California Walnut News March 2020

WALNUT NEWS FIRST CALIFORNIA WALNUTS CONFERENCE: A RECAP The newly branded California Walnut Conference premiered in Yuba City on January 10, 2020. The California Walnut Board, co-sponsored the event with JCS Marketing.

The conference previously dubbed the annual Walnut Day, a half day of trade show and research talks, was expanded and improved this year, to include nearly a full day of industry related talks. Topics included everything from new varieties, health research, export marketing programs to the latest regulations, in addition to the trade show and exhibit component.

The conference got off to start with a welcome speech by Jenny Lester-Moffitt, Undersecretary, California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), and a walnut grower herself. Following which, California Walnut Board Executive Director, Michelle Connelly took to stage to provide an overview of the current industry situation, behind the scenes work to secure tariff relief funding for walnut

growers, upcoming challenges and opportunities, and more.

MARCH 2020

IN THIS ISSUE Health Research Update

2

Domestic Marketing

3

Production Research

4

In Memoriam

5

Upcoming Events

6

In addition to the technical research talks, this conference also allowed the walnut growers an opportunity to directly interact with some of our export agencies and get to know more about the various retail and industrial marketing programs being implemented to boost the profile of California walnuts.

Having said that, not only were the production research and orchard management talks well attended, there was standing room only at the last talk about regulatory updates.

All in all, a little over one thousand people attended the conference, a record attendance for this event.

HEALTH RESEARCH UPDATE

IMPORTANCE OF CALIFORNIA WALNUT COMMISSION HEALTH RESEARCH PROGRAM… TO 2025 AND BEYOND

For over 30 years, the California Walnut Commission (CWC) has supported health-related research on walnuts through research grants and the provision of walnuts. A priority specific to our industry strategic plan is to continue to fund research that informs and advances health benefits of walnuts as well as public health awareness of these findings. In order to support this directive, research priorities are identified in consultation with the CWC Health Research Advisory Group. To date there are 173 CWC-supported, peer-reviewed papers that have published examining the effect of walnut consumption on heart health, cognition, cancer, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, body weight/ composition, reproductive health, in addition to studies to ascertain walnut micronutrients and bioactive composition. Additional CWC funding has supported the inclusion of walnuts in healthy dietary patterns such as the Mediterranean diet.

A comprehensive collection of this research as well as articles and facts sheets on or related to walnuts, and their unique nutrient profile are available on our website. Looking forward to 2025 and beyond, CWC research is focused on clinical trials with various populations including millennials and adolescents looking at body weight, gut health and skin health.

Health research outcomes from projects funded by CWC have resulted in on-going contributions to the body of scientific evidence regarding nutrition and health on walnuts that has been included the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee report since 2005. This report is a resource that helps to inform the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. CWC funded research has also been instrumental in qualified health claims in the U.S. and European Union as well as American Heart Association Heart-Check Food Certification Program (makes it easy to spot heart-healthy foods in the grocery store) and heart-healthy seal of approval from

2

W A L N U T

N E W S

Heart UK – the cholesterol charity. CWC funded research projects allow CWC funded investigators to share the latest study findings at professional meetings such as American Society of Nutrition, American Heart Association and the Alzheimer’s Association.

The impact of the science extends around the globe into markets where the Commission is active as well as beyond. In the U.S. alone, the health benefits of walnuts were covered in 60% of the 8 billion times walnuts were mentioned in the media last year. In international markets, the news on scientific studies and health-related topics is far reaching. Articles that appear in the UK spread to other countries such as Australia and Indian media gets coverage in the UAE. For example, in Spain, more than 50% of media coverage has health messaging and reaches each person 85 times during the year. This is due to the fact that research reveals new information about this food that has been around for thousands of years. Consumers today are focused more than ever on the health of their food. Behind great taste, health dominates the top reasons that consumers purchase walnuts. So it makes sense that snacking on walnuts is our consumers’ favorite way to eat them.

The CWC is committed to continue to build a strong foundation of high-quality scientific evidence that determine the health effects of walnut consumption in people and we are dedicated to supporting the scientific process. We provide funding to research projects that are focused on our priority areas as advised by our Health Research Advisory Group and are well-designed by the investigators according to established scientific principles. While the CWC expects all supported research results will be submitted to well-respected peer-reviewed journals for publication, we are not involved in the design, implementation, or publication of the research that we support. The California Walnut Commission abides by the International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) North America Conflict of Interest Guiding Principles that were created to provide guidance to researchers receiving funding from industry to help minimize the potential for bias due to funding source. Scientific research supported by the CWC is often cited by leading food and nutrition groups and associations as a model for whole foods research.

STAY IN THE KNOW!

