Almond Alliance of California — On January 12th the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) met to consider rescinding the decision they made at the June 12, 2019 meeting acting on the petition to determine whether listing Crotch bumble bee (Bombus crotchii), Franklin’s bumble bee (Bombus franklini), Suckley cuckoo bumble bee (Bombus suckleyi), and western bumble bee (Bombus occidentalis) as endangered …

The Almond Alliance has been in touch with County Health Officers about the number of vaccinations available in each county and to gather information on how the vaccinations are being distributed.  As you have heard and read, the process of vaccination has differed in each region and in many cases has been confusing.   Vaccinations are being distributed categorically as …

Connie Conway, Director of the USDA Farm Service Agency in California, has been honored as the Almond Alliance of California’s 2020 Almond Champion of the Year for the agency’s outstanding efforts in assisting almond growers with the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP.) The Almond Champion of the Year Award is presented annually to those who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership in …

In September of 2020, the US EPA released their Proposed Interim Registration Review Decision on Aluminum Phosphide, Magnesium Phosphide, and Phosphine. There is a 60-day comment period on this decision with a deadline of Tuesday, December 22, 2020. In the review, the EPA has proposed mandatory buffer zones based on computer modeling. The proposed actions for phosphine and the metal …

The California Superior Court in Sacramento has ruled the California Endangered Species Act (CESA) does not cover insects and that bees cannot be classified as fish. The Court issued its final ruling on Nov. 19, 2020. The Almond Alliance of California, in collaboration with seven other agricultural groups, filed suit with California Fish and Game Commission in response to a …

The Almond Alliance hosted a zoom call with the Port of Oakland this morning to discuss issues with shipping lines and container availability at the Port of Oakland.  Through October 2020, Oakland sent out 18% fewer empty containers compared to the same time period in 2019.  Empty container exports dropped 30% between September 2020 and October 2020 (41,440 TEU vs …

The Almond Alliance has been meeting with Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) on their initiated 1,3-D pilot programs in three areas of the state:  Shafter, Kern County; Parlier, Fresno County; Delhi, Merced County. The objective of the pilot programs is to evaluate growers and applicators with alternative methods of achieving emission reductions of 1,3-D comparable to tarping. DPR put forth …

The Almond Alliance of California, with support from congressional representatives, lead the advocacy efforts to have California almonds included in the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Section 32 food purchase program. The approval of up to $40 million of direct purchases to various domestic food nutrition assistance programs will provide much needed relief as the almond industry navigates through …