At the Oscars last year, actor Jennifer Lawrence declared that her Oscar purse contained, besides her phone and candies, almonds.
Almonds are popular with most Hollywood leading ladies. Gwyneth Paltrow loves munching on almonds, Oprah Winfrey slims down for shows eating almonds while the nuts form a part of the post-pregnancy thinning strategy for many women.
A handful of the nuts can help prevent weight gain and maintain a healthy heart. Not only are almonds rich in Vitamin E, Calcium, Magnesium and Potassium, they are a significant source of protein and fibre, while being naturally low in sugar.
According to the Food and Drug Administration of the US, eating 50 grams of almonds per day reduces the risk of heart diseases. In India too, many people are consuming them for their health benefits.
According to a global survey, 90 per cent people prefer almonds and 47 per cent of consumers worldwide are willing to pay more for an almond product. Almond exports from the Almond Board of California (ABC) have seen a surge lately and India is the fourth largest export destination for the ABC in the year 2012-13 at a whopping 57 thousand tonnes. This is only next to the domestic consumption of USA, China and Spain.
ABC’s exports to India have been growing since the turn of the century with an annual growth rate of 13.7 per cent.
Exports to India have more than doubled since 2006-07 when it was about 26 thousand tonnes. And to fuel this demand, the ABC has added millions of acres to its total area of plantation in California, which contributes 82 per cent of world’s almond production.
A recent research by the USDA’s agriculture wing found that the energy content of almonds was about 129 kcal for every 28 grams as opposed to about 170 kcal as previously thought.
According to analysis of almonds done in USDA-certified laboratories, ABC produced almonds have about seven grams lesser mono-unsaturated fatty acids per 100 grams than their Indian counterparts. Total lipids are lesser by about four grams for every 100 grams of almonds when compared to the Indian counterparts.
