Pear Cannery Impact
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson with today’s Fruit Grower Report. The USDA’s Section 32 purchase of Northwest Pears after the sudden closure of the Del Monte cannery last summer will certainly help growers scrambling for alternative markets.
But without a cannery, I asked Pear Bureau Northwest president and CEO, CarrieAnn Arias what that means moving forward …
ARIAS … “It definitely means a lot more fresh pears. It also, really, is going to be dependent on what the grade of that fruit is too, right. Some people are growing just for canneries so that’s a bit more of a challenge if it’s not going to meet the U.S. Number One specs.”
And the cannery closure, Arias says impacts Bartletts the most …
ARIAS … “We do have a lot of export markets that take fruit, but Bartletts are a tougher one to move because not very many countries are taking Bartletts. Anjou is really kind of the shining star in the export market space so, you know, the challenge certainly becomes what happens with that fruit that’s not U.S. Number One. You’re not going to see it in the traditional grocery store chains, and what’s that outlet?”
So, any chance the cannery will reopen? …
ARIAS … “We’ve heard that that equipment is getting ready to go up or sale. Maybe somebody will come in and buy it. I don’t know that that’s going to relieve any of the pressures that those growers are feeling today, from this year’s season. Maybe next year it will have an impact.”
The most commonly grown pear varieties in Washington are Bartlett, D'Anjou, and Bosc.
