Northwest cherry growers sold nearly 10m cartons (9.1kg equivalents) to 1 July in a promising start to the 2019 season.
A total of 9.1m cartons were sold in in June, which was within 3.9 per cent of estimates, according to data from industrybody Northwest Cherry Growers (NWCG). A shipment of 600,000 cartons on 1 July provided a strong start to the second month of the season.
The forward estimates for the remainder of the season indicate very good volumes throughout the remainder of July and into August.
BJ Thurlby, president of NWCG, said the early results were a significant turnaround considering conditions earlier in the year.
“Considering that there were still several feet of snow covering some orchards in late March, this is a remarkable turn of events,” Thurlby said.
“The earlier development of the crop was in large part due to grower practices and ideal development weather this spring.”
Sales of rainier cherries are also expected to continue into mid-July with estimates predicting a total crop of just under 2m cartons (6.8kg equivalent).
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