Almonds

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS Almonds, though considered to be nuts are

technically the seed of the fruit of the almond tree, which is a medium-sized tree that bears fragrant pink and white flowers.

Almonds

unshelled Shelled Blanche

d

Alm

onds

Bitter Sweet

GLOBAL USAGE

• Confectionery, energy bars, bakery • Salad dressings• Non-food (e.g., cosmetics, moisturizer) • Sauce thickener Perfect for making almond

butter or marzipan• Snacking

SCENARIOThe annual Global Sweet almond production on shelled-basis has been in the range of 7 - 8.5 lakh tonnes Major producing Countries

Cali-fornia

Australia

turkey chile

european union

China India

The annual trade in almonds has been around 4.6 lakh tonnes (on shelled basis) in the recent years.

The major exporters

US Australia Chile0

50000100000150000200000250000300000350000400000450000500000

MAJOR IMPORTERS

India Japan China Turkey0

5000100001500020000250003000035000400004500050000

Almonds70%

Walnuts18%

Pistachios6%

Pecans4%

Hazelnuts1% Other Nuts

0%

Source: USDA, Economic Research Service, Fruit & Tree Nut Situation and Outlook.

COMPETING NUTS MARKETABLE PRODUCTION 2011/12

Indian Scenario

Almonds are an integral part of India’s cultural and culinary heritage, and are considered a prized “brain food” for children. They are also a key ingredient in traditional Indian sweets known as Mithai, as well as popular for gifting during the Diwali festive season.

INDIAN SCENARIO The annual rate of increase in India's

domestic consumption of almonds is reported to be around 20%.

> 95% of almonds consumed by Indians is imported

80% of imports being sourced from California & rest from Australia

Production 1200tons only Non-descript variety-Bitter Almond India imports almonds with shells and

processes it domestically to obtain shelled almonds

Most of the manual shelling of almonds in India is undertaken at Bombay and New Delhi, from where the shelled almonds are transported to other consumption centers

The Indian festival season extending from September to December is the peak consumption period for almonds, with maximum demand witnessed in November

In the 2011-12 financial year India imported 74,600 tonnes of almonds

WHY CALIFORNIA India now imports over $100 million worth of

almond, especially from California, making it the number-one US export to India

United States of America is the single largest producer, consumer and exporter of Sweet almonds, with the country contributing to over 80% of the global almond production

India is the fastest growing market for California almonds because of their high protein value in a meatless society.

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED Food Law/ Standard Certificate

Prevention of food adulteration Act(PFA) Health and Sanitary Certificate License from FSSAI

For all units that process fruits and vegetables For irradiated food

Import declaration in the prescribed Bill of Entry format, disclosing the value of the imported goods

Import License Certificate from port health authority that the

product conforms to standard of PFA

CONTD Standards declaration

Name and address of manufacturer/packer/importer

Name/trade name/description of product Ingredients in descending order Net quantity(metric units) Month and year of manufacturing/packing County of origin MRP Nutritional labelling Shelf life

Pesticide residue and other contaminants Insecticide act 1986 Registered pesticides use

Packaging and container regulations All weights or measures in metric units Use of PVC not allowed in packaging

Port of Entry Inspection The clearance of imported food products at the

port of entry requires a certification form the port health authority