As growers have experienced a wet winter and early spring, it may be a little more difficult to determine exactly when to start irrigating their young pistachio trees. In some cases, they might also notice what appears to be a boron deficiency as the young trees start leafing out, which might actually just be a symptom of too much water in the soil. Watch this interview with UCCE Farm Advisor Emeritus Bob Beede as he explains, and read more about it in Pacific Nut Producer Magazine.
California’s burgeoning pistachio industry is on a trajectory to produce more than 1.4 billion pounds by 2026 according to a new economic study commissioned by American Pistachio Growers (APG). Bountiful harvests predicted in the years ahead will present both new opportunities and challenges that APG and its member processors fully embrace amid positive consumption trends in the United States as well as in global markets.
The study, conducted by agricultural economist Edmond Missiaen, projects annual California pistachio production from 2019-2026 based on new tree plantings in the past five years, a conservative projection of new plantings in the next three years, normal weather conditions and no major interruptions to water supplies. Missiaen projects annual production could exceed 1.4 billion pounds by 2026 from a projected 392,595 bearing acres in California. The study did not include production in Arizona and New Mexico which account for 1% of today’s total production.
His prediction for new pistachio plantings in 2019 to 2021 are 15,000 acres annually, a figure based on average new plantings between 2005 and 2018 (15,886 acres). His data show growers planted an estimated 30,000 new acres in 2018. He also notes that his new planting forecasts do not account for uncertainties related to the availability, price or regulation of water in the years ahead, factors which would reduce the rate of new pistachio plantings.
In arriving at his prediction for 1.4 billion pound crop by 2026, Missiaen estimates the production, acreage and yield for all bearing trees in their 6thyear and older, when pistachio trees usually produce their first saleable crop. His yield estimates projected for 2019-2026 are for fully mature acres and account for the cyclical nature of pistachio production as trees tend to produce large crops in on-years followed by smaller crops in off-years in the next season. His estimates are for 4,300 pounds per acre for on-years and 2,800 pounds per acre for off-years for fully mature trees. Missiaen’s forecast assumes this cyclical trend over the eight year period from 2019 to 2026, but he cautions against putting too much faith in that trend.
“There were 13 off-years but only 10 on-years in the 23 years from 1996 through 2018,” noted Missiaen. He stated that it is likely that two successive off-years will occur once or twice during the 8 years projected. Should that occur, it could bring cumulative production for the 8-year projection period 400 million to 800 million pounds below the cumulative estimates during the 2019-2026 production.
Bigger Pistachio Crops Continue Long Trend in California
Only time will tell whether Missiaen’s production estimates are fully realized, but there is no discounting the fact that California’s pistachio industry continues to grow as does the popularity of pistachios as a healthy and nutritious snack. After gaining a foothold as a promising agricultural crop in California in the mid-1970s, the industry has steadily grown to become the number-one pistachio producer of the popular nut to global consumers.
Bigger crops have become the norm for the California pistachio industry as production has risen 89 percent in the past eight years, from 2010’s harvest of 521.8 million pounds to the 986.7 million pounds gleaned from state orchards in 2018. As recent as 2005, production in California was 282.4 million pounds and bearing acreage had just surpassed 104,000 acres.
Marketers Ready to Embrace Bigger Crops
American-grown pistachios have become frequent topics in health publications and medical research studies that have touted their attributes in helping to manage body weight, controlling blood sugar and reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease.
“As the meteoric rise of U.S. pistachio production continues in California and other states it will require an intense and unrelenting focus on marketing future big crops, but we are confident that the myriad health benefits of pistachios and growing global demand for pistachios will keep our industry profitable,” said APG Vice President of Global Marketing Judy Hirigoyen.
“In our view, the producers of American-grown pistachios are very well positioned in the marketplace to take advantage of the larger harvests coming in the future,” said APG Executive Director Richard Matoian. “There’s much work to be done in the marketing and government relations areas to capitalize on these encouraging consumer trends, but there is no doubt that this is an exciting time in our industry.”
Contact: Judy Hirigoyen
DESK: (559) 475-0435
American Pistachio Growers (APG) has secured more than $2.8 million in funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to expand international trade in overseas markets, confront unjustified trade retaliation and to enhance research on the healthful attributes of American-grown pistachios.
This week, APG received news that it had secured $911,108 under USDA’s Market Access Program (MAP), completing a funding trifecta. On January 31st, APG was awarded $1.715 million in Agricultural Trade Promotion (ATP) Program funds, and it was recently the beneficiary of $248,158 in Specialty Crop Block Grant funding.
The MAP funds, administered through USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service, are awarded to organizations that partner with the service to share the costs of overseas marketing and promotional activities that help build commercial export markets for U.S. farm products and commodities.
American Pistachio Growers is among 57 organizations nationwide receiving ATP funds. The award of $1.715 million to APG will help its grower and processor members identify and access new export markets for pistachios. The ATP is one of three USDA programs created to mitigate the effects of unjustified trade retaliation against U.S. agricultural commodities.
“The award of these funds will go a long way toward boosting the appeal and demand for American-grown pistachios in some of our existing and emerging pistachio markets,” said APG Chairman Brian Watte of Brian Watte Farms in Tulare. “Considerable work has gone into securing these funds and now the work really begins as we help our industry get the biggest bang for the bucks that we have been awarded.”
