by average colony strength requirement (N=95)<br />
Proactively mitigating risks to colonies from pesticide exposure and providing<br />
payments in advance are relatively low-cost options for improving upon existing<br />
agreements and enhancing the relationship with your pollination provider.<br />
strength requirement.<br />
Most pollination agreements (46%<br />
of those reported) required eight active<br />
frames for an average fee of $192 in<br />
2021 (Table 1). Across all frame count<br />
categories, the average fee was $193 per<br />
colony. Agreements with higher colony<br />
strength requirements received a 10%<br />
premium compared to eight-frame<br />
agreements, while six- to seven-frame<br />
agreements saw approximately a 4%<br />
discount. Low strength agreements (
Continued from Page 44<br />
tails to prevent pesticide exposure or to receive compensation<br />
if it occurs. Table 2 (see page 47) shows<br />
the percentage of beekeepers whose agreements<br />
contained language about pesticide exposure by the<br />
specific feature. The most common detail included<br />
was that the grower would not apply pesticides when<br />
bees were active (33%). Eleven percent to 12% of<br />
beekeepers stated they had agreements in which they<br />
would be reimbursed if colonies had to be moved or<br />
were damaged due to pesticide applications.<br />
Advance Payment<br />
Beekeepers were asked if any of their growers/brokers<br />
pay some portion of the pollination fee before<br />
colonies are placed for almond bloom. Nearly half of<br />
respondents (44% of N=91) had at least one contract<br />
that pays part of the pollination fee in advance.<br />
Twenty-one percent of beekeepers received advanced<br />
payments of 30% or less of the total pollination<br />
fee. Nineteen percent of participants received over 40%<br />
of the total pollination fee in advance. Paying the beekeeper<br />
in advance can benefit both parties; it locks the beekeeper<br />
into a contract, reducing the grower’s risk that a beekeeper<br />
will default, and it provides the beekeeper with working<br />
capital to feed and prepare colonies before bloom.<br />
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Beekeepers Preferred<br />
Cover Crop Mix<br />
Any of the following<br />
bee-friendly cover crops are<br />
welcome<br />
Brassica mix<br />
(mustards, canola, etc.)<br />
Clover mix<br />
Soil builder mix<br />
(Combination brassicas,<br />
legumes and grains)<br />
Wild flowers (California<br />
poppy, black-eyed susan,<br />
etc.)<br />
I would prefer my grower<br />
not plant a bee-friendly<br />
cover crop<br />
Other<br />
Bloom timing<br />
January-March<br />
March-June<br />
January-May<br />
February-June<br />
Potential Benefits to<br />
Almond Orchard<br />
Increased soil organic<br />
matter, water infiltration<br />
Erosion control, nitrogen<br />
fixation<br />
Combination of Brassica<br />
and Clover mix benefits<br />
Aesthetically pleasing, not<br />
ideal for planting within<br />
orchards<br />
Percentage of<br />
Responses<br />
Note: Bloom timing and potential benefits taken from PAm Seeds for Bees site: https://www.projectapism.org/pam-seed-mixes.html<br />
and California Native Plant Society California Wildflowers guide https://www.cnps.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/wildflowers-peak-season-guide.pdf<br />
Exact bloom timing will depend<br />
on timeliness of planting and rain or irrigation.<br />
Table 3. Percentage of respondents by cover crop preference (N=78)<br />
33%<br />
Bee-Friendly Cover Crops<br />
Given the potential benefits cover crops can provide to<br />
almond orchards, we investigated beekeepers’ preferences<br />
and experiences with bee-friendly cover crops. All cover<br />
crop mixes that we inquired about are based on Project Apis<br />
m.’s Seeds for Bees cover crop mixes. Of the 89 beekeepers<br />
that responded, 21% said that they had at least one grower<br />
provide bee-friendly forage in or near the almond orchard<br />
they were pollinating. Most of those were from bee-friendly<br />
cover crops planted in the almond orchard, but others planted<br />
permanent or temporary pollinator habitat as well.<br />
We provided beekeepers with a list of bee-friendly cover<br />
crops and asked which cover crop mix they would prefer.<br />
Table 3 shows the results for each cover crop mix along with<br />
the timing of bloom and potential benefits for the almond<br />
orchard. The most popular response was the Brassica mix<br />
(37%), which consists of mustards and canola, followed<br />
closely by a third of beekeepers responding that any of the<br />
bee-friendly cover crops would be welcome. The Soil Builder<br />
mix, a combination of brassicas, clovers and grains, was<br />
the second most popular mix (13%). The Brassica and Soil<br />
Builder mixes are popular due to relatively early bloom<br />
timing compared to the other mixes. The Clover mix may<br />
not bloom until mid- to late March, at which point it may not<br />
be useful for bee colonies if bloom has ended and they have<br />
been moved on. This preference for earlier blooming mixes is<br />
supported by the responses of two beekeepers who selected<br />
“Other” as an option. They said, “Any that would bloom by<br />
February 1” and “Anything that would bloom in February to<br />
mid-March.”<br />
Beekeepers remain hesitant on cover crop benefits because<br />
of the uncertainty in the timing of bloom. Even within<br />
a cover crop mix, bloom timing can vary substantially due<br />
to the timeliness of planting, rain and/or irrigation. Figure<br />
4 (see page 47) displays the percentage of beekeepers that<br />
agreed with two statements about individual cover crop<br />
mixes. The first statement was, “The cover crop mix will<br />
bloom at the correct time to benefit my colonies.” Over 60%<br />
37%<br />
10%<br />
13%<br />
3%<br />
1%<br />
3%<br />
46 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
The grower agrees to…<br />
No pesticide details in pollination agreement<br />
Apply pesticides only during inactive foraging times (e.g.<br />
evening, night)*<br />
Minimum notification time before applying pesticides<br />
(e.g. 48, 72 hours)*<br />
Not apply specific chemicals<br />
Pay extra fees if colonies must move due to pesticide<br />
application<br />
Pay damages for colony losses due to pesticide exposure<br />
Not tank-mix multiple pesticides*<br />
Percentage of<br />
Responses<br />
46%<br />
33%<br />
29%<br />
Table 2. Percentage of beekeepers with agreements containing pesticide<br />
exposure details (N=82)<br />
Note: Participants could select more than one, so the percentages add to over 100%* indicates<br />
detail is listed as one of the Honey Bee Best Management Practices<br />
18%<br />
12%<br />
11%<br />
11%<br />
Percent in Agreement<br />
60%<br />
40%<br />
20%<br />
0%<br />
Brassica<br />
Clover Soil Builder Wildflower Not true for any<br />
Cover Crop Mix<br />
Mix will bloom at the<br />
correct time to benefit<br />
my colonies<br />
Mix will improve strength to<br />
better meet almond pollination<br />
requirements<br />
Figure 4. Percentage of beekeepers in agreement for each bee-friendly<br />
cover crop mix<br />
Note: For each statement, respectively, N=74 and N=63. Respondents could select more than<br />
one cover crop mix, so percentages will not sum to 100%.<br />
of respondents thought the Brassica<br />
mix will bloom at the correct time, and<br />
over 40% thought the Soil Builder mix<br />
would. Respectively, only 22% and 20%<br />
thought the Clover and Wildflower<br />
mixes would bloom at a beneficial time,<br />
and 28% thought none of the mixes<br />
would bloom at a time that would<br />
be beneficial to colonies. The second<br />
statement was, “Mix will improve<br />
colony strength to better meet almond<br />
pollination requirements.” Due to their<br />
early bloom timing, the Brassica and<br />
Soil Builder mixes received the highest<br />
percentage that agreed, with 46% and<br />
32%, respectively. 40% of respondents<br />
did not think that any of the mixes<br />
would bloom at a time that would<br />
help beekeepers meet colony strength<br />
requirements (Figure 4.)<br />
We asked beekeepers about their<br />
beliefs regarding various aspects of<br />
bee-friendly cover crops planted in almond<br />
orchards. As expected, beekeepers’<br />
views of bee-friendly cover crops<br />
were positive. Of the 78 beekeepers<br />
who responded, 94% and 68% agreed<br />
with the statements that cover crops<br />
planted for bee forage will improve colony<br />
health and decrease feeding costs,<br />
respectively. Nearly half of beekeepers<br />
agreed that bee-friendly cover crops<br />
would reduce colony susceptibility<br />
to disease. Few beekeepers believed<br />
that bee-friendly cover crops planted<br />
in almond orchards would increase<br />
pesticide exposure or provide too little<br />
forage to be beneficial.<br />
Given that beekeepers clearly care<br />
about early blooming mixes, the Soil<br />
Builder mix may have the most potential<br />
benefits to the grower due to<br />
Continued on Page 48<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 47
In the future, growers with traditional orchard varieties surrounded by many self-fertile<br />
orchards with few (or no) colonies per acre may have to compensate by placing more<br />
colonies per acre (photo by Marni Katz.)<br />
Continued from Page 47<br />
the combination of soil health benefits<br />
from multiple cover crop species and<br />
the benefit of early nutrition for bee<br />
colonies. We also asked beekeepers to<br />
indicate the minimum percentage of the<br />
almond orchard that needs to be planted<br />
in the Soil Builder cover crop mix to be<br />
beneficial for their colonies (for reference,<br />
we said that the area between tree<br />
rows typically makes up 50% of each<br />
acre.) 83% of beekeepers who answered<br />
(N=52) said that 50% or less of the<br />
orchard acreage needed to be in the Soil<br />
Builder mix for it to be beneficial and<br />
35% said less than 25% of area needed<br />
to be covered. Over half of beekeepers<br />
thought that the Soil Builder mix would<br />
be beneficial even if the mix does not<br />
cover the entire orchard alleyway, this is<br />
promising for growers who find it logistically<br />
challenging to establish much of<br />
the orchard floor in cover crops.<br />
Back to Your Roots<br />
Using the new Mid-Row Ripper<br />
from Schmeiser<br />
The twin ripper is equipped<br />
with patented vibrating winged<br />
shanks. Soil structure breakout<br />
is unmatched by any<br />
conventional ripper.<br />
“Its the new best<br />
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Amendments in the<br />
Root Zone<br />
Concluding Thoughts<br />
This summer’s drought across much<br />
of the western U.S. may potentially<br />
impact the total number and strength<br />
of colonies available for the upcoming<br />
almond pollination season. We recommend<br />
growers check in with their pollination<br />
provider early and often to make<br />
sure their pollination needs will be met.<br />
In years with high winter losses and<br />
low colony strength, pollination fees<br />
may rise as bloom nears and colony<br />
health and numbers are realized,<br />
increasing the economic incentive for<br />
an unhappy beekeeper to default on<br />
a previously established agreement to<br />
capitalize on higher fees. Maintaining a<br />
good relationship with your beekeeper<br />
can prevent this, whether it’s this year<br />
or in the future. Proactively mitigating<br />
risks to colonies from pesticide<br />
exposure and providing payments in<br />
advance are relatively low-cost options<br />
for improving upon existing agreements<br />
and enhancing the relationship with<br />
your pollination provider. Planting<br />
bee-friendly forage is a more costly (and<br />
initially challenging) practice to implement,<br />
but may be worth it when growers<br />
factor in both benefits to pollinator and<br />
soil health.<br />
References<br />
Bruno, Ellen M., Brittney Goodrich,<br />
and Richard J. Sexton. 2021. The Outlook<br />
for California’s Almond Market.<br />
ARE Update 24(6): 9–11. University of<br />
California Giannini Foundation of Agricultural<br />
Economics. https://giannini.<br />
ucop.edu/filer/file/1629132450/20132/<br />
Goodrich, Brittney and Rachael<br />
Goodhue. 2016. Honey Bee Colony<br />
Strength in the California Almond<br />
Pollination Market. ARE Update 19(4):<br />
5-8. University of California Giannini<br />
Foundation of Agricultural Economics.<br />
https://giannini.ucop.edu/filer/<br />
file/1461278500/17280/<br />
Sáez, A., Aizen, M. A., Medici, S.,<br />
Viel, M., Villalobos, E., & Negri, P. 2020.<br />
Bees increase crop yield in an alleged<br />
pollinator-independent almond variety.<br />
Scientific reports, 10(1), 1-7. https://www.<br />
nature.com/articles/s41598-020-59995-0<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
48 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
Omar Navarro<br />
559-470-4910<br />
onavarro@agromillora.com<br />
Main Office<br />
530-846-0404<br />
cbeumel@agromillora.com
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A WORD FROM THE BOARD: THE ALMOND BOARD OF CALIFORNIA<br />
Pollinator Efforts<br />
Lead to Prestigious<br />
Sustainability<br />
Award for Almond<br />
Board of California<br />
By ALMOND BOARD OF CALIFORNIA | Contributing Writer<br />
Almond Board of California’s leadership in founding<br />
the California Pollinator Coalition was a main driver<br />
for receiving the North American Pollinator Protection<br />
Campaign’s Business for Bees Sustainability Award (all<br />
photos courtesy Almond Board of California.)<br />
The past October, the North American<br />
Pollinator Protection Campaign<br />
(NAPPC) presented its<br />
Business for Bees Sustainability Award,<br />
an honor reserved for standout organizations<br />
that go above and beyond<br />
to support pollinators, to the Almond<br />
