Fruit Industry In Review Part 2

Fruit Industry in Review Part 2. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Fruit Grower Report.

It was another good year for the Washington wine industry and grape growers across the northwest. Washington Association of Wine Grape Growers Vicky Scharlau had some good new about the grape harvest.

SCHARLAU: I think the quality has been excellent. People from the beginning of harvest have talked about this being a vintage to put away in that it’s going to have the kind of quality that you can age and really look back on the harvest of 2009 as one of the better from Washington State but we’ve been saying that for 10 years.

The wine industry continued to grow as over 600 wineries are now open in the state and Robin Pollard with the Wine Commission says there is great variety here.

POLLARD: I think they can expect to experience a number of different types of wines, that’s the beauty of what we have to offer because we can grow more that 25 different types of grapes which really then affords the winemaker this wonderful palette to draw from of different kinds of wines to blend or to make vineyard designate wines.

2009 will again be known for some really good fruit. Cherries, pears, apricots and of course apples. Todd Fryhover with the Washington Apple Commission was pretty optimistic.

FRYHOVER: So far things look good, prices look great. You know movement has been excellent. We had some early movement into Taiwan on some Gala’s and things and now we are just waiting to reload and get some Red’s and some Fuji’s and some other things on the road.

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