“This shift was largely driven by annual shipments exceeding annual receipts for the first time in five years,” said Neil Zacky of Derco Foods. “With larger inventories in California and increased global production, overseas buyers adopted a hand to mouth purchasing strategy.” This new strategy meant buyers delayed their purchase of almonds for as long as possible, hoping to receive better pricing. Carryover also dropped slightly below historical averages, much of which was lower quality. Because of this and reduced inventory numbers, buyers were quick to purchase the new crop and for longer periods of time, help rebuild a healthy supply chain. Fostering Relationships on the Trade Front Despite disruptions in the geopolitical
Brandon Rebiero, ABC Director and almond grower, was one of the farmers who participated and noted the value of having discussions with D.C. representatives on what is happening in the field. “We’re just one of many crop organizations trying to get a foot in the door, so we have to do whatever we can to differentiate ourselves,” Rebiero explained. “We do that by having sound data and good relationships that last a while.” Telling Our Stewardship Story Just like the policy space, consumers make their decisions based on the information they have, so now more than ever, ABC is emphasizing the importance of telling the industry’s environmental stewardship story. Excessive water use for growing almonds continues to be a misconception the industry is combating today, but ABC is increasing messaging to explain that every drop creates four crops: kernel, shell, hull and woody biomass.
space, overall, demand remained optimistic. Within the first three reporting months of the crop year, shipments increased by 41% in the Middle East and 36% in Southeast Asia. Keeping strong relationships with these markets and others who have trade and technical issues has been one of the key priorities of ABC’s agenda this year. Staff and committee members recently developed a global trade strategy, focused on leveraging relationships with international industry partners and providing necessary data for policy makers to make informed decisions. To bring growers into the conversation, ABC organized a Washington D.C. delegation (https://bit.ly/40MJSXh), made up of farmers and individuals who are directly affected by the decisions made by government and legislative officials.
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JANUARY–FEBRUARY 2025
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