Board of California (ABC) and the<br />
state’s almond farmers.<br />
“This is about their long-term dedication<br />
to supporting all pollinators<br />
in their orchards and throughout our<br />
ecosystem,” said Kelly Rourke, executive<br />
director of Pollinator Partnership,<br />
which founded NAPPC 21 years ago.<br />
“We’ve worked with them for many<br />
years, and this is well-deserved recognition<br />
of their steadfast commitment to<br />
engaging farmers in pollinator conservation<br />
on multiple levels. The Almond<br />
Board and the entire almond industry<br />
have really moved the needle to raise<br />
awareness and generate action to protect<br />
pollinators.”<br />
NAPPC has only given out its Business<br />
for Bees Sustainability Award once<br />
before. It is given in years when there is<br />
a business taking extra special steps to<br />
protect bees and all pollinators and to<br />
advance sustainability and innovation.<br />
“ABC’s name is on this award, but it<br />
really goes to the 7,600 almond farmers<br />
in California,” said Josette Lewis,<br />
ABC’s chief scientific officer. “Farmers<br />
understand how important pollinators<br />
are to growing almonds and to all of<br />
agriculture and the environment. They<br />
want to be part of the solution.”<br />
The reasons for the award, Rourke<br />
said, include ABC’s leadership in<br />
founding the California Pollinator<br />
Coalition (CPC), its work promoting<br />
on-farm pollinator habitat and its support<br />
of years of research and education<br />
about the best practices for providing<br />
hospitable environments for pollinators<br />
in almond orchards and in other<br />
habitats.<br />
ABC worked with Pollinator Partnership<br />
and CDFA last spring to create<br />
the CPC, which brought together a<br />
broad array of grower organizations<br />
across the state’s ag and environmental<br />
landscape to help promote the health of<br />
wild and managed pollinators.<br />
“The formation of the California Pollinator<br />
Coalition was such a big step,”<br />
said Laurie Davies Adams, Pollinator<br />
Partnership’s director of programs,<br />
who helped found the CPC. “This is a<br />
unique statewide coalition that brings<br />
together every grower, farmer and<br />
rancher group. I don’t think that’s ever<br />
happened before. It’s going to make a<br />
real difference on the ground.”<br />
NAPPC is a collaboration of diverse<br />
partners from the U.S., Mexico and<br />
Canada. It includes respected scientists,<br />
researchers, businesspeople, conservationists<br />
and government officials. NAP-<br />
PC works to promote awareness and<br />
scientific understanding of pollinators,<br />
to find common ground for solutions<br />
and to create innovative initiatives that<br />
benefit pollinators.<br />
NAPPC is administered and supported<br />
by Pollinator Partnership, a<br />
non-profit headquartered in San Francisco<br />
with a mission to promote the<br />
health of pollinators through education,<br />
conservation and research.<br />
The award was announced during<br />
NAPPC’s 21 st -Annual International<br />
Conference, held virtually this year<br />
for the second time and hosted by the<br />
Pollinator Partnership and the Smithsonian<br />
National Museum of Natural<br />
History. The conference and award<br />
ceremony were planned for the Smithsonian<br />
before being forced to remain<br />
virtual because of COVID-19.<br />
Rourke and Adams said they would<br />
have liked to have given the honor in<br />
person to show how much they appreciate<br />
ABC’s work.<br />
“The strong effort that the Almond<br />
Board of California has mounted with<br />
the support of the almond industry to<br />
engage farmers and the entire agricultural<br />
community far beyond almond<br />
orchards is really impressive,” Adams<br />
said. “Bringing every grower group<br />
together to have an agriculturally led<br />
coalition for pollinators is significant.<br />
It will provide building blocks for even<br />
more engagement and large results. It’s<br />
a pioneering effort that other states are<br />
seeking to emulate.”<br />
“This is an outstanding honor for our<br />
farmers,” Lewis said, “especially considering<br />
all the good work that NAPPC<br />
and the Pollinator Partnership do. As<br />
much as anyone, almond farmers are<br />
tuned in to the importance of pollina-<br />
52 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
tors to their crops and our ecosystem.<br />
That’s why they work so hard to make<br />
their orchards healthy places for pollinators.”<br />
Almond farmers across California’s<br />
Central Valley sit in what is essentially<br />
a flyway for pollinators. In recent years,<br />
almond farmers have applied to certify<br />
more than 110,000 acres of Bee Friendly<br />
Farming®, providing pollinator habitat<br />
and integrated pest management across<br />
the valley to keep that flyway healthy<br />
and create badly needed floral resources<br />
that compliment and expand beyond<br />
the annual almond bloom.<br />
“Almond farmers have doubled the<br />
number of acres of bee friendly habit in<br />
California and in that pollinator flyway,”<br />
Lewis said. “We’re proud to help lead<br />
a broad coalition of agriculture and<br />
conservation groups to work together<br />
to promote and preserve habitat for<br />
pollinators.”<br />
About the California<br />
Pollinator Coalition<br />
Spearheaded by ABC, the California<br />
Antles_<strong>WCN</strong>_Ad1C_101920.pdf 1 10/19/20 11:47 PM<br />
The California Pollinator Coalition is a group<br />
of agricultural and conservation groups that<br />
will work to encourage more voluntary, grower-friendly<br />
efforts to protect the state’s native<br />
insect pollinators and managed honeybees.<br />
Pollinator Coalition is a group of agricultural<br />
and conservation groups that<br />
will work to encourage more voluntary,<br />
grower-friendly efforts to protect the<br />
state’s native insect pollinators and<br />
managed honeybees.<br />
The coalition includes a broad array<br />
of more than 20 of the state’s leading<br />
agricultural organizations and conservation<br />
groups. The Coalition will focus<br />
on increasing grower participation in<br />
projects to provide habitat and forage<br />
for pollinators and other beneficial<br />
insects across the state’s agricultural<br />
landscape.<br />
“California’s almond industry has a<br />
long record of continuing improvement<br />
in the area of integrated pest management<br />
and protection and stewardship<br />
of managed bees,” said Lewis. “This<br />
new coalition helps us expand on our<br />
work to benefit California’s many native<br />
pollinator species. We’ll also get more<br />
results by collaborating within the agriculture<br />
and conservation communities<br />
on voluntary efforts that benefit both<br />
growers and the environment. Improving<br />
the health or our ecosystems is not<br />
something we can do alone, so we are<br />
glad to have many strong allies in this.”<br />
Convened by Pollinator Partnership,<br />
the California Department of Food and<br />
Agriculture and the Almond Board<br />
of California, the Coalition’s goal is<br />
to increase habitat for pollinators on<br />
working lands to benefit biodiversity<br />
Continued on Page 55<br />
C O N T R O L L E D P O L L I N A T I O N P A Y S !<br />
F O R : A L M O N D S & P I S T A C H I O S<br />
C<br />
M<br />
Y<br />
CM<br />
MY<br />
CY<br />
CMY<br />
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You get one shot each year to set a crop. Don’t leave pollination to chance.<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 53
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The Coalition plans to address habitat issues on an unprecedented scale for the benefit of the<br />
state’s beneficial insects, which include 1,600 species of native bees, managed honeybees,<br />
butterflies, beetles, wasps and more.<br />
Continued from Page 53<br />
and food production through on-farm<br />
and in-orchard projects, supported by<br />
technical guidance, research and documenting<br />
progress toward increasing<br />
healthier pollinator habitats.<br />
“What we are doing in California is<br />
acknowledging the urgency to address<br />
the critical issue of protecting all pollinators,<br />
including native and managed<br />
species,” said Adams. “Agriculture and<br />
conservation must work together to<br />
achieve this goal.<br />
“The outcome will not be a tidy<br />
report that sits on a shelf, but rather a<br />
metric of acres, projects and species<br />
added to the landscape while agriculture<br />
continues to profitably feed the<br />
nation,” she said.<br />
Extending the California almond<br />
industry’s commitment to protect honeybees<br />
during almond pollination, the<br />
Coalition plans to address habitat issues<br />
on an unprecedented scale for the<br />
benefit of the state’s beneficial insects,<br />
which include 1,600 species of native<br />
bees, managed honeybees, butterflies,<br />
beetles, wasps and more. Populations<br />
of many California pollinators are declining<br />
and often suffer from the same<br />
challenges as California’s agriculture.<br />
The Coalition will work together on a<br />
variety of fronts to support pollinators:<br />
Prepare grower-friendly guidance to<br />
build and maintain pollinator habitat<br />
on farms and ranches<br />
Conduct research and disseminating<br />
relevant science<br />
Monitor outcomes (adoption rates<br />
and effectiveness of practices)<br />
“Collaborative action can mitigate<br />
risks to California’s pollinators, and<br />
that’s exactly why this coalition has<br />
come together,” said Karen Ross, CDFA<br />
secretary of agriculture. “We need<br />
urgent action, yet the first step in the<br />
process is building trust that encourages,<br />
enables and enhances the result.<br />
The California Pollinator Coalition is a<br />
big step forward in a journey of grower<br />
and conservation groups voluntarily<br />
demonstrating leadership.”<br />
“This will not be an easy or quick fix,”<br />
Lewis said. “It will require a robust and<br />
sustained effort, but we are determined<br />
to be part of the solution. Almond<br />
growers and many other farmers<br />
depend on pollinators to produce a<br />
crop and pollinators depend on us to<br />
provide safe habitat. Working lands can<br />
and should be part of the solution.”<br />
“Farm Bureau supports voluntary,<br />
farmer-friendly efforts to improve habitat<br />
for native pollinators, and we have<br />
long advocated improved research on<br />
pollinator health,” said President of the<br />
California Farm Bureau Jamie Johansson.<br />
“We will work with the coalition<br />
for the benefit of native pollinators and<br />
managed bees, and to assure stability<br />
for the domestic bee business.”<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 55
START THINKING ABOUT<br />
POLLINATOR CONTRACTS<br />
BEEKEEPERS SAY CONTRACTS ARE<br />
WELCOMED ‘SOONER RATHER THAN LATER’<br />
By CECILIA PARSONS | Associate Editor<br />
Harvest is over. Mummies are<br />
shaken and swept. Is it time to<br />
think about almond pollination?<br />
According to bee brokers and<br />
beekeepers, tighter supplies this year<br />
and increasing demand for pollination<br />
services mean almond growers need to<br />
contract for hives early and plan ahead<br />
for their arrival in the orchards.<br />
In addition to costs, hive numbers and arrival time, beekeepers need to know if the<br />
hives will be secure from theft, if pesticide applications will be made, if there is a water<br />
supply and the timing of payments (photo by Marni Katz.)<br />
New Era of Pollinator Contracts<br />
Denise Qualls, a bee broker with<br />
Pollination Connection, said contracts<br />
with growers are welcomed sooner<br />
rather than later to ensure an adequate<br />
honeybee supply. Some almond<br />
growers do book early, she said, but<br />
for the most part, growers don’t think<br />
about bees until after harvest. Many<br />
contracts are signed in <strong>Dec</strong>ember and<br />
January, but bees are still being booked<br />
in February.<br />
Qualls said the days of a handshake<br />
to secure pollination service might be<br />
over.<br />
“Most growers and brokers now<br />
have written contracts that spell out<br />
terms for pollination services including<br />
price, delivery time and hive strength,”<br />
Qualls said. Conditions spelled out in<br />
the contract can ensure the grower receives<br />
the pollination service necessary<br />
for setting a crop. The contract also can<br />
ensure beekeepers are fairly compensated<br />
for their time and investment in<br />
healthy, strong hives.<br />
Verbal agreements worked back<br />
when hives were renting for less than<br />
$100 and far fewer acres of almonds<br />
were grown. Now, Qualls said, demand<br />
for strong hives to cover all almond<br />
ground in the state requires that both<br />
sides agree on exact terms and put<br />
them in writing.<br />
Josette Lewis, chief scientific officer<br />
with Almond Board of California<br />
said ABC recommends growers sign<br />
contracts for pollination service. There<br />
needs to be clear understanding and<br />
communication between the growers<br />
and beekeeper. A sample contract is<br />
available at ABC’s website<br />
Number of full frames per hive is a<br />
key element in a contract, Lewis said.<br />
A third party inspector can verify the<br />
hive strength for the grower. County<br />
Agricultural Commissioners’ offices<br />
should provide inspector information.<br />
Working Together<br />
Steve House, director of operations<br />
at California Almond Pollination<br />
Service, said once a grower finds a<br />
good beekeeper and a beekeeper finds a<br />
good grower, they each have an integral<br />
component in their supply chain and<br />
a major factor in the success of their<br />
businesses. Both parties need to understand<br />
