The growth of the Australian almond industry continues.

LandIQ spatial mapping has identified almost 71,000 hectares of orchards in Australia. In the year 2000 the plantings footprint was 3500 hectares. Planting booms from 2005-2008 and again from 2016-2019 turbocharged the expansion of the industry and led to it becoming Australia’ s highest valued horticultural export crop in Australia.

Production is forecast to be 166,871 tonnes in 2026-27 although a problematic harvest could impact the potential of the crop.

Pollination security has emerged as a key issue for the industry. Since varroa mite was detected in Australia in June 2022 the Australian beekeeping community in eastern Australia has been impacted.

buybacks are conducted across the Murray Darling Basin in the name of environmental management. A reduced consumptive pool is likely to push prices of short-term water purchases higher and apply further pressure to the costs of production for all irrigated crops that rely on lease water to cover their needs.

The long-term fundamentals for almonds remain positive despite the aforementioned headwinds. A reduction in plantings in California has helped restore a balance between supply and demand. The ongoing impacts of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act in the state of California is expected to continue to control any exponential growth in the foreseeable future. California produces almost 80 % of the world’ s almonds and production through the San Joaquin Valley determines pricing worldwide.

Four years on we are seeing the decline of the feral bee population impacting agricultural productivity. Most orchards undergoing upgrades or development are now featuring at least part self-fertile varieties to offset the costs of pollination.

Over the past 12 months the arrival of a second strain of the varroa mite that is resistant to recommended chemical treatments has accentuated the pollination security concerns.

Water availability within the major growing zones in Australia remains clouded with uncertainty as ongoing Federal water

Reining in costs of production remains a key priority. The use of technology to help produce more with less, and overcoming pests and diseases are areas where there is ongoing potential to collaborate with our Californian counterparts to drive better efficiencies.

The old adage that you cannot manage what you can’ t measure will be addressed industry wide over the next five years as the ABA and Hort Innovation embark on a benchmarking project across all regions and growers of all sizes. This will help guide and govern research priorities and underpin goals in production and sustainability metrics.

AUSTRALIAN ALMOND EXPORTS BY TYPE

Kernels

( tonnes)

Inshell( KWE)

( tonnes)

Total

( tonnes)( KWE) down 9 % on last year