HDR1012000140100628961500Almond Production                                      
                                                                                
Released June 28, 1996, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service         
(NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture.  For     
information on "Almond Production" call Linda McMillan at (202) 720-4215,       
office hours 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET.  For assistance with general            
agricultural statistics, information about NASS, its products or services,      
contact the NASS Information Hotline at 1-800-727-9540 or E-mail:               
NASS@NASS.USDA.GOV.                                                             
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
          Almond Production Up 43 Percent From Last Year                        
                                                                                
California's 1996 almond production is forecast at 530 million meat pounds, up  
2 percent from May's subjective forecast and up 43 percent from last year's     
crop.  This forecast is based on an estimated bearing acreage of                
410,000 acres.  Production from the Nonpareil variety is forecast at            
250 million meat pounds, up 52 percent from last season.                        
                                                                                
The average nut set per tree is 5,482, up 45 percent from 1995.  The Nonpareil  
average nut set is 4,963, an increase of 29 percent over the previous year's    
set.  The average kernel weight for all varieties sampled was 1.85 grams, down  
3 percent from last year.  A total of 97.0 percent of the nuts sampled were     
sound.                                                                          
                                                                                
Statewide, bloom reports varied from good to excellent.  Cold weather and       
intermittent rain storms during February and March hampered pollination.        
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
            Almonds:  Bearing Acreage, Yield and Utilized Production,           
                     California, 1994-95 and Forecasted 1996                    
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    :       Bearing Acreage       :       Yield per Acre        
        State       :-----------------------------------------------------------
                    :  1994  :  1995  :   1996    :  1994  :  1995  :   1996    
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    :---------- Acres ----------    --------- Pounds --------   
                    :                                                           
CA                  :409,000  400,000    410,000    1,800     925       1,290   
                    :-----------------------------------------------------------
                    :                    Utilized Production                    
                    :-----------------------------------------------------------
                    :       1994        :       1995        :       1996        
                    :-----------------------------------------------------------
                    :                       1,000 Pounds                        
                    :                                                           
CA (Shelled basis)  :      735,000             370,000             530,000      
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                
                                                                                
Ft Nt 7 (6-96)                                                                  
                                                                                
                                                                                
The next "Almond Production" report will be released in June 1997.              
                                                                                
                                                                                
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