California ready to harvest bumper almond crop

California ready to harvest bumper almond crop California’s more than 6,000 almond growers are expected to pull in a bumper crop this year, putting the state atop the world’s producers of the nut.
   With a strong market, nearly perfect growing season weather and record amount of acreage being devoted to the crop, California state agriculture officials predict that almond growers will likely produce 80 percent of the world’s supply this year.
   The U.S. Department of Agriculture also predicts a record harvest, with estimates showing growers harvesting more than 1.3 billion pounds this year, a nearly 17 percent jump from the 1.12 billion pounds harvested last year.
   The record harvest and high market value have led to record numbers of growers, leading some to fear a market saturation that will eventually drive prices down.
   “Even though we’re producing more, we’re also shipping more. The market is there,” almond grower Scott Hunter told the Associated Press. “We once feared having a billion-pound crop, but now look at us.”