# Episode 99: Economics and Agronomics with Mel Machado

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/almond-journey-2535631/episode-99-economics-and-agronomics-with-mel-machado
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/almond-journey-2535631/episode-99-economics-and-agronomics-with-mel-machado.md
Podcast: [Almond Journey](https://stenobird.com/podcast/almond-journey-2535631)
Published: 2026-05-27T18:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://almond-journey.captivate.fm
Audio file: https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/c3dbc003-f71b-40b1-8606-73ce1d8c6bc0.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/almond-journey-2535631/episodes/episode-99-economics-and-agronomics-with-mel-machado
Duration seconds: 1894

## Resource

Mel Machado joins the Journey to provide a wide-ranging “state of the almond orchard” discussion. Machado is the Chief Agricultural Officer at Blue Diamond Growers and discusses the current challenging grower economics, the decline in almond acreage, the decision to end the objective estimate and some of his thoughts on pollination, cover crops, bee health and more. In addition to his 34-year career at Blue Diamond, Machado also serves as an alternate on the Almond Board of California and holds positions on the Production Stewardship Workgroup and Strategic Ag Innovation Committee. “Excell at the basics. You can have all the fancy stuff in the world like remote sensing tools. But if the nutrition's not right, if the water's not right, you're going to have a problem. Master the basics.” - Mel Machado In Today’s episode: Hear from Blue Diamond Growers Chief Agricultural Officer Mel Machado Explore the impacts of bloom, weather, bee health and other agronomic factors Discover the significance and tradeoffs of crop estimating and average yield calculations Understand how the almond industry benefits by supporting the bee industry 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 and values contributions offered by its growers, handlers, and allied industry members. However, the opinions, services and products discusse…

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