12/12/08 Final Apple Numbers

Final Apple Numbers. I'm Greg Martin with today's Fruit Grower Report. The 2008 apple crop has surprised everyone. The spring weather was thought to cause a smaller crop but according to Todd Fryhover with the Washington Apple Commission, it was anything but. FRYHOVER: Well we really are quite happy when it comes to the total volume. You know Washington's crop is up over 12-million boxes which is a big number. However the way we're looking at it here is when you look at our most important market which of course is the domestic United States and look at the needs and the demands of that retail base, we don't have that more fruit than we had last year. He says there will be not problems in supplying the retailers and consumers with fruit. FRYHOVER: Of course the dilemma really comes in with the small size of the manifest. You know the 100's and smaller that lend themselves towards export and I know that the Washington Apple Commission is poised to take advantage of exporting as much as possible with the targeted number of 35 million boxes. Over the last three years the top average number has been around 32 million boxes and Fryhover says that means they will have to move some apples. FRYHOVER: We are stressing with our representatives overseas that we need a 15% movement. We need to be beating the bushes, doing the activities that not necessarily build the brand this year but build volume. We need to move product. Fryhover was recently named the new president of the Washington Apple Commission. He will take over from interim president, Ken Severn on January 1. That's today's Fruit Grower Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.