{"id":12213,"date":"2016-11-04T16:11:52","date_gmt":"2016-11-04T20:11:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digital.hbs.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/wonderful-almonds\/"},"modified":"2016-11-04T16:15:30","modified_gmt":"2016-11-04T20:15:30","slug":"wonderful-almonds","status":"publish","type":"hck-submission","link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/wonderful-almonds\/","title":{"rendered":"Wonderful Almonds"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"almond-nut\"<\/a>(1)<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Who\u2019s Drinking Our Water?<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cAlarm as almond farms consume California’s water\u201d\u00a0(3)<\/sup>\u00a0read one headline in the fall of 2014, as California suffered through a drought for another consecutive year. Many were asking where California\u2019s water was going. The culprit, many claimed, was the almond nut. A widespread misbelief was that almond production single handedly consumed an astonishing 10% of California\u2019s water (4)<\/sup>. \u00a0However, with a footprint of 14% of California\u2019s irrigated farmland, almonds actually only consumed 9.5% of California\u2019s agricultural irrigated water (4)<\/sup>. While still a significant amount of water, the almond industry has actually made continuous efforts to reduce its water consumption and support sustainable growing.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Progress in Sustainable Production<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

With over 13 million trees\u00a0(5)<\/sup> used to produce almonds and pistachios, Paramount Farming Co, owner of Wonderful Pistachios & Almonds LLC, is the world\u2019s largest grower of nuts\u00a0(6)<\/sup>. The company recognizes the significance of sustainable agriculture and is highly sensitive to its water consumption levels. The company has invested almost $25m in research and development in the continuous improvement of water-efficient irrigation practices\u00a0(7)<\/sup>. Additionally, the Almond Board of California invests +$2m annually in researching production and environmental issues related to Almonds\u00a0(4)<\/sup>. These efforts are paying off as the almond has learned to be leaner on its water consumption. \u201cSince the early 1990s\u201d, claims the Almond Board of California, \u201cadvanced production practices have helped almond growers improve their water efficiency by 33%, producing more crop per drop\u201d\u00a0(4)<\/sup>. As seen in the chart below, efforts towards more efficient almond production continues to be realized: More almond production does not necessarily have to mean more water consumption.<\/p>\n

\"nut-chart\"<\/a>(8)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

How is Water Efficiency Being Achieved?<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Through progress in water distribution and advancements in monitoring technology, the almond industry has been able to enhance its distribution of resources required for almond production in order to more efficiently water and nourish almond trees. In fact, through these improvements, 83% of almond growers are now able to practice \u201cdemand-based irrigation\u201d, whereby they have the ability to \u201ctrack items like soil moisture, tree water status [and] weather conditions to determine when to irrigate their orchards rather than watering on a predetermined schedule\u201d\u00a0(4)<\/sup>. This need based distribution monitoring helps to prevent wasteful use of resources. Additionally, 70% of almond orchards also now use micro-irrigation systems, which through drip technology and other direct irrigation advancements, helps to deliver water more efficiently to the root of the trees\u00a0(4)<\/sup>. \u00a0This helps to reduce wasted water in areas where it never reaches the trees and helps to prevent water runoff\u00a0(4)<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Real Question<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Global warming is impacting people and places all over the world in different ways. As California stretches deeper into its multiyear drought, many have been asking where its water is going. While almonds are a meaningful consumer of California\u2019s water supply, it is often overlooked how the State\u2019s Almond Board and individual enterprises like Paramount Farming are investing the time, effort and resources in proactively establishing advancements in the production methods of almonds. Instead of blaming the almond for gulping up California\u2019s precious water, maybe we should be applauding the industry\u2019s efforts to reduce its relative water consumption and should rather be asking what other agricultural producers can be doing to increase the water efficiency of their produce. (657 words)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Here’s the Real Problem With Almonds. Mother Jones. <\/em>[Online] Mother Jones and the Foundation for National Progress. [Cited: 11 4, 2016.] http:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/environment\/2015\/04\/real-problem-almonds.<\/li>\n
  2. Lurie, Alex Park and Julia. It Takes How Much Water to Grow an Almond?! Mother Jones. <\/em>[Online] 2 24, 2014. [Cited: 11 4, 2016.] http:\/\/www.motherjones.com\/environment\/2014\/02\/wheres-californias-water-going.<\/li>\n
  3. Rankin, Jennifer. Alarm as almond farms consume California’s water. The Guardian. <\/em>[Online] 9 13, 2014. [Cited: 11 4, 2016.] https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/business\/2014\/sep\/14\/alarm-almond-farmers-drain-california-dry.<\/li>\n
  4. Get Facts About Almonds and Water. Almonds.com. <\/em>[Online] Almond Board of California. [Cited: 11 4, 2016.] http:\/\/www.almonds.com\/get-facts-about-almonds-and-water?mobile=1.<\/li>\n
  5. Sustainable Agricultural Practice. Wonderful Pistachios & Almonds. <\/em>[Online] Wonderful Pistachios & Almonds LLC. [Cited: 11 4, 2016.] http:\/\/www.wonderfulpistachiosandalmonds.com\/#sustainablefarming.<\/li>\n
  6. 2013 Top Nut Growers. Growing Produce. <\/em>[Online] [Cited: 11 4, 2016.] http:\/\/www.growingproduce.com\/fruits\/2013-top-nut-growers\/.<\/li>\n
  7. Water Stewardship. Wonderful Pistachios & Almonds. <\/em>[Online] Wonderful Pistachios & Almonds LLC. [Cited: 11 4, 2016.] http:\/\/www.wonderfulpistachiosandalmonds.com\/#waterstewardship.<\/li>\n
  8. Almonds and Water 101. Almonds.com. <\/em>[Online] Almond Board of California. [Cited: 11 4, 2016.] http:\/\/www.almonds.com\/sites\/default\/files\/misc\/Cons\/Documents\/almonds_water_101_v2.pdf?mobile=1).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    While the mighty almond may be packed with protein and nutrition the average almond is also quite thirsty for our precious water resources, consuming 1.1 gallons of water for a single nut (2). As the tides rise, dwindling water supplies in California compete with the continued thirst for precious water resources by these delicious and nutritious treats. But, can California continue to balance the fight between its dwindling water supply and almonds hydration needs? The Almond Board of California and Paramount Farms, owner of Wonderful Pistachios & Almonds LLC, claim the industry has taken aggressive action towards bringing sustainability in almond production to the next level.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2330,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[1243,28,1321,1356,1226,14,1403,427],"class_list":["post-12213","hck-submission","type-hck-submission","status-publish","hentry","category-agribusiness","category-agriculture","category-almonds","category-drought","category-global-warming","category-sustainability","category-sustainable-farming","category-water"],"connected_submission_link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/assignment\/climate-change-challenge-2016\/","yoast_head":"\nWonderful Almonds - Technology and Operations Management<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/wonderful-almonds\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Wonderful Almonds - Technology and Operations Management\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"While the mighty almond may be packed with protein and nutrition the average almond is also quite thirsty for our precious water resources, consuming 1.1 gallons of water for a single nut (2). 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