Checking Up On Pears

Checking Up On Pears

Checking Up On Pears. I'm Greg Martin with today's Fruit Grower Report.

The 2015 pear crop is still being estimated at about 19.9-million cartons but there won't be a firm number for a few more weeks. Kathy Stephenson, Communications Director for Pear Bureau Northwest says the harvest is going well.

STEPHENSON: We have gotten feedback from the upper valley region that say the crop was plentiful, the fruit size was amazing, the quality was terrific and then as you get down lower where it was a little hotter and water was a little more difficult in some districts our fruit size was a little smaller and we had a little bit of quality concerns.

She says they figure the crop will be overall down five to ten percent versus last year and two to three percent off a five year average. But she says they are really ramping up the marketing with a strong message about wholesome snacking.

STEPHENSON: Snacking has become an important part of our adult life. Ten years ago 90% of us would have avoided snacking, now 04% of us are snacking each day and it's becoming part of that whole small-meal concept. What I'm concerned about with the Pear Bureau is often snacks for us mean grabbing a chip or grabbing a flavored popcorn we're trying to jump on board with the idea of real food, wholesome snacking.

She says to think about snacking on pears.

STEPHENSON: Pear, with their high fiber content as one of the foods that definitely will help fill you up, we're encouraging people grab a piece of fruit like a pear and then put it with other stackable things that are nutritious for us.

That's today's Fruit Grower Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network of the West.

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