Almonds: waiting for new crop forecasts
April 13, 2023 at 12:43 PM ,
Der AUDITOR
US exports on the rise
As the Almond Board of California announced in its latest report, US almond production was 2.54 billion lbs by the end of March 2023. This time last year, 2.90 billion lbs had already been registered, representing a 12% decline. Despite abundant carry-over stocks, total availability currently stands at only 3.33 billion lbs, 4% below last year's supply.
In March, US almond shipments increased significantly; at 281 million lbs, almost 15% more shelled and unshelled almonds were shipped domestically and overseas than in the same month last year. While domestic shipments actually fell by 7.5% to 66.44 million lbs, exports to countries such as India (+15% to 27.506 million lbs), China (+275% to 124,74 million lbs), the United Arab Emirates (+115% to 17,31 million lbs) and Germany (+28% to 15,07 Million lbs) increased markedly. Spain's imports, however, fell by almost 30% to 21.05 million lbs.In total, almost 1.8 billion lbs of shelled and unshelled almonds have been shipped domestically and overseas since the beginning of this season.
|
US almond* shipments, in lbs |
|||
|
Destination |
2021/22 |
2022/23 |
Diff. |
|
USA |
516,976,172 |
487,225,833 |
-5.8% |
|
India |
238,130,648 |
251,574,084 |
5.6% |
|
Spain |
128,547,453 |
136,507,336 |
6.2% |
|
China/Hong Kong |
97,931,418 |
116,378,609 |
18.8% |
|
UAE |
66,728,215 |
103,262,595 |
54.8% |
|
Germany |
71,322,319 |
77,129,169 |
8.1% |
|
Italy |
53,495,457 |
57,088,992 |
6.7% |
|
Turkey |
35,693,128 |
56,511,038 |
58.3% |
|
Netherlands |
62,223,302 |
56,440,305 |
-9.3% |
|
Japan |
66,916,902 |
54,121,285 |
-19.1% |
|
Others |
345,180,346 |
402,172,331 |
16.5% |
|
Total |
1,683,145,360 |
1,798,411,577 |
6.8% |
|
California Almonds, 01.08.-31.03. *shelled and unshelled |
|||
Fields are too wet
The unusually cool weather during and after flowering in the Californian almond regions delayed the development of the fruit this year. Usually, by the end of March, the trees have gotten rid of the fruit sets that cannot be formed; however, this was not the case this time. Accordingly, it is difficult for farmers to reliably estimate their yields at the moment and to take the necessary precautions. In addition, heavy local rainfall and even flooding meant that some of the plantations were too wet for the soil to support heavy machinery without causing damage. As a result, some fields could not be supplied with the necessary fertilisers and pesticides at first. However, the almond plantations should be able to be sufficiently irrigated this year for the time being thanks to abundant water and snow reserves.
In the European spot market, prices for Spanish almonds stabilised again this week, and there were even slight price reductions for US almonds. California, standard, natural are offered at EUR 4.10/kg FCA Spain, about EUR 0.05/kg cheaper than last week.
|
Almonds |
|
|
Conventional |
EUR/kg |
|
Valencia, 12/14 mm, natural, Spain |
4.25 |
|
Valencia, +14 mm, natural, Spain |
4.75 |
|
Largueta, 13/14 mm, natural Spain |
6.90 |
|
Largueta, 12/13 mm, natural, Spain |
6.50 |
|
Marcona, 12/14 mm, natural, Spain |
7.10 |
|
Guara, 12/14 mm, natural, Spain |
4.50 |
|
California, standard, natural |
4.10 |
|
Almonds, blanched, diced |
4.20 |
|
Organic |
|
|
Valencia, 12/14 mm, natural, Spain |
7.20 |
|
Valencia, +14 mm, natural, Spain |
7.50 |
|
Diced, blanched, Spain |
8.65 |
|
FCA Spain |
|
View more
- price chart, almonds, natural, +14, Valencia
- price chart, almonds, natural 13/14, Largueta
- price chart, almonds, blanched, 27/30, California SSR
- more price charts
View related articles