the success of one depends on the<br />
success of the other.<br />
In addition to costs, hive numbers<br />
and arrival time, House said beekeepers<br />
need to know if the hives will be<br />
secure from theft, if pesticide applications<br />
will be made, if there is a water<br />
supply and the timing of payments.<br />
Important considerations for almond<br />
growers are hive strength and<br />
confirmation of arrival time in the<br />
orchard, generally no later than 5%<br />
Continued on Page 58<br />
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Important considerations for almond growers are hive strength and confirmation of arrival time in the orchard, generally no later than 5%<br />
bloom (photo courtesy Joseph Jackson.)<br />
Continued from Page 56<br />
bloom.<br />
Almond growers depend on strong, healthy hives that<br />
have at least six frames of bees and an average of eight<br />
frames of bees at the beginning of bloom.<br />
Hives that lack these frame minimums have very little<br />
‘field force,’ House said, and do very little pollinating. It<br />
would take seven to eight four-frame hives to equal one eightframe<br />
hive. House explained that the numbers in the hives<br />
keep the hive warm and take care of the queen and the brood.<br />
An eight-frame hive has a field force of about 6,400 bees that<br />
actively go out to collect pollen, nectar and water. A fourframe<br />
hive will have only about 800 bees living in the hive.<br />
That is the reason hive inspection and grading is recommended,<br />
House and Qualls agreed.<br />
“It’s like paying for 1,000 gallons of fuel and receiving only<br />
800 gallons,” House said.<br />
About 15% of the hives should be inspected. An apiary<br />
inspector can conduct the inspection and growers should<br />
observe. An inspection will determine if the terms stated in<br />
the grower/beekeeper agreement are being met.<br />
The Almond Board of California Honey Bee BMPs noted<br />
that growers should be sure to notify the beekeeper of the<br />
inspection so they can assist in handling the hives. It is best<br />
to let the hives acclimate to the orchard landscape before<br />
conducting the inspection.<br />
Colony strength evaluations not only help ensure growers<br />
get what they pay for, they also help ensure that beekeepers<br />
58 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
Demand for strong hives to cover all<br />
almond ground in the state requires<br />
that both sides agree on exact<br />
terms and put them in writing.<br />
are compensated for additional expenses<br />
in providing<br />
quality hives.<br />
Growers can further monitor colony<br />
strength by walking orchards daily<br />
during bee flight hours to observe<br />
activity levels. When walking orchards<br />
during bee flight hours, growers should<br />
look for bees carrying pollen on their<br />
legs, which confirms that pollination<br />
is taking place. In addition, growers<br />
should record hives that appear weak,<br />
having few bees coming and going at<br />
the hive entrance during the day, or<br />
inactive, and then report those hives to<br />
the beekeeper.<br />
’<br />
Other Considerations<br />
Qualls noted that bee supplies<br />
remain tight. If beekeepers can keep<br />
winter losses under 40%, there should<br />
be adequate numbers. She said losses<br />
were only anticipated to be in the 25%<br />
to 30% range this year. Varroa mites,<br />
drought and lack of native forage have<br />
had negative effects on hive strength,<br />
she said, and beekeepers have higher<br />
costs in maintaining healthy hives.<br />
She noted that as demand for pollination<br />
services has increased, higher<br />
prices will likely follow, though they<br />
have held steady at $200 to $210 for the<br />
last two years. Hives priced at lower<br />
rates may mean beekeepers haven’t<br />
made the effort needed to control varroa<br />
mites, Qualls said.<br />
Rising costs for inputs and the ongoing<br />
drought have been hard on both almond<br />
growers and beekeepers this year,<br />
Lewis said. When it comes to pricing<br />
information for pollination, Lewis said<br />
California State Beekeepers Association<br />
generally surveys beekeepers at their<br />
annual meeting and then publishes that<br />
information.<br />
Besides frame and grading requirements,<br />
House said other important<br />
contract points are number of hives<br />
delivered, delivery date, price per hive<br />
and payment schedule. Pesticide applications<br />
when bees are present in the<br />
orchard can also be part of the contract.<br />
The pest management plan for the<br />
orchard should be shared with beekeepers<br />
to make them aware of the products<br />
that may be used, Lewis said. Beekeepers<br />
are asked to register their sites with<br />
the county, but it is also important that<br />
they relay contact information to PCAs.<br />
Who will change water after a pesticide<br />
application should also be specified.<br />
“Both growers and beekeepers should<br />
have a clear understanding of the elements<br />
of the contract,” Lewis said.<br />
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Chestnuts in California have very few pest or<br />
disease problems (all photos courtesy Jenni Avila.)<br />
Chestnuts are not just a Christmas<br />
season specialty. The familiar<br />
Christmas song gained this unique<br />
tree nut a place at the holiday table, but<br />
its sweet flavor places chestnuts among<br />
the ingredients for many dishes prepared<br />
year-round.<br />
Joe and Jenni Avila, chestnut growers<br />
in the Modesto area, were familiar with<br />
chestnut use in Portuguese cuisine when<br />
they began growing chestnuts, but found<br />
their customers of diverse ethnic backgrounds<br />
value chestnuts for their sweet<br />
flavor. The Avila family operation, The<br />
Chestnut Farm, grows, harvests, processes<br />
and sells chestnuts onsite. Weeks prior<br />
to Christmas, in most years, they must<br />
hang their ‘sold out’ sign.<br />
Not a Native Nut<br />
Like most tree nuts grown in California,<br />
chestnuts are not native to the state.<br />
According to a UC Small Farms report,<br />
historically, chestnut tree forests were<br />
found in most East Coast states where<br />
trees grew to heights of 100 feet and the<br />
trunks were three to four feet in diameter.<br />
In the early 1900s, the species was<br />
decimated by the fungal disease Chestnut<br />
blight.<br />
More recently, development of a<br />
chestnut species tolerant to blight was<br />
initiated by State University of New York<br />
College of Environmental Science and<br />
Forestry (SUNY). Last year, the university<br />
sought deregulation of Darling 58,<br />
an American chestnut variety developed<br />
using genetic engineering for tolerance<br />
to chestnut blight.<br />
Continued on Page 62<br />
60 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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The Agricultural Marketing Resource<br />
Center reports that the U.S. is<br />
one of the few nations in the world that<br />
can grow chestnuts, yet doesn’t have a<br />
significant chestnut industry. In 2018,<br />
U.S. chestnut production was less than<br />
1% of total world production. The U.S.<br />
had 919 farms producing chestnuts<br />
on more than 3,700 acres. The top five<br />
chestnut-producing states are Michigan,<br />
Florida, California, Oregon and<br />
Virginia.<br />
There are four common species of<br />
chestnuts grown in North America, but<br />
most trees in commercial orchards are<br />
hybrids of these species.<br />
Degree of burr separation from the shell and ease of pellicle removal from the nut meat are<br />
quality characteristics.<br />
Acre at a Time<br />
Joe Avila said his five acres of chestnut<br />
trees started with one acre in 1984<br />
and gradually grew an acre at a time.<br />
He said he started with seedling trees<br />
and grafted them with the European<br />
Colossal variety with a Nevada pollinizer<br />
and an Italian chestnut variety.<br />
Cross-pollination is required for<br />
chestnut trees, but since the pollen is<br />
often shed before pistillate flowers are<br />
receptive, overlapping male and female<br />
bloom from two different varieties is<br />
required.<br />
The Colossal variety produces a larger<br />
nut, which is more valuable. Avila’s<br />
trees are in full production and have<br />
reached a height of about 45 feet.<br />
“Our buyers are knowledgeable<br />
about chestnuts and are looking for<br />
high quality. In the last two years, we<br />
have sold out well before the holidays,”<br />
Avila said.<br />
Some customers prepare them by<br />
boiling and serving them in main dishes,<br />
while others prefer to roast the nuts.<br />
Avila said a key to quality in chestnuts<br />
is to place the nuts in cold storage<br />
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after harvest. Stored at 35 degrees F,<br />
they retain their sweet flavor.<br />
“Yield is important, but you must<br />
have quality or they don’t sell,” Avila<br />
said. “They have to be sweet and peel<br />
well.”<br />
“Chestnuts are more like a grain,<br />
containing about 40% carbohydrate,<br />
40% water, 5% to 10% protein and less<br />
than 5% oil,” Avila said.<br />
Harvest in September<br />
The Avila’s chestnut harvest usually<br />
begins about Sept. 10 when the mature<br />
chestnuts begin to fall to the ground.<br />
Those early nuts are harvested by hand.<br />
Avila said as they walk the orchards to<br />
harvest the fallen nuts, they crush the<br />
prickly burr that encases the dark, hard<br />
leathery shell and pick up the nuts by<br />
hand. The burrs are easy to split when<br />
mature. Ideally, Avila said, most of the<br />
crop is already out of the burr at harvest<br />
with only about 30% still encased.<br />
Degree of burr separation from the<br />
shell and ease of pellicle removal from<br />
the nut meat are quality characteristics.<br />
Hand harvest only lasts a short<br />
time. By the end of the month, Avila<br />
said most of the nuts have fallen to<br />
the ground where they are swept in a<br />
windrow and picked up by a machine.<br />
Mechanical shakers come in at the end<br />
to remove the last few nuts.<br />
The Avila’s next step is to sort the<br />
nuts, discarding any that are off-quality.<br />
The nuts are then sized by machine<br />
into four sizes and placed in bags. The<br />
Avilas weigh the bags to make sure they<br />
contain 25 pounds, then place them in<br />
cold storage until they are sold.<br />
Chestnut value is related to its size,<br />
with the larger nuts at the highest value.<br />
Ease of Production<br />
Orchard care for chestnut trees is<br />
relatively easy. Avila said he does not<br />
have organic certification, but need for<br />
insecticide application is rare. Insect<br />
pests are not an issue in his orchards,<br />
Avila said.<br />
Nutrition is also a factor in nut size.<br />
Avila said postharvest potash application<br />
is done prior to winter rains and, if<br />
needed, nitrogen is applied in March.<br />
Avila said the burrs left on the<br />
orchard floor add organic material to<br />
the soils and foster growth of beneficial<br />
Joe and Jenni Avila run The Chestnut Farm, a family operation that grows, harvests, processes<br />
and sells chestnuts onsite.<br />
microbes and night crawlers that aerate<br />
the soil and aid in nutrient uptake by<br />
the trees. The organic matter also holds<br />
soil moisture. In mature orchards,<br />
weeds are not a problem due to shading<br />
on much of the orchard floor. When<br />
trees are young, he said cover crops<br />
are used to add organic matter. Avila<br />
said he does incorporate some of the<br />
orchard debris, but most has decomposed<br />
by the next harvest season. He<br />
does some scraping to keep the orchard<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 63
Grower-Cooperators a Vital Cog in Research<br />
Growers provide an invaluable service for university and USDA<br />
researchers as well as for their respective industries.<br />
By MITCH LIES | Contributing Writer<br />
Cliff Beumel of Agromillora Nursery spreads chips in a walnut orchard as part of a whole orchard recycling trial at the farm of Sutter County<br />
grower-cooperator Mat Conant. Grower-cooperators like Conant are vital to the success of research, according to UCCE Farm Advisor<br />
Luke Milliron (photo by L. Milliron.)<br />
For the past three years, walnut harvest has taken a<br />
little longer on one block of Jerry Moore’s Visalia, Calif.<br />
farm. There are no weather issues or equipment malfunctions<br />
slowing harvest. Moore has volunteered the block to<br />
UCCE for research into solving a nematode problem that has<br />
plagued walnut growers for decades.<br />
Moore receives no compensation for the extra time it takes<br />
as UCCE researchers test and weigh walnuts after each row is<br />
harvested. But he rests easy knowing that he is helping growers<br />
across the state who have lost yield to nematodes.<br />
“What I get out of it is the gratification of knowing we are<br />
helping the industry,” Moore said. “If they can come up with<br />
something to solve the nematode problem, it will be a big help<br />
to the industry.”<br />
According to researchers, growers like Moore provide an<br />
invaluable service for university and USDA researchers as well<br />
as for their respective industries.<br />
“We could not be successful farm advisors without grower-cooperators,”<br />
said Luke Milliron, UCCE farm advisor<br />
for Butte, Glenn and Tehama counties. “There is just no way<br />
around it.”<br />
Milliron added that he is fortunate to be centered near a research<br />
farm, in his case the Chico State University Farm, where<br />
he can conduct certain projects. “But you really need to do<br />
this research on different types of ground, with different pests<br />
and disease pressure,” he said, “and the only way to find those<br />
