Is Almond Milk Sustainable?
The Water Reality and What Regenerative Organic Farming Changes
By Chad Walker, Sustainability Coordinator, New Barn Organics
Quick Summary
Almond milk comes from a crop grown in a heavily irrigated region with tightening groundwater limits and fixed orchard lifespans. Once established, these orchards require water and pollination every year. Regenerative Organic farming addresses the one variable that can still be actively managed: soil condition. Covered, biologically active soil improves infiltration, moisture retention, and how effectively irrigation is used over decades of orchard life.
Key Topics Covered
• Is almond milk sustainable from a water-use perspective
• Irrigation dependence in Central Valley almond orchards
• Groundwater regulation (SGMA) and the future of almond production
• Differences between plant-based crops and irrigated orchards
• The role of Regenerative Organic farming in soil and water management
The Water Reality Behind Almond Milk
Almond milk is often framed as a low-impact alternative to dairy milk, yet most almonds are grown in California’s Central Valley, where large-scale agriculture depends on irrigation. The region produces roughly 80% of the world’s almonds in a climate where rainfall alone cannot sustain commercial yields. As a result, production relies heavily on surface water and groundwater — resources that recharge slowly and can be depleted far faster than they refill.
Groundwater Limits and the Future of Almond Production
In 2014, the California Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) imposed pumping limits on chronically overdrawn basins like the Central Valley, placing agricultural systems built on long-term groundwater access into a new regulatory reality. In practical terms, less groundwater will be available in regions that expanded under assumptions of long-term abundance.
On the ground, this shift is already visible. Wells are drilled deeper, pumping costs continue to rise, and growers face increasingly difficult allocation decisions during drought cycles. In some cases, older large-capacity wells fail before reaching expected depths, pumps are replaced to access lower aquifers, and orchard blocks are selectively stressed or removed. Orchard removal is not a minor adjustment — it means writing off years of biological growth and financial investment because the water math no longer works.
Perception vs. Agricultural Reality
Many annual crops such as oats, soy, and grains can be reduced, rotated, or fallowed in dry years. Almond orchards do not have that flexibility. Once trees are established, they require irrigation every season to survive and remain viable. During drought, water use cannot be meaningfully reduced without stressing or damaging trees that are already in the ground.
Plant-based is often treated as a single low-impact category, even though the crops behind those products are grown under very different conditions. A rain-fed grain grown in a cooler region operates under a completely different water reality than an irrigated orchard in a semi-arid climate. Grouping them together under one sustainability label flattens these differences and obscures the actual resource demands tied to how and where each crop is grown.
This distinction also applies to comparisons between almond milk and dairy. Dairy systems carry emissions, feed, and manure challenges, but they can adjust more readily: feed sourcing can shift, rations can change, and output can respond over shorter timeframes. Almond orchards are far more rigid once planted. They depend on ongoing irrigation, synchronized bloom, and annual mass pollination. The tradeoffs associated with almond milk are rooted in the fixed realities of orchard agriculture, not the plant-milk category as a whole.
Pollination: Bring in the Bees
Each year, millions of commercial honeybee colonies are transported to the Central Valley from across the United States for almond bloom, forming the largest single-crop pollination event in modern agriculture. This is built into how almonds are grown. It is not optional.
Even within regenerative orchards, managed hives remain necessary. Some growers report gradually reducing hive density while investing in habitat and continuous bloom, but regenerative management does not eliminate reliance on coordinated pollination. In practice, the environmental footprint of almonds is shaped not only by irrigation, but also by a production model that requires large-scale movement of commercial hives every year.
Farmer Highlight: How Regenerative Orchard Management Changes the Equation
Burroughs Family Orchards operates in California’s Central Valley under the same water limits, groundwater regulation, irrigation demands, and annual pollination pressures that define modern almond production. Their orchard management is built around Regenerative Organic principles, with a focus on soil condition, ground cover, and field-level monitoring in a permanently irrigated system.
Irrigation is not treated as a fixed schedule. Watering decisions are guided by soil moisture probes, evapotranspiration data, and direct field observation, so water is applied based on actual soil and plant needs rather than calendar timing. The objective is not theoretical water reduction, but retaining more moisture in the root zone after irrigation.
