Almonds are one of the few major tree nuts where the United States is a dominant global exporter rather than a net importer, with California's Central Valley producing the vast majority of world supply. Imports under this heading are therefore relatively modest and often involve specialty varieties, organic product, or in-shell almonds not competitively produced domestically. FDA's mandatory almond pasteurization rule—applicable to California-grown almonds sold in the US—does not automatically extend to imported almonds, but imported product must still meet FDA food-safety standards and FSVP requirements. Importers should verify whether the specific almond form (in-shell, blanched, sliced, or whole kernel) affects HTS classification.

AI-written summary of the official U.S. Census Bureau trade figures on this page — verify before relying on it.