sept-oct-2019

What does Blue Diamond get out of you completing these modules? By confirming Blue Diamond as your handler and by choosing the “opt-in” button in CASP, we get a report showing the aggregated data of all Blue Diamond Grower participants. This means we receive an aggregated summary of all responses, not the specific answer provided for each question. For example, if 65 percent of Blue Diamond growers use micro-irrigation, then that percentage is reflected in the report. This data gives us an opportunity to tell your great California almond story to our customers and consumers across the globe. It also lets us know what in-orchard practices and technologies you would like to learn more about. What do you get out of CASP? Participating growers receive a report of all their answers, which includes information on how their practices compare to all other almond growers in the program throughout the state. Additionally, the CASP program provides access to three valuable tools that growers will find helpful: the Nitrogen Calculator, Irrigation Calculator, and an Irrigation and Nitrogen Management Tool (INMP) intended to help growers satisfy regulatory reporting requirements. Several of our members who have enrolled in CASP have said that completing the modules made them think more critically about their practices and that their participation made them better farmers by opening their eyes to things they hadn’t previously considered. A century ago, 30 percent of Americans lived on farms. Today, that number is less than two percent. It’s time to connect the two percent with the 98 percent. California’s almond growers have an opportunity to prove to their consumers that they are leaders in sustainable agriculture. I believe that CASP is the best way to get there. provided the easiest, most efficient opportunity to gather the information we need to provide as a summary to our customers. Those buyers and customers are placing increasing demands on us to provide information regarding our growers’ sustainable and environmentally responsible practices. This year, we’ve asked growers to commit to participating in CASP by completing just three of the nine CASP modules: • Pest Management • Irrigation Management • Bee Health and Pollination Of course, anyone who wants to complete all nine modules is more than welcome to do so — and quite a few of our growers already have. The questions in each module ask growers about the various practices used during the year to establish their orchards and produce their crop. The beauty of it is there are no right or wrong answers. Possible answers to a question may include: • Yes, I do that. • No, I used to do that but don’t anymore. • I’ve never done that but would like to learn more about it. As you can see, the answers are pretty harmless. And if you answer by saying you haven’t initiated a certain practice, CASP provides you with tools and information to help you take that next step towards continuous improvement. Mel Machado, Director of Member Relations Blue Diamond Growers 2 3 S E P T E M B E R – O C T O B E R 2 0 1 9