Record crop expected as California walnut industry doubles down on U.S. retail programs
On August 28, USDA NASS released the Objective Measurement of the 2020 walnut crop, estimating production at 780,000 short tons, an increase of 19 percent over the prior year. “The industry has been expecting increases given continued growth in new acreage, more densely planted orchards, and heavier yielding varieties and has planned accordingly,” states grower Robert Driver, CWB board member.
“To take advantage of the large crop and continued demand, tremendous growth opportunity exists in the U.S. market to expand the walnut business in the retail channel,” said Michelle Connelly, executive director of the California Walnut Board (CWB). The California Walnut Board has dedicated significant resources to the domestic retail effort for the 2020/21 crop year. “Efforts are underway to encourage greater support from food retailers through two national promotional campaigns, American Heart Month and a program focused on growing snacking usage. While walnuts are not often thought of as a snack, our consumers are telling us otherwise with snacking becoming the top consumer use.[1] Our goal is to make walnuts top-of-mind, not only for consumers, but for retailers and product manufacturers as well,” says Jennifer Olmstead, marketing director, Domestic PR at the CWB.