National Almond Day
Yes, Road Trips Foodies: today is National Almond Day.
The Almond Board of California reports that a recent study among 32 healthy, normal weight, Caucasian women suggests that a mid-morning snack of almonds helped control appetite and resulted in reduced calorie intake during the rest of the day1. The study looked at the one-day effects of eating 1 ounce and 1.5 ounces of almonds compared to no morning snack on ratings of appetite and fullness and overall calorie intake at lunch and dinner. The women in the study felt the least hungry and ate significantly fewer calories at lunch and dinner when consuming the 1.5 ounce almond snack.
There are more than 30 different varieties of almonds, and 10 of them comprise the majority of almonds produced in California. Nonpareil continued to be the leading variety, followed by Butte, Monterey, Carmel and Padre. The United States is the largest market for almonds with about 30% of the crop sold for domestic use; the rest are shipped internationally.
Almonds are at the moment a contentious topic. They’re water-guzzlers (almonds take up 10% of the state’s water), and California is entering its fourth year of drought. (Note that far more water goes to other agricultural sectors — especially those relating to livestock.)
In 2013, there were 940,000 acres of almonds in California, according to the USDA. Each acre of almonds uses three to four acre-feet of water each year, most of which are delivered via river diversions or groundwater.
And, heads up: don’t drink almond milk.
(Photo courtesy of California Almonds)
