jul-aug-2020

Innovative and conscious companies are the future. This remains especially true as the farming community and food industry address national food insecurity and environmental impacts. Blue Diamond is tackling these issues by minimizing food loss and waste from daily operations at the orchard and facility levels. Where Do We Go from Here? How can we continue to address the 40 percent of food lost in America each year² as we move towards zero waste in our operations ? Tackling food waste in the U.S. will be a job for everyone in the coming years, and cross company and industry collaboration will be key. With our long history as a community of innovators we are primed for the challenge. As for now, Blue Diamond will continue its legacy of minimizing food waste in the almond industry while thinking critically about our next steps to help solve the complex systems that allow food waste. ₄ Thank You A huge thank you to Mel Machado, Director of Member Relations, and Jim Morse, Sacramento MPL Senior Manager, for their expertise on almond growing, almond processing, and almond coproducts and byproducts. Hillary Prince, Sustainability Intern, Blue Diamond Growers We are proud of our Blue Diamond Growers members and want to share your sustainability stories! Please reach out to hprince @ bdgrowers. com if you would like your almond growing practices featured in another article or to learn more about minimizing food loss and waste on almond orchards. Current research is exploring using almond hull and shell components as a growing medium for mushroom cultivation, producing feed sources for poultry and aquaculture, soil amendments for almonds and other crops, strengthening post-consumer recycled plastics, creating fuel—and even for brewing beer. 1 9 J U L Y – A U G U S T 2 0 2 0