Awww - poor almond producers feeling the pinch: “ “It’s all about money,” (Castro Valley: 2015, how much)

[Tulemutt]

Talk about a California industry that will have a hard time finding sympathy:

” A billion pounds of California almonds stranded at ports amid drought, trade woes” …

“It’s all about money,” Phippen, 72, said, shaking his head in frustration on a recent hot and sticky morning. “After years of prospering together, foreign shipping vessels have decided to stop servicing us.”

https://www.latimes.com/environment/...ng-the-squeeze

[doc1]

"......and to grow a pound of almonds requires about 1,900 gallons of water....."

Wow! I had no idea.

Is that why they're unpopular?

[Hemlock140]

Almonds have always been my favorite nut. When we lived in California (Castro Valley) I planted an almond tree in our back yard, and we got more than enough every year from it. After the first couple of years I never watered it, but then we were not in the hot Central Valley.

[saibot]

Originally Posted by doc1

"......and to grow a pound of almonds requires about 1,900 gallons of water....."

Wow! I had no idea.

Is that why they're unpopular?

That little factoid is meaningless until it is put in context. Growing ANY food substances requires a lot of water, and almonds are not an outlier in this regard. People need to eat.

It takes about the same amount of water to produce one pound of almonds as it does one pound of walnuts, cashews, or olive oil. Beef, as an example, takes more than double the amount of water than almonds to produce one pound of beef versus one pound of almonds.

In terms of gallons per kilocalorie, rather than gallons per pound, almonds actually outperform sheep & goat meat and are roughly consistent with poultry products, while significantly outperforming beef. In terms of water used per gram of fat or protein, almonds even compare favorably with some legumes, root crops, and some cereal grains like rice.

https://farmtogether.com/learn/blog/...onds-water-use

And this is a very practical take on it:

Over the last few decades, there’s been a shift from low value (cotton, rice) to high value (almonds, pistachios) agriculture in California as the effective cost of water has increased. In a real sense, the almond industry is the future of California agriculture—high value, high efficiency, but still high consuming. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as it makes most sense to use a scarce resource for the highest value application possible.

https://slate.com/business/2015/04/a...as-future.html

[cb73]

I remember during the last drought people complaining that almond trees should be cut down to save water. But when it was pointed out that the cartels operating marijuana grows in the forests were not only using more water than that, but were also using illegal pesticides and then dumping into the water supply--no one seemed to have a problem with that.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by doc1

"......and to grow a pound of almonds requires about 1,900 gallons of water....."

Wow! I had no idea.

Is that why they're unpopular?

Gee, ya think that might be it? Yes, doc. "Bingo", as they say. Plus, it's the fact, that the overinvestment in almond groves that's been going on for the last couple of decades or so, has been mostly for export, not to feed people in the US.

[doc1]

Thanks for the responses to my questions.

I'll admit, almonds, along with walnuts and peanuts in the shell, are one of my go-to snacks.

[saibot]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Gee, ya think that might be it? Yes, doc. "Bingo", as they say. Plus, it's the fact, that the overinvestment in almond groves that's been going on for the last couple of decades or so, has been mostly for export, not to feed people in the US.

Sending the almonds away for export is a legitimate complaint. But the fact that water is being used to grow food is really not.

[joosoon]

Originally Posted by saibot

That little factoid is meaningless until it is put in context. Growing ANY food substances requires a lot of water, and almonds are not an outlier in this regard. People need to eat.



https://farmtogether.com/learn/blog/...onds-water-use

Good luck. I tried pointing this out in the last round of the almond witch trials but it generally falls on deaf ears (blind eyes?).

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Gee, ya think that might be it? Yes, doc. "Bingo", as they say. Plus, it's the fact, that the overinvestment in almond groves that's been going on for the last couple of decades or so, has been mostly for export, not to feed people in the US.

Ok and what percentage does that represent for the WORLD's almond supply? There's a hint right in this same post. We went over this before.


Disregarding all that, what exactly is your point? What's an "overinvestment" in your mind? Are you suggesting that farming be regulated to control exports and that only crops slated for domestic use be allowed to be grown? Because if so, that's a really naive view of how global agriculture works. You're certainly entitled to that opinion though.

[1AngryTaxPayer]

How much water goes to vineyards to create wine?