FLOODING along the River Murray in South Australia and the shutting down of power to irrigation pumps in the Riverland will have an impact on almond crop potential for the coming season, the CEO of the industry’s peak body says.
Almond Board of Australia (ABA) CEO Tim Jackson said although orchards in NSW and Victoria would experience tree losses, SA’s issues around a rising River Murray were around keeping pumping infrastructure dry and maintaining power to inundated sites.
“We have tried to work closely with SA Power Networks around power supply disruption and there have been lessons learnt from that experience on both sides,” he said.
“The SA Government’s proactive approach to the floods has been appreciated, especially when looking at powerline clearance heights and facilitating pragmatic solutions along the river.”
The industry’s long-term forecast for the 2023-24 season was initially 165,000 tonnes, but this was downgraded to 156,200 due to floods, storm damage, tree losses and reduced pollination rates in some farms.
New plantings producing better yields as they near full maturity was the major reason the national crop would still increase from the 2022-23 crop of 143,805 tonnes, Mr Jackson said.
The almond industry remained a “crop of choice” for existing and new entrants to permanent planting horticulture, he said, but warned that those entering the industry needed to think beyond planting and ensure they have processing contracts in place.
“We have a shortage of processing capacity within the industry, so the hull and shelling phase is taking longer than ever to complete,” Mr Jackson said.
“Ideally you want to be hulling and shelling product within three months of harvest, but the increase volumes being produced is pushing that timeline out to six to seven months for some new growers.
“Growers who are considering a switch to almonds should start discussions with processors to ensure they can secure contracts to process their crops in a timely manner.”
Mr Jackson said the wet weather last year and the lack of beehive movements into Victoria and SA were two key challenges many growers faced.
“When you combine those with very low global almond prices, many growers will be doing it tough in 2023,” he said.
Mr Jackson said while the costs of production have never been higher, growers acknowledge that low water prices, and the prospect of that continuing for at least another 12 months, was a positive in an otherwise tough growing environment.
“The other bright spot is that our markers and processors are selling at a faster rate on the export market than ever before,” he said.
“We’re on track to surpass 100,000 tonnes of exports for the first time.
“Freight costs and availability have freed up considerably which has allowed exports to step up activity in a range of markets.”
Mr Jackson said the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with China remained a “godsend” as it allowed growers to secure premium pricing in one of the biggest markets in the world.
More than 50 per cent of all Australian almond exports were to China in 2022.
“Five years ago, before the FTA, we sent next to nothing to China,” he said.
Other than China, Mr Jackson said the recent Australia-India Economic Co-operation and Trade Agreement (AIECTA) tariff reduction for almonds into India would also be bonus for growers as they seek to diversify marketing.
He said the 2023 harvest would begin soon, and looked like being at least two weeks late this season, with overall kernel sizing appearing to be up.