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types of situations is to have these grower-cooperators that are<br />
willing to put up with inconvenience and potential loss in some<br />
profits by letting you have rootstock blocks and test different<br />
materials in their orchards.”<br />
Joe Grant, research director for the California Walnut<br />
Board and UCCE farm advisor emeritus, said in many cases,<br />
research has to be conducted on-campus or on university field<br />
stations. Spraying unregistered pesticides, for example, can’t be<br />
conducted on a commercial farm without having to destroy the<br />
treated crop. And some research, like evaluating the performance<br />
of new varieties and rootstocks, isn’t generally conducive<br />
to a grower-cooperator situation.<br />
“No grower is going to want to put up with devoting a lot of<br />
space to wait 10 to 12 years for a variety to get evaluated,” he<br />
said.<br />
Conversely, Grant said, many research projects can and, in<br />
some cases, need to be done in the field.<br />
Pat Brown, UC Davis walnut breeder, noted, for example,<br />
that much of his initial breeding work takes place on campus.<br />
“But,” he said, “once we are pretty sure that something looks<br />
good, we need growers across the state to trial it before we<br />
release it. That is a key step in putting out new varieties.”<br />
Grant agreed. “It allows researchers to test things in a much<br />
broader variety of settings and management styles than we<br />
could ever do on campus. So, that is very valuable. It is a quicker<br />
route to ultimate successful adoption when you can get a new<br />
technique or new variety or new rootstock looked at across a<br />
broad range of conditions.”<br />
Give and Take<br />
Grower-cooperators typically reap some benefit from<br />
participating in research, according to growers and researchers.<br />
Many like being on the cutting edge of new advances and<br />
seeing them at work on their farm, Grant said. But they also<br />
encounter inconveniences in working with researchers, and it<br />
can be a financial burden.<br />
“The grower usually ends up sacrificing something, whether<br />
it be yield, profit, convenience or time,” Grant said. “But I think<br />
Continued on Page 66<br />
64 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
Continued from Page 64<br />
some growers volunteer to do these kinds of things because<br />
they want to see what is coming. They want to kind of be on<br />
the leading edge of learning what is happening in a particular<br />
domain, like what is the latest findings on walnut blight.<br />
“It is kind of a give and take thing,” he said.<br />
Davin Norene of Rio Oso, Calif. has been cooperating with<br />
researchers throughout his career. In his case, he said, it is a<br />
family tradition. “My dad has always cooperated with the UC<br />
Extension and USDA researchers who are looking to move the<br />
industry forward, and that is how I learned. That is the culture<br />
here on our farm,” he said.<br />
“You definitely get something out of it,” he added, “It is all<br />
about learning and collaborating. You end up being a better<br />
farmer, and maybe you get some new tools out of it. But it is<br />
usually more of a financial burden than a financial benefit.”<br />
Milliron characterized farmers who donate ground to<br />
research as being service oriented. “Because it is an inconvenience,<br />
these folks really do have a service-oriented mindset<br />
and are seeing the value for the whole industry by advancing<br />
this work,” Milliron said.<br />
“And it is just really tremendous that growers let us do<br />
that work, especially as it has gotten much harder for a lot of<br />
researchers to use the research and extension center, like the<br />
Kearney Ag Center in the Fresno area. The fees associated with<br />
having a research orchard out there have become expensive.<br />
Walnut grower Davin Norene said participating in university and USDA research<br />
projects is a family tradition on his Rio Oso farm (photo by M. Lies.)<br />
“On a grower-cooperator farm, however, it is free,” he said.<br />
“Growers typically will be fronting a lot of the costs for testing<br />
things like whole orchard recycling, or to conduct an almond or<br />
walnut or prune rootstock trial in their orchard.<br />
“All of these things are just such a huge benefit, and hopefully<br />
these folks are learning in the process, too,” he said.<br />
Like many researchers, Milliron has several trials in place<br />
on farms. “We are in dozens of farmers fields, not only in the<br />
three counties in the Northern Sacramento Valley that I serve,<br />
but I work with other farm advisors and have plots in growers’<br />
fields in Sutter and Yuba counties,” he said. “And it is the same<br />
with other advisors around the state.”<br />
He added that he is fortunate to work with several “really<br />
great cooperators.”<br />
“It is hard to find a really great cooperator,” Milliron said.<br />
“What it really takes is not only that they are willing to let you<br />
do research, but they have to be invested in the research as<br />
well. If they are, they are going to keep up on the communications<br />
and they are going to let you in to do what you need to<br />
do. A good cooperator is going to give you a ‘heads-up’ well in<br />
advance of harvest, or when something is going to get sprayed<br />
out there.”<br />
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Moore, the Visalia walnut grower, said he learned the value<br />
of grower-cooperators while serving as chairman of the California<br />
Walnut Board’s Production Research Committee.<br />
“I know what it takes for these researchers and how hard it is<br />
sometimes to find ground to do their projects,” he said. “So, if<br />
I have a chance, I open up some ground for them to come and<br />
work.”<br />
Moore just completed the third year of his commitment to<br />
the nematode project, and last year, he opened up part of his<br />
nursery for researchers to conduct rootstock research.<br />
“I’m excited to see what comes out of that,” he said. “These<br />
clones they are looking at have resistance to phytophthora,<br />
crown gall and nematodes.”<br />
As for the nematode project, there, too, he is optimistic.<br />
“They are getting some good results,” Moore said, results that<br />
may prove beneficial for him and many other growers in California.<br />
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66 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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YOUR BUDS!
What It Could Mean for Californians if We<br />
Have Another Dry Year: The Good, The<br />
Bad, and The Ugly<br />
By MIKE WADE | California Farm Water Coalition<br />
Our water year began October 1,<br />
and it’s no surprise to any of us<br />
that 2020-21 was the second<br />
driest on record. While the atmospheric<br />
river that drenched the state in October<br />
was good news, we still must prepare for<br />
a dry 2022 and think about what choices<br />
we may face if October’s drenching<br />
rain was an aberration. It’s not all doom<br />
and gloom, but there is some good, bad<br />
and ugly.<br />
JAN 12, 2022<br />
PECAN<br />
DAY<br />
Yuba-Sutter Fairgrounds<br />
Almonds may be one of the last profitable crops in California if regulations continue to<br />
hammer at the state’s water supply (all photos by Mel Machado, Blue Diamond.)<br />
The Good<br />
A bipartisan infrastructure bill<br />
passed by congress and signed by the<br />
president is expected to bring much<br />
needed relief to the state. We’re hopeful<br />
that federal funding for important<br />
California water projects will soon be<br />
on the way.<br />
In February 2019, 18 trillion gallons<br />
of rain fell in California, but due to<br />
inadequate storage, much of it could<br />
not be captured for future use. Last<br />
October’s storms also brought us water<br />
we couldn’t capture, which produced<br />
floods and rockslides instead of<br />
fruits, nuts and vegetables.<br />
Passage of this critical<br />
bipartisan bill will expand<br />
our ability to capture<br />
both surface and<br />
groundwater, improve<br />
water supply, expand flood control,<br />
improve downstream water quality,<br />
provide ecosystem benefits and fix our<br />
existing water-delivery infrastructure.<br />
In other good news, earlier reports<br />
of salmon demise were incorrect.<br />
Despite the dry and hot conditions,<br />
salmon have returned to the Sacramento<br />
Valley in record numbers. According<br />
to the California Department of Fish<br />
and Wildlife, it is the largest number<br />
of returning adults in 15 years. This<br />
means collaborative efforts by multiple<br />
stakeholders to address all the factors<br />
impacting fish are working.<br />
We continue to believe one of the<br />
solutions to California’s water management<br />
problems are the Voluntary<br />
Agreements, which would provide a<br />
more holistic approach to managing<br />
water for people and the environment.<br />
They rely on collaboration at the local<br />
level that will move the state substantially<br />
closer to the coequal goals of<br />
providing a more reliable water supply<br />
for California and protecting, restoring<br />
and enhancing the environment.<br />
Infrastructure legislation as well as<br />
the Voluntary Agreements are desperately<br />
needed, would improve water<br />
supply or water quality for all water<br />
users, help salmon and other struggling<br />
fish, and are within our reach.<br />
The Bad<br />
Cutting farm water supplies too low<br />
or increasing the cost to unreasonable<br />
levels could cause more problems than<br />
it solves. We all need to conserve, and<br />
California farmers have reduced their<br />
water consumption by double digits<br />
since 1980. While conservation efforts<br />
will continue, it still requires water to<br />
provide a healthy, safe, diverse food<br />
supply.<br />
Those who advocate for solving our<br />
water problems completely on the backs<br />
of farmers either don’t realize or don’t<br />
care about the consequences.<br />
The majority of California farms<br />
have been family-owned for decades<br />
and are active in their communities.<br />
The less water and the more it costs,<br />
the more land will be fallowed or sold<br />
Register today at<br />
68 wcngg.com/PecanDay<br />
West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
THOSE WHO ADVOCATE<br />
FOR SOLVING OUR<br />
WATER PROBLEMS<br />
COMPLETELY ON THE<br />
BACKS OF FARMERS<br />
EITHER DON’T REALIZE<br />
OR DON’T CARE ABOUT<br />
THE CONSEQUENCES.<br />
The San Luis Reservoir, at 12% of capacity on August 16, could be more difficult to fill if proposed<br />
State and Federal cuts hit future water supplies.<br />
to institutional interests, driving out family-owned operations,<br />
which is the exact opposite of what Californians say<br />
they want. Whatever farms remain will have no choice but<br />
to plant crops that provide the highest return per unit of<br />
applied water. The long-term future of California’s historic<br />
crop diversity, such as tomatoes, nuts, lettuce, broccoli,<br />
melons, sweet corn and many other examples of healthy food<br />
products we count on to keep our families healthy, won’t be<br />
possible, again the opposite of what Californians want.<br />
Because of California’s highly productive soil and climate,<br />
our production can’t simply be moved to other states. Nature<br />
provides assistance to California growers that simply can’t be<br />
transplanted to other states. Growing less in California will<br />
lead to more imported food, much of it from countries with<br />
less stringent safety regulations as well as less diversity of<br />
food products and higher prices for consumers at the grocery<br />
store.<br />
The Ugly<br />
Dismantling water rights is also touted as an easy fix<br />
when the exact opposite is true. Water rights are attached to<br />
the land, are a form of a vested property right, are long-established<br />
law and are rooted in historical precedent going<br />
back to English common law. Ending water rights strikes at<br />
the very foundation of our system and raises serious constitutional<br />
questions at both the state and federal level.<br />
We may face further assault from federal agencies that<br />
want to revert to old, outdated operating rules for both the<br />
Central Valley Project and the State Water Project. If enacted,<br />
the new plan would throw collaboration out the window,<br />
abandon the holistic approach to managing our environment<br />
that the latest science tells us we need and remove operational<br />
flexibility that is critically needed, especially in a drought.<br />
It would revert to measuring fish impact through a calendar<br />
system rather than by gathering data in real time as we do<br />
today.<br />
If we don’t embrace the good and work to avoid the bad,<br />
we could be left with ugly. Punitive measures and fin-<br />
‘<br />
ger-pointing create strife and chaos as well as endless litigation<br />
while doing nothing to solve our very real problems. As<br />
Californians, we’re all in this together and must work toward<br />
common solutions.<br />
Comments about this article? We want to hear from you.<br />
Feel free to email us at article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 69
Interested<br />
in organic<br />
articles?<br />
SUBSCRIBE TO<br />
at organicfarmermagazine.com/subscribe<br />
Organic Walnut Production<br />
Increases as Growers Learn<br />
New Management<br />
Techniques<br />
By CECILIA PARSONS | Associate Editor<br />
Organic walnut growers work to enhance soil health and integrate mechanical weed control into their systems (all photos courtesy Fillmore Farms.)<br />
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Organic walnuts are rapidly<br />
growing out of the ‘niche’ market.<br />
Evidence is in the number of retail<br />
online outlets for organic walnuts and<br />
