Honeycrisp-Vision Pt 2
With today's Fruit Grower Report, I'm Bob Larson. Wow! That's the word from Stemilt Growers describing this year's supply of Honeycrisp apples as harvest gets underway.Stemilt's Brianna Shales says Honeycrisp production has grown dramatically over the past decade, including organic acreage ...
SHALES ... "Organic apples, in general, are growing significantly in Washington state. At Stemilt, we're about 30 percent of our entire apple crop is certified organic and we expect that to go up as the years come. But, we have increased organic Honeycrisp in just one year's time by nearly three-times as much. So, that's basically an orchard or a few coming into production organically and it can really make that volume shift greatly in just a short amount of time."
Shales says from all the early reports they're hearing, the harvest is looking great ...
SHALES ... "This year's good! I mean, we're harvesting them right now! So, they are coming off the trees as fast as we can get them picked and the quality's really good. Sizing's a little smaller although Honeycrisps tend to be large in general so I don't think consumers will notice that as much, but the quality is fantastic on Honeycrisp. And, we've been really working to ensure that the fruit comes off the tree high color, high quality because that's kind of what's demanded in the market."
Shales says other exciting new apple varieties are also in development, but expects the Honeycrisp to be a favorite for years to come.