Sign up for industry updates at walnuts.org Just click the subscribe button at the top right of the screen.

DOMESTIC MARKETING

AMERICAN HEART MONTH RETAIL PROMOTIONS GO NATIONAL Nearly 8,000 store locations across the country participated in our first National American Heart Month program. Retailers include: BI-LO, Coborn’s, Country Market, Cub, Dierbergs, Food Lion, FoodMaxx, Giant, Giant Eagle, Hannaford, Harris Teeter, HEB, Hy-Vee, Jewel Osco, Lucky, Publix, Raley’s (as well as Bel Air and Nob Hill), Save Mart, Schnucks, Sprouts, Target*, Tops, United Supermarkets, Weis, Winn Dixie and Woodman’s Markets.

In negotiating retailer support, off-shelf display was required for retailers to benefit from media tagging. Retailer-tagged television and radio ads were in 40 markets, reaching 36% of U.S. TV

households during the month of February and delivering over 223 million consumer impressions. We worked with each participating retailer to support them through a variety of in-store tactics including bundled offers, custom signage, demos distributing recipe cards, social media support and more. Where possible, we integrated retail dietitian activities to support further communication around walnuts and heart health benefits.

This first-ever national retail initiative includes a few noteworthy accomplishments, such as convincing two prominent regional retailers to display California Walnuts on grocery end caps rather than just shippers or sidestacks. We also conducted walnut demos at nearly 1,000 store locations spread across a dozen different retailers, and our retailer-specific media efforts expanded beyond TV and radio to include live radio remotes, digital outdoor billboards and even streaming ads on Pandora. *No off-shelf displays, so no media support.

Dark Chocolate Overnight Oats on the right), videos, and share walnut messaging to her 1 million combined social followers during the month of February.

GOOD MORNING AMERICA SEGMENT

As part of our annual media buy, we negotiated a cooking segment on Good Morning America. Registered dietitian Dr. Wendy Bazilian was on the national morning show and prepared two of our American Heart Association HeartCheck certified recipes on-air while sharing with viewers the key nutritional benefits of walnuts and inspiring them to celebrate American Heart Month with California Walnuts. To view the segment, visit here.

SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER SUPPORT

We have eight “always-on” influencers generating social content throughout the year and they are posting content during American Heart Month. Additionally, we partnered with Alyssa Rimmer, a nutritionist and food influencer at Simply Quinoa to develop walnut recipes (including the

THE POWER OF 3

Our first Global Marketing Initiative “The Power of 3” launched in February as well. In the U.S. market, the campaign is coming to life primarily through our social media efforts, including fun Instagram sweepstakes to encourage people to share the message with 3 friends. We also promoted the campaign through our blog on walnuts.org with articles such as “3 Simple Ways to Show Your Heart Some Love This Month.”

W A L N U T

N E W S

3

PRODUCTION RESEARCH

RECAP: 2020 WALNUT RESEARCH CONFERENCE The CWB’s production research program runs in an annual cycle that culminates in the Walnut Research Conference held each year in late January. Following a call for research reports and proposals issued in late October - both with a due dates in mid-December - the conference brings walnut researchers, farm advisors, and members of the CWB’s Production Research Committee together each winter to explore industry trends and production challenges and to hear progress reports on current CWB-funded projects and presentations of new project proposals. The conference convened for the 52nd time from January 29-31, 2020.

The CWB Production Research Committee organizes production research into four main subject areas: - Walnut Breeding & Genomics, - Orchard Management, - Plant Pathology & Nematology, and Entomology

Over the conference’s three-day run (Wednesday afternoon through Friday noon), the agenda is divided into four main sessions covering these areas. The agenda is structured to provide opportunities for formal and informal interaction among the attendees on key industry issues and research efforts designed to address them.

Highlights of this year’s proceedings included: Among projects started in previous years and proposed to continue in 2020…

• The walnut breeding program at UC Davis continues to make strides incorporating new marker-assisted breeding tactics to improve breeding efficiency and output for both varieties and rootstocks. Newly discovered markers for lateral bearing were used for the first time in 2019 to promptly eliminate the 30 to 50% of the progeny of the program’s cross-breeding efforts that normally turn out to be terminal bearers. Traditionally, these undesirable trees would have to be grown, maintained, and annually evaluated for expression of this and other traits - at considerable cost in time, effort, and land use.

• The effort to breed new nematode, crown gall, Phytophthora, and Armillaria resistant walnut rootstocks 4

W A L N U T

N E W S

- augmented, as with varieties, by new genetics-based selection approaches – is also moving forward at a rapid pace. Field evaluations of three to five “1st generation” new clonal rootstocks, alongside current seedling paradox and clonal “standards” RX1, VX211, Vlach continue at five regional trials planted in 2016. A second cohort of promising clonal candidates, some of which show superior resistance to multiple pests/diseases, are moving through the pipeline toward planting of additional field trials.

