Tree Fruit Trends Part 3

Tree Fruit Trends Part 3. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Fruit Grower Report.

We have been taking a look at a recent study released by NW Farm Credit Services during the Hort Convention. The survey was sent out earlier in the year and had a pretty good response. Yesterday, NW Farm Credit’s Jeff Fagg said that large operations of a million or more gross were more likely to plant additional apple varieties.

FAGG: If we do the same thing with pears, the pear industry as most of you know is probably in the hands of growers that are size-wise some what smaller than the apple industry so the fact that the smaller growers were actually entertaining planting pears at a higher rate than the larger growers.

One of the questions on the survey asked whether organic equated to improved profits.

FAGG: I think the timing of this survey is even more interesting to me because if it would have been polled toward the end of the summer clearly the thought would have been with the economy and what not the organic situation was starting to; the luster was starting to wear off it for the immediate time. But back in January people were generally somewhat neutral.

They also looked at what percentage of operations would be organic in the next 5 years. Most said no to this category.

FAGG: But you can see that large growers are certainly entertaining or have been entertaining converting more of their orchards to organic

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