It was through a series of fortunate events that led Devin Clarke to a career in agriculture. Growing up in Santa Rosa, farmland was never far away, but Clarke surprisingly knew no one whose livelihood depended on it. In college, Clarke sought direction from a self-exploration survey that pointed him toward agriculture and natural resources.
“I always enjoyed camping, fishing, and being outdoors,” Clarke said.
At CSU Chico, a major in Land Management evolved into a major in Crops, Horticulture and Land Resources when the university updated their program structure. A fascination with insects continued to steer Clarke toward agriculture, and he’s been hooked ever since. After Clarke completed his degree, he worked at Stanislaus Farm Supply for nearly six years serving growers as a crop advisor.
“As a PCA working with growers, I lived in the world of production management,” Clarke said. “I didn’t grow up in the ag industry, so I had no frame of reference as to what happened after the nuts left the field. I wondered: What else is happening that makes this a viable industry?” Clarke’s insatiable curiosity and desire for knowledge led him to apply for and participate in Almond Board of California’s (ABC) 2017 Almond Leadership Program (ALP).
According to Clarke, one of the greatest benefits of participating in the ALP was learning about and experiencing all aspects of the almond industry, from the orchard to the grocery aisle. Through it all, one thing that continually excited him was the topic of innovation and building on the former success of the California almond industry.
In the years following his participation in the ALP, Clarke has continued to focus on innovation — moving the industry from practices that are viable to practices that are pioneering. This mindset, paired with the knowledge and experience gained from the ALP, moved Clarke to serve as a committee member of ABC’s Strategic Ag Innovation Committee (SAIC). After two years of committee service, Clarke was appointed chairman, where he thrives in “finding opportunities in the challenges facing the industry.”
“Part of the committee’s role is to create strategic priorities — a road map of where we need to take this industry in the long run and the incremental steps we need to take along the way to get where we want to go,” Clarke explained.
Once the strategic priorities are set, Clarke’s committee works with the various working groups to solicit proposals from researchers across the industry that can provide resources and knowledge in those specific areas to keep the industry moving forward. Since 1973, the Almond Board has invested more than $53 million in innovative research projects related to the production of almonds.
“Nationwide, the Almond Board is the shining light of industry boards,” Clarke said. “The production and quality research combined with the reputation management component are critical areas where the Almond Board has been really successful.”
In addition to his role on the committee, Clarke pursues innovation in his day-to-day role at Yara as Permanent Crop Manager, which includes overseeing Yara’s Incubator Farm. Clarke calls the farm his “pet project” but managing 40 acres of almonds and 40 acres of walnuts — each with unique nutrition management strategies — is a significant investment of time, energy and resources. Since 2018, when Yara took over the lease for the established orchard, Clarke has brought the concept of the Incubator Farm to life through careful management, innovative research, and collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders.
“The concept of the Incubator Farm was to model a real commercial production orchard and implement programs that represent the wide range of nutrition management strategies that exist in the industry,” Clarke explained. The data the Yara team collects at the Incubator Farm not only fosters a greater understanding of how plant nutrition works, but also translates into something meaningful for growers — it provides insight into developing better and more profitable production strategies.
Clarke and his team have been able to demonstrate the value of crop nutrition programs that are rooted in crop demand and uptake identified by ABC funded research. Last year, the team confronted the long-standing belief that nitrogen applied later than June 1 would result in greater incidences in hull rot, a common disease that reduces productivity and makes almonds difficult to harvest. Clarke’s team applied nitrogen late into the season, in alignment with the latest recommendations by UC Davis to test the effects of smaller, more frequent nitrogen applications on hull rot and overall productivity.
“No one had the gumption to test that out in their field because of their fear of reduced productivity,” Clarke said. “From our research, we validated the tree’s demand nitrogen through the entire season, well beyond June 1.” By applying nitrogen more frequently and in smaller amounts, the team at Yara was able to reduce hull rot by 26% when compared to typical nitrogen application strategies. “That was very surprising to me,” Clarke confided. “I had no idea we’d see this type of reduction [of hull rot] within one year of implementing this program.” Clarke hopes that the Incubator Farm will continue to address challenges in the industry and nudge the industry toward improved practices.
Like many in the ALP, Clarke holds an unwavering commitment to solving the industry’s biggest challenges. His leadership with the SAIC is one way Clarke acts on his commitment. His challenge to ALP participants, past and present? Get involved. “Attending ABC committee meetings after your year in the ALP is important and needed. This industry has invested in us and it’s our time to return that investment.”
