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Almond Facts
MAY | JUNE 2016
ABC Sustainability Program:
Good for the Grower, Good for the Industry
Growers who participate in the
California Almond Sustainability
Program (CASP) help the almond
industry by providing the data to
educate buyers, regulators and the
public that almond growers and
handlers follow sustainable practices
and are considerate of neighbors and
the consuming public. At the same
time, it is an opportunity for growers
to reflect on the management of
their operations. And that’s exactly
how
Blue Diamond
grower Kent
Stenderup responds when asked
about his impression of the program
after filling out all eight modules of
the CASP assessments. He says it has
given him greater insight — both into
the efficiency and sustainability of
his own operation and into the value
of the program to the California
Almond industry at large.
Ideas for Efficiency
“There’s definitely an educational value to
growers,” Stenderup said. “Filling out the
forms made me think about my practices in
a way that I had not before. For example,
there is a question about irrigating at night
in the Irrigation Management module, and
I learned that irrigating at night is more
efficient and it saves on the electricity rate
for pumping.”
Stenderup farms 2,500 family-owned acres for
Stenderup Ag Partners in the Kern County town
of Arvin. He has been attending CASP workshops
for the past four years, and said he gets as much out
of the workshops as he does from the modules. “I
really appreciate the educational value of the CASP
workshops,” he stated. “You have an opportunity to
pick up some ideas for changing your cultural practices,
and all you have to do is show up for a few hours. This
makes me a more progressive farmer by looking at some
possible inefficiencies that I can correct.”
Cloning Option Online
Stenderup doesn’t take the time to fill out modules at
workshops; instead, he takes advantage of the online
version of the program, noting that it is much easier than
filling out forms on paper, and you have the ability to
