The Washington Apple Commission (WAC) has forecast the 2008/09 apple crop to jump 10 per cent on the previous year, with a record 108.9m boxes (2.075m tonnes) expected to be packed this season.
In the commission's latest storage report, the group revealed that good summer weather and the alternate bearing of trees has negated the impact on the harvest of the late spring frosts that caused some fruit loss.
'Warm days and cool, crisp nights provided ideal weather for ensuring high colour and good internal quality that make for a vintage year,' said the WAC's director of export operations Todd Fryhover. 'We are gearing up for a great year on the international front, as we've got a good spread of grades and sizing across the manifest that will enable our shippers to be competitive in most export markets.'
According to the report, red delicious apples make up the largest slice of the crop at 32.8m boxes, with increases in volumes of golden delicious (up 32 per cent), granny smith (up 21 per cent), fuji (up 19 per cent) and gala (6 per cent) varieties. The organic apple crop is expected to nearly double to around 7.3m boxes.
Meanwhile, fears that the current global economic crisis will have a significant impact on sales have been played down by the WAC.
'People still have to eat and fresh, wholesome Washington apples deliver value for money,' said Rebecca Baerveldt, head of marketing strategy and promotions at the WAC. 'One-third of the Washington apple crop is exported and the commission has promotional programmes in over 25 countries. The WAC was recently awarded additional funding from the United States Department of Agriculture's Market Access Programme for the 2008/09 season and the Commission is targeting strategic markets to help move the record crop internationally.
'We feel confident that we have the crop quality and range to supply Washington apples to importers, wholesalers and retailers world-wide who want to provide the best eating experience for their apple customers,' she added.
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