Boosting the Apple Industry Part 2

Boosting the Apple Industry Part 2. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Fruit Grower Report. 

The Washington Apple industry may have a problem. Too many apples left over from last year and what to do with them. Diane Kurrle, Director of Public Affairs for US Apple says there is some help on the way through some new programs. 

KURRLE: A really innovative program that USDA has started just a couple of months ago and that’s a pilot program for fresh sliced apples and one of the things that the farm bill did was it increased the amount of money available to USDA for fruit and vegetable purchases. 

This is allowing the fresh sliced program to reach out to kids in 5 pilot states that includes some 3 million pounds of apples. 

KURRLE: Another initiative that we are very excited about is just this past year the Special Supplemental Program for Women, Infants and Children otherwise known as Wic Program has now updated their food packages and they’ve included fruits and vegetables for the first time. 

The WIC program is the third largest federal nutrition program so that means a significant amount of dollars going into the fruit industry. Kurrle says there is yet another major purchase pending. 

KURRLE: US Apple has begun talks with the Department of Agriculture to request an apple purchase of at least 1 million boxes of apples and this would be for federal nutrition programs. Everything from the national school lunch program to commodities that go to food banks and other federal feeding programs. 

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