Trumps Managing Director Declan Dart recently made a trip abroad to California USA. Here he got a direct insight into the current situation for the upcoming US almond crop. Find out what we learnt about the Californian Almond Bloom and it’s outlook for the 2023 crop.
The 2023 almond crop has faced drought, heavy snow, flooding and even some hail leading into its bloom. Such irregular weather patterns led to grower nervousness about the current crop. In particular, worries come from how irregular weather patterns have affected tree pollination. Bee flying times have been reported to be lower than ideal, due to the variety of extreme weather events preventing the bees from flying. Unfortunately, bee flying times is a key indicator of crop yield.
Bees are used for transferring pollen from one almond tree to another to help increase the yield of crops. Honey bees are recognised as the most efficient and practicable pollinating insects of almond blossom and are in huge demand worldwide for their pollination service.
However, it is impossible to know how this will impact the Central Valley’s almond and other nut crops. Questions remain for the almond crop such as has this rain come too late to offset the stress of a drought? Or, will the extreme rain and snow have their own effects on the crop?
Initially, these reports from the orchards had led to some reduced demand and as a result, trees were pulled out (see in image above). However, the market has started to bounce back with more optimism for the upcoming crop. Growers have faced similar conditions before and produced great crops. So it truly is impossible to say how the 2023 crop will yield.
Please find some photos of the recent trip below.
Trumps Almonds
Almonds are a core product here at Trumps. We offer an extensive range of almonds from bulk sizing all the way to 30g snacking options. Find Trumps Almond Range below!