Nut News with Select Harvest

How Almond Growers Can Recoup Some COVID-Related Losses

Nearly every industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, and almond growers are no exception. While May’s numbers from the Almond Board of California, showing around 154 million pounds of almonds shipped, weren’t as good as https://selectharvestusa.com/ CEO https://marketscale.com/industries/contributors/bob-nunes/ hoped, he is pleased to see growers have an option to get some relief if they’re suffering during the economic downturn brought on by the pandemic. Nunes is encouraging growers to sign up for the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture started to provide help to growers and producers of commodities who suffered because of COVID-19-related supply chain disruptions. “Almonds have been qualified for the program. You have to have a 5% drop or more in price for the program to qualify,” Nunes said. “Almonds have already qualified, and there is a 26-cent rate per pound for almonds sold during that time period for each grower. Then, they’d receive an 80% payment of that 26 cents and, assuming there are funds available, the final 20% would be paid at a later date.” Because of both disruptions in the supply chain because of the coronavirus and an expected oversupply, prices have significantly dropped, hurting growers, Nunes said. Things may be difficult for a while as the U.S. and countries around the world keep struggling to cope with the global pandemic and other outside factors. “It’s going to be tough sledding for a little while. Certainly for the 2020 crop, prices look pretty depressed at this point,” he said. “Hopefully COVID gets behind us, some of our trade issues with China and other countries get resolved, and we move a lot of almonds here in the next 12-14 months.”

Select Harvest Almond Snacks Enters the Consumer Market

Today’s consumers are making principled buying decisions and being careful to review a company’s experience, background and professionalism before purchasing a product. For https://selectharvestusa.com/, nut experts since 1982, these intentional buying habits work in the company's favor as they break into the consumer marketplace. https://marketscale.com/industries/contributors/alan-burwell/, VP of Marketing and Innovation at Select Harvest USA, joins Nut News to discuss the company’s new direct-to-consumer products hitting the market this summer. As consumers have gradually become more health-conscious, almonds have withstood the rise and fall of food trends thanks to their nutrient-dense profile. High in protein, fiber and healthy fats, almonds are found in some of our favorite products, from almond milk to protein bars. In fact, consumers have long been eating Select Harvest USA almonds as ingredients in their favorite almond products, Burwell said. When consumers explore this new brand, they will discover that Select Harvest USA is a trustworthy, thought-leading, innovative company that has delivered high-quality nuts for over 30 years. “We know almonds,” Burwell said, and that niche knowledge is exactly what consumers crave today. Finding success in the consumer market can be a tough nut to crack, but the almond experts at Select Harvest Almond Snacks are confident they offer the value and excitement modern buyers love.

Insights on the Expo West 2020 Show That Wasn’t with Alan Burwell and Bryn Garcia

Natural Products Expo West is a premier annual event for the food and beverage industry. Expo West 2020 canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sharing their disappointment of this news were https://marketscale.com/industries/contributors/alan-burwell/, VP of Marketing and Innovation, and https://marketscale.com/industries/contributors/bryn-garcia/, VP of Retail Sales and Business Development, both from https://selectharvestusa.com/. For Garcia, the opportunities Expo West provides are the ability to get in front of 3,000 + retailers and share with them all of the exciting new products Select Harvest is launching. For Burwell, he looked forward to seeing what innovative products and solutions retailers were unveiling at the show. “That natural foods’ focus is what makes Expo West special, and why so many people come to it,” Burwell said. Even though people will have to wait until 2021 for the next Expo West, Burwell and Garcia offered their insights on how Select Harvest is continuing to maintain relationships with the retailers they looked forward to interacting with at the show. Garcia said Select Harvest reached out to its entire retail network to lend assurance that Almond production operations continue unhampered by the pandemic. “For new retailers, we’ve been able to utilize platforms such as RangeMe as well as other social selling platforms to showcase the array of products that we have,” Garcia said. Burwell said what makes Expo West so exciting is one never knew what the year’s hot new trends were until they arrived at the show. But Burwell did say Select Harvest was excited about revealing a new almond-based product that is indulgent and delicious but isn’t going to have all those extra calories, and carbs, and things like that. Perhaps there will be product unveiling on a future installment of nut news. For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

The Changing Dynamics and Trends in The Almond Industry with Alan Burwell

https://marketscale.com/industries/contributors/alan-burwell/, VP of Marketing and Innovation, https://selectharvestusa.com/, stopped by this episode of Nut News to provide his thoughts on the changes happening in consumer behavior regarding almonds and the innovations driving the industry as a whole. Almond production has risen over the past 10 to 15 years, and Burwell sees a direct correlation to what is happening in the consumer segment. “Almonds are showing up all across the consumer food landscape,” Burwell said. “A particular trend we’ve seen grow in normalization and adoption is the Keto diet. Keto speaks very specifically to the qualities of almonds.” Burwell said Select Harvest USA experienced growth in both exports and the domestic markets, and he believes Select Harvest USA can provide innovation to many of the products utilizing almonds as an ingredient, especially in the snacking category. While he wasn’t ready to get into specifics, Burwell teased some product innovations Select Harvest will announce in the future. “If you’re someone who limits their intake of almond snacks due to too much salt or calories, I think you’re going to be excited about what we have in the pipeline for you,” he said.

At 2018 Crop Year-End, Prices Are on the Rise with Bob Nunes

Nut News: At 2018 Crop Year-End, Prices Are on the Rise With global demand for almonds strong, prices are on the rise as 2018's crop year, which just ended July 31, saw record high numbers shipped out and record low numbers of carryout inventory. On today’s episode of Nut News, https://marketscale.com/industries/contributors/bob-nunes/, CEO for https://selectharvestusa.com/, one of the world’s largest almond distributors, lays out the market perspective for almonds at this crop year-end. The 2018 crop year which ended July 31, 2019, set new records for shipping at 2.6 billion pounds, narrowly exceeding last year's record of 2.25 billion pounds. The final year-to-date shipment record resulted in a carryout inventory of approximately 319 million pounds, which is the smallest since the 2012 crop, and as a percentage of shipment, one of the smallest on record, Nunes says. "With a small carryout, a later harvest than last year by about 10 days, and a comfortly sold industry, the market has responded with higher prices," Nunes says. "To complicate the situation, the industry is absorbing a lower than expected objective estimate. Both buyers and sellers are taking a very cautious approach to the forward sales for the 2019 crop." The Objective Estimate came in at 2 billion pounds, down considerably from the expected 2.4 or 2.5 billion pound crop. Nunes says SelectHarvest has invested "significant dollars" into plant equipment with continued emphasis on improving quality and service, while at the same time increasing productivity. "I just want the growers, who are very busy this time of year, to know how much we thank them for putting their trust into SelectHarvest," Nunes says. "And we wish everyone a happy and dry harvest."