Cory Broad joined the Journey to discuss the latest in irrigation technology and management. Broad is the agronomic sales manager with AvidWater, and a member of the Production Stewardship Workgroup at The Almond Board of California (ABC). In this episode, Broad discusses his work helping growers with irrigation scheduling, technology utilization, agronomic advice, and getting the most out of their irrigation system. “I think if you ask most growers, what's your number one challenge? It'll be la...
Jun 19, 2025•30 min•Ep. 82
In the latest Almond Byte, highlights from June's Global Update by the Almond Board of California's Global Technical and Regulatory Affairs team include critical renewal steps for almond handlers exporting to China, detailed discussions with Chinese officials to strengthen trade relations, and insights from the ABC's 2025 Environmental Stewardship Tour showcasing sustainable farming practices. Additionally, significant updates on international tariff developments and their potential implications...
Jun 13, 2025•6 min
Bobbie Williams joins the Journey as both a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) and an almond grower. She contributes her expertise as part of the Almond Board of California’s (ABC) Nutrition Research Committee and the Environmental Stewardship Workgroup. Williams discusses her farming background, the latest in nutrition research, the power of pairing the nutrition story with the sustainability story, and her hopes for where this work can lead in the future for this industry. “ The Nutrition...
Jun 06, 2025•26 min•Ep. 81
Mike Sonke joined the Journey to share his perspective as a farmer and grower rep. He also is active with the Almond Board of California (ABC), serving on both the Technical & Regulatory Affairs Committee and the Global Communications Committee. In this interview recorded at the Almond Conference 2024, Sonke shares about his journey into farming, his role with Star Nut, and his thoughts on the industry going forward. “If you want to change something, the best way to do it is to show up and t...
May 30, 2025•21 min•Ep. 80
Highlights from May's Global Update, from the Global Technical and Regulatory Affairs team at the Almond Board of California, detail the latest in the complex world of tariffs, examining the recent 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs between the U.S. and China, and the potential impacts on the supply chain. Hear about the significant trade deal announced by President Trump on May 8, which promises new market access in the UK for American products. Additionally, learn about the European Parliament...
May 13, 2025•6 min
Craig Duerr joined the Almond Journey Podcast to talk about marketing almonds around the world. Duerr has over 25 years of experience in marketing almonds, first with the Almond Board of California, then with Campos Brothers Farms where he currently serves as vice president of global marketing and sales. This discussion explores the past, present and future of growing the demand and value of California almonds. “ The more we can sell that is involved in what we grow on an almond tree, the better...
May 05, 2025•30 min•Ep. 79
In April's Marketing Bulletin , Laura Morin of the Almond Board of California shares the story behind the Board’s first major food service collaboration—a spring promotion with Smoothie King, the world’s largest smoothie chain. Currently running around the country from March through May, the partnership positions almonds as a go-to ingredient, promoting exercise recovery and offering customers the option to add almonds to any smoothie. Morin explains that food service trends play a big role in h...
Apr 22, 2025•5 min
Mallorie Hayes joined the Journey to discuss the importance of storytelling, outreach, and education to consumers, legislators, and key stakeholders. During this conversation, she shares her journey into the almond industry and her role in advocating for almond growers. Hayes highlights the industry's efforts in sustainability, legislative engagement and the significance of building strong relationships to advance the industry. “ Tell everyone about the almond industry: the good work that we're ...
Apr 18, 2025•24 min•Ep. 78
In this episode of the Almond Byte , the Almond Board of California’s Global Technical and Regulatory Affairs team highlights two major regulatory developments shaping almond exports. First, a major milestone for U.S. almond trade with Japan: USDA and Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor & Welfare have signed a voluntary aflatoxin pre-testing protocol. Years in the making, this agreement significantly reduces Japan’s inspection frequency for protocol participants, helping streamline exports and...
Apr 15, 2025•3 min
Chuck Fleck joined the Journey to discusses the latest in almond genetics and variety development. Fleck is the director of horticulture research at Sierra Gold Nurseries. During this conversation, he shares his journey into breeding almonds and almond rootstocks, what’s driving his breeding program and what excites him about the future of almond genetics. Fleck also discusses a project with Ohalo using gene editing technology to create a self-fertile nonpareil almond tree. “Nonpareil is the ind...
Mar 28, 2025•29 min•Season 1Ep. 77
March’s Almond Byte brings you the latest insights from the Almond Board of California’s Global Technical and Regulatory Affairs team. This month, ABC made waves at Gulfood 2025, connecting with key buyers and exploring future opportunities in Dubai’s expanding trade landscape. Meanwhile, new tariffs on Chinese imports are impacting the global almond market, with retaliatory duties adding more challenges for exporters. On the opportunity front, Morocco’s booming almond demand is creating excitin...
