Cherry Outlook & Director of Ag Change

Cherry Outlook & Director of Ag Change

I’m Lacy Gray with Washington Ag Today.

Based on weather patterns that we are seeing now in the state cherry growers may very well get an early June start on harvest. Currently the Yakima Valley, which would normally be about 230 degree units, or degree day units, is at 409, which is quite a bit further ahead than it would normally ever be. In fact, the Yakima Valley is so far ahead that it’s ahead of Richland, which is at 316 degree day units. But that could quickly change over the next month. BJ Thurlby with NW Cherries, who is busy this time of year going from meeting to meeting with different grower groups, took some time to give us a quick cherry outlook for this year.

THURLBY: We won’t really know where the cherry crop is really until the first week of May, last week of April, but we are assuming based on last year’s where the crop came out and looking at kind of a regression analysis of where this crops going to be, we’re assuming another 20 million box crop this year. So, we’ll see where it goes from there, but that’s a standard size crop now days.

On Monday morning Washington Department of Agriculture Director Dan Newhouse informed his staff and members of the agriculture industry that he will be leaving as of April 1. Many within the ag community commend Newhouse on the great job he has done for the ag industry during his four years as the agency’s Director. Governor Jay Inslee has announced that Winthrop rancher Bud Hover will become the new Director of the Department of Agriculture. Inslee says that “Bud’s experience as a rancher and his work on issues from water to wildlife will be invaluable in further growing this vital industry.”

I’m Lacy Gray and that’s Washington Ag Today on the Ag Information Network.