the increase in production over the past<br />
six years.<br />
Mike Poindexter of the vertically<br />
integrated Poindexter Nut Company<br />
in Selma, Calif. said that domestic<br />
production of organically grown walnuts<br />
has ramped up to surpass foreign<br />
imports and pricing has reached more<br />
consumer-friendly levels.<br />
Supply of organic walnuts has<br />
increased greatly over the past several<br />
years, Poindexter said. In 2015, 4,424<br />
tons of organic walnuts were produced.<br />
By 2019, production had increased to<br />
10,055 tons. However, he said current<br />
data is hard to come by and there is<br />
no information on the size of the 2020<br />
organic walnut crop, which has made<br />
figuring out pricing levels a bit tricky.<br />
Putting it into perspective, however,<br />
Poindexter’s total walnut output is two<br />
and a half times larger than Califor-<br />
70 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
nia’s entire organic walnut crop.<br />
Poindexter attributed the increase in<br />
organic walnut production to existing<br />
orchards being transitioned to organic<br />
and increased production numbers per<br />
acre due to higher yielding varieties.<br />
Irrigation and nutrients are important<br />
components in organic farming practices,<br />
he noted, but neither of those are<br />
new developments in walnut farming.<br />
Pricing Premium, Higher Costs<br />
Water costs and debt service make<br />
up a large part of the cost structure.<br />
Poindexter said that typically, higher<br />
yielding walnut varieties would have a<br />
drop in production due to the inefficiencies<br />
of organic fertilizers compared<br />
to synthetics. Other farming costs, including<br />
weed control, for example, also<br />
tend to be higher in organic production.<br />
In order to achieve comparable returns<br />
on a per acre basis, he said there needs<br />
to be a 30% premium per pound on<br />
average.<br />
“We have seen substantially higher<br />
premiums in years past, but I expect<br />
the normal bump on pricing will be<br />
much closer to 30% to 40% over conventional<br />
pricing moving forward.”<br />
Poindexter said that ideal locations<br />
for organic production would be areas<br />
with lower insect pressure and without<br />
close proximity to conventional farms<br />
to eliminate the need for a buffer zone<br />
to account for drift of pesticide applications.<br />
Because of the difficulty in overcoming<br />
deficiencies in the soils, starting<br />
in good walnut ground, class 1 soils<br />
with good water penetration, would be<br />
ideal. Poindexter sources organic walnuts<br />
from growers in the San Joaquin<br />
Valley and in the Paso Robles area.<br />
He said that in the past, there have<br />
been many walnut orchards that were<br />
no longer economically viable under<br />
conventional methods and were<br />
converted to organic to stretch the<br />
productive life of the orchard. With the<br />
recent rise in supply of organic walnuts,<br />
Poindexter said that older orchards<br />
or those with lower yielding varieties<br />
are again getting pushed into negative<br />
margins. The market won’t pay the<br />
premium necessary for older varieties<br />
that do not have production or the crop<br />
quality. Color is the main quality driver<br />
for sales and pricing.<br />
“If a grower wants to farm organically,<br />
they should be farming one of<br />
the newer varieties: Chandler, Ivanhoe,<br />
Tulare, Howard or Solano,” Poindexter<br />
said.<br />
Visual aspects are very important<br />
as the largest segment of consumption<br />
for organic walnuts is in retail sales<br />
for culinary use. Institutional baking<br />
and ingredient use of organics is still<br />
a very small part of the market, Poindexter<br />
explained, so the older varieties<br />
are going to struggle to find a market<br />
amid the expanding supply of premium<br />
varietals.<br />
Finding a Home<br />
Lake County has historically led<br />
the way in acres of organically grown<br />
walnuts in California. UCCE Farm<br />
Advisor Rachel Elkins said that 2018<br />
statistics show the county had 1,700<br />
acres producing organic walnuts. San<br />
Luis Obispo County listed 650 acres,<br />
San Benito County listed 564 acres and<br />
the Solano/Yolo counties combined<br />
listed nearly 2,000 acres.<br />
Many growers of organic walnuts<br />
in Lake County are now struggling, Elkins<br />
said, with the loss of a major huller/dryer<br />
and marketer for their nuts.<br />
Two dry winters have also stressed the<br />
trees and made them more vulnerable<br />
to freezing temperatures. Many walnut<br />
orchards in Lake County are also older<br />
varieties, she said.<br />
“There is a short crop here this year,<br />
and the big issue is finding a home for<br />
those walnuts,” Elkins said.<br />
Grower Challenges<br />
The Fillmore family in Gridley, Calif.<br />
is a certified organic walnut grower and<br />
processor. Ryan Fillmore said growers<br />
who choose to farm organically have a<br />
different set of challenges compared to<br />
conventional walnut growers.<br />
“Those challenges are manageable,<br />
but you have to think ahead.”<br />
Continued on Page 72<br />
T H E N U T Y O U<br />
T H O U G H T Y O U<br />
K N E W , I S S O<br />
M U C H M O R E<br />
T H A N Y O U<br />
E X P E C T E D .<br />
S U P E R<br />
N U T R I T I O U S .<br />
S U P E R<br />
D E L I C I O U S .<br />
S U P E R<br />
V E R S A T I L E .<br />
LEARN MORE AT<br />
AMERICANPECAN.COM<br />
<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 71
Continued from Page 71<br />
Fillmore said the goal with organic production is to find<br />
ways to use the tools you have.<br />
Insect pests, nutrition and orchard floor maintenance are<br />
the three main challenges.<br />
Organic walnut growers look to soil health for production<br />
and integrating mechanical weed control into their systems.<br />
Trees that are farmed well produce pretty good yields, Fillmore<br />
said.<br />
Fillmore said the family focuses on soil health in their<br />
orchards, encouraging the growth of beneficial soil microbes<br />
that produce nutrients for sustainable crop production.<br />
Transitioning young trees to organic production is a common<br />
practice, but he said that production can begin to taper<br />
off after a few years unless growers recognize the importance<br />
of soil health in providing for tree nutritional needs.<br />
Navel orangeworm (NOW), codling moth and husk<br />
fly are the main insect pests, but Fillmore said there are a<br />
couple of positives about the organic approach. Not using<br />
broad-spectrum insecticides leads to a higher population of<br />
beneficial insects. Fillmore Farms also utilizes bat houses to<br />
provide habitat for bat colonies that can help reduce insect<br />
populations in orchards.<br />
For husk fly control, Fillmore said timing is important for<br />
efficacy of a spinosad-based treatment. Treatments at $60 to<br />
$150 per acre are expensive and provide less benefit if timing<br />
The largest segment of consumption for organic walnuts is in retail<br />
sales for culinary use.<br />
is off even a day or two.<br />
Codling moth can be treated with BT, but each treatment<br />
is only effective for a few days. Fillmore said codling moth<br />
damage is not as immediately obvious on the processing side,<br />
but CM attacks the hull of the immature walnut, providing<br />
an opening for NOW.<br />
Orchard sanitation, mating disruption and trapping are<br />
Fillmore’s strategies for NOW control. This pest is the toughest<br />
challenge in organic walnut production. He noted that<br />
Peterson traps have been an effective tool to remove female<br />
NOW from the orchard but added that any moderate to severe<br />
NOW problem will require more than one approach to<br />
control in an organic setting. There currently are no organic<br />
sprays that effectively control NOW.<br />
“NOW is a little like Bermuda grass,” Fillmore said. “If<br />
you let it get a start in the orchard, it is much harder to control<br />
later on.”<br />
When it comes to weed control, Fillmore said modified<br />
mowers that work closely around tree trunks are used rather<br />
than herbicides. Choosing to mow weeds rather than use<br />
herbicides also removes herbicide resistance from the list of<br />
grower concerns.<br />
Comments about this article? We want to hear from you. Feel<br />
free to email us at article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
72 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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A WORD FROM THE BOARD: THE CALIFORNIA WALNUT BOARD<br />
Health Research Helps<br />
Drive Consumer<br />
Demand for Walnuts<br />
By CALIFORNIA WALNUT BOARD AND COMMISSION |<br />
Contributing Writer<br />
VENICE HILL<br />
WALNUT NURSERY<br />
Serving South Valley Growers since 1980<br />
Jerry Moore<br />
(559)730-5859<br />
Variet ies:<br />
• Chandler • Tulare • Ivanhoe<br />
Through investment in health research, the California<br />
Walnut Commission (CWC) drives consumer demand<br />
by keeping walnuts and their health benefits top of mind<br />
with consumers and health professionals. This is accomplished<br />
in three important ways: Gives more science-based<br />
reasons for consumers to eat walnuts, especially in top topics<br />
of nutrition interest; builds on the credibility of walnuts as a<br />
nutrient-rich food among health professionals who strongly<br />
influence consumer dietary choices; and appeals to top-tier<br />
media read by consumers.<br />
“The first 15 years of research in heart health led to<br />
walnuts’ qualified health claim* with the FDA and being<br />
the first nut certified with the American Heart Association’s<br />
Heart-Check mark, which we’re proud of, but we<br />
couldn’t stop there. Our mission to further the science on<br />
the health benefits of eating walnuts continues to lead us in<br />
our research,” said Jennifer Olmstead, senior director of U.S.<br />
marketing and communication with the California Walnut<br />
Commission.<br />
With each new study, consumers have more reasons to<br />
add walnuts to their grocery cart, and reporters have a timely<br />
reason to include walnuts in a news story. Two long-term<br />
studies published in 2021 linked walnuts with life longevity<br />
and cardiovascular health. Investing in the research and<br />
sharing the findings also allows the CWC to build and<br />
nurture relationships with registered dietitians and health<br />
reporters.<br />
“Positive results to the health research brings additional<br />
media attention to walnuts and builds awareness to the proven<br />
health benefits,” said Olmstead.<br />
A study led by Yanping Li, Senior Research Scientist at<br />
the Department of Nutrition at Harvard T.H. Chan School of<br />
Public Health, found that higher walnut consumption, both<br />
in terms of the amount and frequency, may be associated<br />
with a lower risk of death and an increase in life expectancy<br />
among older adults in the U.S. compared to those who do<br />
not consume walnuts.<br />
This study, supported by the California Walnut Commission,<br />
found eating five or more servings of walnuts per week<br />
(one serving = one ounce) may provide the greatest benefit<br />
for mortality risk and life expectancy. Eating five or more<br />
servings per week was associated with a 14% lower risk of<br />
death (from any cause), 25% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular<br />
diseases and a gain in about 1.3 years of life expectancy,<br />
compared to those who didn’t consume walnuts.<br />
Popular consumer sites and food trade publications<br />
shared headlines like Verywell Health’s “Eating More Walnuts<br />
Could Help You Live Longer,” Martha Stewart’s “Eating<br />
Walnuts Could Lead to a Longer Life, a New Study Says” and<br />
Food Navigators’ “Walnut consumption linked to improved<br />
life expectancy.” Ultimately, news of the studies’ findings<br />
garnered more than two billion impressions, with more than<br />
300 international articles covering the study, generating a<br />
total of 702,843,291 impressions.<br />
Another study that published in August 2021 found an<br />
association between regular daily walnut consumption and<br />
sustained lower levels of cholesterol among 708 healthy<br />
older adults who included walnuts as part of their diet for<br />
74 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
four years. The findings again<br />
reinforced the notion that regular<br />
walnut consumption may be a<br />
useful part of a heart-healthy eating<br />
pattern.<br />
Hundreds of millions of<br />
people saw news reports touting<br />
“Want Better Heart Health?<br />
Consume Walnuts!” or “Eat a<br />
Handful of Walnuts Daily to<br />
Protect Your Heart and Stay Slim,”<br />
including a captive audience of<br />
more than two million viewers<br />
watching Good Morning America.<br />
Articles from health studies<br />
result in millions of consumers<br />
having a deeper understanding of<br />
the benefits walnuts provide, including<br />
how they can help you live a healthier<br />
life.<br />
*Supportive but not conclusive<br />
research shows that eating 1.5 ounces<br />
of walnuts per day, as part of a low saturated<br />
fat and low cholesterol diet and<br />
not resulting in increased caloric intake,<br />
may reduce the risk of coronary heart<br />
disease (FDA). One ounce of walnuts<br />
offers 18g of total fat, 2.5g of monounsaturated<br />
fat, 13g of polyunsaturated fat<br />
including 2.5g of alpha-linolenic acid,<br />
the plant-based omega-3.<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
One study, supported by the California Walnut Commission, found eating five or more<br />
servings of walnuts per week may provide the greatest benefit for mortality risk and life<br />
expectancy.<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 75
JOSEPH JACKSON ON “DOING WHAT MATTERS”<br />
