Red walnuts now included in USDA grading system

It's official: The red walnut variety known as the Robert Livermore is now included in the U.S. Department of Agriculture grading system, alongside blonde or light walnuts. Growers and marketers say the action will make the red variety more accepted in the marketplace, both domestically and abroad.

"This is an opportunity to serve unmet demand in the marketplace. Enabling the red walnut to be certified will allow the industry to market a product to customers around the world in markets like China, where red walnuts are a highly desired product," said Steve Lindsay, chairman of the California Walnut Board grades and standards committee.

Sought by the California Walnut Board and Commission, the change to the U.S. grading system to include red walnuts was approved as a final rule by the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, and took effect last week.

The final rule revises "U.S. Standards for Walnuts in the Shell and for Shelled Walnuts" to allow grade certification of the Livermore (red) colored variety of walnuts and to remove obsolete references to an unclassified walnut category.

Including the Robert Livermore variety in the USDA certification and grading system more accurately represents current marketing practices and meets growing consumer demand, by providing greater marketing flexibility, the walnut board said. The change also means growers of the colorful nut are subject to paying a per kernelweight-pound assessment, the same as for other walnuts.

Butte County walnut grower Steve Masonek, who operates Cana Ranch in Chico, said he's enthusiastic about the change and hopes the new standard will enhance demand for red walnuts.

"Adding red walnuts to USDA grading standards means they are now a bona fide product that people will recognize and, I think, desire," Masonek said. "Red walnuts are finally being recognized as a valued food product whereas before, they were seen as a novelty. Our status as a viable industry has come up remarkably."

Masonek sells red walnuts at farmers markets and to DeRuosi Nut, a walnut buyer/processor in Escalon that supplies walnuts to markets in the U.S. and around the globe.

Jon Wallander, a field buyer for DeRuosi Nut, said the USDA action "technically makes the Livermore an official walnut," adding that buyers now know they are getting a quality product when making purchases.

The red walnut is from the same family as traditional English walnuts, yet the Livermore kernel is covered by a thin layer or seed coat that ranges from dark red to burgundy. The kernel underneath is light in color. The Robert Livermore is the first patented, red-kernel walnut in the state and was introduced to growers in 1999.

The final rule, which allows grade certification of red walnuts, revises the U.S. standards for grades of inshell and shelled walnuts under the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1946. The new rule updates current grading standards, which were previously limited to four color classifications: extra light, light, light amber and amber. Red walnut kernels previously could not be certified to a U.S. grade, because their color did not fit any of the four classifications.

Abhi Kulkarni, assistant technical director for the California Walnut Board, said red walnuts will now be packed by handlers and receive a grading of either U.S. No. 1 or U.S. No. 2, which will be determined by the inspection agency that checks the outgoing walnuts.

"In terms of marketing, now we can say our product not only looks good, it has a certain grade attached to it. U.S. No. 1 is typically what the export customers want," Kulkarni said. "Previously, without a grade, the buyer would not know the nut's quality, such as how much foreign material is in it, different defects and so on."

With this change, red walnuts must be sold to a registered walnut handler. The walnut board said it is prepared to incorporate the new standards into grading and inspections for the 2017 crop. The rule takes effect about four weeks before the start of Livermore harvest and as the state's commercial walnut season comes to a close.

"If demand takes off in the foreign countries, it might spur some additional plantings," Kulkarni said. "It (the Robert Livermore red walnut) is something different from the usual from the aesthetics of it (and) it is a very beautiful walnut. So, now we will be able to put something new in the mix."

A USDA report earlier this month estimated the 2017 California walnut crop at 650,000 tons from 335,000 acres. Red walnuts represent a very small percentage of total walnuts grown in California, between 600 to 800 acres, according to estimates from Masonek and Wallander. More specific figures are expected next year, when USDA starts tracking red walnuts.

In a related development, the comment period just closed on an interim rule to decrease the assessment rate for California walnuts. Based on a recommendation from the California Walnut Board and Commission, USDA said it is finalizing a rule to decrease the assessment rate for 2017-18 and subsequent marketing years from $0.0465 to $0.04 per kernelweight-pound of assessable walnuts.

The interim rule to lower the assessment for walnuts was published in the Federal Register on July 21. The final rule to include red walnuts into the USDA grading system was published Aug. 22. To view the publication, visit Regulations.gov.

(Christine Souza is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. She may be contacted at csouza@cfbf.com.)