Working hand-in-hand, our members help shape the future of the U.S. pistachio industry. Consumers and media, please visit www.TheGreenNut.org.
The Western Pistachio Association is a voluntary agricultural trade association representing U.S. pistachio growers, processors and industry partners in California, Arizona and New Mexico. Governed by an 18-member Board of Directors, the WPA is headquartered in Fresno, California. Our organization provides services vital to U.S. pistachio growers.
Pistachio nutrition research, governmental affairs, product development and promotion of the heart-healthy properties of pistachios are key activities conducted by the Association. Each year since 1997, the Association has brought together pistachio industry members at its Annual Conference and published the U.S. Pistachio Industry Annual Report.
Collectively, California, Arizona and New Mexico represent 99.99 percent of the nation’s pistachio production. California comprises 98.5 percent of the total with 209,000 acres planted throughout 22 counties. There are more than 800 growers within the pistachio community, and the annual “farm gate” value of pistachios represents $700 million to the California economy.
Three decades have passed since the founders of the Western Pistachio Association (WPA) first came together to form the California Pistachio Association (CPA). Optimistic about the future of the fledgling pistachio industry, these visionaries believed forming a trade association would help introduce their relatively new product to consumers and provide a forum to educate growers and industry members on production and processing of pistachios.
In 1981, growers voted to implement the California Pistachio Commission (CPC) to collect mandatory grower assessments that would provide necessary financial support to help grow the industry. Then as now, many major issues of the day were not coming out of the fields; but, rather, the halls of Congress. Among them, Iranian unfair trade activities; federal research and promotion dollars; pesticide issues; food safety; country of origin labeling; aflatoxin and multilateral/bilateral trade agreements.
The CPC was governed by State regulations and laws that prohibited certain types of political activity necessary for the health of the industry. As a voluntary organization, the WPA was not bound by these restrictions and expanded activities in 1989 to help give the industry a voice in Washington, D.C.
Formation of the WPA also allowed the recruitment of members from other pistachio producing states to broaden the industry’s political support that has proven critical to the recent Federal Marketing Order for Pistachios expansion that benefits all U.S. growers. Today’s WPA members represent all major U.S. pistachio producing states, with Board members from California, Arizona and New Mexico.
The WPA has long served the industry by championing the interests of U.S. pistachio growers and allowing their issues to remain front and center. With the termination of the CPC in June of 2007 by grower referendum vote, WPA’s Board of Directors immediately stepped in to ensure substantial grower investment in vital programs and a diversified yet unified industry voice were not lost. Critical programs, such as governmental affairs, production research, nutrition research and promotion of the heart-healthy message continued with diversified yet unified representation provided by the WPA Board of Directors.
The WPA’s mission and continued commitment to the prosperity of U.S. pistachio growers encompasses nutrition research and promotion, new product development and the ongoing critical defense of existing unfair trade duties on Iranian pistachios. The WPA has also continued the valued tradition of hosting an Annual Conference and producing an Annual Report for the benefit of its membership and the entire U.S. pistachio industry.
Partnering with our Board and grower-member base are associate members that include a wide variety of processors, investors and industry-related businesses, as well as other grower-related industry organizations. Increased membership support since 2007 has allowed expansion of WPA programs to better serve the U.S. pistachio industry. In 2009, a new Marketing Committee was formed to initiate a significantly expanded nutrition research and consumer promotion program in support of increasing production.
A multi-faceted campaign was launched to encourage consumers to Go Green with Pistachios for Better Health (TheGreenNut.org). The Green Nut has also gone international with trade promotions in major overseas markets that will reap positive results for many years to come for the U.S. pistachio industry.