California Ag Network

Tag: APG

  • New Gov’t Relations Director at American Pistachio Growers

    American Pistachio Growers (APG) is pleased to announce the hiring of Cadee Condit as their new Director of Government Relations. Cadee has two decades of experience in governmental public affairs, an extensive vision in achieving strategic objectives in complex political landscapes, and broad collaboration across a spectrum of business, trade associations and community organizations.

    APG President Richard Matoian noted, “Cadee comes to APG with a wealth of knowledge at both the Federal and State levels. Her expertise in the legislative and regulatory process will serve the needs of APG’s membership well.”  Cadee will coordinate her efforts on behalf of APG’s membership with our existing outstanding State and Federal lobbyists and their staff.

    APG’s Government Policies and Partnership’s Committee Chair, Jamie Bledsoe, who was involved in the interview process added, “Cadee was far and away the right person and best fit for our ongoing, excellent government relations program.” Cadee officially began her duties on February 1.

    “The American Pistachio Growers is a dynamic and exciting organization,” Cadee shared.  “The San Joaquin Valley is the most productive and diverse agricultural region in the world, and I couldn’t be more excited to be working with APG to protect the future of agriculture.”

    Some of the top priorities and issues Cadee will be working on will include: water, tariffs, international market access and additional COVID relief programs.  Seeking out more federal funding to keep the Navel Orangeworm Sterile Insect Technology program going will also be a priority.  Cadee can be reached at ccondit@americanpistachios.org.

     

  • American Pistachio Growers’ 2021 Conference Cancelled

    American Pistachio Growers — After thoughtful deliberations, the American Pistachio Growers (APG) Board of Directors has made the difficult decision to cancel the 2021 Annual Conference that was set to take place March 1 – 3, 2021 in Monterey, California. While we will miss seeing everyone in 2021, the health and safety of our members, attendees, speakers, staff and partners are our top priorities. The Board of Directors wants our members to have an annual conference that will match the same level of excitement, education and community that we’ve enjoyed in years past.

    The APG staff and Membership Services Committee are currently planning for an outstanding conference in March 2022 at the Omni La Costa Resort in Carlsbad, California. From the attendees to the presenters, exhibitors and sponsors who share their time, expertise, collaboration and leadership, we deeply appreciate your contributions to the pistachio industry.

  • American Pistachio Growers Employs Robust Campaign to Meet Record Harvest

    With the high likelihood that U.S. pistachio growers will shake a record crop from their trees this fall, American Pistachio Growers (APG) is pulling out all of the stops to keep its wave of marketing success rolling in 2021 and well beyond.  APG’s marketing team has just put the final touches on a new advertising campaign that combines extensive television advertising in major markets across the U.S. as well as additional print and digital media advertising in all key export markets.

    APG’s strategy is to keep consumer demand running strong ahead of what appears to be a large 2020 crop. According to APG President Richard Matoian the U.S. pistachio crop that growers are currently harvesting could hit the 1-billion pound mark — setting a new production record.

    “We are investing in our biggest advertising and marketing campaign ever to capitalize on this expansion in U.S. pistachio production,” said Judy Hirigoyen, APG Vice President, Global Marketing. “We have great synergy from all of the work we have done in recent years collaborating with great partners in professional sports, the research community, and with some of the world’s leading nutritionists and researchers.”

    For the first time ever APG is employing an advertising and marketing push that combines television, print and digital advertising in major export countries as well as in major television markets in the U.S. Beginning in mid-November and continuing through next summer, ads extolling the virtues of U.S. pistachios will appear in 44 U.S. television markets — from Honolulu to Washington, D.C.  Included in the U.S. advertising effort is APG’s sponsorship of New Year’s Eve countdown celebrations in Las Vegas, Nevada and Dallas, Texas — covering 26 key television markets.

    “Consumers here in the U.S. as well as abroad are embracing the powerful stories of pistachios — that they are packed with important nutrients and have been recognized as being a “complete” protein source, putting pistachios in the company of other plant-based complete proteins, such as quinoa and soy,” Hirigoyen said. “We think these stories will really resonate with TV viewers across the nation.”

    As a California commodity, pistachios have been on a tear in recent years and now occupy sixth place on the state’s list of more than 350 commodities with a value of $1.94 billion, according to California Department of Food and Agriculture 2019 data. Pistachios rank as the state’s second leading export with a value of $1.1 billion. As interest in pistachios has grown in California as well as in Arizona and New Mexico, so has the need to market larger crops.

    “On top of the expected record harvest this year, with the expansion of new acreage comes into bearing, we know that will present greater marketing challenges in the years ahead,” said Alison Nagatani, Chair of the APG Marketing Committee and a pistachio grower from Earlimart. “The Rabobank report projects bearing acreage could reach 372,000 acres by 2024/25 — about 30 percent greater than in 2019/20. Clearly, we have our marching orders to keep blazing the marketing trail, both here at home and in our key international markets.”

