<p><b>Turlock, Ca-</b> The United States Drug Administration and National Agricultural Statistics Service have predicted that the California almond crop is expected to reach 2 billion pounds this year, according to the Turlock Journal.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Owner of Stine Family Farms, Philip Stine, attributes the high yield to favorable weather conditions.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">"The weather was the main thing," said Stine. "We had good pollination, the bees flew and it was a long blossom."<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">This year’s estimated yield would fall short only to 2011’s 2.03 billion pound crop and is 6% higher than 2012’s output, which was right around 1.89 billion pounds. <img src="https://cdn.andnowuknow.com/legacyWriterImages/Almonds_Banner_053113.jpg" alt="Images 053013" />Estimated yield per acre rose three percent from last year to 2,470 pounds.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">According to the Almond Board of California, almonds are the state's largest agricultural export, with California alone producing 80 percent of the world's supply.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Over 810,000 acres of California land are reported to be dedicated to almond production.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow for updates on the crop.</p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href=" http://www.turlockjournal.com/section/12/article/20270/" target="_new"> Almond Report</a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
