News and Articles

• May 2026 California almond shipments rose 2.6 percent year over year to 217.4 million pounds
• Season to date shipments are down 2.2 percent, driven entirely by a 13.6 percent drop in domestic shipments
• Export shipments for the season rose 1.7 percent, offsetting most of the domestic decline
• Forward committed sales rose 8.9 percent while uncommitted inventory fell 5.2 percent
• Turkey shipments roughly doubled for the month while India shipments fell 26 percent

California almond shipments reached 217.4 million pounds in May 2026, up 2.6 percent from 211.8 million pounds in May 2025, even as the cumulative shipment total for the current marketing year continues to run behind the prior season. For the period from August 1, 2025 through May 31, 2026, total shipments stood at 2.213 billion pounds, down 2.2 percent from 2.263 billion pounds over the same stretch a year earlier.

The shortfall is concentrated almost entirely in domestic demand. Domestic shipments for the season fell 13.6 percent to 492.3 million pounds, down from 569.9 million pounds a year ago. Export shipments, by contrast, edged up 1.7 percent to 1.721 billion pounds from 1.693 billion pounds, meaning the entire decline in total volume traces back to softer buying inside the United States rather than weaker demand abroad.

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Forward commitments tell a firmer story. Total committed shipments, meaning almonds sold but not yet delivered, climbed 8.9 percent to 438.3 million pounds from 402.3 million pounds a year earlier. With computed inventory up only slightly at 907.8 million pounds and uncommitted inventory down 5.2 percent to 469.5 million pounds, the pool of unsold, unshipped supply available for new spot purchases is shrinking even as crop receipts for the season came in 0.8 percent lower at 2.691 billion pounds.

Destination data shows where export growth is concentrated. Shipments to Turkey roughly doubled for the month and ran about 42 percent ahead of last year on a season to date basis, lifting the country into a more prominent role in California's export mix. Shipments to India, historically one of the largest single destinations, fell around 26 percent for the month and 9 percent for the season. Western Europe held broadly firm, with season to date shipments to the region up 5 percent, led by gains in Belgium, Spain, and Germany.

For procurement teams, the combination of shrinking uncommitted inventory and a 9 percent jump in forward bookings suggests buyers who have not yet secured coverage for the remainder of the marketing year may face less available spot supply and firmer pricing than earlier in the season. The shift in export demand away from India and toward Turkey and parts of Western Europe is also worth tracking for buyers whose contracts or freight planning assume historical trade patterns, since a sustained reallocation of that scale can affect container availability and lead times on specific shipping lanes.