More on Apple Exports to China

More on Apple Exports to China

More on Apple Exports to China. I'm Greg Martin with today's Fruit Grower Report.

That Washington apple industry is still buzzing after last weeks announcement that China had lifted the embargo on Red and Golden Delicious apples. A lot of work by Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service folks made that possible. Osama El-Lissy of APHIS explains apple rot, which is the reason China suspended imports.

EL-LISSY: Those rots basically cause brown lesions on apples and some of them on pears which would reduce the quality of apples and pears as well as their marketability and therefore they asked us to take the necessary safeguard measures to prevent the spread of those rots from the United States to China.

He says that the industry really responded.

EL-LISSY: The industry and the growers applying very sound control measures that ended up reducing the level of contamination of these rots, we started to implement measures at packing house facilities to ensure that apples are being inspected and free from these rots before they are allowed to be shipped to China.

There were other concessions the industry had to meet as well to assist in reopening the Chinese marketplace.

EL-LISSY: Cold storage was another component that we agreed to ensure that apples are being stored for between 40 and 90 days in the appropriate temperature so if indeed there are any infections then those infections would be seen before export.

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

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