Tim Jackson, Almond Board of Australia chief executive
THE new almond season has kicked off with a strong start to sales.
Despite concerns around the crop size, the ongoing challenges with managing carpophilus beetle and carob moth and uncertainty of the global trade war, Australian almonds remain in strong demand.
While the opening March sales were below par, the industry rebounded with April’s figures the strongest on record, so big they also boosted season-to-date numbers to a record high.
One of the most pleasing aspects of the sales data has been the recovery of domestic sales, which remains one of the most important markets for the industry.
There was a consistent upward trend in Australian sales in the back half of the 2024-25 season, which has flowed into the opening two months of 2025-26.
The latest industry sales position report revealed domestic numbers were up 9 per cent on the same period as last year.
Clearly the new marketing campaign which has been spearheaded by our ambassadors Masterchef celebrity Poh Ling Yeow and Olympic swimming champion Kyle Chalmers is resonating with consumers and helping keep almonds front of mind.
The Almond Board of Australia has had a long history of punching above its weight with innovative marketing strategies to drive consumption in Australia.
Despite limited resources, programs such as educating health professionals and leaning in on research have proved that including almonds in your daily diet improves your health and they have hit the market with immediate effect.
The upcoming world swimming championships in Singapore will be used an opportunity to leverage Kyle’s love of almonds, while the ubiquitous Poh is preparing new almond-centric recipes which will make up a cookbook for the industry.
She will also hit the road and drive our marketing activities in South-East Asia and India, where she also has a huge following; The Masterchef Australia series is one of the most popular cooking shows in India and Poh is held in high esteem there.
We also have a lot of exciting initiatives on the way for the rest of this year to continue to drive the almond message both domestically and in key markets overseas.
Particularly as we have a range of other commodities muscling in on the health snack messaging, so it remains important to invest in remaining front-of-mind with consumers to influence buying decisions.
The current price of almonds has also come as welcome news for growers.
Returns look like being the best for a decade as the supply-demand dynamic comes back into balance as production in both the US and Australia levels off.
The uncertainty around tariffs being imposed by the US has resulted in buyers looking to alternative supply options such as Australia.
Our trade agreements in China, Thailand and India are proving to be key factors in driving sales and interest.
Demand for Australian almonds continues to grow in the opening two months of the new 2025-26 selling season.
The latest ABA sales position report shows domestic sales are up 9 per cent on the same period last year and overall volumes are up 3 per cent on last year’s record numbers.
China interest is slightly muted in the early stages of the season, down 5 per cent but Indian inshell sales are up 14 per cent.
The uncertainty within the Chinese market due to the trade war with the US appears to have resulted in buyers withdrawing until greater certainty on tariffs emerges.
The emergence of Turkey continues, with new season demand for what is suspected to be largely manufacturing grade material, up 178 per cent last year.