Orchard floors remain covered with living vegetation instead of being kept bare. Continuous ground cover protects soil structure, reduces surface heat, and improves infiltration. Higher organic matter and stronger soil aggregation allow moisture to persist longer, limiting losses to runoff, compaction, and surface evaporation.
Sheep graze the orchard floor as part of regenerative organic management. Instead of repeated mowing and mechanical clearing, grazing controls vegetation while maintaining continuous ground cover. Plant material is broken down in place and returned directly to the soil, gradually building organic matter and improving soil structure over time.
This soil-first management approach directly affects how water behaves in the orchard. Covered, biologically active soil absorbs irrigation more effectively and holds moisture longer than repeatedly disturbed, exposed ground. In a hot, irrigated production environment, soil condition becomes a primary factor in how efficiently applied water supports the trees.
Measurement is grounded at the field level, with emphasis on soil monitoring, pumping data, and observed orchard response rather than model-only estimates. These practices do not remove irrigation or pollination. They change how water moves through the soil — how much is absorbed, how long it remains available, and how effectively it supports tree health.
So, Is Almond Milk Sustainable?
Almond orchards stay in the ground for decades once planted. The trees still require water every season, and bloom still depends on managed pollination. Those realities do not change when water becomes tighter or growing conditions become more difficult.
What can change is how the orchard is managed while those trees are alive. Soil cover, living ground vegetation, grazing, and direct field monitoring influence whether applied water moves into the soil and stays near the roots or is lost to heat, runoff, and compaction. In hot growing conditions, the condition of the orchard floor directly affects how long moisture remains available to the trees.
Year over year, regenerative management builds stronger soil structure and keeps the ground covered and biologically active. This leads to greater water absorption, more moisture staying in the soil, and more consistent tree performance during heat and dry periods. For an orchard that will require irrigation every season regardless, regenerative practices represent a clearly better path forward over time because they improve how the land handles the water that must already be applied.
New Barn sources almonds through a long-term partnership with Burroughs Family Orchards, where soil cover, grazing, and field-level irrigation decisions are guided by Regenerative Organic practices. The goal is not to present almonds as impact-free, but to manage a long-lived orchard in a way that keeps more moisture in the soil and supports stable production conditions over decades.
Key Takeaways
• Most almonds are grown in irrigation-dependent regions like California’s Central Valley
• Almond orchards are permanent systems with ongoing water needs
• Groundwater regulations are reshaping the future of almond production
• Soil function determines how effectively water is used
• Regenerative practices improve infiltration, moisture retention, and soil health
• Regenerative almonds are not impact-free, but they represent a more responsible system improvement
FAQ
Is almond milk sustainable from a water-use perspective?
It depends largely on where and how the almonds are grown. Most almonds come from California’s Central Valley, where orchards rely on irrigation in a water-constrained region. Water use is tied to tree survival once orchards are established, making soil management and irrigation efficiency critical factors.
Does regenerative farming reduce almond water use?
Regenerative Organic practices do not eliminate the need for irrigation. They improve soil cover, structure, and infiltration, which helps more applied water enter the soil, remain in the root zone longer, and be used more effectively by the trees.
Why do almonds require so much irrigation?
Almonds are grown as long-lived orchards in a semi-arid climate where rainfall cannot support commercial yields. Once trees are planted, they require consistent water every year to remain viable, including during drought conditions.
Are almonds worse than dairy environmentally?
They involve different constraints. Dairy systems face emissions, feed, and manure challenges, while almond production is shaped by irrigation demand, groundwater limits, and annual pollination. The impacts come from different agricultural realities rather than a simple plant-versus-dairy comparison.
Does regenerative almond farming make almonds impact-free?
No. Irrigation and pollination remain necessary in almond production. Regenerative Organic management focuses on improving soil condition and land function so water is absorbed, retained, and used more efficiently over the lifespan of the orchard.
About the Author
Chad Walker is the Sustainability Coordinator at New Barn Organics, focusing on regenerative agriculture, supply-chain transparency, and clear sustainability communication in the natural foods space. His work translates complex agricultural realities — from water use and soil function to certification standards — into grounded, operational analysis with an emphasis on honest tradeoffs.
