Episode 92: 2026 Outlook - Nine Perspectives from Around the Almond Industry

About this episode

Industry leaders share their perspectives and hopes for the almond industry in 2026.

People from around the industry join the Almond Journey Podcast at The Almond Conference 2025. We asked each of them to share what’s on the top of their minds headed into 2026. In this episode, you’ll hear some highlights from Dan Sonke, Lindsay Tello, Dinesh Bajaj, Laura Morin, Mel Machado, Luke Milliron, Carson Pettit, Tom Devol and Clarice Turner. In Today’s episode: Hear from nine industry leaders and discover their hopes for 2026 Consider themes like economic growth, expanding global markets, creating a more varied reach to consumers, and emerging new varieties coming to the market Gain a sense of the current state of the almond industry from those that live it every day The Almond Journey Podcast is brought to you by the Almond Board of California. This show explores how growers, handlers, and other stakeholders are making things work in their operations to drive the almond industry forward. Host Tim Hammerich visits with leaders throughout the Central Valley of California and beyond who are finding innovative ways to improve their operations, connect with their communities, and advance the almond industry. ABC recognizes the diverse makeup of the California almond industry…

People in this episode

Host: Tim Hammerich

Guests: Dan Sonke, Lindsay Tello, Dinesh Bajaj, Laura Morin, Mel Machado, Luke Milliron, Carson Pettit, Tom Devol, Clarice Turner

Topics covered

• almond industry outlook
• economic growth
• global markets
• consumer reach
• new varieties
• industry insights

Keywords

• almond industry
• 2026 outlook
• economic growth
• global markets
• consumer reach
• new varieties
• Almond Conference

Sponsors

Almond Board of California

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Almond Journey Podcast

Places: Central Valley of California

More episodes of Almond Journey

• Episode 100: A Brief History of California Almonds · June 10, 2026 · 26 min
• Episode 99: Economics and Agronomics with Mel Machado · May 27, 2026 · 32 min
• Almond Byte, May 2026: Trade Shifts, Middle East Disruptions and USDA Funding · May 21, 2026 · 6 min
• Episode 98: Irrigation Resources with Tom Devol · May 6, 2026 · 27 min
• Marketing Bulletin: Almonds in Campus Dining, Where Tastes Are Shaped at Scale · April 30, 2026 · 10 min
• Almond Byte, April 2026: Tariffs, Trade Deal Details, and Geopolitics · April 24, 2026 · 6 min