California Almond Trees Recovering From Drought
The latest almond crop forecast for California has this year's almond production up over last year's
production by almost eight percent. The objective measurement report has this year's crop bigger than
what was estimated in the subjective report released in May. According to a survey conducted by the
USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service, California's 2016 almond production is forecast at
2.05 billion meat pounds—that would make it 7.9 per cent larger than last year's crop. The objective
report noted good bloom conditions, and the bloom period was characterized as fast and uniform.
Compared to the previous season's winter, this most recent winter was better for the almond crop
in terms of chill hours and precipitation. Though many areas are still suffering from lingering water
shortages, trees have been recovering from drought conditions.
– freshplaza.com
MAXFACTS
GROWING TIPS, NEWS AND TRIVIA
Meat Blamed For Greenhouse
Gas Emissions
Grapes Fetch
Record Price in Japan
A bunch of grapes sold for a record-breaking $11,000
at an auction in Japan, where fruit often commands high
prices and social prestige. A supermarket owner from
western Japan walked away with 30 grapes, each worth
about $360. They were the first Ruby Romans—a super
sweet grape variety grown in Ishikawa prefecture—of the
season. “We will display them at our store before giving
our customers a sample taste,” says Takamaru Konishi.
The Japanese are often willing to pay top-dollar for
premium samples of fruit, sometimes with the intention
of giving them as gifts to people perceived to be of higher
status—for example, their boss at work. A single apple
can cost up to $3, and melons are sometimes sold for
the equivalent price of a vintage wine. Last year a pair of
melons sold under the hammer for more than $12,000.
– bbc.com
26
Maximum Yield USA | September 2016
It may be delicious, but the evidence is accumulating that meat,
particularly red meat, is a disaster for the environment—and not so
great for human beings, either. Agriculture today accounts for onethird of global greenhouse gas emissions—posing one of the biggest
challenges to countries desperately trying to curb the emissions that
promote global warming. And half of those agriculture emissions come
from livestock, which produce large amounts of methane, a short-lived
but powerful greenhouse gas. The environmental impact is the driving
reason why members of a United Nations panel this summer urged
its environmental assembly to consider recommending a tax on meat
producers and sellers. Raising the cost
of buying meat, the
argument goes, would
reduce demand, and
ultimately, production
of it. By no means is
meat the only element of
agriculture that contributes
greenhouse gas emissions.
Deforestation of land for
agricultural purposes—to
grow crops or grasses for
cattle to graze—also adds to
the amount of carbon dioxide
in the air, partly because
trees absorb CO2.
– washingtonpost.com