• Allied efforts to identify genetic markers for other key variety and rootstocks traits for incorporation into the breeding program are making progress.

• Work to validate the concept of delaying the start of irrigation season using tree water status readings as a watersaving and orchard health-improving strategy across varied orchard and site conditions is proving successful - and providing important new insights into how and when trees need and use water and the connection between irrigation practices and orchard productivity.

• Early results from new research on kernel mold suggests that mold fungi establish early; unseen “latent” infections of hulls builds up by mid-summer which persist and develop into full-blown hull and kernel mold at harvest. Late summer fungicide sprays appear to be effective in stopping these infections and reducing kernel mold.

• An entirely novel material and approach to controlling walnut blight appears to be emerging from efforts at UC Davis to better understand - and affect - the biochemical and genetic processes by which blight bacteria infect walnuts the mechanisms by which walnuts protect themselves.

• The search for a navel orangeworm trap/lure combination that reliably tracks orchard NOW populations and, most importantly, accurately predicts the risk of harvest damage and need for treatment, continues.

Proposals for new projects to begin on 2020 included: • Development and use of new techniques to track and better understand navel orangeworm movement and migration among crops and across regions: where they originate, where and how far they move, and the role that other known (nut and non-nut) host crops play in their regional biology.

• A proposal to “recycle and re-use” methyl bromide captured in activated carbon filters used to remove the gas

from fumigation chamber exhaust, using the carbon - and the MBr it contains - to fumigate single-tree orchard replant sites.

• Evaluations of commercially available formulations of soilapplied, insect-attacking fungi for their potential to kill and control walnut husk fly - in the lab and, if successful there, in orchards.

IN MEMORIAM

• A project to begin looking at whether it may be possible to breed new varieties less prone to rancidity without negative impacts on nut health and nutritional quality.

• Evaluation of - and understanding the mechanisms involved in - the use of rest-breaking treatments to offset flowering, nut set and production impacts of low winter chilling The CWB’s Production Research Committee meets this year in mid-March to assess progress in continuing projects, consider proposals for new efforts, and to make funding decisions on both for formal Board action later this spring.

IN MEMORIAM: STEVEN J. SEYBOLD (1959-2019) Late last year, the walnut industry lost an important member of its research fraternity, Steven J. Seybold. Steve had been working for the past several years studying the emerging threat of thousand cankers disease affecting walnut trees.

This work was a natural offshoot for Steve, who originally studied forestry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison before moving to California for his Ph.D. in entomological sciences at U.C. Berkeley, specializing in pine bark beetles, an important factor in the ongoing demise of millions of forest trees in the U.S. After post-doctoral and faculty stints at the University of Nevada-Reno and University of MinnesotaSt. Paul, Steve moved back to California in 2002 as a research entomologist for the USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station. He also held an appointment as an adjunct lecturer at U.C. Davis.

His work on thousand cankers disease in walnuts encompassed both forestry and entomology. The prime pathogen causing thousand cankers disease, Geosmithia morbida, is vectored by the walnut twig beetle, Pityophthorus juglandis. This was not too dissimilar from his ongoing focus on bark beetles affecting our forests.

Photo by UCANR.

By all accounts, he also seemed to easily transcend from one skill to another.

In addition to his impressive academic and research accomplishments (more than 400 presentations and 200 publications), he was also a talented musician and a clarinet virtuoso.

Steve is survived by his two daughters, Emily Jane and Natalie Ann, in addition to his mother, brothers, nieces, nephews, uncles and aunts. He will be missed very much and his passing was a great loss to the walnut industry.

GROWER SUSTAINABILITY SURVEY We would greatly appreciate if growers could take this 10-15 min online survey, which would help us fill some of the information gaps as we tell the sustainability story of California Walnuts.

10 lucky participants will receive gift cards, ranging from $50 to $500!

https://walnuts.org/sust-survey W A L N U T

N E W S

5

CALIFORNIA WALNUT COMMISSION 101 Parkshore Drive, Suite 250 Folsom, CA 95630

UPCOMING EVENTS MEETINGS

CALIFORNIA WALNUT BOARD & CALIFORNIA WALNUT COMMISSION

⊲ California Walnut Board & Commission Annual Spring Meeting Date: May 7th at 9:00am

NOTE: This will be a shortened online meeting.

Details for participating will soon follow.

CONTACT INFO California Walnut Board and California Walnut Commission 101 Parkshore Drive, Suite 250 Folsom, CA 95630 phone 916.932.7070 email info@walnuts.org fax 916.932.7071

walnuts.org

6

W A L N U T

N E W S