Mar 12, 2025•7 min
Justin Morehead, Christine Gemperle and Darren Rigg all joined the Journey to share about their involvement with the Almond Board of California (ABC). These industry leaders discuss why they’ve decided to stay engaged with ABC over the years, and how their perspectives have changed since becoming involved with committees, work groups and board leadership. “It's your industry, and if you want to guide where your industry goes, the best way to do it is to be involved. So you've got to get into the...
Mar 06, 2025•34 min•Ep. 76
Fourth-generation farmer James Chinchiolo grows primarily cherries and walnuts in Linden, California. He has two blocks that he’s looking to re-plant and he is considering planting almonds. In this episode, Chinciolo walks us through his thought process for how he’s approaching this decision and shares his framework for determining the best tree crop he should plant next. “This is kind of like my framework: consumer demand, talk to the salespeople directly, look at the regulatory environment, an...
Feb 25, 2025•28 min•Ep. 75
In this episode of Almond Byte , highlights from the February Global Update breaks down the America First Trade Policy memo, new tariffs on major U.S. trading partners, and what this could mean for the almond industry. With Canada and Mexico negotiating last-minute tariff postponements and China implementing targeted retaliatory measures, how will global almond trade be impacted? Plus, we bring you the latest updates on aflatoxin rejections in key export markets. Tune in to stay ahead of the cur...
Feb 13, 2025•5 min
Laura Morin is the director of marketing for North America and China at The Almond Board of California. She joined the Journey to talk about some of the latest marketing initiatives by the almond industry to boost the relevance, value and of course the demand for California almonds. Morin explains the partnership with Deon Sanders (AKA Coach Prime), some advances in almond marketing in China, and a recent partnership announced with Smoothie King. “Where almonds once really stood out among the co...
Feb 05, 2025•35 min•Ep. 74
What happens when one of the biggest names in sports takes over one of the biggest stages in marketing? In the January Marketing Bulletin, we dive into Coach Prime Deion Sanders' powerhouse presence at Radio Row ahead of the NFL championship game. Representing California almonds through the Own Your Prime campaign, Coach Prime isn’t just talking football — he’s sharing the recovery benefits linked to almonds with top-tier media outlets and lifestyle influencers. From ESPN to TikTok, hear how thi...
Jan 24, 2025•5 min
People from around the industry joined the Almond Journey Podcast at The Almond Conference 2024 and were asked to share what’s on top of their minds headed into 2025. In this episode, you’ll hear highlights from Craig Duerr, Mallvinder Kahal, Rob Kiss, Michelle Penney, Bobbie Williams, Mallorie Hayes, Scott Hermann, Kabir Tumber, Chris Chavez and Clarice Turner. “ That's something that we, as processors and growers, everybody just wants it to stay balanced and healthy. So I'd say that's really w...
Jan 16, 2025•23 min•Ep. 73
In this episode of the Almond Journey Podcast, we revisit some of the insights captured on this show over the past year. You'll hear highlights from Nav Athwal, Alicia Rockwell, Tim Jackson and Michael Kelley. These interviews highlight the vast array of almond-related topics covered monthly on the Almond Journey podcast. These year-end reflections cover topics ranging from business strategy, marketing, pest management, stewardship, hulling, and shelling. “ We just need to keep doing what we do ...
Dec 27, 2024•19 min•Ep. 72
Highlights from December's Global Update by the Global Technical and Regulatory Affairs team at the Almond Board of California details ABC's participation in the U.S. Ag Trade Mission to China, where ABC staff joined a large team of U.S. Ag Trade Associations at the China International Import Expo. ABC CEO Clarice Turner presented on California almonds during the US-China Agricultural Trade Forum, and the team engaged in media interviews and field visits with major companies like Starbucks China...
Dec 26, 2024•4 min
UC Cooperative Extension Tree Crop Farm Advisor Franz Niederholzer joined the Journey to provide a practical overview of best practices for spray operations in an orchard. Trained as a soil scientist, Niederholzer started with Cooperative Extension over 20 years ago. Over the past few decades, he has developed and shared expertise on spray-related topics like coverage, drift, nozzle selection, technology, calibration, ground speed and more. He emphasizes that the best equipment and most expensiv...
