By Natalie Willis, Reporter, Valley Ag Voice
California almond acreage dropped again in 2024, marking the third consecutive year that acreage has decreased. According to Land IQ’s report to the Almond Board of California, this continuous decline has not happened since at least 1995.
Each year, Land IQ produces an in-year, statewide almond acreage estimate based on extensive ground truthing and advanced remote sensing analytics. The result is the accurate mapping of almond trees at least three years old as orchards less than that cannot be adequately differentiated from other similarly aged tree crops using remotely sensed methods. According to Land IQ, the ground truthing data, proportionality of almonds to other tree crops, and other lines of evidence are then used to numerically estimate acreage for orchards that are one and two years old.
Both the remotely sensed and numerical estimates are combined for a total statewide acreage estimate — the 2024 estimate is 98.8% accurate.
In 2024, total acreage decreased by approximately 40,000 acres, from 1.56 million in the previous crop year to just over 1.52 million. Bearing acres — orchards producing almonds and planted in 2021 or earlier — grew by only 9,000 acres, marking the smallest increase in over two decades. During the 2024 growing season, bearing acres totaled 1.383 million, up slightly from 1.374 million acres at the same time last year.
Further, non-bearing acreage — planted in 2022, 2023, or 2024 — sank roughly 47,000 acres from 189,000 acres in 2023 to 142,000 in 2024.
During a press conference on Dec. 11, Almond Board of California President Clarice Turner explained that while the continued decline in California’s almond acreage impacts overall demand dynamics, the state remains the world’s largest almond producer, supplying 80% of the global market.
“And you know we are the largest producers still 80% of the world’s supply and even though, you know, people will talk about ‘Well, Australia has favorable tariffs in these countries…but they only have a limited supply of almonds that they can sell,” Turner said. “There’s always a willing seller for a willing buyer, and there’s lots of them around the world.”
EXPANDING MARKET OPPORTUNITIES
Turner explained that the Almond Board is looking into new opportunities to expand and innovate, highlighting promising new markets like Morocco and Turkey, which will be a focus for the next year.
“We love what we’re seeing in Morocco and Turkey right now, and that’s probably where we’re going to focus most of our efforts for the next year in terms of unlocking new markets,” Turner said. “I mentioned in the State of the Industry that the U.S. and Western Europe have returned to growth for the first time since probably 2019—maybe before that. They’re not huge percentages, but they’re pretty big numbers given the size of those markets.”
Current efforts to expand the almond market include education initiatives for chefs, food scientists, and institutions, promoting almonds’ versatility and nutritional benefits. Additionally, a dedicated task force of researchers and industry experts is working on product innovation, leveraging AI to unlock new applications and deepen understanding of nutritional benefits.
Turner explained that the industry is also addressing misconceptions, particularly around water usage.
“We get four crops for every drop of water that we consume and with that, we’re producing probably the most nutritionally dense plant protein on the planet and nothing’s going to waste because everything has a supply chain that it’s going into so it’s zero waste,” Turner said. “That part of the story never gets told, so part of what we’re doing is just making sure that the public is aware.”
According to Turner, this approach is more than a marketing strategy given that everything that is published is required, by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, to be fact-based. She explained that their information is gathered through at least three academic studies that are peer-reviewed in the traditional process.
“We’re trying to set the record straight on many, many things and also continuing to try to help our farmers prosper in the state,” Turner said. “I feel really good about the direction that we’re going and the input that I’m getting from all over the world — I truly hear everywhere — [is] you guys produce the highest quality, most consistent volume of almonds in the world and they rely on us for that.”
