Blue Diamond Growers is further expanding the capabilities of its Salida facility, the largest almond receiving station in the world, with a new bulk receiving warehouse that will store an additional 50 million pounds of almond meats and bring the total number of bulk warehouses at the facility to eight.
Building on the success of the Bulk 7 warehouse, constructed in 2015, the new state-of-the-art warehouse will feature a number of enhancements to reduce the cooperative's carbon footprint and meet Blue Diamond sustainability initiatives, which include increased energy efficiency, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, and stormwater recharge. The warehouse will have LED lights, an integrated truck scale and loading pit, and 2,400 feet of buried perforated pipe directing the stormwater to the soil beneath the facility.
The unique design of the warehouse features 60' ceilings and extends 26' into the ground, increasing Blue Diamond's receiving capacity by 25 percent. Additional improvements to the design bring added benefits to the cooperative's grower-owners who deliver their crop to the Salida facility. According to the company, growers can expect gentle handling of the almond meats, enabling higher yield and throughput on the main production line, and separate areas inside for storing three different varieties of almonds.
The cooperative expects the warehouse to be in operation for the fall 2020 harvest season. Blue Diamond Growers is the world's leading almond marketer and processor with over 3,000 growers across California.
