California almond harvest likely to set record, feds say

A federal agency projects a record almond crop in California this year, based on sampling results announced Wednesday.

The orchards will yield an estimated 2.05 billion pounds, up from an even 2 billion in a May projection, the National Agricultural Statistics Service reported. It would eclipse the record of 2.03 billion pounds in 2011 if the forecast pans out during a harvest starting next month in Stanislaus and other counties.

The agency based the May estimate on a telephone survey of growers about how the nuts were developing. Wednesday’s number came from detailed measurements in a sampling of orchards.