With a run of triple-degree temperatures in midsummer, Washington apple growers have seen their challenges for 2021.
Even so, the crop is expected to be slightly better than last year’s volume.
The Washington State Tree Fruit Association’s fresh estimate of 124.8 million 40-pound boxes is up 2.3% from 2020’s 122-million-box crop, but down 7.2% from the 2019 crop of 134.5 million boxes.
The continuing risk of heat damage on apples raises the prospect that some of the crop will not be harvestable or utilized in either fresh or processed channels, said John DeVaney, president of the Yakima-based association.
“Growers have told me they might have to prioritize what fruit gets picked,” he said.
The industry estimate was a solid mid-range estimate, he said.
Marketers painted a largely favorable view of crop quality among the diverse varieties grown in the state.
There will be some reduction in the Washington apple crop because of sunburn, but early harvest progress left Mac Riggan pleasantly surprised.
Riggan, director of marketing for Chelan Fresh, Chelan, Wash., said fruit size may be down slightly this year.
“I think that there’ll be more bag opportunity this year,” he said.
With sophisticated controlled-atmosphere storages and packaging equipment, Riggan said Washington marketers will deliver a quality box of fruit as always.
Another positive for Washington is the growth of new varieties, he said. Almost 25% of the state’s varieties are modern ones, compared with only about 5% of modern varieties 10 years ago. That makes the flavor profile of the crop much more attractive to consumers, he said.
Washington’s estimated fresh apple production of about 125 million cartons will likely come down once harvest accelerates, said Don Roper, vice president of sales and marketing for Honeybear Marketing LLC, Brewster, Wash.
That could mean the 2021 crop falls a little short of the 2020 crop, he said. However, Honeybear’s production will be up strongly, much of it attributed to continued internal growth of its grower partners, he said.
“We continue to over-index on organic apple production and our varieties, specifically Honeycrisp and Pazazz, continue to add strong production gains,” Roper said.
Volumes for the state and Stemilt Growers are looking to be similar to last year, which was a moderate crop, said Brianna Shales, marketing director for the Wenatchee, Wash.-based company.
“We are actively harvesting apples now and seeing great things out of the initial fruit coming off the tree,” Shales said.
“Color is great, size is better than we anticipated with the heat and will be in a good range for bulk and bag promotions. When it comes to varieties, our big stories at Stemilt are increases in three main club apples: Rave (in season now), SweeTango, and Cosmic Crisp. We are also up in volume on the consumer-favorite Honeycrisp and organic Honeycrisp.”
Chuck Sinks, president of sales and marketing of Yakima, Wash.-based Sage Fruit Co., said the company will see an increase in volume over the 2020-2021 crop. “There will be a significant increase in Honeycrisp and Cosmic Crisp for the 2021-22 crop year,” he said. “Sage Fruit is on a growth pattern and we are very excited about this upcoming season, as well as our future growth.”
Superfresh Growers expects apple volume to be up about 2% this year, similar to the state’s expectation, said Cat Gipe-Stewart, communications manager for the Yakima, Wash.-based firm.
“Varieties like Honeycrisp, organic Honeycrisp, organic gala, Pink Lady, Cosmic Crisp, and Autumn Glory have areas of growth with plenty of promotable volume,” Gipe-Stewart said.
Heat effect
Shales said Washington apple trees and fruit were resilient in the face of unprecedented heat.
“We are still early in the harvest season, but so far, pleasantly surprised to see the great quality and condition of the fruit,” Shales said.
“Timing was not advanced much because of the heat; it’s normal harvest timing for the most part. Color is great. Sizing is something everyone is still watching, but early varieties are sizing in the average range, which means bulk and bag opportunities at retail.”
Sinks said the high temperatures have delayed harvest by a few days.
“As far as sizing, the front end of harvest may trend slightly smaller than last season, but overall, we will have good sizing throughout the year,” Sinks said.
“It’s still early yet, but we are not huge swings from last year due to heat,” Gipe-Stewart said of Superfresh Growers’ crop. “Sizing is well-balanced and there will be plenty to promote across the board.”
Roper said excessive heat put a lot of stress on the trees when growing regions experienced more than two weeks of 110-plus degrees.
“The southern growing districts experienced very extensive heat directly impacting size of fruit we are going to get off our trees,” he said.
“A big question that is not resolved at this time will be the condition of the fruit once we get to the later controlled-atmosphere rooms in February and beyond. How the fruit handled the extensive heat will be revealed in the corresponding packouts in early spring.”