Watte said the APG Marketing Communications Committee has been involved in developing the strategy to determine the best opportunities for market expansion on behalf of all pistachio growers. The committee includes growers and nine of the industry’s 10 largest processors.
The $248,158 Specialty Crop Block Grant, which was awarded to APG by USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service, is administered through the California Department of Food and Agriculture to help enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops like pistachios.
Richard Matoian, Executive Director of American Pistachio Growers, said the grant will help fun
d additional pistachio nutrition and health benefits research. He noted that American-grown pistachios have already captured the imagination of health-conscious consumers in the U.S. and abroad, and the additional research is welcomed to add to the expanding knowledge base about pistachios.
In securing the three government awards totaling $2.874 million, Matoian credited members of the APG Board of Directors, many of whom met with congressional leaders and USDA officials In Washington, D.C. as well as with officials with state departments of agriculture in California, Arizona and New Mexico. APG represents pistachio growers and member processors in all three states.
“These funds don’t fall out of the sky. It takes diligence, persistence and patience to be successful, and this was a cooperative effort by APG’s marketing team, the members of our Marketing and Communications Committee, and ongoing relationship building by our growers and member processors. It is an example of the positive outcomes that result from this joint effort,” Matoian said. “It’s through these efforts that we have funds like this available to boost our reputation around the globe as the producers of the world’s best pistachios.”
Contact: Judy Hirigoyen
There has been a lot of talk and concern about the retaliatory tariffs impacting the California almond industry, and as almond production continues increasing, just how is this all going to impact the market? Watch this brief interview with Julie Adams from the Almond Board of California as she responds to these concerns, and read more about it in Pacific Nut Producer Magazine.
Almond pollination is underway in California and growers are hoping for another good crop this year. How can you monitor the progress of your bees during almond pollination and determine when it is time to remove the hives? Watch this brief interview with Billy Synk from Project Apis m. for some answers, and read more about it in the March issue of Pacific Nut Producer Magazine.
The Almond Board of California recently unveiled their vision of industry in 2025 and set some ambitious goals on how to get there. These goals were not just made for the sake of pleasing the consumer and community, but also for the longterm success and viability of the industry moving forward. Watch this brief interview as Daren Williams from the Almond Board of California explains, and read more about it in Pacific Nut Producer Magazine. Don’t currently receive the magazine?
How do you maximize the efficacy of your investment in bees for a successful almond pollination period? According to Billy Synk, director of Pollination Services with project Apis m., the answer is planting cover crops in the fall that will flower prior to almond bloom to get the bees active early in preparation for a successful pollination period.Watch this brief interview as Synk explains, and read more about it in the February issue of Pacific Nut Producer Magazine.
One seemingly regular night, Frank Burgwin left the engine running on his locked Freightliner and rushed into a truck stop to grab a takeout hamburger in Arkansas. When he returned to his freightliner, his tractor and the flatbed with 48,000 pounds of aluminum had vanished. An off-duty Consolidated Freight Driver then helped Burgwin find the tractor near West Memphis, Arkansas, close to a truck stop, after hours of searching. A trailer stolen from Texas was hooked to the truck, but the cargo and trailer were never recovered. Cargo theft has worsened since this incident. In 2013, there were 33 recorded driver theft incidents, 32% higher than the number of driver theft incidents from all of 2012. Accoring to CHP “It is known, that on a regional level, the incidence of cargo theft is increasing”. Although the story of Frank Burgwin is a theft of aluminum, this is an ever-increasing problem throughout the country and in every industry. How ready is your company to prevent stolen product due to organized crime? Are you doing all you can to protect your company? As California commodities continue to increase in value, more companies are forced to confront issues of stolen goods and falsified information, which in turn results in a financial loss.
Besides hurting the nation’s trucking industry — which moves more than 68 percent of all domestic shipments — the thefts have real-world consequences for consumers, including raising prices and potentially allowing unsafe food and drugs to reach store shelves. Investigators say cargo thefts cost California $2 million per day and $15-25 billion a year nationally. The losses include jobs and sometimes even lives. The issue is these thefts are often unspecified and seldom discussed outside the world of commercial trucking. Companies that have been victimized are often reluctant to talk about their losses. But crime reports and Associated Press interviews with law enforcement and industry leaders reveal an alarming pattern that hurts commerce, pushes up consumer prices and potentially puts Americans’ health and safety at risk.
According to the California Farm bureau, “to make it more difficult for thieves to steal truckloads of nut crops, Tehama County detective Parker suggested that growers and processors take extra steps to record the identity of truck drivers by taking a driver’s photograph, recording his thumbprints, and recording or photographing his driver’s license number. Also, digitally photograph the truck, including the truck’s state and federal registration numbers and license plates, to make sure everything is well documented, he said. For other tips, contact local law enforcement or the county rural crime task force.”
Sherriff’s departments and California Counties are doing everything possible to deter and prevent cargo theft, but it also takes the facilities cooperation and preparation before-hand to completely avoid theft and possible loss of thousands and thousands of dollars. To ensure that your company’s drivers are safe and responsible and your inventory is accurately accounted for, follow some of the easy steps listed above.
Applied our suggestions? We would love to hear from you. Send us an email at communications@safefoodalliance.com to let us know is working for your company. That way, we can better create tools and resources for you in the future.