Green Group discussion

Almond Milk is Taking a Toll on the Environment

When 8 billion people want something, fulfilling that want is going to change the climate, and most likely, not in a good way.

Almond trees are a big California crop, and serving 8 billion, has put a sizable dent in the dairy industry. People like it environmentally because it has a small carbon footprint. And it has caused financial harm to the nasty diary industry. The carbon footprint is probably its smallest feature.

A large amount of pesticides and water is used to grow the almonds. That deplenishes ground water and pollutes the land with the run off. Ironically in the list of agricultural products that use bees for pollination, almond trees are at the top of the list. 100 percent of the almond crop is pollinated by bees. Not good for the bees. I wouldn't be surprised if bees were actually treated as disposable workers, after all, bees can always make more bees.

Its been a victory for the advertising world, the almond farmers and the almond industry, but after that, it is looking like almonds and palm oil have a lot in common.

https://sustainability.ucsf.edu/1.713

Just because it's green doesn't mean it's always good.

Thank you, Robert, for pointing that out to me.

Surprised me too.

Alternative plant drinks replacing milk include cashews, hazelnuts and oats, but the nuts make up about 3% of the drink.

Almond shell can be ground up to replace plastic microbeads in scrubs.

I read an article a year or so ago about how California's farmers had gone large on planting almond trees, but they are a thirsty crop (the leaves are not good at retaining water) and now the trees are maturing and the water is running low. I probably linked that article here.

Probably all the "new" crops that are being mega farmed are causing environmental problems because it is the mega farming technique that is the problem, not the type of plant or tree being grown.

What are sustainable milks and which ones aren't. This article looks at several choices.

https://www.theguardian.com/environme...

Excellent, Robert.

News in from Zina Abbott


who shows a few photos of beautiful pink almond blossom trees. Almonds are in the Prunus family, so think cherry or plum with smaller blossoms than cherry.

"It is almond blossom time where I live in the San Joaquin Valley of California. I know in many parts of the country, fruit trees will not start blooming until later in the year. Even for here, the blossoms popped out earlier than usual--mid-February instead of early March.
What is different for me is, I have lived at this same house for over thirty years. Until a few months ago, I always viewed full-grown almond trees across the street. Every February or March, I enjoyed the 2-3 weeks of blossom time. Now, the view consists of about twenty acres of bare ground before I can see blossoming almond trees in the distance. Because of years of drought in California, new water restrictions are prompting many almond growers to tear out their older orchards.
This change has allowed me to view some awesome sunsets, one of which I used for the top banner today.
The presence of the white pickup and heavy equipment suggests the owner is preparing to take out more trees.
We are still waiting to see what will happen to the property immediately across the street."