    U.S. growers are keenly aware that their success depends on keeping export channels open in major countries around the world. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, pistachio exports were running strong. In the 2018/19 marketing year, U.S. pistachio shipments set a record in spite of stiff retaliatory tariffs imposed by China, according to the Rabobank report.

    Even with the effects of the pandemic and ongoing trade tensions with China, Rabobank analysts state that market demand for pistachios remains strong in both domestic and international markets.  Although total demand could be affected by a global economic downturn due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they state that the demand outlook is still “favorable” and is set to keep pace with the anticipated expansion in U.S. pistachio production in the years ahead, citing the nutrition research and promotional efforts as contributing factors to their prediction.

    There is also heartening news contained in the pages of APG’s April 2020 consumption/share of market report. The report’s data found that total consumption and market share from 2016-2019 are on an upward trajectory in several key markets. In China, for example, total consumption is up 573 percent and market share has surged to 57.5 percent. In Germany the report found total consumption had risen 288.5 percent and market share was 65.7 percent. In India, total consumption and market share were up 74.3 percent and 58.6 percent respectively.

    “Marketing ahead of production and capitalizing on the contributions of our industry partners and the incredible array of research that touts the unique and powerful health attributes of pistachios will all play a role in continuing our marketing success,” Nagatani said.

    For more information, read the September issue of Pacific Nut Producer Magazine featuring the current state of the pistachio industry and the continued efforts of APG to promote pistachios globally.

    APG is a non-profit trade association representing more than 800 growers and member processors in California, Arizona, and New Mexico.

  • Pistachios Now Included in CFAP Direct Grower Payments

    American Pistachio Growers (APG) today announced to its members that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has now included pistachios in the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). The official notice, which is expected to be published in the Federal Register on or about August 14, 2020, states that pistachios are among 20 additional agricultural crops in the U.S. that will receive direct payments under CFAP Category 1 due to commodities experiencing a 5 percent or greater price decline between January 15, 2020 and April 15, 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    In addition to making pistachios eligible for direct payments under Category 1, USDA has also increased the payment rate under CFAP Category 2, which is for sales losses for pistachios due to product that spoiled in the marketing channel, or due to the loss of the marketing channel. Increased payments under Category 2 apply to product that was actually shipped from the point of origin.

    “As a grower, we know and feel the effects directly when prices decline. This program provides the support needed by farmers during this difficult time we are all currently experiencing,” said Brian Watte, Chair of APG’s Board of Directors. “

    American Pistachio Growers Chairman Brian Watte with his son Matthew Watte in their pistachio orchard

    Pistachios were not initially included in the CFAP direct grower payment program, but through the concerted efforts of APG’s Washington, D.C. lobbying firm and numerous conference calls placed by APG representatives to officials within USDA to provide them with accurate sales data, pistachios are now included in the Category 1 list.

    “We’re pleased that USDA took the effort to review all sales data on pistachios, particularly exports which have seen declines as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic experienced on a global basis,” said APG President Richard Matoian. 

    Pistachio growers can access the necessary forms at www.farmers.gov/CFAP. Matoian explained that growers will be working through their local Farm Service Agency office to submit the forms for direct payment. Growers are advised to call (877) 508-8364 to begin the application process. For growers who applied for and were paid for CFAP prior to Category 1 eligibility being granted should not submit a new application, but rather should contact their FSA office to amend the application. Importantly, USDA has announced that the application deadline has been extended to September 11, 2020. 

  • Projections Point to 1.4 Billion Pounds of California Pistachios by 2026

    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.”

    Missiaen’s economic study, U.S. Pistachio Future Production Projections 2019 to 2026 can be found here.

     

    Contact: Judy Hirigoyen

    DESK:  (559) 475-0435

    jhirigoyen@AmericanPistachios.org

  • 2018 Pistachio Crop off to a Poor Start

    Spring is coming and Central Valley growers are concerned about the lack of rain and chill portions their orchards have received this winter, shares Executive Director at American Pistachio Growers Richard Matoian. Watch this brief interview with Richard and read more about it in Pacific Nut Producer Magazine.

  • Tariff Success & Crop Update with American Pistachio Growers

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    Good news for our pistachio industry — the tariffs for pistachios from Iran coming into the US will remain in place. Richard Matoian from American Pistachio Growers reported this in an interview with California Ag Network, and provided some insights on how the 2017 crop is looking. Watch his brief interview, attend the upcoming pistachio luncheon on July 28th, and learn more by reading Pacific Nut Producer Magazine.