“YOU CAN TAKE THE FARMER OUT OF THE ORCHARD, BUT CAN’T TAKE<br />
THE ORCHARD OUT OF THE FARMER”<br />
By TAYLOR CHALSTROM | Assistant Editor<br />
Farming has been practically inescapable<br />
for most of Joseph Jackson’s<br />
life, and it’s become his livelihood.<br />
Jackson, a part-time grower himself<br />
and account manager with Phytech,<br />
helped his father grow row crops and<br />
stone fruits for much of his childhood in<br />
the Kettleman City area. It wasn’t until<br />
the early 2000s when his father shifted<br />
to farming almonds that he entered the<br />
world of tree nuts.<br />
“Like a lot of people in the [Central]<br />
Valley, he saw the great prices of almonds<br />
and pistachios and thought, ‘Hey,<br />
I gotta get in on that as well,’” Jackson<br />
said, noting however that it has been<br />
increasingly difficult to farm in the area<br />
in recent years. “Problems with available<br />
surface water or prices of surface water<br />
as well as really no access to groundwater<br />
at all in our area meant that we kind<br />
of kept downsizing the operation, not<br />
just in changing crops but also in land<br />
sales.”<br />
Looking for the Long-Term<br />
Jackson said he became less engaged<br />
in the family farm as it downsized,<br />
citing the stress of regulatory challenges<br />
as a factor as well as the fact that his<br />
current paychecks don’t entirely depend<br />
on the weather. That being said, working<br />
with growers every day in his position<br />
at Phytech has made him miss growing,<br />
and he’s been looking to reenter it in a<br />
larger capacity.<br />
“I miss [farming] enough to where<br />
I don’t think I could go much longer<br />
without having any serious impact,”<br />
Jackson said. “So, whether that’s buying<br />
a small plot, 40, 50 acres, starting there<br />
and having a little something, almonds<br />
and pistachios especially are what I’m<br />
interested in getting back into.<br />
“There are lots of jobs where you go in<br />
and feel like you’re clocking in, clocking<br />
out and not really seeing anything at the<br />
end of the day, and that’s just not the<br />
case with farming,” he added. “[In farming],<br />
you really do feel like what you’re<br />
doing matters.”<br />
Jackson and his father have been in<br />
talks to form a partnership and lease or<br />
buy a new tree nut orchard. He said that<br />
due to current regulations and commercial<br />
advancements, he and his father<br />
have been more thoughtful throughout<br />
the planning process about where the<br />
orchard will be located and how it will<br />
be managed.<br />
“[We want to] make a system where<br />
we can keep farming for a long time,”<br />
Jackson said.<br />
Jackson puts great value on optimizing<br />
management practices and improving<br />
on-farm sustainability, reasons why<br />
he said he will never let go of farming.<br />
“We’re also helping make positive change,<br />
whether it’s caring for a piece of land,<br />
taking care of the plants there, the soil<br />
there,” he said. “It’s just something really<br />
special.”<br />
When considering more sustainable<br />
practices, Jackson is also thinking about<br />
the next generation of growers. “I have<br />
kids now, and with my love of ag, I want<br />
them to be able to experience agriculture<br />
in the valley,” he said. “So, to do that, we<br />
need to be more thoughtful and more<br />
sustainable with how we’re farming so<br />
that we can keep farming for generations<br />
to come.”<br />
Always Contributing<br />
Jackson accrues most of his hours in<br />
orchards through his commercial position,<br />
but he has also found other ways<br />
to stay involved in the tree nut industry.<br />
He is a graduate of the Almond Board<br />
of California’s (ABC) selective Almond<br />
Leadership Program, which “inspires<br />
and prepares almond community members<br />
to join a network of leaders meeting<br />
the challenges of a changing industry,”<br />
Working with growers every day in his<br />
position at Phytech has made Joseph Jackson<br />
miss growing, and he’s been looking<br />
to re-enter it in a larger capacity (photo<br />
courtesy J. Jackson.)<br />
according to ABC’s website. Additionally,<br />
Jackson sits on ABC’s Strategic Ag<br />
Innovations Committee where he and<br />
other members strategically decide<br />
where the almond industry needs to go<br />
with things like ag, environmental and<br />
food safety initiatives.<br />
At the time that Jackson applied for<br />
the Almond Leadership Program, he<br />
was still working as a grower full-time<br />
and was stuck in what he referred to as<br />
an “almond industry silo.” After graduating<br />
from the program, he had a clearer<br />
understanding of the scope of the industry<br />
and could see beyond his grower<br />
perspective.<br />
“We have all of these grower concerns<br />
on our minds, but when it comes to the<br />
almonds, we get them off the tree and<br />
kind of pat the trucks goodbye, and<br />
that’s kind of in a sense where the almonds<br />
stop with us,” Jackson said. “But,<br />
they go on a much longer journey, and<br />
that’s really what the [Almond] Leadership<br />
Program gives you… they actually<br />
take you to those places.”<br />
Jackson is referring to every step<br />
of the supply chain after almonds are<br />
trucked away from the orchards, such<br />
as huller-sheller facilities and shipping<br />
ports. Program members also get to hear<br />
from ABC about industry research into<br />
almonds’ nutritional benefits and global<br />
76 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
marketing efforts.<br />
Members meet for one day every<br />
month, and that day is dedicated to<br />
an aspect of the industry, Jackson said,<br />
whether it’s marketing, transit, research,<br />
etc. “[This industry] is all so interconnected,<br />
and we really need each other for<br />
success,” he said.<br />
Jackson was part of the Almond<br />
Leadership Program’s Class of 2019,<br />
which consisted of himself and 18 other<br />
individuals that contribute every day<br />
to the almond industry. On completion<br />
of the program, graduates are given an<br />
honorary membership to ABC’s multiple<br />
working committees, and Jackson<br />
took special interest in the Strategic<br />
Ag Innovations Committee. Honorary<br />
members don’t get to vote on issues, but<br />
they are invited to attend meetings, are<br />
sent information and resources, and can<br />
voice opinions on industry matters at<br />
meetings. Jackson applied for a regular<br />
membership, which was approved this<br />
summer and allows him to be able to<br />
have a counted vote, after his honorary<br />
membership expired.<br />
The Committee mainly focuses on<br />
Jackson puts great value on optimizing management practices and improving on-farm<br />
sustainability, and he’s always thinking about the next generation of growers when<br />
considering sustainable practices (photo by Roger Duncan, UCCE.)<br />
collecting research that is sifted through<br />
by a selection of working groups as well<br />
as deciding who gets funding for certain<br />
projects. Jackson made it a point to say<br />
that this funding, which comes in large<br />
part from growers, is by no means going<br />
to waste.<br />
“Everyone on this committee is super,<br />
super thoughtful about growers’ money,”<br />
he said. “Especially with the price of<br />
almonds being as low as it is, when part<br />
of that [price] is immediately taken off<br />
and sent to an agency, you want to feel<br />
confident that it’s not just going into a<br />
bureaucratic black hole, and it’s really<br />
not.”<br />
While Jackson has contributed much<br />
of his extracurricular time to almonds<br />
through the Almond Leadership Program<br />
and the Strategic Ag Innovations<br />
Committee, he has also been looking for<br />
ways to get more involved with the other<br />
major tree nuts. “Working with Phytech<br />
in the commercial sector, I also have a<br />
lot of walnut growers I work with, pistachio<br />
growers. So, I’ve definitely tried to<br />
reach out to some of those organizations<br />
and find ways that I can participate with<br />
the [California] Walnut Board, American<br />
Pistachio Growers.”<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 77
California Legislative<br />
Recap for 2021<br />
By ROGER A. ISOM | President/CEO, Western Agricultural Processors Association<br />
This year’s budget includes $90 million in General Funds over the next two years for the Department of Pesticide Regulation (photo by Cathy Merlo.)<br />
The 2021 legislative session was an<br />
interesting one, still subject to<br />
COVID-19 restrictions limiting<br />
access to the Capitol, but bolstered by<br />
a big surplus budget. All in all, things<br />
could have been far worse. The following<br />
is a brief summary on the bills we<br />
felt were most important to the tree nut<br />
industry during this year’s session.<br />
AB 73 (R. Rivas)<br />
Current law requires the State Department<br />
of Public Health and the Office<br />
of Emergency Services to establish<br />
a personal protective equipment (PPE)<br />
stockpile, and requires the department<br />
to establish guidelines for the procurement,<br />
management and distribution of<br />
PPE, taking into account, among other<br />
things, the amount of each type of PPE<br />
that would be required for all health<br />
care workers and essential workers as<br />
defined in the state during a 90-day<br />
pandemic or other health emergency.<br />
This bill would specifically include<br />
wildfire smoke events among health<br />
emergencies for these purposes and<br />
would include agricultural workers in<br />
the definition of essential workers. The<br />
bill passed out of the Assembly 78-0,<br />
passed out of the Senate 37-0 and was<br />
signed by the Governor on Sept. 27.<br />
AB 284 (R. Rivas)<br />
This bill would require the State Air<br />
Resources Board, as part of the next<br />
scoping plan update and no later than<br />
Jan. 1, 2023, to identify a 2045 climate<br />
goal with interim milestones for the<br />
state’s natural and working lands,<br />
and to integrate into the scoping plan<br />
update recommendations developed<br />
by the Natural Resources Agency and<br />
the Department of Food and Agriculture<br />
regarding practices, policy and<br />
financial incentives, market needs and<br />
potential reductions in barriers that<br />
would help achieve the 2045 climate<br />
goal among other recommendations.<br />
The bill was moved to the Inactive File<br />
and may be acted upon in January 2022.<br />
AB 377 (R. Rivas)<br />
This bill would require, by January<br />
1, 2023, the State Water Resources Control<br />
Board and regional boards to prioritize<br />
enforcement of all water quality<br />
standard violations that are causing<br />
or contributing to an exceedance of a<br />
water quality standard in surface water<br />
of the state. The bill would require the<br />
state board and regional boards, by<br />
January 1, 2025, to evaluate impaired<br />
state surface waters and report to the<br />
Legislature a plan to bring all water<br />
segments into attainment by January 1,<br />
2050. The bill was held on the Assembly<br />
Suspense File and may be acted upon<br />
January 2022.<br />
AB 567 (Bauer-Kahan)<br />
Current law generally regulates<br />
pesticide use by the Department of<br />
Pesticide Regulation and requires the<br />
Director of Pesticide Regulation to<br />
endeavor to eliminate from use any<br />
pesticide that endangers the agricultural<br />
or nonagricultural environment.<br />
A violation of those provisions and<br />
regulations adopted pursuant to those<br />
provisions is generally a misdemeanor.<br />
Current law requires the department<br />
on or before July 1, 2018 to issue a determination<br />
with respect to its reevaluation<br />
of neonicotinoids and to adopt<br />
control measures necessary to protect<br />
pollinator health within two years, as<br />
specified. This bill would prohibit the<br />
use of a neonicotinoid on a seed, as<br />
specified. The bill was made into a<br />
two-year bill and may be acted upon in<br />
January 2022.<br />
AB 616 (Stone)<br />
This was the big bill of the session.<br />
Current law requires the Agricultural<br />
Labor Relations Board to certify the results<br />
of an election conducted by secret<br />
ballot of employees in a collective bargaining<br />
unit to designate a collective<br />
bargaining representative, unless the<br />
board determines there are sufficient<br />
grounds to refuse to do so. Current<br />
law further provides that if the board<br />
refuses to certify an election because<br />
of employer misconduct that would<br />
render slight the chances of a new election<br />
reflecting the free and fair choice<br />
of employees, the labor organization<br />
shall be certified as the bargaining<br />
representative for the bargaining unit.<br />
This bill would refer to the secret ballot<br />
election as a polling place election. The<br />
bill passed out of the Assembly 50-17,<br />
passed out of the Senate 24-11, but was<br />
vetoed by the Governor on Sept. 22,<br />
2021.<br />
AB 1395 (Muratsuchi)<br />
The California Global Warming<br />
Solutions Act of 2006 requires the State<br />
Air Resources Board to prepare and<br />
approve a scoping plan for achieving<br />
the maximum technologically feasible<br />
and cost-effective reductions in greenhouse<br />
gas emissions and to update the<br />
scoping plan at least once every five<br />
years. This bill, the California Climate<br />
Crisis Act, would declare the policy of<br />
the state both to achieve net zero greenhouse<br />
gas emissions as soon as possible,<br />
but no later than 2045, and achieve<br />
Continued on Page 80<br />
78 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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Continued from Page 78<br />
