Apple Industry Update Part 2

Apply Industry Update Part 2. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Fruit Grower Report.

Nancy Foster, President & CEO of US Apple is optimistic about the coming year with all the changes happening in Washington but she says that that change has also been a bit of a hold up.

FOSTER: Specialty crops including apples were successful in the farm bill being the new kids on the block of getting a piece of the farm bill and we formed a new coalition that represented virtually every part of the country which means we could tie into votes that we needed and the new programs are rolling out. Not all of them but a good part of them. I think the change in administration has made it hard to get going like the disaster program.

One of the biggest items in the farm bill was for research.

FOSTER: The new research money in the farm bill was for the specialty crop research initiative that is very important out in Washington State and Oregon and Idaho and we work very closely with Dr. Jim McFerson out there. The apple industry actually was successful in getting the most funding of any item in the first round of specialty crop grants.

It is crucial though that these programs remain intact.

FOSTER: Of course this bill was written before the financial meltdown but I think the challenge that US Apple faces is we worked hard to get programs like this and others in place to grow the market, enhance competitiveness, to become more profitable at production and marketing, do it better and then the Obama administration is coming in and trying to radically cut the federal budget because we are spending so much money on AIG and other place. So success this year is going to be maintaining these programs.

That’s today’s Fruit Grower Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.