Dec 13, 2024•26 min•Ep. 71
Dan Lawson is a licensed Qualified Applicator and the Huller Manager at Treehouse California Almond. Lawson joined the Journey and shares about his job as a huller manager, what they’ve seen come in from the orchard these past couple of years, and how he keeps current in his continuing education efforts to stay up to date on best practices. “Navel Orangeworm, and some of these other types of serious damage, seems like they can be spread out across the crop as a whole. This year, there were a few...
Nov 25, 2024•28 min•Ep. 70
Highlights from November's Global Update from the Global Technical and Regulatory Affairs team at the Almond Board of Californian dive into key international developments impacting the almond industry. Get updates from ABC’s recent EU meetings, where staff members engaged with European trade and regulatory bodies to address critical issues affecting almond exports. Hear about their efforts to maintain quality standards and smooth supply chains, including meetings in Italy to reinforce collaborat...
Nov 12, 2024•5 min
As a kid growing up on her family's farm in San Joaquin County, Elisabeth Watkins won TV cooking competition Chopped Junior . Since that time, Watkins has dedicated herself to teaching others about agriculture through cooking. Today she continues to make regular media appearances, including recent appearances on several Sacramento TV station morning shows displaying almond-based recipes. In this episode, Watkins offers her perspective on how to communicate about agriculture to mainstream audienc...
Oct 31, 2024•29 min•Ep. 69
In October's Marketing Bulletin, we're diving into the Almond Board of California's (ABC) latest market expansion strategy: bringing California almonds to Mexican bakeries. Join us as we explore how ABC's recent tour of California's Central Valley hosted top Mexican chefs and bakers, offering an in-depth look at the potential of almonds as a key ingredient in Mexico’s booming bakery sector. Led by ABC's Becky Jeffers, this initiative is reshaping perceptions and driving demand for almonds in Mex...
Oct 30, 2024•7 min
In this episode of the Almond Byte podcast, we dive into ABC’s debut at World Food India, where almonds took center stage in discussions on food processing and health-conscious consumers. Hear about the key insights shared by the Ministry of Food Processing and how ABC is leveraging new connections to expand almond innovation in India. Plus, we’ll cover the latest developments from the EU parliamentary elections and what they could mean for agriculture, as well as Japan’s Ministry of Health’s vi...
Oct 18, 2024•4 min
In this episode, Almond Board of California Directors Brandon Rebiero and Kelli Evans discuss the almond industry delegation that recently traveled to Washington, D.C. The trip was an opportunity to engage with key government and legislative offices, providing an update on almond industry issues. They also discussed market development and innovation activities, efforts to build demand, Board strategic priorities, and stewardship achievements. “Being able to be there and to back the staff and the...
Oct 11, 2024•28 min•Ep. 68
Kern County almond grower Bret Sill shares some of his experiences building the soil biology in his orchards through practices like integrating sheep into the orchard and planting cover crops. Sill also discusses his experiments with off-ground harvest and reflects on how this approach might fit into his overall system. Ultimately, Sill is looking to reach his productivity goals with minimal inputs while maximizing the value of every almond produced. “The things I've been thinking about is: how ...
Sep 24, 2024•26 min•Ep. 67
In September's Almond Byte podcast, we dive into the recent visit of a Chinese Nut Delegation to California's Central Valley, hosted by the Almond Board of California (ABC). Learn how this delegation of 25 Chinese importers explored the almond industry and why this group is a critical partner for trade relations. We also discuss ABC’s analysis of the Pre-Export Check (PEC) program amidst rising aflatoxin alerts in Europe, as well as new opportunities for U.S. ag products, especially nuts, in Mor...
Sep 17, 2024•4 min
According to a report produced by a collaborative effort between UC Davis and UC Cooperative Extension , the fungal pathogen red leaf blotch (RLB) was first detected in California almond orchards on the border of Merced and Madera counties in late May 2024. Previously known for its impact on almonds in the Mediterranean and the Middle East, RLB’s presence in California has understandably raised alarms. In this episode we are joined by UC ANR Associate Cooperative Extension Specialist, Dr. Floren...
Sep 03, 2024•27 min•Ep. 66
In the August Marketing Bulletin, we dive into the exciting return of the Almond Board of California's "Own Your Prime" campaign, featuring NFL legend Deion Sanders for a second year. Tune in to hear how this partnership will expand its reach with fresh content, new media strategies, and why Coach Prime's genuine love for almonds makes this campaign a game-changer for the industry. Don't miss out on the details driving this successful collaboration and what it means for California almond growers...
Aug 30, 2024•5 min
