California Business Minute™

Hi, I am Tim Johnson and welcome to the California Business Minute.

California almond growers and handlers are in rarified air these days.
Almond prices are above $2.25 per pound in the wake of strong world
demand bolstered by positive health claims from eating almonds and
a weak U.S. dollar making California almonds desirable but also more
affordable to the world market.

Shipments of the 2007 California almond crop are breaking records,
according to the growers’ co-op, Blue Diamond.  The 2007 crop forecast
 of 1.33 billion pounds, is 19 percent more than last year.

Blue Diamond is a cooperative owned by over half of the state's almond
growers. Bearing almond acreage is expected to climb from its current
530,000 acres by at least 50,000 new net acres in 2008, followed by an
additional 50,000 acres in 2009 and another 40,000 acres in 2010.

I am Tim Johnson and this has been the California Business Minute