and maintain net negative greenhouse<br />
gas emissions thereafter, and to ensure<br />
that by 2045, statewide anthropogenic<br />
greenhouse gas emissions are reduced<br />
to at least 90% below the 1990 levels.<br />
The bill passed out of the Assembly<br />
42-21, but failed passage in the Senate<br />
14-12. Reconsideration was granted and<br />
may be acted upon in January 2022.<br />
SB 95 (Skinner)<br />
This bill would provide for<br />
COVID-19 supplemental paid sick<br />
leave for covered employees, as defined,<br />
who are unable to work or telework due<br />
to certain reasons related to COVID-19,<br />
including that the employee has been<br />
advised by a health care provider to<br />
self-quarantine due to concerns related<br />
to COVID-19. The bill would entitle<br />
a covered employee to 80 hours of<br />
COVID-19 supplemental paid sick<br />
leave if that employee either works<br />
full time or was scheduled to work, on<br />
average, at least 40 hours per week for<br />
the employer in the two weeks preceding<br />
the date the covered employee<br />
took COVID-19 supplemental paid sick<br />
leave. The bill would provide a different<br />
calculation for supplemental paid<br />
sick leave for a covered employee who<br />
is a firefighter subject to certain work<br />
schedule requirements and for a covered<br />
employee working fewer or variable<br />
hours, as specified. The bill passed<br />
out of the Senate 22-2, passed out of the<br />
Assembly 57-19 and was signed by the<br />
Governor on March 19, 2021.<br />
SB 559 (Hurtado)<br />
This bill would establish the Water<br />
Conveyance Restoration Fund in the<br />
State Treasury to be administered by<br />
the Department of Water Resources<br />
in consultation with the State Water<br />
Resources Control Board and the Department<br />
of Fish and Wildlife. The bill<br />
would require all moneys deposited in<br />
the fund to be expended, upon appropriation<br />
by the Legislature, in support<br />
of subsidence repair costs, including<br />
environmental planning, permitting,<br />
design and construction and necessary<br />
road and bridge upgrades required to<br />
accommodate capacity improvements.<br />
The bill would require the Director of<br />
The big bill of the session, AB 616, covered secretive balloting for collective bargaining votes<br />
(photo by Taylor Chalstrom.)<br />
Water Resources to apportion money<br />
appropriated from the fund, subject to<br />
specified requirements, for the Friant-Kern<br />
Canal, Delta-Mendota Canal,<br />
San Luis Field Division of the California<br />
Aqueduct and San Joaquin Division<br />
of the California Aqueduct. The bill<br />
was moved to the Inactive File and may<br />
be acted upon in January 2022.<br />
Budget Act of 2021<br />
The Legislature passed this year’s<br />
budget in stages, and spends $262.5<br />
billion in total state funds, consisting of<br />
approximately $196.4 billion from the<br />
General Fund, $61.2 billion from special<br />
funds, and $4.9 billion from bond<br />
funds. Of note, the budget includes:<br />
• $31 million for the Governor’s<br />
Climate Catalyst Revolving Loan<br />
Fund;<br />
• $65 million to address drought<br />
impacts on fish and wildlife (habitat<br />
restoration);<br />
• $40 million for Water Resilience<br />
Projects;<br />
• $170 million for the FARMER<br />
program, plus an additional $42.5<br />
million in Carl Moyer funds<br />
directed to agriculture;<br />
• $32 million for methane reduction<br />
programs;<br />
• $50 million designated for Land<br />
Resource Protection which would<br />
include repurposing irrigated ag<br />
lands;<br />
• $180 million for SGMA implementation<br />
(this is $120 million more<br />
than the previous budget); and<br />
• $7 million for CDFA to help farmers<br />
transition to organics.<br />
The budget also includes $90 million<br />
in General Funds over the next two<br />
years for the Department of Pesticide<br />
Regulations. These monies are in place<br />
of a tiered mill assessment proposed<br />
by the Department but rejected by the<br />
Legislature. The Department did receive<br />
an additional appropriation of $10<br />
million to study different approaches to<br />
the mill assessment that help transition<br />
the State to safer products.<br />
In a year when the legislation could<br />
have been a lot worse, the failed recall<br />
attempt did take people’s attention<br />
away from some of those critical pieces<br />
of legislation, and maybe, just maybe,<br />
helped keep some of those bad bills at<br />
bay. That’s good for now, but we need to<br />
buckle up and be prepared for 2022. It<br />
will be a whole new battle!<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
80 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
A WORD FROM THE BOARD: AMERICAN PECAN COUNCIL<br />
A Peek into the Pecan<br />
Powerhouses Network<br />
By AMERICAN PECAN COUNCIL | Contributing Writer<br />
In our last article, we shared about<br />
the various marketing activations<br />
we’ve engaged in this past year to<br />
reach the eyes and minds of a crucial<br />
audience: health professionals and<br />
registered dieticians. These individuals<br />
educate and engage with consumers as<br />
experts in health, nutrition and wellness.<br />
They advise people on what to eat,<br />
so by reaching them, we can move the<br />
needle in the health food and wellness<br />
marketplace at large. We’ve engaged<br />
with this audience on multiple fronts,<br />
from developing useful nutrition resources<br />
to partnering with well-known<br />
and well-respected influencers and<br />
chefs amongst the health professional<br />
community. In this article, we will hone<br />
in on two of the most significant and<br />
rewarding activations to date, which<br />
have been ongoing efforts for the past<br />
two years now: The Pecan Powerhouses<br />
Network and our partnership with<br />
the Retail Dietitians Business Alliance<br />
(RDBA).<br />
Pecan Powerhouses Network<br />
The Pecan Powerhouses Network<br />
is an exclusive network the APC<br />
has developed, comprised of<br />
health and wellness leaders who<br />
receive first-hand access to<br />
innovative recipes, engaging<br />
educational resources and<br />
cutting-edge research,<br />
all highlighting the<br />
JAN 12, 2022<br />
PECAN<br />
DAY<br />
Yuba-Sutter Fairgrounds<br />
power of the Original<br />
Supernut. This group<br />
of credentialed health<br />
professionals (registered<br />
dietitian nutritionist,<br />
physician, nurse,<br />
fitness professional, etc.)<br />
and students in a health-related<br />
field (dietetic intern,<br />
medical student, etc.) chose to opt<br />
in and were vetted before receiving<br />
acceptance. They are enthusiastic about<br />
pecans and are keen on sharing their<br />
unique health benefits and culinary<br />
applications with their communities.<br />
We launched the Pecan Powerhouses<br />
Network in 2020, and it has seen<br />
continued growth in 2021. This year<br />
alone, we recruited 332 new members<br />
through our activations engaging this<br />
audience, bringing total membership to<br />
over 600. We distributed four quarterly<br />
newsletters to all members to-date,<br />
with a 40.4% average open-rate and<br />
6.5% average click-through rate, both<br />
above industry standards.<br />
A huge win this year has been the<br />
launch of a quarterly webinar series as<br />
a way to regularly engage with and provide<br />
meaningful, educational content<br />
to our Pecan Powerhouse Members,<br />
despite the limitations of the pandemic.<br />
Through this series, we covered pecans’<br />
tree-to-table story, which garnered<br />
1,266 registrants over the four events,<br />
recruited 134 new Pecan Powerhouse<br />
Network members and reached 93k+<br />
health professionals via targeted webinar<br />
promotions.<br />
The final webinar in the series,<br />
“Holistic Nutrition Strategies: A Threefold,<br />
Evidence-Based Approach to<br />
Immune Health,” which took place on<br />
September 22, 2021 and was led by the<br />
co-founder of the Culinary Nutrition<br />
Collaborative, Kristy Del Coro, was our<br />
most-successful webinar to-date. We<br />
track this success based off key metrics<br />
like registration & attendance as well<br />
as from post-webinar surveys we’ve<br />
conducted to gather feedback. Webinar<br />
registration has more than tripled<br />
since the inaugural event in January<br />
2021, showing how far we’ve come in<br />
such little time. In our pre-webinar<br />
communications for the Q4 webinar,<br />
we reached 25.3k+ health professionals<br />
across four promotional channels and<br />
had 40% of our 702 registrants attend<br />
the live event. The objective of this webinar<br />
was to discuss the key micronutrients<br />
for immune health, creative and<br />
convenient culinary pairings featuring<br />
immune-supporting ingredients, and<br />
evidence-based lifestyle habits to incorporate<br />
into their practice as a nutrition<br />
professional. Attendee Q&A focused on<br />
nutrient changes resulting from preparing<br />
pecans in recipe applications and<br />
specific benefits of the key micronutrients<br />
discussed. In our post-webinar<br />
survey distributed immediately following<br />
the webinar, 86% of respondents<br />
rated the webinar very good or excellent,<br />
85% said they learned something<br />
new about key micronutrients for immune<br />
health, creative culinary pairings<br />
and evidence-based lifestyle habits, and<br />
65% plan to incorporate all or most of<br />
the information they learned into their<br />
Register today at<br />
82 wcngg.com/PecanDay<br />
West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
APC’s newly-introduced quarterly webinar series for 2021 covered pecans’ tree-to-table<br />
story (photo courtesy American Pecan Growers.)<br />
everyday practice. Additional attendee<br />
feedback demonstrated strong interest<br />
in recipe ideas and pecans’ application<br />
to a variety of health needs, which will<br />
help guide future content we distribute<br />
to the Pecan Powerhouses Network.<br />
Retail Dietitians Business Alliance<br />
The RDBA is a first-of-its kind<br />
professional group representing 2,400<br />
retail dietitians throughout the U.S.<br />
and Canada. These professionals work<br />
for and/or consult to major supermarket<br />
retailers, helping customers and<br />
employees with food, culinary and<br />
nutrition topics. Our partnership with<br />
this key dietetic practice group was<br />
four-fold, including development of a<br />
sponsor page on their website, participation<br />
in Samplefest, a Snacking<br />
Trends Webinar and dedicated e-blasts<br />
to their membership.<br />
Our Sponsor Page on RDBA’s website<br />
offered retail dietitians easy access<br />
to the APC’s health professional-facing<br />
resources and talking points about<br />
pecans taste, versatility, and nutrient<br />
makeup for convenient use in virtual<br />
and in-store activations.<br />
Samplefest is an activation put on by<br />
RDBA that pairs insights and information<br />
on trending topics with product<br />
samples in one tailored bundle specifically<br />
for retail dietitians. As a sponsor,<br />
APC was able to place educational resources<br />
and pecan product in the hands<br />
of 227 retail dietitians representing 44<br />
major grocery retailers. These resources<br />
included a bento box, double-sided<br />
educational handout and single-serving<br />
pecan pack.<br />
RDBA’s engaging snacking trends<br />
webinar we were the sponsor of served<br />
to increase visibility of pecans and<br />
grew awareness of pecans’ nutritional<br />
attributes and culinary versatility.<br />
In the pre-webinar promotion, 6.4k+<br />
health professionals were reached and<br />
11 major retailers were represented<br />
among the attendees, which collectively<br />
encompass approximately 7.2k retail<br />
locations.<br />
Lastly, two dedicated e-blasts sent<br />
out to the RDBA database served as<br />
successful promotional channels for<br />
the Pecan Powerhouses Network and<br />
our 2021 webinar series.<br />
We made great inroads with the<br />
vital audience that is the health professional<br />
community in 2021. Looking<br />
forward to 2022, our topline objective<br />
will be to continue to increase consumption<br />
of, recommendation and<br />
positive sentiment for pecans among<br />
targeted health professionals. Building<br />
off the momentum of this past year, we<br />
will continue to grow the Pecan Powerhouses<br />
Network and build partnerships<br />
to position pecans’ heritage story as<br />
an interest hook and key differentiator,<br />
leverage pecans’ unique trifecta encompassing<br />
taste, satisfaction and nutritional<br />
value, and elevate the experience<br />
of pecans as the “foodie” nut for all.<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 83
Ant Management in Almonds<br />
Plan Ahead for Ants to Prevent<br />
Damage at Harvest<br />
By KATHY COATNEY | Contributing Writer<br />
The amount of ant damage sustained is directly proportional to how long the<br />
nuts are sitting on the ground, according to UCCE Entomologist David Haviland.<br />
There are two main ant pests in<br />
almonds: the pavement ant and the<br />
southern fire ant. The pavement<br />
ant is about 0.13 inch long, dark brown<br />
and covered with coarse hairs. It has<br />
ridges on its head that are visible with<br />
a hand lens and prefers to nest in sandy<br />
or loam soils. It’s found throughout the<br />
Central Valley, but most commonly in<br />
the northern San Joaquin and Sacramento<br />
valleys.<br />
The southern fire ant is 0.07 to 0.25<br />
inch long and has an amber head and<br />
thorax with a black abdomen. Compared<br />
to pavement ants, fire ants vigorously<br />
swarm from the nest entrance<br />
when disturbed.<br />
“Both ant species are primarily<br />
protein feeders,” according to David<br />
Haviland, UCCE entomology and pest<br />
