INDUSTRY NEWS
Australian almond orchards mapped
FOR the first time spatial mapping has been used to identify every almond orchard in Australia . The work , carried out by globallyrecognised ag-specialists LandIQ from California features in the Almond Board of Australia ’ s annual Almond Insights 2022-23 e-publication . “ This is the first time that annual grower planting survey results have been ground-truthed by spatial mapping ,” Almond Board of Australia chief executive officer Tim Jackson said . “ We now know the age profile of every orchard and where they are located .” The data also confirmed that the rate of plantings have continued decline and that there was increased commitment to self-fertile varieties due to ongoing concerns around bee availability and pollination costs . Almost a quarter of Australia ’ s almond plantings are now in the Riverina region of New South Wales , making it the second largest production region .
Sunraysia remains the largest region , with 34,898 hectares . Total industry plantings have expanded to 62,412 hectares , but the rate of new plantings has slowed in recent years . Only 1,605 hectares were planted in 2022 , while the figure was only slightly higher at 1,695 in 2021 .
The variety being planted is also changing . Nonpareil now accounts for only 48 % of Australia ’ s almond plantings , with 27,391 hectares planted in the past decade . Varieties like Carmel and to a smaller extent Monterey and Price are gaining in popularity .
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