labeling, indoor heat-related illnesses,
hull feed standards, and FSMA.
“We are engaged with all three
agencies that will be involved in
implementing FSMA,” Trevino explained.
“FDA, CDFA, and CDPH. In an attempt
to ease the regulatory burden on our
industry, we educated the regulators
on how their rules would affect us.”
Trevino noted that there would be no
FDA inspections until January 2019, and
advised every grower and huller/sheller
to get training as soon as possible.
One of the Alliance’s highest priorities
is finding alternative uses for hulls, shells
waste, and other woody biomass. “We
are working with the Almond Board on
research to find alternative uses and
products from biomass and markets for
those products,” she pledged.
Harvest dust is a significant concern
of the regional air control board,
Trevino noted. “New harvest equipment
has addressed the issue and made
improvements, but dust will continue to
be a target.”
The Alliance is lobbying for increased
state funding of border inspection
stations to stop the importation of “dirty
bees,” which are thought to be a major
source of disease that is decimating
bees in California.
Correcting the Record
Trevino pointed out what many elected officials and
regulators confront her with regularly, “They are saying
almonds use excessive amounts of water, create enormous
amounts of waste, and that the industry is growing at the
expense of California’s natural resources, so why should
they try to help us
? Much of my work is setting the
record straight or trying to counter these claims with
examples of benefits that our industry provides the
state and nation.”
The sheer number of issues that need to be addressed and
the overwhelming urban bias of legislators and regulators
make advocacy for agriculture, and almonds, in particular,
a serious challenge, she noted, which illustrates the need
for a strong Political Action Committee with ample funds to
have a positive impact. She cited Blue Diamond’s PAC as
being an important one to support.
For more information on the Alliance and a copy of the
2018 Advocacy Report, go to
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