management farm advisor for Kern<br />
County, and almond kernels are excellent<br />
sources of protein. “That’s why we<br />
grow them and eat them.<br />
“Different ants respond differently<br />
to different climates, different ground<br />
covers, different types of soils and different<br />
amounts of rainfall,” Haviland<br />
said.<br />
Neither species likes to climb trees,<br />
but once the nuts are harvested and on<br />
the ground, they eat them, especially if<br />
there’s an opening in the shell.<br />
Ant Management<br />
“The amount of ant damage sustained<br />
is directly proportional to how<br />
long the nuts are sitting on the ground,”<br />
Haviland said, so the biggest factor in<br />
ant management is manipulating how<br />
long the nuts are on the ground.<br />
“Once the nuts are shaken, of course<br />
Continued on Page 86<br />
84 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
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L I FE SCI E NCES
ONE WAY YOU CAN TELL THAT IT'S ANT DAMAGE IS THAT THE ANTS<br />
DON'T LIKE THE SKIN OF THE KERNEL. SO, IF ALL THE WHITE MEAT<br />
PART OF A KERNEL IS EATEN OUT, AND THERE'S STILL REMNANTS OF<br />
THE SKIN FROM THE SURFACE OF THE KERNEL, THAT'S ANT DAMAGE.<br />
– DAVID HAVILAND, UCCE<br />
“<br />
“<br />
Continued from Page 84<br />
they need to dry, they need to be blown,<br />
windrowed and then picked up. And<br />
the issue is, from an ant management<br />
standpoint, the longer the nuts are on<br />
the tree, and the drier they are when<br />
you shake the tree, the less time they<br />
need on the ground before you can pick<br />
them up,” Haviland said.<br />
But the longer the nuts are left in<br />
the tree, the longer they are exposed<br />
to navel orangeworm. So growers are<br />
juggling between harvesting the trees<br />
as late as possible to minimize ant<br />
damage and getting the nuts off the<br />
tree as fast as possible to prevent naval<br />
orangeworm damage.<br />
“What ends up happening is growers<br />
primarily deal with the ants by applying<br />
baits, and then shaking the trees as<br />
soon as possible,” Haviland said.<br />
Shell Uniformity<br />
Hard shell varieties are less susceptible<br />
to ant damage than soft shell varieties.<br />
“All varieties have split hulls, but<br />
the integrity of the shells does change,”<br />
Haviland said, adding the way the<br />
almonds are managed during the year<br />
can affect the integrity of the shell.<br />
Haviland explains that if almonds<br />
are really wet, then really dry, then<br />
really wet, then really dry, there will be<br />
periods of rapid hull expansion, and it<br />
can impact the uniformity of the shell.<br />
It’s similar to growing backyard tomatoes.<br />
“If you forget to water them for<br />
a couple of weeks, and then give them<br />
tons of water, those tomatoes expand<br />
really fast and split. The same can happen<br />
with cherries close to harvest if you<br />
get a rainstorm,” Haviland said, adding<br />
uniform irrigation and growth equals a<br />
more uniform shell.<br />
Organic Management<br />
There are organic baits, but they<br />
aren’t as effective as conventional baits,<br />
Haviland said.<br />
“For organic growers, it really comes<br />
down to getting the nuts off the ground<br />
as fast as possible. Also, a lot of organic<br />
growers, in order to help prevent damage<br />
from navel orangeworm, tend to<br />
grow more hard shell varieties because<br />
they’re less susceptible to navel orangeworm.<br />
That also makes those varieties<br />
less susceptible to ant damage.”<br />
Determining Damage<br />
Taking annual samples at harvest is<br />
important to determine the level of ant<br />
damage.<br />
“One way you can tell that it’s ant<br />
damage is that the ants don’t like the<br />
skin of the kernel. So, if all the white<br />
meat part of a kernel is eaten out,<br />
and there’s still remnants of the skin<br />
from the surface of the kernel, that’s<br />
ant damage,” Haviland said, adding<br />
they will also leave behind a powdery<br />
substance that is an indication of ant<br />
damage.<br />
Pros and Cons of Specific Baits<br />
Baits fall into two main groups.<br />
Clinch, Esteem, Extinguish are all applied<br />
approximately two months before<br />
harvest (May and June). The worker<br />
ants take the bait into the colony, it’s<br />
fed to the queens and the queens become<br />
sterile and/or die.<br />
“This has been a standard practice<br />
for a couple of decades,” Haviland said.<br />
There is also a newer bait called<br />
Altrevin. Altrevin works much faster,<br />
but doesn’t have the residual effect of<br />
the other baits.<br />
“Growers that want to use Altrevin<br />
will typically apply it within a couple of<br />
weeks of harvest,” Haviland said.<br />
The advantage of first three baits are<br />
that they are inexpensive and applied<br />
earlier in the season when typically<br />
labor and equipment are available to<br />
make those applications.<br />
In comparison, an application of<br />
Altrevin must be made just prior to<br />
harvest when growers are in harvest<br />
preparation and equipment may be tied<br />
up with hull split sprays, mowing and<br />
other ground preparations.<br />
“There’s just a lot of things going on<br />
at that time, where it’s nice to just say<br />
in May or June that you’ve checked the<br />
box, you’ve put out your baits and ants<br />
won’t be a problem,” Haviland said.<br />
But Altrevin has the advantage that<br />
growers can monitor ant populations<br />
and decide whether or not to treat two<br />
weeks before harvest.<br />
“It’s easier to react to the popula-<br />
86 West Coast Nut <strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021
There are two main ant pests in almonds: the pavement ant (pictured) and the southern fire ant (photos by Jack Kelly Clark,<br />
UC Statewide IPM Program.)<br />
tion in the field with a later treatment,<br />
whereas most treatments that are done<br />
in May and June are done on more<br />
of a presence/absence preventative<br />
approach, which works and is very<br />
effective. But in hindsight, all of those<br />
fields may not have needed treatment,”<br />
Haviland said.<br />
If growers have the manpower and<br />
the ability to make a late application,<br />
they could save money using Altrevin<br />
because they might not need to make<br />
an application, depending on ant populations.<br />
To maintain bait quality and maximize<br />
bait pickup by ants:<br />
Don’t use baits within 24 hours<br />
after an irrigation or 48 hours before<br />
an irrigation with sprinklers or microsprinklers.<br />
The soil surface should<br />
be dry so that moisture is not absorbed<br />
by the bait and reduce its attractiveness<br />
to the ants.<br />
Use bait products soon after opening<br />
and do not store bait for more than<br />
a few weeks. Open bags should be used<br />
within a week or two so that the soybean<br />
oil does not become rancid and be<br />
less attractive to ants.<br />
Purchase only as much bait as can<br />
be used in the current season.<br />
Monitoring<br />
Monitoring is always advised, but at<br />
the same time, thresholds can be difficult<br />
to interpret, Haviland said.<br />
“Imagine if you harvest a field and<br />
you get the nuts out within three days,<br />
versus harvest the same field, on the<br />
same day, but it takes you 10 days to<br />
remove the nuts. That’s the difference<br />
between ants being a problem or not,”<br />
Haviland said.<br />
Treatment isn’t solely dependent on<br />
how many ants there are; it’s also dependent<br />
on the details of harvest, how<br />
much equipment a grower has and how<br />
long the nuts are on the ground.<br />
“Sometimes those details aren’t<br />
available until real time. In May, you<br />
don’t know if it’s going be sunny or<br />
whether a cool rainstorm will come in<br />
the middle of harvest. That’s not common,<br />
but still, you don’t know what the<br />
weather is going to be until the week<br />
of the weather,” Haviland said, and if<br />
yields are higher than expected, it can<br />
impact how much time it takes to get<br />
the nuts out of the field.<br />
There are ant monitoring guidelines<br />
available on the UC IPM website at<br />
www2.ipm.ucanr.edu/agriculture/almond/Ants/.<br />
Comments about this article? We want<br />
to hear from you. Feel free to email us at<br />
article@jcsmarketinginc.com<br />
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<strong>Dec</strong>ember 2021 www.wcngg.com 87
Yvba-Sutter Fairgrounds<br />
442 Franklin Ave, Yuba City, CA 95991<br />
2<br />
We’ve Expanded to<br />
DAYS<br />
January<br />
13th and 14th<br />
FREE EVENT<br />
LIVE TRADE SHOW<br />
NETWORKING<br />
FREE INDUSTRY LUNCH<br />
2 DAYS<br />
TOTAL CE:<br />
PR :6<br />
A:9<br />
Pending Approval<br />
Register at <strong>WCN</strong>GG.COM/CWC<br />
In collaboration with
West Coast Nut is excited to collaborate with the California Walnut Board and<br />
Commission on this year’s California Walnut Conference. The purpose of extending<br />
to a two-day conference is to have time to present a more in depth look at<br />
what’s happening in the walnut industry on both a domestic as well as international<br />
level. This two-day conference will feature crop research, consumption<br />
research, marketing and industry updates and more. My vision for this event<br />
10 years ago was for it to become the key event for the Walnut Industry and<br />
to create a space where the industry would come to gether to learn from each<br />
other and access information and technologies that are for walnuts. I know<br />
moving to a 2-day event is a significant change and bigger commitment for<br />
all involved than the past years half day show. However, in today's climate<br />
we are in need of a better understanding of the industry and where we are<br />
headed and we feel that this conference is a key opportunity to help the industry<br />
lead a new path of positive change by holding a comprehensive conference with our industry partners, UC Research<br />
and the California Walnut Board and Commission. Please clear your schedule and be part of the change<br />
and experience on both days, our industry needs your participation and prospective. Register today: wcngg.<br />
com/events<br />
Jason Scott<br />
Jason Scott | Publisher<br />
The California Walnut Conference is very important to the California<br />
Walnut Board as it represents an opportunity to meet with our<br />
growers and give them the most up to date information about what’s<br />
happening in the industry. The conference sessions are a fantastic way<br />
for growers to receive education on the latest on pest management,<br />
orchard management, and other topics currently being studied through<br />
the CWB Production Research Program. Additionally, growers can hear<br />
about the various marketing programs being conducted in the US and<br />
export markets designed to build demand for the amazing product they grow, as well as learn more about the work<br />
the CWC is doing to advocate for the California walnut industry. The California Walnut Board is pleased to work<br />
with JCS Marketing to coordinate this event. Their experience in the tradeshow component and our educational<br />
sessions make for a winning combination that offers our industry a first class experience.<br />
Michelle Connelly | Executive Director,<br />
California Walnut Board and Commission
DAY 1<br />
CE TRACK<br />
WORKSHOPS<br />
CE talks in the morning<br />
8:00 AM<br />
BOT/Phomopsis<br />
8:30 AM Walnut Huskfly Panel: Why does<br />
huskfly continue to plague<br />
walnut growers and what can<br />
9:00 AM<br />
they do about it?<br />
9:30 AM<br />
10:00 AM<br />
10:30 AM<br />
Update on Walnut Mold and its<br />
Management in California<br />
BREAK / Trade Show<br />
Where Your Production Research<br />
Dollars are Going and Why?<br />
Benefits of Delayed Irrigation in<br />
Walnuts<br />
Integrating Information Into<br />
Irrigation scheduling<br />
The Latest on Post-Harvest<br />
Research<br />
Spotlight on International and<br />
11: 00 AM<br />
Emerging Markets<br />
The Future of Pesticides<br />
in Walnuts<br />
11:30 AM The Future of Walnut Varieties<br />
2-DAY AGENDA<br />
12:00 PM Walnut Industry Lunch<br />
12:30 PM<br />
State of the Industry - Michelle<br />
Connelly<br />
1:00 PM TBD<br />
1:30 PM<br />
Regulatory Issues Affecting<br />
Walnut Growers<br />
2:00 PM Break /Trade Show<br />
3:00 PM<br />
3:30 PM<br />
U.S. Retail: Current Trends and<br />
the Opportunity for Walnuts<br />
SGMA - What It Means For You<br />
and Where It’s Coming From<br />
4:00 PM Adjourn<br />
DAY 1<br />
TOTAL CE:<br />
PR : 3.0<br />
A: 5.0<br />
Pending Approval<br />
More to learn in the afternoon
DAY 2<br />
CE TRACK<br />
WORKSHOPS<br />
8:00 AM<br />
8:30 AM<br />
Climate Change and Impacts<br />
on Pest Generations<br />
Mites- A Growing Concern<br />
in Walnuts<br />
Using Social Media to Reach the<br />
Next Generation of Consumers<br />
Navigating the Challenges of<br />
Global Trade<br />
More CE credit!<br />
9:00 AM<br />
9:30 AM<br />
New Technologies in Spraying<br />
and Why Calibration Will Still<br />
Be Important<br />
Crown Gall--Rootstocks,<br />
Treatments and Strategies<br />
Biologicals What are They and<br />
Where Do They Fit?<br />
Living with Low Winter Chill in<br />
Walnuts<br />
10:00 AM<br />
10:30 AM<br />
BREAK / Trade Show<br />
11: 00 AM Walnut Blight Management<br />
11:30 AM<br />
At a Crossroads with NOW in<br />
Walnuts: What to Do, Where<br />
to Go?<br />
From Research to Purchase:<br />
Translating evidence-based<br />
nutrition science in engaging<br />
and actionable ways<br />
Nitrogen Management<br />
in Walnuts<br />
12:00 PM Adjourn<br />
FREE EVENT<br />
LIVE TRADE SHOW<br />
NETWORKING<br />
FREE INDUSTRY LUNCH<br />
Need to register now!<br />
<strong>WCN</strong>GG.COM/CWC<br />
DAY 2<br />
TOTAL CE:<br />
PR : 3.0<br />
A: 4.0<br />
Pending Approval
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